The course explores the concept and form of empire through an engagement with recent European history and various normative theories regarding the effects, operations and functioning of empire. This course is broken up into three sections.  The first takes a narrative historical perspective on European colonial history, and explores different classical theories of imperialism. The second explores postcolonial theory as a method of analysing European colonial history and culture and examines the different kinds of analytical tools that might be applied to the study of empire.  In the final section of the course, we look at contemporary debates around the US as a figure of empire, Globalisation as a medium of empire in the work of Hardt and Negri and we examine what might be at stake in these debates, (why empire, why now?). Finally, we explore what empire as a political form or category of analysis contributes to our understanding of the world.

By the end of this course students should have achieved the following:

• Assess the extent to  which empire as a category of analysis is adequate to describing contemporary global politics and North/South relations;
• Compare and assess different theoretical and normative perspectives on empire;
• Appreciate the potential contribution of postcolonial theory to political theory generally and a normative understanding of empire;
• Have developed some capacity to apply theoretical analysis to empirical/historical/cultural sources.

2500 word research essay: 50%

Examination: 40%

Presentation/Participation: 10%

The course will be delivered through two hours of lectures and one hour of face-to-face tutorials a week.

Two first year Political Science courses

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