DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS

SOCI113

Course Code: SOCI113
Semester: First Term (Fall)
Theory+Practice: 3 + 0
ECTS: 5

Course Type

Compulsory Course

Course Level

Bachelor's Degree

Year of Study

Semester

First Term (Fall)

ECTS

Name of Lecturer(s)

Assistant Professor Onur Bilginer

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, the students;

Explain the historical development of democracy and human rights.
Evaluate debates about the conditions for and challenges to the spread of democracy and human rights.
Examine canonical texts, their strategy of argument, style and levels of meaning.
Analyze key concepts such as democracy, equality, liberty and human rights, and their relations to each other.
Recognize critical perspectives on democracy and human rights.

Mode of Delivery

Face to face

Prerequisites

Recommended Optional Programme Components

Course Description

This course offers a critical review of certain canonical texts on democracy and human rights.It aims to provide a systematic analysis of the core concepts and arguments used in the debates about democracy and human rights. It examines rival approaches to democracy, the historical development of human rights and the ways in which democracy and human rights can be promoted. Besides, it argues from the point of disadvantaged groups.

Course Contents

WEEK	TOPICS
1^st Week	Introduction
2^nd Week	Plato I: What is justice?
3^rd Week	Plato II: The ideal city
4^th Week	Plato III: The problem of democracy
5^th Week	Legitimacy and democracy I
6^th Week	Legitimacy and democracy II
7^th Week	Legitimacy and democracy III
8^th Week	Midterm
9^th Week	Protective democracy and natural rights I
10^th Week	Protective democracy and natural rights II
11^th Week	Marx?s critique of formal rights and liberal democracy:
12^th Week	Marx and Engels, The Communist Manifesto
13^th Week	Marx?s critique of formal rights and liberal democracy (cont?d)
14^th Week	Marx and Engels, The Communist Manifesto (and a short introduction to the Critique of the Gotha Programme)
15^th Week	Presentations: What is human rights?
16^th Week
17^th Week
18^th Week

Recommended or Required Reading

Dağı, İ. D. ve Polat, N. (2004). Herkes İçin Demokrasi ve İnsan Hakları. İstanbul: Liberte Yayınları.
Rousseau J.J. (1998) Political Writings, (Ed.A.Rıtter) A Norton Critical Edition, USA 1988
Habermas J, (1999) Kamusallığın Yapısal Dönüşümü, (Çev.Tanıl Bora) İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları,
Hyppolite J, (2010) Marx ve Hegel Üzerine Çalışmalar, Ankara: Doğu-Batı

Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods

Lecture
Discussion
Questions/Answers
Presentation

Assessment Methods and Criteria

	Quantity	Percentage (%)
Mid-term	1	30
Assignment	1	20
Total(%)		50
Contribution of In-term Studies to Overall Grade(%)		50
Contribution of Final Examination to Overall Grade(%)		50
Total(%)		100

ECTS Allocated Based on Student Workload

Activities	Quantity	Duration (Hour)	Total Workload (Hour)
Midterm exam	1	10	10
Preparation for Quiz	0	0	0
Individual or group work	0	0	0
Preparation for Final exam	1	50	50
Course hours	14	3	42
Preparation for Midterm exam	1	40	40
Laboratory (including preparation)	0	0	0
Final exam	1	10	10
Homework	0	0	0
Total Work Load			152
Total Work Load / 30 (h)			5.06
ECTS Credit of the Course			5

Language of Instruction

English

Work Placement(s)

Programme Qualifications / Learning Outcomes

	LO1	LO2	LO3	LO4	LO5
K1	X
K2	X		X
K3				X
K4			X
K5
K6		X		X	X
K7		X
K8
K9					X
K10
K11
K12