Courses
Fall 2017
CLA 244/CHV 244/POL 337/HLS 243Greek Politics in Practice and Theory(HA)This course will approach select classics of Greek political thought (Plato's Statesman and Republic, Aristotle's Politics) through a scrutiny of Greek social and political institutions. Students will be introduced to basic principles such as the distinction between free and unfree, the social and political status of male and female, and the distribution of political power and access to political participation in the Greek polis, in order to be in a position to observe how the ideas of Greek political thinkers map onto this reality.Nino Luraghi
LAS 375/POL 486Human Rights and Transitional Justice in Latin America(SA)This seminar introduces key debates related to human rights, transitional justice, and the politics of memory in Latin America. Special focus will lie on the Southern Cone (Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Brazil), exploring the history of the human rights movement and the complex and diverse attempts to deal with the legacies of the dictatorships. The course will examine the range of transitional justice mechanisms applied, paying special attention to truth seeking efforts (and the work of truth commissions), the role of national and international criminal prosecutions, and initiatives of symbolic reparations and commemoration.Ulrike Capdepon Busies
NES 377/POL 485Liberalism, Democracy, and Iranian Political Thought(EM)This is a course in comparative political theory. Beginning with a study of classical and contemporary Western liberal and democratic theory, this course explores how modern Iranian political theorists and ideologues interpret or critique liberalism and democracy or offer theories of government that stand at odds with liberal and democratic theory. These Iranian authors draw from both religious and non-religious (including Marxist) perspectives. Throughout the course, students will be encouraged to put the diverse authors that they read into dialogue with one another.Nura A. Hossainzadeh
NES 397/POL 368Modern Iran(SA)This course surveys major themes in the history of modern Iranian politics and society beginning in the 19th century and ending in the present. Topics to be explored include national identity, imperialism and interaction with the West, Islamic government, monarchism, constitutionalism, revolution, gender, Shi'a religious culture, religious diversity and post-revolutionary reformist and conservative thought and politics. Though focusing on the Iranian context, the course addresses questions asked by thinkers across the Muslim world in the modern period, questions that concern their relationship with the West, with Islam, and with modernity.Nura A. Hossainzadeh
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 policySarah L. StaszakPaul Frymer
POL 301/CLA 301/HLS 303Ancient and Medieval Political Theory(EM)A study of the great works of political theory in four periods: ancient Greece, including Athenian democracy, Thucydides, Plato and Aristotle; ancient Rome from republic to empire, including Polybius, Cicero, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius; medieval Christian political thought in Augustine, Aquinas, Marsilius, and others; and a brief survey of Renaissance meditations on classical themes. Fundamental topics are examined, including nature and convention; constitutional analysis, including democracy, oligarchy, tyranny, kingship, and the mixed constitution; property, virtue, law, and republicanism; church and state; consent and representation.Giovanni Giorgini
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 319/AAS 316/AMS 391History of African American Political Thought(EM)This course explores central themes and ideas in the history of African American political thought: slavery and freedom, solidarity and sovereignty, exclusion and citizenship, domination and democracy, inequality and equality, rights and respect. Readings will be drawn, primarily, from canonical authors, including Harriet Jacobs, Frederick Douglass, Martin Delany, Booker T. Washington, Anna Julia Cooper, Ida B. Wells, W. E. B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey, Ralph Ellison, Kwame Ture and Charles Hamilton, and Martin Luther King, Jr. This is an introductory course, which emphasizes both thematic and historical approaches to political theory.Desmond D. Jagmohan
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 332Topics in American Statesmanship: Abraham Lincoln(HA)Course will examine the political development, constitutional principles and practice of Abraham Lincoln, and especially grass-roots politics in the 19th century Republic, the international context of liberal democracy in the 19th century, the war powers of the presidency, the contest of Whig and Democratic political ideas, the relation of the executive branch to the legislative and judicial branches, diplomacy, and the presidential cabinet.Mark B. O'BrienAllen C. Guelzo
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.Matthew J. SalganikMarc Ratkovic
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.German S. Gieczewski
POL 351/WWS 311The Politics of Development(SA)This course investigates the key political drivers of economic development and human welfare. It explores the effects of geography, historical legacies, policy, incentive design, and institutional capacity on standards of living, including vulnerability to disease and climate risk. Uses theory, comparison, and case studies to motivate discussion.Jennifer A. Widner
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 385International Political Economy(SA)This course examines how politics affects the international economy and vice-versa. The course will apply theories and tools of political economy to explore some of the following questions: who wins and loses from international trade and finance? How does globalization affect domestic politics (e.g., the 2016 election, regulations, inequality, environment) in developed and developing countries? Who sets the 'rules' under which the global economy operates? How influential are international organizations like the WTO and the IMF? These issues are explored with reference to economic and political theories, history, and contemporary events.Faisal Z. Ahmed
POL 387International Intervention and the Use of Force(SA)This lecture course examines the politics of armed international intervention. Because the United States is uniquely positioned to intervene abroad militarily, the course approaches intervention primarily from an American lens. The aims of the course are threefold. First, we will discuss the domestic and international determinants of the decision to use force, as well as different justifications for intervention abroad. Second, we will assess the record of intervention in several post-Cold War cases. Third, we will consider the criteria for thinking about when the United States should intervene with military force.Melissa M. Lee
POL 388Causes of War(SA)Why do states and peoples go to war? Conversely, how can war be avoided? This course surveys some of the most important explanations--including human nature, the anarchic international system, domestic politics, economics, technology, nationalism and terrorism--and evaluates them in light of historical wars, and of crises resolved short of war. Cases include the Peloponnesian War, the Napoleonic Wars, World War I, World War II, the Cuban missile crisis, ex-Yugoslavia's wars, and September 11.Gary J. Bass
POL 405/CHV 406The Ethics of Borders and Migration(SA)Migration places into sharp relief the question of how to balance the rights of sovereign states and their citizens against the claims of (often-needy) foreigners. Should self-governing peoples be free to set their own migration policies and control their territorial borders without interference? Or ought they instead to be constrained by a "human right to immigrate?" This course will attempt to answer these questions, in part by theorizing foundational issues of self-determination, boundaries, national culture, and membership. We will also take up contemporary debates about guestworkers, irregular migrants, refugees, and brain drain.Anna B. Stilz
POL 415/CHV 415Civil Disobedience, Protest, and Resistance: Ethical and Empirical Perspectives(EM)This course examines different forms of protest and resistance, with a special emphasis on the concept of civil disobedience. Our perspective is primarily that of normative political theory, but we will also draw on recent empirical work examining the effectiveness of different forms of protest and occasionally venture into legal theory. The main focus is on the US, but there will also be a ranger of international comparisons.Jan-Werner Müller
POL 421Seminar in American Politics: Race and Ethnicity in Comparative Context(SA)Why do political cleavages often divide along lines of race and ethnicity? Does human psychology tend towards 'groupism'? How do government institutions like schools, police and elections increase or decrease the salience of various ethnic and religious boundaries? This course investigates the relationship between identity, groups and politics in the U.S. and around the world. We will consider theories of group identity development; assess empirical approaches to the study of racial and ethnic groups in politics and look at how politically relevant aspects of identity can be measured for conducting original research (JPs or Senior Theses).Omar Wasow
POL 441Seminar in International Relations: Conflict and Cooperation in International Politics- Security and Trade(SA)This course is an introduction to conflict and cooperation in international politics. It emphasizes the impact of the anarchic international system on patterns of conflict and cooperation across nations, issues, and time. It spends roughly equal amounts of time on war and trade. It also considers the role of domestic factors in international politics, but it privileges the role of the system in explaining outcomes. Students will be introduced to elementary game theory, the use of quantitative data, and trade theory.Joanne S. Gowa
POL 443Seminar in International Relations: The Military Instrument of Foreign Policy(SA)This course examines the role of the military in the formulation and implementation of foreign policy. The course will cover the theory of civil-military relations and how the military influences foreign policy decision-making. We will investigate theories of conflict, nuclear war and deterrence, diverse forms of warfare, the efficacy of war termination strategies, and what future trends in warfare portends for the military instrument of foreign policy. The aim of the course is to help acquaint students with role of the military in the formulation and implementation of foreign policy and in the functioning of the international system.Kevin McKiernan
WWS 370/POL 308/CHV 301Ethics and Public Policy(EM)The course examines major moral controversies in public life and differing conceptions of justice and the common good. It seeks to help students develop the skills required for thinking and writing about the ethical considerations that ought to shape public institutions, guide public authorities, and inform the public's judgments. The course will focus on issues that are particularly challenging for advanced, pluralist democracies such as the USA, including justice in war, terrorism and torture, paternalism, markets and distributive justice, immigration, and refugees and the place, if any, of religious arguments in politics.Stephen J. MacedoMary G. Nickel
WWS 421/POL 479/CHV 470Comparative Constitutional Law(SA)This course will introduce students to the variety of forms of constitutional government and the way that human rights are understood and enforced by courts around the world. We will trace the emergence of a global constitutional culture and explore the constitutions of South Africa, India, Germany, France, the UK, the Netherlands, Hungary, Colombia and Canada. We will give primary emphasis to the rights provisions in national constitutions but will also consider transnational regimes through examining decisions of the European Court of Justice, the European Court of Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.Kim Lane Scheppele