This module starts from the observation that development is more than economic change and involves important social and cultural aspects. It begins with an interrogation of the way development practices and ideas are embedded in cultural contexts, and specifically how the development industry is historically and culturally entangled in Western conceptions of progress, rationality, and the individual. Against a view of culture as ‘tradition’ and an impediment to development we will examine different cultural conceptions of progress. This involves both alternate visions of future development as well as the negative impacts that development policies and interventions have on local people, communities and cultures. Questions of power and cultural relativism inevitably arise: what happens when different interests and commitments collide, and who or what determines the module development interventions take?

This module explores anthropology as an exciting, ‘living’ subject, alive to the concerns of different communities and populations living across the globe, and as cutting edge in terms of the research conducted by anthropologists at Sussex as they actively engage with issues of social, cultural and global transformation. This is accomplished through a module structure which revolves around 5 core themes considered central to the subject that capture anthropological thinking on the subjects of culture, identity and representation: kinship; self and body; economy as culture; religion and politics; and work on the global-local interface.

This module provides a foundation of principles for human-centred design that will be relevant throughout your degree programme. Initially there is a focus on physical considerations, including a study of human limits for inclusive design. Later on people’s behaviour is considered and how design can help to address significant issues for society. We also consider contemporary adaptations that embrace social factors, including consumer behaviour and a services approach to design. Finally we adopt a global perspective and understand more about society in developing countries and how design can help to address concerns.

Topics will include: introduction to human factors, ergonomics, anthropometrics, the senses, mock ups to evaluate ergonomic principles, designing a handheld object (anthropometrics, anatomy and physiology of the hand), consumer behaviour, inclusive design, design for a sustainable society, cradle to cradle approaches, taking a systems approach to design, research methods for understanding lifestyle and context of use, global issues and design concerns.

The module aims to offer an introduction to a range of contemporary issues in global politics. Each week deals with a different global issue (e.g. development, poverty, economic sanctions, terrorism, emerging powers, migration, environment etc). The exact themes vary each year to cover the latest developments and crises in global politics. Most sessions start with an introduction to the theme by the module convenor and are followed by class activities (group discussion, presentations, debates, simulation games etc). The introduction by the convenor does not replicate the ‘required readings’, but expands or offers a different view to these readings and the issues under discussion. Similarly, student presentations do not focus on required readings but aim to cover contemporary ‘case-studies’ related to the themes under discussion.

This module explores media and politics and, more broadly, the media and questions of power. It focuses on current affairs with a stress on news; although other forms of factual content (for instance TV docudrama, web blogs, broadsheet lifestyle spin-offs) are also covered. This module considers the role media can play in producing our understanding of the globalizing world in which we live. It asks how media frames, organises, and contextualises events, both as they take place, and in relation to the collective memories that emerge after the event. It also asks how the media themselves are managed, manipulated, and influenced – variously by governments, media owners, professional newsrooms codes, and/or by public pressure.
You will examine the role the media play in relation to the citizen and the state. It is through the optic of citizenship, particularly in relation to the public sphere, that questions concerning the power of the media are addressed. You will also explore how a wide range of media contribute to the maintenance or erosion of a democratic society and an informed citizenship.

This module introduces you to the study of history through the critical reading of a key historical text. In this way you will gain an understanding of the complexity of the historical record and an appreciation of a range of problems associated with the interpretation of evidence.

You will also think about the discipline of history and the nature of historical enquiry. Through a study of how historians have formulated and deployed their arguments, you will begin to learn to deploy ideas and to shape your own historical arguments.

In this module, you study the central issues of morality, examining both the kinds of considerations that might be appealed to in moral arguments, and the status of moral arguments themselves.

What should we bear in mind when deciding whether to eat meat, or whether to help someone, or whether to fight a war? In what sense are the decisions we make right? How can a moral argument be a good argument? Are some people wiser than others? Is there any truth in moral relativism?

You tackle these and related issues from a range of theoretical positions.

Module learning outcomes
Characterise some central positions in first-order ethics.
Characterise some central positions in meta-ethics.
Evaluate the familiar arguments for and against these central positions.
Argue for the student’s own view of the philosophical issues raised in the module.

Taking an interdisciplinary approach, this module will explore the concept of resistance within conflict and war. This will be achieved by investigating the intersection between violence, ethics, politics, social and economic issues, and human rights.

These discussions will be grounded in a range of critical academic theories and concepts, including:
resistance theory
social movement theory
other related issues around collective behaviour, rational choice theory and framing.

To place this into real-world context, the module will focus upon different resistance movements throughout history who have ‘broken the law’ in order to achieve what they, and often others, deemed to be some type of positive social change.

Module learning outcomes
Demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of positive social change as a concept.
Demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of empirical research on positive social change.
Apply the theoretical concepts/frameworks covered in the module to empirical examples, in order to critically analyse these examples.
Critically assess the competing arguments that challenge the definitions of positive social change.

This module examines the ways in which attitudes to language are underpinned by (socio)political values, and how power is exerted through language.

Topics include the relationship between language and national identity and attitudes to foreign languages and multilingual practices. For instance, why do some states spend large amounts of money in an attempt to eradicate particular languages, while other spend equal amounts on trying to revitalise certain languages?

We will look at attitudes to language at both the level of the individual and state legislation, using case-studies from a range of countries. We also examine instances of coercive and persuasive language.

Module learning outcomes
Identify how language ideologies underpin language policy.
Investigate power-in-language in relation to a specific context
Research and critically analyse the relationship between language and power.

Art on Site is concerned with the close analysis of works of art out on site rather than in the seminar room, along with the physical, cultural and social contexts in which art is produced and consumed. It provides you with an introduction to the rich and diverse opportunities available to study art in situ that Brighton and the surrounding area provides.

The module is structured around a series of specific case studies, selected both to highlight some of Brighton’s main resources and to represent broader issues central to the study and understanding of Art History. Sites of Art will take in a wide selection of sites, ranging from those specifically designed to house and present works of art, such as museums and galleries, to buildings and spaces that serve alternative functions, such as churches and houses. The module will also pay close attention to art’s relationship to the built environment, looking at issues relating to architecture and planning.

Module learning outcomes
Demonstrate knowledge of underlying concepts in understanding the relationship between art and its geographical location.
Demonstrate basic understanding of how relations between artist and patron are mediated through site-specific considerations.
Demonstrate basic understanding of how the meanings of works of art can change according to their physical location.
Demonstrate basic practical understanding of field-work study in the discipline.