The POL110 module introduces students to thinking politically. It combines the exploration of modern and contemporary ideologies with the analysis of key political theories and concepts. The first part examines the major arguments used to to legitimate and question modern society, with introductions to the major modern political ideological traditions of liberalism, conservatism, socialism and Marxism and their historical contexts. The second part of the module examines controversies about human nature, political order and the distribution of social goods. It pays particular attention to what it means to approach politics normatively/critically and through a range of theoretical perspectives. Students will have the opportunity to develop their capacity for political thinking by engaging with a range of key texts.