TAFAEPS15U Elite, Power and Social Networks in Africa

Volume 2014/2015
Content

This course is about elite formation, power and social networks in Africa. It looks at elite formation in a broad perspective. We look at a variety of domains, such as the business sector, political parties, social clubs, religious institutions and major families in Africa’s cities and rural areas. Moreover, we focus on the role of social networks to capture the relationships between people and the power they draw from these relations. We look at, for instance, how different public figures (chiefs, religious leaders, politicians, and family heads) interact with one another and we also pay attention to the different cultural expressions and manifestations of what it means to be part of an elite. The course begins with a discussion of the conceptual landscape, and then goes in depth into topics such as ‘elite formation in colonial Africa’; ‘elite making and the role of schools / education’; ‘elites, politics and power’; ‘elite making and the role of grand families’; ‘elite formation in a transnational space’; ‘cultural manifestations of elite status’ and ‘elite formation in a religious field’.

Learning Outcome

Academic goals
The aim is for the student to acquire the following qualifications:

  • Ability to select, in consultation with the instructor, a relevant sub-topic within the overall focus area of the thematic course. The sub-topic will often be empirical in nature and geared towards specific conditions in Africa, but it can also be more theoretical.
  • Ability to independently and critically select relevant literature on the sub-topic to be studied.
  • Ability to independently and critically analyse the sub-topic in question and to place it within the overall context of the thematic course in question.
Will follow
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Class Instruction
  • 28
  • Course Preparation
  • 272
  • Exam
  • 120
  • Total
  • 420
Credit
10 ECTS
Type of assessment
Written assignment
Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
External censorship
Exam period
June 2015
Criteria for exam assesment

The grade of 12 is given at the exam when the student demonstrates:

  • Confident ability to identify and define a sub-topic and an issue of relevance to the overall theme of the thematic course.
  • Confident ability to independently and critically select relevant literature on the sub-topic to be studied.
  • Confident ability to independently and critically analyse the sub-topic in question and the chosen literature.
  • Confident ability to conduct an interdisciplinary analysis of the sub-topic in question and to place it within the overall theme of the thematic course in question.
  • Confident ability to communicate academic material in a clear, concise and well-argued manner.
Credit
15 ECTS
Type of assessment
Oral examination, 45 min.
Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
External censorship
Exam period
June 2015
Criteria for exam assesment

The grade of 12 is given at the exam when the student demonstrates:

  • Confident ability to identify and define a sub-topic and an issue of relevance to the overall theme of the thematic course.
  • Confident ability to independently and critically select relevant literature on the sub-topic to be studied.
  • Confident ability to independently and critically analyse the sub-topic in question and the chosen literature.
  • Confident ability to conduct an interdisciplinary analysis of the sub-topic in question and to place it within the overall theme of the thematic course in question.
  • Confident ability to communicate academic material in a clear, concise and well-argued manner.