Postgraduate Module Descriptor

POLM155: The Politics of Populism: Domestic and global challenges

This module descriptor refers to the 2019/0 academic year.

Overview

NQF Level7
Credits30 ECTS Value15
Term(s) and duration

This module ran during term 2 (11 weeks)

Academic staff

Dr Lise Herman (Convenor)

Pre-requisites

None

Co-requisites

None

Available via distance learning

No

Recent events such as the Brexit referendum, the election of Donald Trump in the United States and the accession of Marine Le Pen to the second round of the French Presidential elections mark a qualitative shift in the dynamic of fringe and mainstream politics in established democracies. Not only are far-right populists now able to win major electoral contests, and they therefore have gained more direct control over the political agenda, but this populist conquest of the mainstream has altered our political imagination in relation to the threats and opportunities posed by far-right populist discourse. This module provides you with the tools to make sense of the evolving relationship between far-right populism and mainstream politics in Western Europe and the United States in the past three decades. It focuses especially on the impact of populists on domestic and foreign policy, through their direct access to power or the influence they exert on mainstream parties. This module will encourage your active engagement in group work and class discussion, including formal debates and simulations. 

Module created

09/04/2018

Last revised