Latest Module Specifications
Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026
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Description This is a module about the great ideologies – such as liberalism, socialism, feminism, and conservatism – that have shaped our political world, for better or worse. We will be treating ideologies as bodies of relatively coherent and comprehensive beliefs that motivate political action and condition the terms of political contestation. We will examine classical texts from the likes of J.S. Mill, Karl Marx, and Mary Wollstonecraft that have been foundational to the major ideologies of modernity. But we will also sample the work of more recent authors in order to better understand how ideologies have evolved and been contested over time. On the way, we will tackle questions such as the following. How is the meaning of an ideology determined? What part has ideology played in the great political events of the past? How useful is the traditional Left-Right spectrum when it comes to classifying ideologies? Have new ideologies such as environmentalism displaced the ‘old’ ideologies of the past? Is it possible to think about politics in a way that is free from ideology? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Learning Outcomes 1. An understanding of the concept of ideology 2. Knowledge of the major Western political ideologies covered 3. An enhanced capacity for theoretical and critical reflection on political ideas, especially as these relate to protest and violence 4. Students will also develop their capacity to debate these issues in an articulate fashion and address them with a high degree of analytical precision in written work. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml |
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Indicative Content and Learning Activities
The Concept of Ideology Liberalism and Neo-Liberalism Conservatism, the New Right, Neo-Conservatism Marxism-Leninism, Socialism, the New Left Nationalism Anarchism Fascism Feminism Islamism | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Indicative Reading List Books:
Articles: None | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Other Resources None | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||