Critical Approaches to Security

Compensations

4 credits of the study unit M235. Compensates the following two books from the exam: Gurr, Ted Robert: People versus States: Minorities at Risk in the New Century & Barkan, Elazar: The Guilt of Nations: Restitution and Negotiating Historical Injustice.

Target group/Course level

The course is aimed at students who have already passed the basic courses of IR (intermediate level) but it can be useful also for more advanced students who use critical approaches to security (CAS) in their master's theses.

Objectives

The course introduces students to different critical approaches to security developed during the past two decades. It shows how students can, in their own research, use these approaches to analyze critically different kinds of security practices.

Content

The course presents the development of CAS and the various schools of thought within it (Copenhagen, Aberystwyth, Paris, Feminism, Post-Colonialism and Post-Structuralism). The first two lectures introduce the main concepts and developments in CAS. The next four lectures focus on central questions of the main CAS schools of thought. In each of these lectures one school forms the core of the lecture, but its connections and disputes with other schools are discussed, highlighting the fuzziness of the borders between the schools. The next three lectures take a different approach focusing on a specific theme. These lectures focus on the different conceptualizations and approaches developed in CAS for the study of environmental issues, national identities and contemporary politics. The final lecture offers a summary of the contemporary state of the art in CAS and presents some suggestions for its future direction

• 1. Intro (handouts)
• 2. History (handouts)
• 3. Environmental and societal security: In what sense critical? (handouts)
• 4. Securitization: National (de)securitizations (handouts)
• 5. Analysis exercise (handouts)
• 6. Security as emancipation (handouts)
• 7. Second security: Feminism and Post-Colonialism (handouts)
• 8. Human security and its critics (handouts)
• 9. Professionals of security - immigration (handouts)
• 10. Conclusion

Course work and forms of study

Lectures, participation in class conversations, reading, 7-10 page lectur diary. In the lecture diary you are supposed to discuss at least five lectures. The emphasis should be rather on students own reflections on the topic than on repeating the content of the lectures. Return the diary to the teacher using email (firstname.lastname@helsinki.fi). DEADLINE IS 10 MAY 2009.

The remaining credits of the study unit are to be completed in the form of a book exam within six months, at the latest, after the date of the course completion.

Grading

The course work will be graded on a scale from 0 to 5. Participation in class conversations 20 % course work 80 %.

Course results and retake

The results of the course will be posted on the notice board of the Department by XX. If the course work is not accepted or if the student wishes to raise his/her grade, he/she should contact the teacher within one month after the publication of the results and discuss arrangements for rewriting course work.

The exam retake will be held Mon 25.5. at 16-18, PR sali 1. Prior registration for the exam retake between 7.-14.5. in WebOodi. Don't mind if WebOodi informs you that you have already taken the course.

Course evaluation anddevelopment

During the last session, students will have an opportunity to give feedback on the course to the lecturer and to fill in an anonymous evaluation form. During the course feedback can be given anonymously.

When giving feedback, please evaluate the contribution of the teacher, your own contribution, the contributions of other students and the possible contribution of the Department office to the success of the course.