This seminar is an inquiry into how music functions as a political force both historically and in contemporary society. It will introduce students to the various historical and contemporary uses of music to both reflect and shape various political ideologies, agendas, and positions. Issues will include the role of music in activism and resistance, music and censorship, the politics of music technology, and the role of music in shaping and reflecting various political communities and identities. The course will draw on readings and theories from the fields of political science, classical studies, anthropology, cultural and literary theory, gender studies, philosophy and aesthetics. Examples from Western and Non-Western and popular and classical traditions will be used as case studies. Theoretical and interpretive approaches to be introduced and discussed include deconstruction, narrative and reception theory, performativity, Marxist critique, and various aspects of post-colonial theory.