Module POC3124 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POC3124: Political Thinkers of the Late Twentieth Century
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.
Module Aims
This module aims to introduce you to the work of several exemplary thinkers of the late twentieth century who sometimes also participated in the events that they wrote about. It will encourage you to read closely some key political texts that have animated political action and influenced political reflection since their publication. The module aims to provoke critical reflection by engaging with ideas that challenge conventional assumptions about the meaning, possibilities and limits of democratic politics.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate substantive knowledge of the thinkers and texts studied; 2. understand the role that various thinkers and debates have played in shaping modern political thought. |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. assess the coherence, plausibility and significance of political arguments; 4. appreciate how political concepts are shaped and transformed by historical context and deployment in action. |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. present complex arguments with clarity and concision; 6. communicate effectively in speech and writing. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
The module will survey the work of a range of thinkers from the late twentieth century. While the specific thinkers and texts surveyed may vary from year to year, they will be selected to reflect a range of themes (such as sexual liberation, decolonization, power and violence) and ideologies (such as conservativism, feminism, communism and black power). An indicative list of thinkers whose work the module might examine includes: Michel Foucault, Angela Davis, Paulo Freire, Michael Oakeshott, Friedrich von Hayek, Stuart Hall, Simone de Beauvoir, Hannah Arendt & Frantz Fanon.
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | 130 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching activity | 20 | 10 x 2 hour seminars |
| Guided Independent study | 40 | Reading and preparation for seminars |
| Guided Independent study | 90 | Preparation and completion of assessment tasks |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay plan | 1-2 pages | 1-6 | Peer review and verbal comments in class |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 60 | 2,000 words | 1-6 | Verbal and written comments |
| Portfolio | 40 | 2,500 words | 1-6 | Written comments |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay (2,000 words) | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
| Portfolio | Essay (2,500 words) | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Basic reading:
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Arendt, Arendt (1963) Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil. New York: Viking Press.
Davis, Angela (1998) The Angela Y. Davis Reader, ed. Joy James. London: Blackwell.
de Beauvoir, Simone (1953) The Second Sex. London: Jonathan Cape.
Hall, Stuart (2017) Selected Political Writings: The Great Moving Right Show and other essays. Durham: Duke University Press.
Hayek, Friedrich (1944) The Road to Serfdom. London: Routledge.
Fanon, Frantz (1961) The Wretched of the Earth.
Foucault, Michel (1977) Discipline and Punish. London: Pantheon Books.
Freire, Paolo (1970) Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Herder & Herder.
Lorde, Audre (1984) Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches. Berkeley: Crossing Press.
Oakeshott, Michael (1962) Rationalism in Politics and Other Essays. London: Metheun.
