The Far Right in Europe - JPM852

• Title: The Far Right in Europe
• Guaranteed by: Department of Political Science (23-KP)
• Faculty: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Actual: from 2024 to 2024
• Semester: summer
• E-Credits: 6
• Examination process: summer s.:
• Hours per week, examination: summer s.:2/0, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: 20 / unknown (unknown)
• Min. number of students: unlimited
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: taught
• Language: English
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Note: course can be enrolled in outside the study plan; enabled for web enrollment
• Guarantor: doc. Dr. habil. MA PhDr. Petra Guasti, Ph.D.
• Teacher(s): doc. Dr. habil. MA PhDr. Petra Guasti, Ph.D.
• Class: Courses for incoming students

Annotation

Over the past decades, the far right has become one of the most studied phenomena in
political science. In many countries, far-right parties have already been in government
and/or shaped party competition in the long term. In this course, we will discuss the most
important approaches and results of international research on the far right. What does the
concept entail, how does it relate to populism, the radical right, and – more broadly – to
(liberal) democracy? We will shed light on the causes of far-right electoral successes, their
ideological, organisational and strategic characteristics as well as their direct and indirect
impact. In doing so, we focus on different (mostly European) cases in comparative
perspective and discuss various methodological approaches.

Last update: Průdková Karolína, Mgr. (04.02.2025)

Literature

Seminar Times and Readings

1) Introduction and Conceptual Framework (Monday 3.3. 2025, 17:00-18:20; C520)
Compulsory readings:
Mudde, Cas (2007). Populist Radical Right Parties in Europe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [11–31]
Pirro, Andrea L. P. (2023). Far right: The significance of an umbrella concept. Nations and Nationalism 29(1): 101–112.
Recommended reading:
Canovan, Margaret (1999). Trust the People! Populism and the Two Faces of Democracy. Political Studies 47(1): 2–16.

2) Causes (Tuesday 4.3.2025, 12:30-13:50; C520)
Compulsory readings:
Arzheimer, Kai (2018). Explaining Electoral Support for the Radical Right. In Rydgren, Jens (ed), The Oxford Handbook of the Radical Right. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 143–165.
Weisskircher, Manès (2020). The Strength of Far-Right AfD in Eastern Germany: The East-West Divide and the Multiple Causes behind ‘Populism’. The Political Quarterly 91(3): 614–622.
Recommended reading:
Chueri, Juliana, and Anna Damerow (2022). Closing the gap: how descriptive and substantive representation affect women’s vote for populist radical right parties. West European Politics 46(5): 928–946.

3) Ideology (Tuesday 4.3.2025, 14:00-15:20; C520)
Compulsory readings:
Rovny, Jan, and Jonathan Polk (2020). Still blurry? Economic salience, position and voting for radical right parties in Western Europe. European Journal of Political Research 59(2): 248–268.
Minkenberg, Michael (2017). The Radical Right in Eastern Europe. Democracy under Siege? New York: Palgrave Macmillan. [67–97]
Recommended readings:
Küppers, Anne (2024). ‘Climate-Soviets,’ ‘Alarmism,’ and ‘Eco-Dictatorship’: The Framing of Climate Change Scepticism by the Populist Radical Right Alternative for Germany. German Politics 33(1): 1–21.
Michael, Aleš (2024). Moralism without populism? The salience of corruption in the electoral manifestos and legislature speeches of Czech and Slovak parties. Parliamentary Affairs. Online First.

4) Organisation and Mobilisation (Wednesday 5.3.2025, 11:00-12:20; B329)
Compulsory readings:
Heinisch, Reinhard, and Oscar Mazzoleni (2016). Comparing Populist Organizations. In Heinisch, Reinhard, and Oscar Mazzoleni (eds), Understanding Populist Party Organisation. The Radical Right in Western Europe. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 221–246.
Castelli Gattinara, Pietro, Caterina Froio, and Andrea L. P. Pirro (2022). Far-right protest mobilisation in Europe: Grievances, opportunities and resources. European Journal of Political Research 61(4): 1019–1041.
Recommended reading:
Van Kessel, Stijn, and Daniele Albertazzi (2021). Right‐Wing Populist Party Organisation Across Europe: The Survival of the Mass‐Party? Conclusion to the Thematic Issue. Politics and Governance 9(4): 365–370.

5) Youth Wings (Wednesday 5.3.2025, 12:30-13:50; B329)
Compulsory readings:
Heinze, Anna-Sophie (2025). Drivers of radicalisation? The development and role of the far-right youth organisation ‘Young Alternative’ in Germany. International Political Science Review 46(1): 108–124.
Ammassari, Sofia, Duncan McDonnell, and Marco Valbruzzi (2023). It’s about the type of career: The political ambition gender gap among youth wing members. European Journal of Political Research 62(4): 1054–1077.

6) Impact: Role of Parties (Thursday 6.3.2025, 14:00-15:20; B317)
Compulsory readings:
Art, David (2007). Reacting to the Radical Right: Lessons from Germany and Austria. Party Politics 13(3): 331–349.
Heinze, Anna-Sophie (2022). Dealing with the populist radical right in parliament: Mainstream party responses towards the Alternative for Germany. European Political Science Review 14(3): 333–350.
Recommended reading:
De Jonge, Léonie (2019). The Populist Radical Right and the Media in the Benelux: Friend or Foe? The International Journal of Press/Politics 24(2): 189–209.

7) Impact: In Government (Thursday 6.3.2025, 15:30-16:50; C523)
Compulsory readings:
Akkerman, Tjitske, and Sarah L. de Lange (2012). Radical Right Parties in Office: Incumbency Records and the Electoral Cost of Governing. Government and Opposition 47(4): 574–592.
Chueri, Juliana (2021). Social policy outcomes of government participation by radical right parties. Party Politics 27(6): 1092–1104.
Recommended reading:
Paxton, Fred (2023). Restrained Radicals. Populist Radical Right Parties in Local Government. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Chapter 4: Do They Make a Difference? The Policy Impact of Populist Radical Right Parties in Local Power]

8) Mainstreaming and Research Perspectives (Friday 7.3.2025, 9:30-10:50; C520)
Compulsory readings:
Brown, Katy, Aurelien Mondon, and Aaron Winter (2023). The far right, the mainstream and mainstreaming: towards a heuristic framework. Journal of Political Ideologies 28(2): 162–179.
Mudde, Cas (2019). The Far Right Today. Cambridge: Polity Press. [Chapter 10: Twelve Theses on the Fourth Wave]
Recommended reading:
Castelli Gattinara, Pietro (2020). The study of the far right and its three E’s: why scholarship must go beyond Eurocentrism, Electoralism and Externalism. French Politics 18(2): 314–333.

Last update: Průdková Karolína, Mgr. (04.02.2025)

Requirements to the exam

Course requirements

Communication platform for this seminar will be Moodle.

All compulsory reading for the course is to be completed by every student for the given block of the seminar. The recommended reading aims to encourage students to obtain a more profound understanding of the presented topics.
Students are also encouraged to use the library and other resources available at the university.
You are welcomed to ask for a recommendation in a specific direction during consultations.

1. Active course participation is the necessary requirement for successful completion of the course. Active participation is more than presence and includes active engagement (commenting, discussing with peers, asking meaningful questions).

2. Written assignment: Students are required to write a short paper on the topic of their choice selected from the course themes. Length: 3,000-3,500 words (including literature). This paper is to be submitted per email at the latest 31.05.2025.

Last update: Průdková Karolína, Mgr. (04.02.2025)

Syllabus

read the attachment

Last update: Baranyaiová Gabriela, PhDr. (05.10.2022)