300465 World Politics (S) (SoSe 2023)

Competencies: This course will provide students with a substantive understanding about the emergence and developments of world politics, which will be based on relevant theoretical approaches in International Relations and in Social Science in general. At the end of this module, students will be able to develop their own research questions, produce analysis and reflect on world politics issues in a more complex and critical manner.

Content of teaching: This module aims to present the development of world politics, from its historical emergence to the transformation of its main institutions and actors into what we call ‘world society’. For this, the module will firstly focus on (i) the history of international relations with the formation of the modern nation-state; the impacts of historical events such as Peace of Westphalia and the Congress of Vienna; and the consolidation of international society in the 20th Century. (ii) Subsequently, the module will discuss the formation of world society, based on sociological and international relations theory. And (iii) this module concludes with recent discussions on specific themes in world politics: international economy, human rights, international security, environment and uncertainty in world politics.

Studienleistung: Students are required to attend sessions and read the respective assigned literature during the intersessional week. They will form groups in the first session, choosing one of the following themes to be analysed throughout the seminar: international economy, human rights, international security, environment, and risk/uncertainty. They will work collectively throughout the day, mapping the institutional and normative historical development of their chosen theme. In the following week, at their respective thematic session, they will present the results of their institutional and normative mapping. Presentations will take 20-30 minutes, followed by discussion within the session group. All sessions will be exclusively in English.

Prüfungsleistung: Students will write a short paper based on their presentation, detailing: the historical development of the theme’s institutional and normative framework; the actors involved (individuals, states, international institutions and/or transnational actors); and how this connects to the international/world society debates. The deadline is on the 5th May 2023. The limit is approximately 3000-4000 words (including references and footnotes).