Sociology of Politics

Pre-requisites: Participation during class seminars/discussions. Completing a final paper and presentation during class seminars.

Course objectives: The goal of this course is to comparatively look at various theoretical approaches to politics by reviewing the span of each theory, its complementarity and inclusiveness. Themes: Globalization and the ethnic spirit of the times; overcoming the past and the revisionism of the post-Cold War historiography; ideological basis of political science.

Course description: Becoming familiar with: (1) contemporary sociological approaches to studying politics; (2) main tenets of theories for researching and studying historical and modern political movements, parties and ideologies, political cultures and different types of the government; (3) methods of studying politics. Examining and comparing classical, modern and post-modern understandings of politics. Political movements,currents and events at the end of the 20th century (post Cold War) will be studied in more detail, including the appearance of Globalization and its characteristics. We will also examine and compare various theories of the 20th century regimes of personal rule: evolution, theory, span and limits of the authoritarian modernisation theory and theories of totalitarianism; Tito and the political culture of Yugoslav socialism. In addition, we shall compare different approaches to death of the USSR and Yugoslavia; dominant patterns and characteristics of post-socialist political culture; the relationship between political studies and ideologies at the beginning of the 21st century -- new forms of anti-totalitarianism, anti-communism, anti-fascism and anti-anti-fascism, Globalism and anti-Globalist ideologies in post-Ford capitalism.

Learning Outcomes: Students will be able to identify and explain prevalent social ideas and views in politics during various historical periods and changes that occurred in each theory/view in dependence of the shifts in global and local class and national tensions or conflicts.

Literature/Reading:

• Bakić Jovo (2004). Ideologije jugoslovenstva između srpskog i hrvatskog nacionalizma, 1918-1941. Zrenjanin: Narodna gradska biblioteka "Žarko Zrenjanin".
• Bakić Hejden Milica (2006). Varijacije na temu "Balkan". Beograd: IFDT.
• Jović Dejan (2003). Jugoslavija - država koja je odumrla. Zagreb: Prometej.
• Kuljić Todor (2002). Prevladavanje prošlosti. Beograd: Helsinški odbor za ljudska prava.
• Kuljić Todor (2005). Tito. Zrenjanin: Gradska narodna biblioteka Zrenjanin.
• Kuljić Todor (1994). Oblici lične vlasti. Beograd: Institut za političke studije.
• Kuljić Todor (1983). Teorije o totalitarizmu. Beograd: ICC SSO.
• Tadić Ljubomir (1996). Politikološki leksikon. Beograd: Zavod za izdavanje udžbenika.
• Kuljić Todor (u štampi). Antifašizam i anti-antifašizam.
• Manhajm Karl (1968). Ideologija i utopija. Beograd: Nolit.
• Bogdanović Marija, Mimica Aljoša (2008). Sociološki rečnik. Beograd: Zavod za izdavanje udžbenika.
• Tadić Ljubomir (1988). Nauka o politici. Beograd: Rad.
• Bal Fransis (1997). Moć medija. Beograd: Klio.