Gnarf, gnarf, gnarf, gnarf....

Dear all,

This is a message to confirm the time and place for the next Political Sociology tutorials. I have been asked to lead Marie's groups as well as mine, so it would be helpful if you could all come in the 17.15 slots, in room CY237.

There are three main questions (see below). Please think about one of them and the answers you would provide. You may bring books and materials along on the day in order to contribute to the general discussion.

For those of you whose formative essay I marked, you are very welcome to bring your essays along. I will make time at the end of the tutorial to discuss how you can make your work even better.

In any case, don't hesitate to get back to me if you have got any questions.

Best Regards,

Danielle



Tutorial questions:

1. "I would begin to formulate a new agenda of security questions. Not by asking what is dangerous? But by asking what does a representation of danger make of 'us' and those who are not 'us'?" (Dillon, 1996). In what ways is security produced through representations of danger? (consider for example, border security, airport security, 'national' security..). How do 'we' appear in these representations? Who appears as the 'outside' or the other?

2. "What matters is not only those who are marginalized but also, crucially, those who are placed beyond the margins"(Derek Gregory, 2004). Discuss this point with reference to either: Abu Ghraib prison, Guantanamo Bay or the killing of Jean Charles de Menezes.

3. In what ways is the 'imagined community' of the nation re-imagined via the war on terror? Focus your discussion on one of the following examples: homeland security, the 'othering' of Iraqi and Afghani spaces and peoples, The Patriot Act and the nation or Mira Nair's film.