Taught Masters Modules: POL6910 - Wars, New Wars and the Liberal State

Level: MA
Credits: 30

Module Tutor: Dr Janine Clark

Description

The subject of this module is the nature of war in the contemporary world. It looks at different types of wars, their causes and the particular challenges that they present. Are ‘new’ wars more violent, are some societies more prone to conflict than others, how does ‘new’ terrorism differ from ‘old’ terrorism, does media reporting affect the trajectory of conflict, is there a responsibilty to protect, what does justice mean in the aftermath of war? These are some of the questions that the module explores. There is an emphasis on liberal Western responses to war and conflict in the contemporary world, and prominent themes include humanitarian intervention, the ‘war on terror’, the war in Iraq and the democratic peace thesis.

Objectives

The module aims to provide a critical analysis of contemporary thinking about conflict, war and terrorism. By the end of the module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the nature of modern war and some of the key debates within the literature on modern conflict.
• Apply conceptual tools to analyse the theoretical and practical debates surrounding different types of war, terrorism and conflict occuring in the contemporary age.
• Demonstrate appropriate cognitive, communicative and transferable skills, including understanding complex concepts and theories, exercising critical judgement, making effective oral and written presentations and displaying a capacity for independent learning.

Assessment

• Essay One: 40%
• Essay Two: 60%