Courses
Fall 2018
AAS 362/WWS 386/POL 338Race and the American Legal Process: Emancipation to the Voting Rights Act(SA)This course examines the dynamic and often conflicted relationships between African American struggles for inclusion, and the legislative, administrative, and judicial decision-making responding to or rejecting those struggles, from Reconstruction to the passage of the Voting Rights Act. In tracing these relationships we will cover issues such as property, criminal law, suffrage, education, and immigration, with a focus on the following theoretical frameworks: equal protection, due process, civic participation and engagement, and political recognition.Imani Perry
COM 414/POL 481/ECS 414Agency, Persons, Aesthetics. Epistemologies of the Polis(LA)This class explores why social and political theory requires theory of knowledge. Prefiguring Hegel and Marx the authors we read remain seminal to both history and "the permanence of the aesthetic" (Marcuse) because they conceive "thinking" itself as "self-determination" in which any "self " first "becomes" "itself" in relation to others "outside" it (Kant), just as any "subject" is "predicated" not by choice but definition (Rousseau). From language and all forms of representation, to judgment, "consent" and law, the interpersonal depends on the personhood first defined in these works as the "agency" that continues to shape history today.Claudia Joan Brodsky
EPS 300/POL 384European Politics and Society in the 20th Century(SA)This course covers the critical developments of twentieth and twenty-first century Europe, in particular the consolidation of democracy in European countries. It deals with the legacy of the two world wars, Nazism, Stalinism, the Cold War, colonialism and decolonization, the collapse of Communism and the re-unification of Europe, the birth and development of the European Community, the creation of the welfare state, the challenges confronting the European Union (immigration, enlargement, political institutions, military role, and the single currency), and the varieties of democratic institutions in Europe.Ezra N. SuleimanDavid G. Moak
NES 265/POL 465Political and Economic Development of the Middle East(SA)This course offers an opportunity to study the political economy of the Middle East. This semester we focus on oil-exporting monarchical countries in the Gulf/Arabian Peninsula, which are under rapid transformation today. We discuss issues such as the reasons for the durability of monarchism in this region; the unsustainability of their oil-based economies; challenges facing the attempt to make a transition to a post-oil economy (both in terms of income and the source of energy - in light of the rise of renewables and the global climate change regime); the youth unemployment problem and challenges facing the creation and localization of jobs.Makio Yamada
NES 269/POL 353The Politics of Modern Islam(HA)This course examines the political dimensions of Islam. This will involve a study of the nature of Islamic political theory, the relationship between the religious and political establishments, the characteristics of an Islamic state, the radicalization of Sunni and Shi'i thought, and the compatibility of Islam and the nation-state, democracy, and constitutionalism, among other topics. Students will be introduced to the complex and polemical phenomenon of political Islam. The examples will be drawn mainly, though not exclusively, from cases and writings from the Middle East.Bernard A. Haykel
POL 220/WWS 310American Politics(SA)An introduction to the institutions and political processes of American government and democracy. Topics will include the Constitution and American political tradition, federalism, political institutions, elections and representation, interest groups and social movements, civil rights and liberties, and the politics of public policyPaul Frymer
POL 230/WWS 325Introduction to Comparative Politics(SA)Why are some countries rich and others poor? Why do some countries have revolutions, while others never do? This course explores such questions about the domestic politics of other countries, or comparative politics, focusing on five major themes: 1) economic development 2) democratization 3) revolution 4) ethnic conflict and 5) income redistribution. Readings on Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America are used to provide an introduction to politics in different regions of the world and to show how cross-national comparisons provide insight into contemporary political outcomes.Alisha C. Holland
POL 240/WWS 312International Relations(SA)This course is an introduction to the causes and nature of international conflict and cooperation. We critically examine various theories of international politics by drawing on examples drawn from international security, economic and legal affairs across different historical eras from 10,000 BC to the present. Topics include the causes of war, the pursuit of economic prosperity, the sources of international order and its breakdown, and the rise of challenges to national sovereignty, and such contemporary issues as international environmental politics, human rights promotion, global terrorism, and the future of US foreign policy.Andrew Moravcsik
POL 303Modern Political Theory(EM)A survey of the foundational texts of modern political theory. Emphasis is placed on close reading and the reconstruction and analysis of theoretical arguments.Gregory A. ContiNathan Pinkoski
POL 313/CHV 313Global Justice(EM)What, if any, norms of justice apply to the institutions and practice of world politics? Topics may include "political realism" and skepticism about global morality; just wars and justice in warfare; ethics of humanitarian intervention; the nature and basis of human rights; world poverty and global distributive justice; climate change; democracy and accountability in global institutions. Readings chosen from recent works in political philosophy.Charles R. Beitz
POL 315Constitutional Interpretation(SA)A study of the structure of the American constitutional system and of the meaning of key constitutional provisions. Students will critically evaluate competing theories of, and approaches to, constitutional interpretation.Robert P. GeorgeDavid R. OakleyMark B. O'BrienGregory J. SullivanMark A. BelnickMatthew J. Franck
POL 320Judicial Politics(SA)This course provides an introduction to the political science of law and courts. Topics typically include: bargaining and decision making on the U.S. Supreme Court; political struggles over doctrine within the judicial hierarchy; the politics of Supreme Court nominations; juries as political institutions; court packing, jurisdiction stripping and judicial intimidation.John Kastellec
POL 325The Presidency and Executive Power(SA)Topics to be covered include the origin, nature, uses and limits of presidential power; the presidential selection process; the relationship between the President and other significant political actors--Congress, the Press, executive branch agencies, and the public; presidential accountability and the importance of presidential personality.Lauren Wright
POL 327Mass Media, Social Media, and American Politics(SA)This course considers the role of both mass media and social media in American politics and the influence of the media on Americans' political attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. We will examine the nature of news and news-making organizations, the role of the news media in electoral campaigns, how the media shape the behavior of politicians once in office, political advertising, and the ability of social media to facilitate collective action.Andrew Guess
POL 341Experimental Methods in Politics(QR)The use of experiments to study and influence politics is widespread and growing, partly because they can identify cause and effect not possible with surveys or other data. No longer confined to the lab, political scientists and campaign operatives use new technology to conduct experiments on thousands of voters in real elections. Massive political experiments have been conducted on Facebook, by mail and telephone, but is it ethical to influence politics in pursuit of new knowledge? What have experiments taught us about voting, race, and representation in America? This class will cover these and other aspects of using experiments in politics.Ali A. Valenzuela
POL 345/SOC 305Introduction to Quantitative Social Science(QR)Would universal health insurance improve the health of the poor? Do patterns of arrests in US cities show evidence of racial profiling? What accounts for who votes and their choice of candidates? This course will teach students how to address these and other social science questions by analyzing quantitative data. The course introduces basic principles of statistical inference and programming skills for data analysis. The goal is to provide students with the foundation necessary to analyze data in their own research and to become critical consumers of statistical claims made in the news media, in policy reports, and in academic research.Marc RatkovicWill Lowe
POL 349Political Economy(SA)Examines the role of political institutions in facilitating or hindering economic prosperity. We start with the basic tools of political economy - collective action, elections, and delegation. These tools are then applied to the problems of controlling rulers and the persistence of inefficiency.Gleason Judd
POL 362/WWS 323/EAS 362Chinese Politics(SA)This course provides an overview of China's political system. We will begin with a brief historical overview of China's political development from 1949 to the present. The remainder of the course will examine the key challenges facing the current generation of CCP leadership, focusing on prospects for democratization and political reform. Among other topics, we will examine: factionalism and political purges; corruption; avenues for political participation; village elections; public opinion; protest movements and dissidents; co-optation of the business class; and media and internet control.Rory Truex
POL 366/AFS 366Politics in Africa(SA)This course introduces the study of African politics. The lectures and readings briefly review the social and historical context of contemporary political life. They then profile the changes of the early post-Independence period, the authoritarian turn of the 1970s and 80s, the second liberation of the 1990s, and problems of war, state-building, and development. Although the lectures trace a narrative, each also introduces a major analytical debate and an important policy problem. Broadly comparative with some special attention to selected countries.Jennifer A. Widner
POL 386Violent Politics(SA)Governments have tremendous power over our lives and thus the competition over who controls them is always intense and often violent. This course will study various ways in which violence is used to political ends. The larger goal of the course is to understand the sources of violence in political competition and the conditions under which political disputes can be peacefully resolved. Specific forms of violence to be covered include assassination, civil war, ethnic conflict, insurgency, revolution, riots, terrorism, and war.Jacob N. Shapiro
POL 403/CHV 403/ARC 405/URB 403Architecture and Democracy(EM)What kind of public architecture is appropriate for a democracy? Should public spaces and buildings reflect democratic values - such as transparency and accessibility - or is the crucial requirement for democratic architecture that the process of arriving at decisions about the built environment is as participatory as possible? Is gentrification somehow un-democratic? The course will introduce students to different theories of democracy, to different approaches to architecture, and to many examples of architecture and urban planning from around the world, via images and films. Might include a field trip.Jan-Werner Müller
POL 417/CHV 417Colonialism and Historic Injustice(EM)European colonial rule in Asia, Africa, and the Americas was central to the modern project. Native peoples were often displaced, enslaved, and oppressed as part of this process. What is the proper way for former colonial powers to respond to their history? Do they owe former subject peoples special rights, reparations, or an apology? Is the process of decolonization still unfinished? In considering these questions, the course will explore important topics in political philosophy, including rights to land and territory, cultural preservation, and claims to national self-determination.Anna B. Stilz
POL 422/GSS 422Seminar in American Politics: Gender and American Politics(SA)This course examines the intersection of gender and politics in the United States.Tali Mendelberg
POL 423Seminar in American Politics: Free Speech and the Law(SA)This seminar will focus on the theory, law and politics of freedom of speech within the context of the American constitutional system. The course will draw primarily on court cases relating to the developing constitutional law surrounding the First Amendment. Judicial opinions will be supplemented with some broader theoretical and empirical works. Particular problems to be addressed will include dangerous speech, false speech, racist speech, censorship and secrecy, privacy, and protests.Keith E. Whittington
POL 432Seminar in Comparative Politics: Russia, Ukraine, and the New Cold War(SA)Russia and Ukraine share a long and sometimes violent history that has both united and divided them. They stand at the center of what has been dubbed "the new Cold War". This seminar examines politics in Russia and Ukraine since the collapse of communism, focusing on the rise of Putinism, the causes of two revolutions in Ukraine within a decade, and the 2014 invasion of Crimea and war in the Donbass. Through the Russian-Ukrainian relationship, the course will seek to understand the dilemmas of post-communist development, the roots of "the new Cold War", and the challenges a resurgent Russia presents for Eurasia and the rest of the world.Mark R. Beissinger
WWS 370/POL 308/CHV 301Ethics and Public Policy(EM)The course examines major moral controversies in public life and differing conceptions of justice, the common good, and civic virtues. It seeks to help students think and write about the ethical considerations that ought to shape public institutions and guide public authorities. The course will focus on issues that are particularly challenging for advanced, pluralist democracies. These issues may include the status of cultures and nations, justice in war, markets and distributive justice, the virtues of citizens in a capitalist society, property rights, women's rights in developing countries, education policy, and cross-border migration.Steven A. Kelts