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Semester 1

Chinese Politics (PLIT10140)

Subject

Politics

College

CAHSS

Credits

20

Normal Year Taken

3

Delivery Session Year

2023/2024

Pre-requisites

Visiting students must have completed 4 Politics courses at grade B or above. We will only consider University/College level courses, and we cannot consider interdisciplinary courses or courses without sufficient Politics/Government/International Relations focus. **Please see Additional Restrictions below**

Course Summary

Chinese Politics is a course on the contemporary domestic politics of China. We will focus on how the Chinese political institutions operate today by addressing a variety of issues and aspects: the evolution of the party-state from 1949 to the present; the political economy of the Reform era; the development and role of the Chinese Communist Party in the Chinese political system. Taking an intersectional approach, we will also assess other contemporary issues faced by China, including migration, social movements, and media censorship. The course will conclude with an examination of China's foreign relations and its future, such as the debate over China's role in the global economy and international security.

Course Description

The People's Republic of China (PRC) is one of the most dynamic countries in the world today. It represents approximately one quarter of the world's population, sustains the largest bureaucracy in the history of the world, and currently possesses a political economic system that combines elements of both communism and capitalism. As China has undergone revolution, reform, and rapid economic and social changes in the last century, this course aims to provide students with a background on major political elements in China today from a domestic perspective. Students will be introduced to the basic concepts of political processes, political institutions, and political events in modern China. Throughout the course, we will also take the role of identities, such as gender, class, and ethnicity, into consideration when we examine the consequences of these political developments, changes, and operations in China. Students will critically engage with concepts and theories related to Chinese politics and be exposed to cross-cutting methodologies that empirically answer questions related to Chinese politics. In addition to the lectures and seminars, students will also gain valid skills that are transferable beyond graduation through the course assessments, such as working as a team, creating a Wiki entry, and providing professional peer feedback. Seminar topics may include Chinese Communist Party, leadership selection and incentives in the party-state, elections in China, effectiveness of governance, democratization, economic development and income inequality, social movements, migration, political communication, and foreign relations.

Assessment Information

Written Exam 0%, Coursework 80%, Practical Exam 20%

Additional Restrictions

Unless you are nominated on a Politics exchange agreement, visiting students are only permitted to enrol in one Politics course each, per semester, before the start of the relevant semester’s welcome period – and spaces on each course are limited so cannot be guaranteed for any student. Enrolment in a second Politics course will depend on whether there are still spaces available in the September Welcome Period, and cannot be guaranteed. It is NOT appropriate for students to contact staff within this subject area to ask for an exception to be made; all enquiries to enrol in these courses must be made through the CAHSS Visiting Student Office. This is due to the limited number of spaces available in this very popular subject area.

view the timetable and further details for this course