The International System Today: Powers and Regions (L2009)

15 credits, Level 4

Autumn teaching

This module enables you to engage with the idea of the ‘international system’ by critically reflecting on hegemonic powers and key regions in their colonial and postcolonial contexts. The powers and regions we will focus on are:

• Southeast Asia
• South Asia
• China
• the Middle East
• the Horn of Africa
• Brazil
• the United States
• Russia
• Europe.

The module is issue- and event-oriented. It draws on a range of sources in addition to theoretical academic literature. These include:

• newspaper reporting
• key policy texts
• output from think-tanks
• film
• literature
• music.

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 150 hours of work. This breaks down into about 20 hours of contact time and about 130 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2023/24. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum. We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.

Courses

This module is offered on the following courses:

• International Relations BA
• International Relations with a Language BA