POL209 Political and Social Movements

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2008
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 7 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
prof. PhDr. Ing. Ondřej Císař, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Martin Koubek (lecturer)
Mgr. et Mgr. Jiří Navrátil, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Kateřina Vráblíková, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Ing. Ondřej Císař, Ph.D.
Division of Politology – Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Lucie Pospíšilová
Timetable
Tue 12:00–13:30 U43
Prerequisites
Students are expected to read compulsory readings for each seminar and to be able to participate in in-class discussions.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 30 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/30, only registered: 0/30
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 9 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
This course introduces students both to the main approaches to the study of social and political movements and to some important examples of contemporary social movements. The goal of the first part of the course is therefore to get students acquainted with various traditions and approaches to the study of social and political movements. The second part of the course offers case studies of various social movements, such as human rights', feminist, workers' or global justice movement. The course provides students with the ability to analyze political mobilizations with the help of the up-to-date conceptual apparatus. Also, students are provided with a manual for writing their dissertations in political science.
Syllabus
  • 1. Organization, goals and requirements of the course
  • 2. Introduction: social movements or/and civil society?
  • 3. Resource mobilization and political opportunity structure
  • 4. Globalization and internationalization of social movements
  • 5. Framing and social movements
  • 6. How to study social movements?
  • 7. Reading week
  • 8. New social movements: concepts, basic approaches, critique
  • 9. Civil rights' movement and student movement: the protest cycle of the 1960s
  • 10. Human rights' movement and environmental movement
  • 11. Women rights' movement and gay-lesbian movement
  • 12. Workers' movement and movement of the unemployed
  • 13. Global justice and anti-globalization movement
Literature
  • BARŠA, Pavel. Anarchie a řád ve světové politice. Edited by Ondřej Císař. Vyd. 1. Praha: Portál, 2008, 559 s. ISBN 9788073670948. URL info
  • CÍSAŘ, Ondřej. Politický aktivismus v České republice: Sociální hnutí a občanská společnost v období transformace a evropeizace (Political Activism in the Czech Republic: Social Movements and Civil Society in the Eras of Transformation and Europeanization). Brno: Centrum pro studium demokracie a kultury, 2008, 187 pp. Politologická řada, sv. č. 28. ISBN 978-80-7325-168-0. URL info
  • THOMAS, Daniel C. Helsinský efekt : mezinárodní zásady, lidská práva a zánik komunismu. Edited by Jan Růžička. Vyd. 1. Praha: ČSDS, 2007, 322 s. ISBN 9788020015068. info
  • TARROW, Sidney G. Power in movement : social movements and contentious politics. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998, xv, 271. ISBN 0521629470. info
  • ZNEBEJÁNEK, František. Sociální hnutí :teorie, koncepce, představitelé. Vyd. 1. Praha: Sociologické nakladatelství, 1997, 175 s. ISBN 80-85850-31-1. info
Assessment methods
1. Students are expected to write three short position papers (300-400 words each) on three different seminar topics. The papers should include a summary of the main points of the required reading(s), a critique of these readings, questions of clarification, and possible questions for discussion. To enable the organization of the in-class discussion, papers must have two clearly identified sections: 1) A summary section entitled "Summary"; 2) a critique section entitled "Critique". The position papers should be uploaded to the information system no later than 12 p. m. of the day before the seminar for which the paper is written.
2. At the end of the semester, there will be a final in-class written exam, consisting of four questions (0 – 10 points each) based on the required readings and the discussions in class. Evaluation:
A 40 – 38 points
B 37 – 34 points
C 33 – 30 points
D 29 – 27 points
E 26 – 24 points
F 23 and less points
3. In general, students are encouraged to actively participate in the seminars by posing questions of clarification or bringing up problems for discussion.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2004, Spring 2005, Spring 2006, Spring 2007, Spring 2008, Autumn 2009, Autumn 2010, Autumn 2011.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2008, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2008/POL209