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Democratic theory: Essential contemporary readings


Dozent/in Dr. Chiara Valsangiacomo
Veranstaltungsart Masterseminar
Code HS241505
Semester Herbstsemester 2024
Durchführender Fachbereich Politikwissenschaft
Studienstufe Bachelor Master
Termin/e Mi, 18.09.2024, 12:15 - 14:00 Uhr, HS 7 (Einführungsveranstaltung)
Do, 17.10.2024, 09:15 - 17:00 Uhr, HS 14
Fr, 18.10.2024, 09:15 - 17:00 Uhr, HS 14
Do, 28.11.2024, 09:15 - 17:00 Uhr, PH 2. OG: Raum 2.A03
Fr, 29.11.2024, 09:15 - 17:00 Uhr, 4.B01
Weitere Daten
Umfang 2 Semesterwochenstunden
Turnus Blockseminar
Inhalt During a recent public lecture at the University College Dublin, historian Michael Ignatieff said that “democracy is an argument about what democracy is.” To quote Walter Bryce Gallie’s 1956 article, democracy can be seen as an “essentially contested concept.” This disagreement has not prevented scholars from engaging with this complex concept. Quite on the contrary, it has been the engine of a fertile, ongoing discussion about democracy, its meaning, and value. In this course, you will join this fascinating scholarly conversation. We will deal with and try to answer some of the most fundamental questions related to democracy from a normative and political point of view, including: what is this concept about, what makes it relevant to political science and political philosophy, and why is democracy seen as especially legitimate? To approach these questions, we will read excerpts from a selection of the most influential books on (normative) democratic theory that have been published in the last hundred years. The text selection will cover a variety of topics and perspectives in the literature. The seminar’s sessions will follow the chronological order of publication of the works.
E-Learning https://lms.uzh.ch/url/RepositoryEntry/17583866870
Lernziele The primary goal of the seminar is to provide the students with a solid foundation and toolbox to navigate contemporary scholarly debates on democracy.

More concretely, by the end of the course, the participants should be able to:
• Understand complex, academic texts and summarize the key arguments.
• Critically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of these arguments.
• Compare works and arguments by different authors.
• Engage in academic dialogue with their peers.
• Develop and elaborate on their own thoughts about the readings and themes of the seminar (in written as well as oral form).
• Exploit the acquired knowledge to analyze today’s literature on democratic theory.
Voraussetzungen There are no strict requirements for registration. However, participants should be aware that this is a reading heavy class and that the in-class activities will largely center on group discussions of the mandatory readings. This seminar has been primarily designed for Master students in political philosophy and political science. Advanced Bachelor students and students from neighboring disciplines are welcome to attend the seminar.
Sprache Englisch
Anmeldung ***Wichtig*** Um Credits zu erwerben ist die Anmeldung zur Lehrveranstaltung über das UniPortal zwingend erforderlich. Die Anmeldung ist ab zwei Wochen vor bis zwei Wochen nach Beginn des Semesters möglich. An- und Abmeldungen sind nach diesem Zeitraum nicht mehr möglich. Die genauen Anmeldedaten finden Sie hier: www.unilu.ch/ksf/semesterdaten
Prüfung The course is worth 4 ECTS and will be evaluated based on:
• Active in-class participation
• One-page summary AND in-class short presentation (ca. 7 min) of at least one mandatory reading

It is possible to write a term paper for additional 6 ECTS.
Abschlussform / Credits Aktive Teilnahme (Essay) / 4 Credits
Hörer-/innen Nein
Kontakt chiara.valsangiacomo@ucd.ie
Literatur See Syllabus on OLAT