STV4158B Democratic citizenship
Thursday 19. April 2012 – 3 hours
The exam has two parts. The first part consists of one longer essay that will count for 60 % of the exam grade, whereas the second part consists of a shorter essay question which will count for 40% of the grade.
NB: Indicate the question you are answering in each case by using the labels which are underlined in connection with each question.
I (60 %)
Answer one (1) of the following questions:
Either: Globalization: Globalization and increased levels of migration have challenged traditional concepts of citizenship. Give an account of the most important challenges, and discuss how migration might be accommodated in relation to different understandings and elements of citizenship.
Or: Citizen roles: Jan van Deth concludes his chapter on the norms of citizenship by stating the following:
The scarce empirical evidence available does not show a trace of the rise of a “S.U.V. model of citizenship” or the arrival of “thick citizenship” in the near future. Contrary to these fashionable interpretations, people have a much more realistic view of their role in democracies. Van Deth (2007:416).
Discuss the context and basis for this conclusion.
II (40%)
Answer one (1) of the following questions:
Either: Duty: Duty, according to the title of a chapter by Pamela Conover and her colleagues in the book Reconsidering the Democratic Public, is a four letter word. This suggests that duty is a negative, indeed even obscene, word when considering democratic citizenship. Discuss the basis for this suggestion and why it is or is not warranted.
Or: Interest: Interest in and discussion of socio-political affairs is, according to the contribution of Kinder and Herzog to the book Reconsidering the Democratic Public, a necessary but insufficient condition for democratic practice. Discuss why this should be the case and indicate whether or not communitarian and liberal democratic theorists would agree on such a proposition.