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Question 1

The British political system at the beginning of the 21^st century is best characterised as which of the following?

a) A political system which has completed its evolution

b) A disintegrating political system

c) A political system which is in a state of transition

d) A post-political system

Question 2

The idea of a 'post-political age' is best summarized by which of the following?

a) An era in which populist political appeals displace those based upon ideological conviction

b) An era in which most citizens regard politics as another form of entertainment

c) An era in which political conflict appears to have been eliminated

d) An era in which politics seems less relevant to the daily lives of many citizens

Question 3

Which of the following individuals is associated with an understanding of politics as the 'art of the possible'?

a) Raymond Aron

b) Bernard Crick

c) Benjamin Disraeli

d) Peter Kellner

Question 4

Which of the following correctly understands the contention that Britain represents "a model of low-cost political modernization"?

a) The British State has been relatively non-interventionist throughout the modern era

b) The British political elite have been less divided than the political elites of other nations and so have only rarely engaged in intra-elite disputes

c) Britain undertook the transition from a feudal, pre-industrial society to an industrial, modern, democratic nation state in a sequential and orderly manner

d) The creation of Britain was in comparative terms, relatively easy and quick with the absorption of Wales, Scotland and Ireland into a multi-national state

Question 5

Francis Fukuyama is associated with which of the following arguments?

a) The end of the Cold War has brought the universalisation of liberal democracy

b) The United States is now a benevolent hegemon in international affairs

c) The collapse of Keynesianism has heralded the emergence of a new 'golden age' of economic prosperity

d) The dismantling of the Soviet Union has transformed a bi-polar world into a multi-polar world

Question 6

Samuel Huntingdon advances which of the following arguments?

a) The fundamental source of conflict in the modern world is not economic or ideological but is cultural and religious

b) The fundamental source of conflict in the modern world is the existence of 'rogue states' which defy the norms of the international community

c) The fundamental source of conflict in the modern world will be between the West and the new economic superpowers of India and China

d) The fundamental source of conflict in the modern world is impossible to identify because we have entered the period of 'post-modernity'

Question 7

Those who are sceptical of the impact of globalisation upon British politics most frequently draw attention to which of the following?

a) Globalisation has an equal and undifferentiated impact upon all nations

b) There was never a 'golden-age' where the British economy was not vulnerable to external economic shocks

c) Globalisation restores to Britain the kind of economic opportunities it enjoyed when at the height of its imperial power

d) The forces which are generating globalisation are temporary and will soon reach the end of their transformative potential

Question 8

Which of the following would be a particularly troubling phenomenon in contemporary British politics for a conservative?

a) The 'end of history' thesis

b) The growth of charismatic political leadership

c) A declining adherence to family and religious values

d) Growing ideological convergence between the major political parties

Question 9

Terrorism is best understood as...

a) ...a non-political, criminal act.

b) ...an inevitable phenomenon in a post-Cold War world.

c) ...focused acts or threats which have time-limited and geographically limited impacts.

d) ...the use of violence or intimidation to generate fear on a mass scale for political ends.

Question 10

Which of the following statements is correct?

a) There is a shared appreciation of the traditionalism of Britain's culture and institutions amongst its contemporary political elites

b) Britain had little experience of terrorism prior to the events of July 7^th 2005

c) Thatcherism extended the reach of the market economy but did little to reform British political institutions

d) Britain is now the primary source of political inspiration and guidance for other European states

Oxford University Press, Online Resource Centre, Chapter 01.

Chapter 01

Instructions

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Question 4

Question 5

Question 6

Question 7

Question 8

Question 9

Question 10