Political Science

This course investigates the tensions that arise at the interface between morality and politics. It introduces students to deontological and consequentialist thinking on morality; examines the notions of a political ethic and "dirty hands"; offers some insights into, and the possible resolution of, the tensions that exist between strong and effective political action (realpolitik) and the constraints of morality.

This course represents additional work for the AGENDA SETTING AND ISSUE DEFINITION course. This course is concerned with how public problems are formed and framed. It considers how public problems become, or do not become, items on the public agenda in order to lead to policy development. After introducing the notion of agenda setting, the course develops the social problem approach, and then exposes leading concepts to explain the character of the agenda in modern times.

While the study of social and public policy has traditionally been concerned with actions taken by governments, the wider non-governmental sector is increasingly recognised as playing a key role. This course focuses on both international and local “non-governmental organizations” (NGOs) that have emerged around the world to address a wide range of social, political, and environmental concerns. It offers a critical perspective on NGOs in the context of development and social policy, covering both theoretical and policy issues. The focus is on two main inter-related themes: how NGOs serve as vehicles through which citizens organize, and how NGOs are instruments through which states, businesses, and funding agencies pursue their interests.

This course introduces Comparative Political Economy (CPE), an important subfield of political science that analyzes how economic policy, politics, and institutions shape the interaction of capitalism and democracy in different countries. It provides a toolkit of CPE arguments and insights that make sense of contemporary upheavals such as the rise in populism and threats to established democratic norms, the repercussions of financial market volatility, and the massive impact of accelerating technological and climate change. Questions addressed include: Is the political equality implied by democracy compatible with the economic inequality characteristic of capitalism? Does the power of the wealthy undermine democracy, and ultimately, capitalism itself? What role do governments play in a capitalist economy? How can we explain rising inequality? How does the welfare state shape capitalism? What are the roots of financial instability, and how does it affect politics? Does the technological revolution of the internet age change the relationship between capitalism and democracy, and if so in what ways? How have globalization and the rise of China affected politics in the high-income countries of the West? Can democracy and capitalism survive a world of multiple crises, such as increased geopolitical tensions and rapid climate change? The course focuses on the rich democratic nations of Europe and North America, but also places the political economy of these regions in their global context. 

By examining the development of international political theory, from the Ancient Greeks to the present, the course explores and criticizes theories and arguments that have been offered to defend or challenge the power of political communities and explain the sources and varieties of conflict and cooperation that can occur within and beyond political communities. The course examines the ideas of great political thinkers from Thucydides, Machiavelli, and Hobbes to Kant, Hegel, and Marx as well as the use to which these arguments have been put in the world of politics and international relations by contemporary thinkers. These thinkers and the concepts they identify and use will provide us with a window into the structures that shape much international politics such as states’ rights and international humanitarian obligations; the nature and status of international law, and the prospects for global democracy and democratization.

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This course explores the study of politics from the perspective of gender and provides an analysis of equality policies. It examines the strategies, institutions, instruments, areas of study, and actors participating in the public policy process, as well as representation and political participation of women specifically.