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If you have been wondering what makes a “Liberal” liberal or a “Conservative” conservative, what “Marxists” or “Socialists” think, you get a chance to discuss these questions with other students and your tutor and collaboratively arrive at answers. Content will be drawn from current political discourse and students may for instance – amongst other things - reflect on what distinguishes a “conservative” from a “populist,” or what a “socialist” and a “social democrat” have in common. Students will be learning about ideologies` capacity to guide us and encourage us to see society in a certain way, and ensure that we process current political debates in a particular manner. In class discussions we do not only reflect on the political dimension of ideologies, but we also consider what they do to citizens’ thinking and behaviour, in short: How they exercise power over us. After briefly discussing the term “ideology,” the course critically assesses political thought generated since the 19th century in the west and introduces political ideologies that continue to shape political experience worldwide. Our main focus in this first of two courses will be on Conservatism, Marxism, Socialism and Liberalism.
What will we cover?
- Liberalism
- Conservatism
- Socialism
- Marxism
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course learners should be able to...
- explain their respective ideological worldviews
- understand why alternative ideologies are attractive to their followers
- develop the capacity for critical thinking about their own and others’ ideologies
- discuss constructively the most significant contributions to political ideology
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
A mixture of lectures/ short presentations by the tutor, and class discussions. A comprehensive bibliography will be given at the beginning of the course. Also, (brief) reading materials will be made available digitally. Participants will be expected to brief short texts, and/or watch documentaries/short videos, and/or listen to short podcasts about the emergence and ascendancy of ideologies before and after lessons. Please note, that as the course progresses, participants are encouraged to take a more active part in the course – this will be achieved through a mixture of smaller group work but also class discussions.
A list of further readings will be provided to participants. The list will include suggestions of books to purchase, as well as of free resources such as newspapers, podcasts, online articles, and videos. While you are not required to buy any of these, you may wish to purchase some books, subscribe to specialized magazines, or attend talks or webinars on the issues addressed in class in order to deepen and broaden the subject knowledge gained in this course. However, this is not a requirement.
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