Political geography has produced some of the most radical and innovative ideas in human geography in the past twenty years. The meaning and significance of traditional political subdivisions, such as the state, have had to be fundamentally re-evaluated in the face of the globalisation of society and economy and this has forced political geographers to look for new ways of explaining the dynamics of the world system.
Political Geography provides a stimulating and concise introduction to the key themes of the subdiscipline, which moves beyond the study of the state to encompass the spatial consequences of power at all levels. In this student-friendly book, each chapter has bullet-pointed key concepts, boxes, annotated further reading, a self-review question and a summary paragraph.

Contents:
1. Placing political geography Section A 2. Human territory, maps and the division of space 3. The idea of state 4. Making states function: The variety of local state systems 5. The politics of difference 6. Social movements, pressure groups and political parties 7. Electoral geographies Section B 8. Imagining natural divisions of global power 9. Dreams into action: The making of national foreign policy 10. Annexing the oceans Section C 11. Globalisation and the theory of world systems 12. States in the 21st Century 13. Conclusion: Spatial political change in context

The New Germany provides a picture of contemporary Germany from a variety of perspectives, establishing relationships between recent political events and society and cultural life. Contributors include distinguished specialists in German Studies, including John Sandford, Michael Patterson, Karl Koch and Charles Jeffery. Part 1 sets the scene, discussing the demise of East Germany from historical perspective and unification in terms of the social problems that have been provoked. Part 2 covers the new political structure and Germany's role as a European power as well as the social, educational and economic problems generated, especially in the east, by the western takeover of the former GDR. Part 3 is an extensive section devoted to culture and the arts, with studies of the media, literature, theatre, film and language.