| Course Name | Contemporary Political Theory |
| Code | Semester | Theory (hour/week) | Application/Lab (hour/week) | Local Credits | ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSIR 470 | Fall/Spring | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Prerequisites | None | |||||
| Course Language | English | |||||
| Course Type | Elective | |||||
| Course Level | First Cycle | |||||
| Mode of Delivery | - | |||||
| Teaching Methods and Techniques of the Course | ||||||
| Course Coordinator | - | |||||
| Course Lecturer(s) | ||||||
| Assistant(s) | ||||||
| Course Objectives | The primary purpose of this course is to introduce students to the theoretical controversies within contemporary political philosophy and to encourage them to consider ethical and political issues from a critical perspective. |
| Learning Outcomes | The students who succeeded in this course;
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| Course Description | Particular attention will be paid to contemporary disputes about freedom, public realm, justice, constitutional and radical democracy, populism, violence and democratic ethics within contemporary political theory. |
| Related Sustainable Development Goals |  |
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| Core Courses | |
| Major Area Courses | X | |
| Supportive Courses | ||
| Media and Managment Skills Courses | ||
| Transferable Skill Courses |
| Week | Subjects | Required Materials |
| 1 | Introduction: Major Controversies in Contemporary Political Theory | |
| 2 | Liberal Freedom | Isaiah Berlin, “Two Concepts of Liberty”, Four Essays on Liberty (Oxford University Press, 1990) |
| 3 | Freedom and Public Realm | Hannah Arendt, “What is Freedom?” Between Past and Future (Penguin); Hannah Arendt, The Human Condition (University of Chicago Press, 1998), 175-247 |
| 4 | Constitutional Democracy | John Rawls, “The Idea of an Overlapping Consensus”, Political Liberalism (Columbia University Pres, 2005). |
| 5 | Struggles for Recognition | Jürgen Habermas, “Struggles for Recognition in the Democratic Constitutional State” in Gutmann, Multiculturalism (Princeton University Press, 1994), 107-147. |
| 6 | Radical/Participatory Democracy | Sheldon Wolin, “Fugitive Democracy”, Fugitive Democracy and Other Essays (Princeton University Press, 2016), 100-115. |
| 7 | Midterm I | |
| 8 | Populism as a Threat | Jan-Werner Müller, What is Populism? (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2016), 1-60. |
| 9 | Populism as Radical Democracy? | Chantal Mouffe, For a Left Populism (Verso, 2018), 1-60. |
| 10 | Violence and Politics | Frantz Fanon, “On Violence”, Wrethched of the Earth (Grove Press, 2004), 1-60. |
| 11 | Politics versus Violence | Hannah Arendt, “On Violence”, Crises of the Republic (Harcourt Brace & Company, 1972), 103-183. |
| 12 | Midterm II | |
| 13 | Democratic Ethics | Ella Myers, Worldly Ethics: Democratic Politics and Care for the World (Duke University Press, 2013), 85-139. |
| 14 | Documentary Film | |
| 15 | Concluding Remarks | |
| 16 | Final Exam |
| Course Notes/Textbooks | Required texts specified above.
*All course readings are available at the University Library and as open sources. |
| Suggested Readings/Materials |
| Semester Activities | Number | Weighting |
| Participation | 1 | 10 |
| Laboratory / Application | ||
| Field Work | ||
| Quizzes / Studio Critiques | ||
| Portfolio | ||
| Homework / Assignments | ||
| Presentation / Jury | ||
| Project | ||
| Seminar / Workshop | ||
| Oral Exam | ||
| Midterm | 2 | 50 |
| Final Exam | 1 | 40 |
| Total |
| Weighting of Semester Activities on the Final Grade | 3 | 60 |
| Weighting of End-of-Semester Activities on the Final Grade | 1 | 40 |
| Total |
| Semester Activities | Number | Duration (Hours) | Workload |
|---|---|---|---|
| Course Hours (Including exam week: 16 x total hours) | 16 | 3 | 48 |
| Laboratory / Application Hours (Including exam week: 16 x total hours) | 16 | ||
| Study Hours Out of Class | 12 | 3 | 36 |
| Field Work | |||
| Quizzes / Studio Critiques | |||
| Portfolio | |||
| Homework / Assignments | |||
| Presentation / Jury | |||
| Project | |||
| Seminar / Workshop | |||
| Oral Exam | |||
| Midterms | 2 | 30 | |
| Final Exams | 1 | 25 | |
| Total | 169 |
| # | Program Competencies/Outcomes | * Contribution Level | ||||
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 1 | To be able to use the theoretical and practical knowledge acquired in the areas of Political Science and International Relations. | X | ||||
| 2 | To be able to have the basic knowledge of, and make use of other disciplines which contribute to the areas of Political Science and International Relations. | |||||
| 3 | To be able to distinguish the differences between classical and contemporary theories and to assess their relationship. | X | ||||
| 4 | To be able to recognize regional and global issues, and develop solutions based on research. | |||||
| 5 | To be able to assess the acquired knowledge and skills in the areas of Political Science and International Relations critically. | X | ||||
| 6 | To be able to transfer ideas and proposals on issues in the areas of Political Science and International Relations to other people and institutions verbally and in writing. | |||||
| 7 | To be able to identify the historical continuity and changes observed in the relations between the actors and institutions of national and international politics. | |||||
| 8 | To be able to examine concepts, theories, and developments with scientific methods in the areas of Political Science and International Relations. | X | ||||
| 9 | To be able to take responsibility as an individual and as a team member. | |||||
| 10 | To be able to act in accordance with the scientific and ethical values in studies related to Political Science and International Relations. | X | ||||
| 11 | To be able to collect data in the areas of Political Science and International Relations and communicate with colleagues in a foreign language ("European Language Portfolio Global Scale", Level B1). | |||||
| 12 | To be able to speak a second foreign at a medium level of fluency efficiently. | |||||
| 13 | To be able to relate the knowledge accumulated throughout human history to their field of experience. | |||||
*1 Lowest, 2 Low, 3 Average, 4 High, 5 Highest
