Waubonsee Community College

Introduction to politics, Robert Garner, Peter Ferdinand, Stephanie Lawson

eng

Includes bibliographical reference and index

illustrations

index present

non fiction

Introduction to politics

bibliography

940911085

Robert Garner, Peter Ferdinand, Stephanie Lawson

Combining theory, comparative politics, and international relations, Introduction to Politics provides a perfect introduction to the subject for students embarking on university-level study. As the only introductory text to cover both comparative politics and international relations, and contextualise this material with a wide range of international examples, it is the most comprehensive, authoritative, and global introductory politics textbook on the market. Written by three experts in the field, this book takes a balanced approached to the subject, serving as a strong foundation for further study. The material is explored in an accessible way for introductory study, but takes an analytical approach which encourages more critical study and debate, helping students to develop the vital skills they need for a politics degree. An Online Resource Centre accompanies this text, and includes a range of resources for both students and lecturers. For students - Learn more about the people behind the theory with the 'Key Thinkers' resource. - Test your understanding of the chapter content and receive instant feedback with self-marking multiple-choice questions. - Revise key terms and concepts with an online flashcard glossary. For registered lecturers - Encourage students to think critically with political scenario exercises. - Reinforce key themes from each chapter with suggested discussion questions for use in seminars. - Use the adaptable PowerPoint slides as the basis for a lecture presentation, or as hand-outs in class. - Save time preparing assessments and seminars with a fully updated test bank of questions

Pt. 1. Concepts and ideologies / Robert Garner -- 1. Politics and the state -- The political importance of the state -- A typology of the state -- The state and power -- The role of the state: what ought the state to do? -- Whither the state? -- Conclusion -- 2. Political power, authority, and the state -- Power and authority -- Conceptual questions about power -- Power and theories of the state -- Pluralism and lukes' three dimensions of power -- Interests and power -- Political elites -- Marxism and power -- Conclusion -- 3. Democracy and political obligation -- What is democracy? -- History -- The classical versus the elitist theory of democracy -- Why is democracy regarded as special? -- Alternative sources of political obligation -- Is democracy special? the problem of majority rule -- New directions in democratic thought -- Conclusion -- 4. Freedom and justice -- Constraints on our freedom -- Determining the nature of freedom --Negative and positive freedom -- Is freedom special? -- The meaning of justice -- Rawls's theory of justice -- Alternative theories of justice -- Conclusion -- 5. Traditional ideologies -- What is an ideology? -- Liberalism -- Socialism -- Conservatism -- Nationalism -- Fascism -- Anarchism -- Conclusion -- 6. Challenges to the dominant ideologies -- The end of history? -- Postmodernism -- Feminism -- Environmentalism -- Multiculturalism -- Religious fundamentalism -- Conclusion -- Pt. 2. Comparative politics / Peter Ferdinand -- 7. Institutions and states -- Institutions -- States -- The rise of the European state -- The spread of the European state system -- The modern state -- Strong states and weak states -- Conclusion -- 8. Law, constitutions, and federalism -- Law and politics -- Constitutions -- Fundamental rights -- Constitutional courts and judicial review -- Legal adjudication of political problems --Federalism, consociational democracy, and asymmetrical decentralization -- Conclusion: growing legalization of political life -- 9. Votes, elections, legislatures, and legislators -- The voting paradox -- Elections -- Functions of legislatures -- Types of legislatures -- Structure of legislatures -- Legislators -- Conclusion -- 10. Political parties -- Parties -- Emergence of parties -- Functions of parties -- Typologies of political parties -- Party systems -- Problems facing parties -- Conclusion -- 11. Executives, bureaucracies, policy studies, and governance -- Legislatures and executives -- Civil service -- `Embedded autonomy' and economic policy-making -- Theories of bureaucratic policy-making -- Emergence of agencies -- Governance and good governance -- Policy communities, `iron triangles', and issue networks -- Conclusion: towards a network state? -- 12. Civil society, interest groups, and the media -- Civil society -- Interest groups --Corporatism -- Infrapolitics and subaltern studies: the state viewed from below -- The impact of the media -- The challenge of new technologies -- Conclusion -- 13. Democracies, democratization, and authoritarian regimes -- The spread of democracy -- Democratization -- Types of democracy -- Measuring democracy -- Variety in democracy -- The persistence of authoritarian regimes -- Conclusion: smarter democracy, deeper democracy, or towards democratic -- Authoritarian hybridity -- Pt. 3. Global politics / Stephanie Lawson -- 14. Introducing global politics -- Politics in a globalizing world -- States and nations in contemporary global politics -- States and empires in global history -- Modernity and the state system -- The globalization of the state system -- Conclusion -- 15. Traditional theories in global politics -- Early liberal approaches -- The realist turn -- Some questions of method and norms -- The English school and international society --Neo-liberalism and neorealism -- Conclusion -- 16. Critical approaches to global politics -- Marxism -- Critical theory -- Constructivism -- Feminism and gender theory -- Postmodernism/poststructuralism -- Postcolonial theory -- Green theory -- Conclusion -- 17. Security and insecurity -- Security, insecurity, and power politics -- The United Nations, collective security, and the Security Council -- The role of NATO -- Alternative approaches to security -- Post-Cold War conflicts -- From state security to human security and the `responsibility to protect' -- Security and insecurity after `9/11' -- Conclusion -- 18. Diplomacy and foreign policy -- Diplomacy and statecraft in global history -- Diplomacy in contemporary global politics -- Cold War diplomacy -- Public diplomacy -- Foreign policy -- The EU's common foreign and security policy -- Conclusion -- 19. International organizations in global politics -- What is an international organization? --The emergence of international organizations -- Intergovernmental organizations -- Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) -- Social movements and international civil society -- Conclusion -- 20. Global political economy -- The study of global political economy -- The age of mercantilism -- The rise of liberal political economy -- Marxism and critical IPE -- The post-war international economic order -- The north, South gap -- Globalization and regionalization in the post-Cold War world -- Financial crises in the global system -- Conclusion -- Conclusion: towards a globalizing, post-western-dominated world / Peter Ferdinand -- The study of politics in context -- The impact of globalization -- New medievalism -- Decentring the West? the rise of the South? -- Politics in a globalizing world: the end of power as we have known it?