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POL30880

Academic Year 2025/2026

Capitalism and Democracy (POL30880)

Subject:
Politics
College:
Social Sciences & Law
School:
Politics & Int Relations
Level:
3 (Degree)
Credits:
10
Module Coordinator:
Professor Aidan Regan
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

Can capitalism and democracy coexist in an age of extreme inequality? This module explores how rising concentrations of wealth, corporate power, and housing inequality are reshaping politics, markets, and democracy in the world’s richest countries. We ask why some democracies are more unequal than others, whether voters care about inequality, and how the rich influence governments.

We also investigate how global multinationals shift profits and avoid taxes—and why the wealthiest pollute far more than the rest. Along the way, we explore whether defending democracy and fair markets now requires a strong state willing to confront elite power. Drawing on cutting-edge research in political economy, inequality studies, and climate politics, this module gives you the tools to critically analyse the crises of democratic capitalism in the 21st century—and to think about what comes next.

Key questions explored:

What economic inequalities are justified in democratic capitalism?

Is the concentration of wealth and capital a threat to democracy and markets?

Do voters care about economic inequalities, and what shapes their attitudes?

Why are some countries more unequal than others—and are they becoming more so?

How does housing wealth and unaffordability reshape the politics of inequality?

What socio-economic reforms do voters support—and what do they reject?

How do the rich exercise political influence over government and policy?

How do global multinationals shift profits and avoid taxes?

Why do the richest groups pollute so much more—and what are the global patterns of carbon inequality?

Is concentrated economic and ecological power now the greatest threat to both democracy and capitalism?


About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Critically assess normative debates on democracy, justice, and inequality.

Analyse empirical trends in income, wealth, and carbon inequalities within and between advanced democracies.

Understand the drivers of wealth concentration, housing wealth, and unaffordability.

Evaluate whether and how economic and ecological inequalities undermine democratic legitimacy and market competition.

Analyse public opinion and voting behaviour on inequality, redistribution, and reform.

Examine the mechanisms through which the super-rich and multinationals exert influence over states and policymaking.

Assess how legal and financial architectures enable global profit shifting and tax avoidance.

Understand the political economy of global carbon inequality and elite pollution.

Evaluate the role of the state in enforcing market competition, limiting corporate power, and defending democracy.

Engage with debates on whether defending capitalism and democracy requires rethinking property rights and state-market relations.

Indicative Module Content:

This module critically examines the tensions between capitalism and democracy in the world’s richest economies. As income, wealth, and corporate power become increasingly concentrated, we ask: what levels of inequality are compatible with democratic values? When does the concentration of wealth and capital undermine fair markets and erode democratic legitimacy?

We explore how advanced capitalist democracies have produced—and tolerated—rising inequalities of income, wealth, and housing. We ask why some countries remain more equal than others, and how these inequalities shape voting behaviour, public opinion, and democratic conflict. We examine how housing wealth and unaffordability are reshaping the politics of class, intergenerational conflict, and redistribution.

We also investigate the mechanisms of elite influence over government, the legal architectures of corporate tax avoidance, and the global patterns of profit shifting by multinationals. In doing so, we interrogate how law, finance, and politics sustain new forms of oligarchy.

A critical theme of the module is the ecological dimension of inequality. We examine why the wealthiest groups pollute far more than the rest of society, and how global carbon inequalities intersect with wealth inequalities to deepen both economic and environmental injustice.

The module concludes by asking whether democratic capitalism can renew itself through pro-market, pro-democratic reforms—and whether this will require strong states capable of confronting concentrated corporate, financial, and ecological power.

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Autonomous Student Learning

200

Lectures

24

Total

224


Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
The module will be delivered in-person. Attendance and active participation is required.

The weekly classes will be seminar-based. There will be three core readings per class.

Each class is based around a research question that address these readings.

The class will start with a discussion of the question, then turn into a lecture format, and finish with roundtable/smaller group discussion.

The overarching teaching philosophy and assessment is informed by problem-based learning.

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Incompatibles:
POL20180 - Capitalism and Democracy


 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Participation in Learning Activities: You have to submit a half-page (250-300 word) response paper to the readings/question every week on the discussion forum on Brightspace.

Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12 Pass/Fail Grade Scale No
30
No
Assignment(Including Essay): 70% for the end-of-term paper. This is letter graded.

It must be no more than 3,000 words excluding references/bibliography (approx 8 pages 1.5 spacing).
More details provided later in the term.
Week 14 Graded No
70
No

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Remediation Type Remediation Timing
In-Module Resit Prior to relevant Programme Exam Board
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback will be provided to students via brightspace.