Development Studies: The Emergence of Underdevelopment - COMD1001


	Faculty: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
	School: Dept of Spanish & Latin Amer
	Course Outline: See below
	Campus: Kensington Campus
	Career: Undergraduate
	Units of Credit: 6
	EFTSL: 0.125 (more info)
	Contact Hours per Week: 3
	Enrolment Requirements:
	None
	Fee Band: 1 (more info)
	Further Information: See Class Timetable

Description

Introduces and analyses the emergence in the pre and post industrial world of notions of progress and development and relates them to the emergence of a modern world characterised by poverty, conflict, and socio-economic inequalities. Examines the transformation of the modern world via an analysis of different and often overlaping modes of production including hunter/gatherer, tributary (agricultural) and capitalist modes. Examines the emergence and characteristics of contemporary debates around issues of 'development', 'imperialism' and 'globalisation'.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this course, students should:

Have an understanding of the contested concept of development
Appreciate some of the different ways humans have organised production and distribution, including in hunter/gatherer, agricultural and capitalist societies
Be able to critically evaluate the stage theory of development via analysis of Karl Marx's Mode of Production thesis
Understand the relationship of belief systems to economic, political and social organization
Be able to explain the importance of European expansion from the late fifteenth century in terms of the shift towards a rich world and a poor world
Understand the significance of the industrial revolution and the nature of the new class formations that accompanied it
Have a grasp of the history of capitalist expansion to World War II
Understand the importance of imperialism and colonialism in generating uneven and unequal development.

Assessment

Essay 1 (1500 words) - 30%
Essay 2 (2500 words) - 50%
Tutorial participation - 20%