American History|American Studies|History|Politics|United States Studies

POLITICS|UNITED STATES|CONTEMPORARY POLITICS|POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS|US POLITICS

This module provides an overview of the key institutions of the US political process. It surveys the development of political institutions over time, with...

Politics of the United States: Processes and Institutions (AMER0048)

This module provides an overview of the key institutions of the US political process. It surveys the development of political institutions over time, with emphasis on the constitutional foundations of the broader system. Looking at both theory and practice, students will examine each primary federal institution (Congress, the executive, the courts) and consider how they interact with each other and with state and local governments. It will also analyse the role of non-governmental entities such as parties and interest groups influence policymaking, and consider the role of race in the political process. It assumes a working knowledge of the principles of comparative government.

Covering the period from the 1960s to the present day, this course examines key issues and events that have shaped the modern Caribbean – from the...

Politics, Society and Development in the Modern Caribbean (AMER0011)

Covering the period from the 1960s to the present day, this course examines key issues and events that have shaped the modern Caribbean – from the victory of the Cuban revolution in 1959, to recent climate-related disasters that have highlighted the extreme vulnerabilities of the region.

The study of Caribbean small states offers a different perspective on politics, society and development: countries which in some cases measure less than ten miles across clearly face different challenges to those in the vast expanses of South America, though in many cases, they are subjected to similar pressures. Issues for analysis include the struggle for Caribbean sovereignty; the place of the Caribbean within global economic systems; colonial and neo-colonial relations with both Europe and the United States; legacies of a diverse racial heritage and the complex relations between ethnicity and power; the contemporary challenges of development in a region at the sharp end of globalisation; and the rich texture of Caribbean cultures whose influence has been felt as much in London and New York as in Kingston and Port-au-Prince.

The course draws on the rich debates that have emerged from within the region itself, emphasising specifically ‘Caribbean’ approaches to the issues at hand. All the main cultures of the Caribbean (Anglophone, Francophone and Hispanic) will be considered within a flexible format that combines both case study and thematic approaches.