Citizenship, Activism and Resistance (L4069A)
Citizenship, Activism and Resistance
Module L4069A
Module details for 2024/25.
15 credits
FHEQ Level 5
Module Outline
Citizenship, Activism, and Resistance is a module focused on political sociology. Where do modern ideas of citizenship come from? How have they been theorised, contested, put into practice, expanded? Key to this are debates around the role of the modern nation state (as the dominant ‘container’ of citizenship) in determining who gets included – and who excluded – from the rights of citizenship. In turn, it is imperative to explore how contemporary framings of citizenship have been shaped by histories of coloniality and capitalism. Does modern citizenship provide the necessary foundation for global democracy, or is it better seen as a device for the maintenance of contemporary global inequalities? Should we see the rise of the welfare state as a positive achievement of working-class struggle, or an insidious tool of neo-colonial domination, whereby gendered and racialised bodies are put into complex hierarchies and pitted against each other? Citizenship can also be approached as a site for political mobilisation and resistance, a tool of progressive struggle. We ask: how, and to what extent, has citizenship provided a basis for – and goal of – social and political activism? How have the structures and norms of citizenship been resisted and transformed? In tackling such questions, we will dip into a variety of relevant fields. For instance, the politics of work and consumption, of health, gender, and sexuality, of migration and surveillance, the spread of digital technologies and the repercussions of ecological crisis and so-called ‘climate apartheid’.
Module learning outcomes
Demonstrate understanding and knowledge of key topics and debates relating to citizenship and participation in political sociology
Demonstrate critical understanding the relationship between individuals and states in different societies and over time
Assess the strengths and weaknesses of empirical material as evidence in specific cases
Critically evaluate competing theoretical perspectives on citizenship and participation in writing
| Type | Timing | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Essay (3000 words) | Semester 1 Assessment Week 2 Mon 16:00 | 100.00% |
Timing
Submission deadlines may vary for different types of assignment/groups of students.
Weighting
Coursework components (if listed) total 100% of the overall coursework weighting value.
| Term | Method | Duration | Week pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn Semester | Lecture | 1 hour | 11111011111 |
| Autumn Semester | Seminar | 1 hour | 11111011111 |
How to read the week pattern
The numbers indicate the weeks of the term and how many events take place each week.
Dr Daniel Whillis
Convenor, Assess convenor
/profiles/488832
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