B029138 - SOCIETY AND DEMOCRACY

Italian

The main aims of the course are as follows: to provide students with an understanding of the key concepts of political sociology; to enable them to link the various topics dealt with; to enable them to take the interpretations discussed during the course and apply them to social reality and contemporary politics; and to have them develop the ability to critically analyse political phenomena. The presentation and discussion of tables and graphs concerning certain recent, important social-political scientific studies should also improve students’ ability to understand and interpret the results of a research project.

The course aims to provide a basic understanding of political sociology, focusing on contemporary transformations of politics and democracy. The principal traditional arguments of political sociology shall be presented. Lessons will refer extensively to the Italian case, both by situating it within the context of the broader panorama of Western democracies, and by discussing recent and contemporary Italian political affairs with students.

For non-native speakers, sufficient knowledge of Italian is required.
Attendance of lessons is strongly recommended, particularly for those with little or no prior knowledge of politics. Moreover, throughout the course students are advised to read at least one (non-sporting) daily newspaper each day; alternatively (or additionally), each morning students are recommended to listen to a radio broadcast presenting a review of the day’s newspapers.

Lectures open to discussion and to the contribution of those students present. Exercises in pairs or small groups.

The final examination consists of an oral examination intended to assess effective understanding of the topics addressed by the course, not the ability to recite them from memory. Evaluated positively will therefore be the ability to argue, to link different topics, to actualize themes critically.

During the first part of the course, the professor will present the main topics and the outlook of the sociological study of politics, and in doing so will also focus on the various methods employed in sociological studies of politics.
This shall be followed by an extensive part of the course, during which certain issues in political sociology will be presented in greater detail, namely: power, the establishment and consolidation of the Nation-State, political culture and local-political subcultures, political socialisation, political participation and electoral abstentionism, social and protest movements, political parties and their contemporary transformation, voting behaviour, political communication, political representation and the corresponding transformation of democracy. Finally, some lessons will be dedicated to the growing distrust of citizens towards politicians, politics and democracy.

The topics included in the programme shall be accompanied by a presentation and discussion of the findings of the latest, most significant social-political scientific studies of each topic dealt with.

Luigi Ceccarini – Ilvo Diamanti, Tra politica e società. Fondamenti, trasformazioni e prospettive, il Mulino, 2018.

Vittorio Mete, Antipolitica. Protagonisti e forme di un’ostilità diffusa, il Mulino 2022

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