Z5100 Political Geography

Faculty of Science
Spring 2009
Extent and Intensity
2/1. 4 credit(s) (plus extra credits for completion). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
RNDr. Petr Daněk, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Lucie Hromková (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
prof. RNDr. Rudolf Brázdil, DrSc.
Department of Geography – Earth Sciences Section – Faculty of Science
Contact Person: RNDr. Petr Daněk, Ph.D.
Timetable
Tue 10:00–11:50 Z4,02028
  • Timetable of Seminar Groups:
Z5100/01: Tue 12:00–12:50 Z4,02028
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 25 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/25, only registered: 0/25
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The main objective of the course is to introduce students into contemporary debates within political geography. Main attention is paid to the following topics: (1) uneven development (North - South relations and their historical origin, discourse of development and its politics), (2) geopolitics (modern geopolitical tradition and its critical discussion, critical geopolitics), (3) national identity and nationalism, (4) geography of elections, and (5) international environmental politics.
Critical approach is used throughout the course and the students are encouraged to develoop their own opinion. Seminars are therefore an important part of the course. In seminars the students are encouraged to discuss issues from their (compulsory) readings.
Syllabus
  • 1. Course organization. What is political geography? Development of the discipline.
  • 2. Uneven development. World-economy: origin, development, spatial structure.
  • 3. Colonial heritage. Making and unmaking of the Third World. Debt crisis.
  • 4. Discourse of development. Post-war development of development theory and strategies.
  • 5. Development as globalization?
  • 6. Geopolitics. Modern geopolitical tradition: geopolitical models and their political implication.
  • 7. Critical geopolitics.
  • 8. National identity and nationalism. What is a nation? Origin of national identity.
  • 9. Modern theoris of nationalism.
  • 10. Case study: Palestine.
  • 11. Democracy and elections. Democracy and polyarchy. Types of democracy. Democracy and electoral systems.
  • 12. Geography of elections: elections from the geographers point of view (issues, approaches, methods). Electoral map of the Czech Republic.
  • 13. International politics of environment: environmetal problems and international environmental regimes.
Literature
  • The geopolitics reader. Edited by Gearóid Ó Tuathail - Simon Dalby - Paul Routledge. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2006, x, 302. ISBN 0415341485. info
  • A companion to political geography. Edited by John A. Agnew - Katharyne Mitchell - Gearóid Ó Tuathail. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell, 2003, xii, 494. ISBN 9781405175647. info
  • GELLNER, Ernest. Nacionalismus. Translated by Hana Novotná - Petr Skalník. 1. vyd. Brno: Centrum pro studium demokracie a kultury, 2003, 133 s. ISBN 80-7325-023-3. info
  • Pohledy na národ a nacionalismus :čítanka textů. Edited by Miroslav Hroch. Vyd. 1. Praha: Sociologické nakladatelství, 2003, 451 s. ISBN 80-86429-20-2. info
  • JOHNSTON, R.J. and Peter TAYLOR. Geographies of Global Change. Remapping the World. 2th ed. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 2002, xviii, 518. ISBN 0-631-22285-5. info
  • TAYLOR, Peter J. and Colin FLINT. Political geography : world-economy, nation-state and locality. 4th ed. Harlow: Prentice Hall, 2000, viii, 412. ISBN 0582357330. info
  • JEHLIČKA, Petr, Jiří TOMEŠ and Petr DANĚK. Stát, prostor, politika. Vybrané otázky politické geografie. (State, space, politics. Selected issues of political geography.). Praha: Univerzita Karlova, Přírodovědecká fakulta, 2000, 276 pp. ISBN 80-238-5566-2. info
  • AGNEW, John A. Geopolitics : re-visioning world politics. 1st ed. London: Routledge, 1998, 150 s. ISBN 0415140943. info
  • Political geography : a reader. Edited by John Agnew. 1st pub. London: Arnold, 1997, viii, 374. ISBN 0-340-67743-0. info
  • Ó TUATHAIL, Gearóid. Critical geopolitics : the politics of writing global space. 1st pub. London: Routledge, 1996, x, 314 s. ISBN 0-415-15701-3. info
  • AGNEW, John and Stuart CORBRIDGE. Mastering space :hegemony, territory and international political economy. 1st pub. London: Routledge, 1995, 260 s. ISBN 0-415-09434-8. info
  • Political geography of the twentieth century : a global analysis. Edited by Gerard Kearns - Peter J. Taylor. 1-st publ. London: Belhaven Press, 1993, xii, 269. ISBN 1852931973. info
Assessment methods
The course consists of lectures and seminars. In seminars students discuss the readings and present their seminar papers. The reading list consists of about 10 papers or chapters from a book (both in Czech and English language) and the students are asked to write their short opinion about the texts. Seminar papers are prepared in the group of 3-5 students. The objective of the seminar papers is an analysis of a regional political conflict. The final exam is in written form.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2008 - for the purpose of the accreditation, Spring 2011 - only for the accreditation, Spring 2001, Spring 2002, Spring 2004, Spring 2005, Spring 2006, Spring 2007, Spring 2008, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2012, spring 2012 - acreditation, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2009, recent)
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