Published: June 2017
Page Count: 260
ISBN (Digital): 978-1-4533-8460-2

An Introduction to Politics

Version 2.0
By T.M. Sell

Included Supplements

Manual

Slides

Tests

Key Features

Brief, concise approach.
Coverage that is relevant to students.
Customizable.

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This textbook is suitable for the following courses: Political Science, U.S. Government

An Introduction to Politics is a concise narrative that depicts the intersection of politics and policy and discusses the inevitable trade-offs to demonstrate why politics matter in students’ daily lives. Sell draws extensively from US-based and comparative examples to illustrate how government has evolved, how it functions, and why it is designed the way it is.

New in This Version

Revised opening chapter with a sharper focus on political economy.
Updated chapter on ideologies and isms.
Up-to-date coverage of recent development in world politics, including Brexit and the election of Trump.

1.1 All Life Is Politics

1.2 Do We Need a Government?

1.3 A (Very) Brief History of Government

Chapter 2: Ideologies and Isms: The Foundations of Politics

2.1 What Is and Ought to Be: Three Versions of Politics

2.2 From Antiquity to Modernity

2.3 From Modernity to the Present

2.4 Alternatives to Liberalism

2.5 Postmodern Ideas about Politics

Chapter 3: Types of Governments: A Republic or a Democracy?

3.1 Direct Democracy

3.2 Indirect Democracy

3.3 Constitutions

3.4 Divisions of Power

Chapter 4: Citizens and Politics

4.1 Political Culture

4.2 Media

4.3 Interest Groups

4.4 Public Opinion

Chapter 5: Voting and Elections

5.1 Voting

5.2 Political Parties

5.3 Electoral Systems

Chapter 6: The Building Blocks of Government

6.1 Legislatures

6.2 Executives

6.3 Courts

6.4 Subnational Governments

6.5 Bureaucracy

Chapter 7: Economics, Economic Systems, and Economic Policy

7.1 Different Economic Systems

7.2 Basic Economics

7.3 How Politics and Markets Intersect

7.4 Measuring the Economy: GDP and Inflation

7.5 Government and the Economy

7.6 Fiscal and Monetary Policy

Chapter 8: International Relations

8.1 The Challenges of the State System

8.2 Theories of International Relations

8.3 The Problem of Morality

8.4 Post–Cold War International Relations

8.5 The Nuclear Question, Revisited

Chapter 9: Applying What You’ve Learned: Three Issues

9.1 Trade

9.2 Debt and Deficits

9.3 The Environment

Instructor’s Manual

The Instructor’s Manual guides you through the main concepts of each chapter and important elements such as learning objectives, key terms, and key takeaways. Can include answers to chapter exercises, group activity suggestions, and discussion questions.

PowerPoint Lecture Notes

A PowerPoint presentation highlighting key learning objectives and the main concepts for each chapter are available for you to use in your classroom. You can either cut and paste sections or use the presentation as a whole.

Test Generator - powered by Cognero

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Test Bank Files for Import to Learning Management Systems

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Test Item File

Need assistance in supplementing your quizzes and tests? Our test-item files (in Word format) contain many multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and short-answer questions.

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T.M. Sell

Highline College

T.M. Sell spent twenty years as a working journalist covering business, the economy, and politics, before finishing his Ph.D. and taking up teaching. He also worked for several years as a staff member in the Washington state legislature. He is a past president of the Pacific Northwest Political Science Association, the Western Washington chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, a former Washington Civic Educator of the Year, and a successful playwright. He currently teaches political science, economics, and journalism at Highline College near Seattle.