Which Side Are You On?: An Introduction to Politics

Aiming to put the “politics” back in political science, this new text emphasizes issues and debates in the context of the major ideologies, demonstrating the connection between political science and the issues that matter in our lives.

Because politics–the political issues of the day–are what draw most people to the study of political science, Shalom's new text emphasizes the key issues and ideas in the political world to capture student interest and to help them think like political scientists. Which Side Are You On? was written with the belief that learning about politics is not a matter of being told the “truth” by a text or a scholar, but rather involves examining conflicting points of view. The text, therefore, presents each topic in the introductory course in terms of different perspectives and various ideologies, and asks students to think through these views.

Which Side Are You On? begins with an exposition of the major political ideologies, with separate chapters devoted to conservatism, liberalism and democratic socialism. These ideologies then form the framework for the rest of the book: as each topic is addressed–from civil liberties to welfare policy to globalization–the reader is given the necessary factual information and then shown how these topics are contestable and are embedded in conflicting world views.