Course Details in

Module Title	LH War and Peace in the Middle East
School	School of Geog Earth & Env Sci
Department	Geography
Module Code	03 25907
Module Lead	Adam Ramadan
Level	Honours Level
Credits	20
Semester	Semester 2
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions	None
Contact Hours	Lecture-20 hours Seminar-10 hours Guided independent study-170 hours Total: 200 hours
Exclusions
Description	This course aims to give students a critical understanding of the political geography of the contemporary Middle East. It will introduce students to a series of key approaches in postcolonial and political geography, through which conventional images and stereotypes of the region might be unsettled and problematised. The course explores colonial legacies, geopolitical imaginaries and contemporary realities through a series of in-depth case studies: the Israel-Palestine conflict and peace process, the Palestinian refugee question, the war on terror, the Arab Spring and the Syria war. These case studies are inserted within a broad overview of regional geopolitical relations, from the First World War to the present day. Topics will include: - Orientalism and the politics of representation; - Zionism, nationalism and sectarianism; - The Arab-Israeli conflict and the ‘peace process’; - Palestinian refugees and national liberation; - The ‘War on Terror’; - Obama’s ‘new beginning’; - Contingent sovereignty and drone warfare; - The ‘Arab Spring’; - The Syria war. These topics will be explored through critical theoretical approaches to geopolitics, power, sovereignty and territory. This will include work by Edward Said, Geroid Ó Tuathail, Giorgio Agamben, Derek Gregory
Learning Outcomes	By the end of the module students should be able to: Demonstrate a critical understanding of the complex geographies, colonial legacies and postcolonial realities of the Middle East; Critically analyse religious, national and political identities, and their roles in conflict; Understand and utilise approaches from postcolonial theory and political geography in their work. Think critically about their own relationship(s) with the Middle East, and the forms of power/knowledge that enable such relationships.
Assessment	25907-01 : Examination : Exam (Centrally Timetabled) - Written Unseen (50%) 25907-02 : Essay : Coursework (50%)
Assessment Methods & Exceptions	Assessment: 1 x 2,500 word essay (50%) 1 x take home examination paper (50%)
Other
Reading List