London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

Modules

80/D80
Introduction to politics

The starting point for this subject is a study of alternative theories of the state. Each theory provides a different view of how government and political mechanisms work in tackling social problems.

The following four theories will be examined:

Pluralism which stresses the effectiveness of liberal democracy in meeting citizens’ needs and in controlling government in the public interest.

The new right which emphasises the different ways in which government may be ‘captured’ by special interests and views on the performance of public or collective choice mechanisms compared with the sophisticated choices and creative energies of markets.

Élitism which argues that the distinctions between rulers and ruled are little altered in liberal democracies, and that political power remains tightly concentrated in the hands of a few.

Marxism which strengthens the elitist critique, emphasising the importance of social class inequalities in liberal democracies and the subordination of politics to the needs of capital and economic development.

Besides examples from First World Liberal Democracies, students should be able to relate the above theories to other kinds of political systems. The study of the debates among these four main theoretical approaches will involve most of the key concepts in political science. In addition, however, important new perspectives are suggested by green theory, by feminists, and by the world-wide resurgence of nationalism and ethnicity as key bases of political conflict in the post Cold War world. Students will be given a choice from the following topics:

• the social foundations for democracy

• electoral systems and democracy

• voting and party competition

• mass media systems and politics

• top decision-making in government

• the political role of business

• interest groups

• how government bureaucracies work

• women and politics

• environmental degeneration.