“Populism” is a buzzword in European politics today. Across the continent, parties and politicians who are associated with this term consistently appear in headlines and, more importantly, in parliaments. This is largely due to its association with radical parties in Europe. Although radical parties, especially the radical right, have been a common phenomenon in European politics for decades, there is still considerable confusion in terms of their conceptualization within academia. This course provided me with an understanding of right-wing extremist and radical politics in Europe. I was introduced to the basic premises and core concepts of right-wing extremist and radical ideologies as well as what differentiates them. The course also familiarized me with common analyses of political parties, their internal organization and membership, and their strategic behavior in the electoral arena. Right-wing extremist and radical attitudes among European societies was also a focal point of the course. We often read current research on the effects of political extremism and radicalism on the stability of democracies and the ways democracies react to political extremism and radicalism. The course ultimately provided me with the necessary tools to exercise a critical understanding of current affairs in contemporary Europe.

As the course was seminar-based, we independently read and formulated our own understandings of the literature and the theories outlined. In each discussion, Professor Alonso made a point to have us break down the research question, literature review, argument/hypotheses, and main findings of each assigned reading, as well as how the readings connected to one another. This proved helpful to writing my thesis in two regards. Firstly, it helped me read and deconstruct scholarly articles and books for my own research more efficiently. Secondly, it inspired me to structure my thesis in a similar order. Methodologically, the course sharpened my analytical skills, specifically collecting information, defining concepts, and organizing these ideas both in writing and orally. Although I drew very few parallels between the course material and my research, our discussion of Roger Eatwell’s mediatization thesis proved relevant to contextualizing Negrophilia, specifically as it related to ideas of a ‘post-racial’ America.

The major assignment of the course was a group research presentation. Each group had to choose a topic from a list provided, formulate a research question, and organize a class session to present our findings. My group chose the ‘Radical Right, Gender and LGTBQ Rights’ as our topic. We specifically centered on charismatic female leadership within the radical right as a paradox of the radical right’s historically anti-feminist stance. To present our findings, we created a visual presentation and organized a debate, which proved successfully engaging. What I drew most from this project was how to effectively synthesize theoretical and empirical findings.