Political Geography

Course Description

Objectives

This course on political geography attempts to analyze the perplexed relationships between politics and space. Within the framework of this course, the concept of politics does not exclusively refer to states and/or national policies, but instead, it also relates to a broader conception of politics or politics with a small p. Following such lines, politics do not only relate to political parties, government, elections, national borders etc., but also, refer to everyday politics like gender politics, office politics, politics within the family etc.

The course aims to initiate students to the basic concepts of politics. Having completed this course the students should be

• To have an understanding of the concept of politics
• Able to distinguish between different forms of politics
• Able to see politics in a geographical way

Content 

Politics and geography, geopolitics and critical geopolitics, nation and nation states, imperialism and geography, post-colonialism, urban political geography, from the welfare state to the neoliberal state, social movements, feminist geography, migration and borders, geographical scale, the personal as political, feminist political geography, cosmopolitics.

Teaching & Assessment

A series of lectures in a physical classroom.

Essay writing (30% of the grade), written exams (70% of the grade).