Verified official syllabus source

University of Delhi — B.A. (Hons.) Political Science — official course contents PDF

Semester I papers and unit structure as published in the official Department of Political Science course contents, effective from the academic year 2011-2012 onwards.

Open official syllabus

Academic batch: 2024-25
Last reviewed: 2026-10-01
Curriculum source: University of Delhi
Syllabus effective: Academic Year 2011-2012 onwards

The batch above is the student cohort this material is mapped to. The effective period is stated by the official document itself — check your college's current syllabus before relying on either.

University of DelhiSemester IPaper IIUnit 1 of 2

Introducing Political Theory (30 Lectures)

Paper II: Understanding Political Theory · B.A. (Hons.) Political Science · Semester I

The unit heading above is transcribed verbatim from the official course contents, including its published lecture allocation. The notes, key points and explanation below are original material written for this site.

Course applicability

University: University of Delhi
Programme: B.A. (Hons.) Political Science
Semester: Semester I
Course component: Core Discipline Paper
Subject: Political Science
Paper: Paper II: Understanding Political Theory

Marks pattern (official): Max Marks 100 = Theory Exam 75 + Internal Assessment 25. Teaching: 5 lectures + 1 tutorial per week (main papers).

Published lectures

Official subtopics

1 / 2

Unit position

60 lectures

Paper total

Official subtopics

Transcribed from the official course contents. These are the examinable headings inside this unit.

What is Politics: Theorizing the "Political"
Traditions of Political Theory: Liberal, Marxist, Anarchist and Conservative
Approaches to Political Theory: Normative, Historical and Empirical
Critical and Contemporary Perspectives in Political Theory: Feminist and Post-modern

Unit summary

Builds political theory as a discipline. It defines what is political, maps the four major traditions — liberal, Marxist, anarchist and conservative — and distinguishes the normative, historical and empirical approaches. It then introduces critical and contemporary perspectives, notably feminist and post-modern, which interrogate whose politics counts and how power and knowledge operate.

Key points for this unit

Written for this site. Each point is written the way it should appear in an exam answer.

1Keep the three approaches distinct: normative (what ought), historical (how we got here), empirical (what is).
2Four traditions: liberal, Marxist, anarchist, conservative — one line on the core concern of each.
3Critical and contemporary perspectives = feminist and post-modern; both challenge mainstream theory’s exclusions.
4Theorizing the "political" implies drawing a boundary — useful for a short 10-mark answer.

Questions from this unit

Answer skeletons are included. Full set is on the paper's Important Questions page.

Long answer

Distinguish between the normative, historical and empirical approaches to political theory.

Show answer points

• Normative: asks what ought to be — evaluates political arrangements against a standard of the good or the just.
• Historical: asks how we arrived here — explains political ideas and institutions as products of their period.
• Empirical: asks what is — describes and explains observable political behaviour and data.
• Note that the approaches are complementary: a complete analysis of a political question usually needs all three.
• Common error to avoid: treating empirical as the only valid approach. Political theory without normative questions cannot say what is wrong with an arrangement.

Long answer

Describe the four traditions of political theory named in the syllabus and state the core concern of each.

Show answer points

• Liberal — individual liberty and its protection through rights, law and limited government.
• Marxist — class, material conditions and the structures of economic power.
• Anarchist — the illegitimacy of the state and the possibility of order without it.
• Conservative — tradition, authority, community and the limits of deliberate social change.
• Close by noting these are ideal types; real texts usually combine elements.

Short answer

Why does political theory need to theorize "the political"?

Show answer points

• Because before you can study politics you must decide what counts as political and what falls outside it.
• Drawing that boundary determines which questions are political questions at all — so the boundary is an analytical act, not a neutral one.

Short answer

What do feminist and post-modern perspectives contribute to political theory?

Show answer points

• Feminist theory questions whose experiences and interests mainstream theory treated as universal.
• Post-modern theory questions whether any single, stable account of power or meaning is possible.
• Both challenge mainstream theory's exclusions rather than adding one more tradition to the list.

All important questions for Paper II

Revision recap

Condensed recall items for this unit.

Definitions

• Political theory — the disciplined study of political life, asking both what politics is and what it ought to be.
• Normative approach — analysis that evaluates what ought to be.
• Historical approach — analysis that explains political ideas and institutions as products of their period.
• Empirical approach — analysis that describes and explains observable political behaviour.

Arguments to remember

• Four traditions: liberal (liberty and rights), Marxist (class and material power), anarchist (illegitimacy of the state), conservative (tradition and authority).
• Critical and contemporary perspectives — feminist and post-modern — interrogate mainstream theory's exclusions.
• The approaches are complementary, not rival: describing, explaining and evaluating are different tasks.

Full revision sheet for Paper II

Political Theory and Practice: The Grammar of Democracy →

Back to Paper II hub Next unit Important questions Revision sheet PYQ hub

Verified official syllabus source

Course applicability

Official subtopics

Unit summary

Key points for this unit

Questions from this unit

Revision recap

Definitions

Arguments to remember

Continue your revision

Verified official syllabus source

Course applicability

Official subtopics

Unit summary

Key points for this unit

Questions from this unit

Revision recap

Definitions

Arguments to remember

Continue your revision