15452

PS 104 International Relations

Christopher McIntosh

M . W . .

3:10pm-4:30pm

OLINLC 206

SSCI

(PS core course) Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights This course provides an introduction to competing theories about the structure, functioning and transformative potential of the international system. Part 1 deals with the traditional problem of international life, maintaining order among relatively equal states in a condition of anarchy. Part 2 calls the assumption of anarchy into question by looking at hierarchical power relationships in a variety of issue areas. Part 3 addresses contemporary challenges to the state’s authority and the problems of governing in an increasingly global community. Throughout the course an effort will be made to illustrate the relevance of theoretical disagreements for the real world. Students will be evaluated on their understanding of the assumptions and logics of competing theories as well as their ability to apply those theories to historical and contemporary global problems. Class size: 22

15453

PS 105 Comparative Politics

Emil Dzhuraev

. T . Th .

4:40pm 6:00pm

HEG 204

SSCI

(PS core course) Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies The basic intellectual premise of comparative politics is that we can better understand the politics of any country by placing it within a broader, global context. This comparative “method” allows us to address some of the most fundamental questions in the study of politics, such as what makes democracy possible, how is political representation organized around the world, and why some nations are more successful than others at generating wealth and prosperity, while contributing to the building of theories about the nature and evolution of states, interest groups, civil society, and the dynamics of political processes such as revolution, modernization, and democratization. Class lectures and discussions will cover developed and developing states, as well as democratic and non-democratic ones. Class size: 20

15433

PS 109 Political Economy

Sanjib Baruah

M . W . .

3:10pm-4:30pm

OLIN 202

SSCI

(PS core course) Cross-listed: Environmental & Urban Studies; Global & Int’l Studies; Human Rights The term Political Economy refers to the interrelationship between politics and economics. However, political scientists and economists do not always use the term in the same sense. Even within these two disciplines the term has multiple meanings. The course will review the ideas of a few major thinkers such as Adam Smith, Karl Marx, Karl Polanyi, Thorstein Veblen, John Maynard Keynes, and John Kenneth Galbraith, and will introduce students to two subfields in particular: international political economy and the political economy of development. Among the questions we would ask are: Why are some countries rich and others poor? What is development? What are the prime movers of globalization? Is the US an empire given its influence and power in the global economy? How can development be redefined to tackle the challenge of climate change? Among issues that we will look at closely is the role of organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the World Trade Organization in managing the global economy and the current debates about reforming these institutions. Class size: 22

15456

PS 115 Intro to Political Thinking

Pinar Kemerli

. T . Th .

10:10am- 11:30am

ALBEE 106

SSCI

(PS core course) From Plato to Nietzsche, great thinkers in the Western tradition have asked about the nature and practice of political action. Thinking about politics is, knowingly or not, conducted against the background of this shared tradition.  This is no less true of political thought that aims to break away from “the classics” than of political thought that finds in them a constant resource for both critical and constructive thinking.  This course explores fundamental questions of politics through a core body of writings.  Class size: 22

15443

PS 122 American Politics: Issues and institutions

Simon Gilhooley

. T . Th .

3:10pm-4:30pm

ASP 302

SSCI

(PS core course ) Cross-listed: American Studies This course introduces students to the basic institutions and processes of American government. The class is meant to provide students with a grasp of the fundamental dynamics of American politics and the skills to be an effective participant in and critic of the political process. During the semester, we will examine how the government works, interpret current political developments and debates, and consider how to influence the government at various levels. Class size: 22

15539

PS 222 LATIN AMERICAn POLITICS AND SOCIETY

Omar Encarnacion

M . W . .

11:50am- 1:10pm

OLIN 301

SSCI

Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights, LAIS This course examines politics in contemporary Latin America. Much of the emphasis is on the evolution of democracy across the region, including examining such questions as why it has taken so long for democracy to take root in Latin America, at least in contrast to the United States and Western Europe, and why does the quality of democracy varies so greatly across the region. Although some democracies are among the most developed in the world, such as Chile, Uruguay and Costa Rica, the region is also home to some notorious “illiberal” democracies, such as Guatemala, and one of the world’s few remaining Communist states, Cuba. The course is organized in three main sections. The first provides a broad historical overview of patterns of political development in Latin America from the independence period to the present. The second part highlights theoretical approaches to Latin American political development drawn from cultural analysis, Marxism, and state-centric perspectives. The third and final section examines democratic development in five Latin American countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Cuba, and Venezuela). Class size: 20

15451

PS 233 International Politics of South Asia

Sanjib Baruah

M . W . .

10:10am- 11:30am

HEG 201

SSCI

Cross-listed: Asian Studies, Global & Int’l Studies There has been significant international interest in South Asia in recent years largely due to the threat of terrorism and nuclearization, and perhaps the emergence of India as the leading outsourcing destination for western companies. Of course, there are many other reasons to be interested in this region of 1.4 billion people. South Asia consists of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The region has twenty one percent of the world’s population. We will begin by trying to understand South Asia historically, focusing on the British colonial period. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of “British India.”   A number of the other countries were protectorates and buffer states in the “frontier system” of the British Empire.  After the historical overview, we will move on to topics such as the Kashmir conflict, the war in Afghanistan, India-Pakistan Relations and the regional nuclear arms race, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation [SAARC], the politics of outsourcing, India-China relations and the border dispute, and the United States and South Asia.   Students will be expected to keep up with current developments and relevant policy debates by reading South Asian and US newspapers on-line. Class size: 22

15387

PS 239 United Nations and Model UN

James Ketterer

. . . . F

1:30pm-2:50pm

OLIN 202

SSCI

Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights 1 credit* This is a year-long course, divided into two parts. The first part will explore the history of the United Nations and will introduce students to its structure and principal aims. It will also focus on the role of specialized agencies and the ways in which alliances impact on the UN’s day-to-day operations. The second part of the course will focus on an assigned country (for each Model UN, each college is assigned a country to represent. It will entail a study of the country’s history, politics and economics and will conclude with the writing of ‘position papers’ that reflect that country’s approach to issues confronting the UN. In addition, there will be a public speaking component. Students taking the course will have the opportunity to participate in a Model United Nations. Students wishing to enroll should e-mail [email protected] with 1-2 paragraphs indicating why they would like to participate. Class size: 15

15369

PS 244 THE POLITICS OF THE Civilian-Military Divide in THE UNITED STATES

Simon Gilhooley

. T . Th .

11:50am-1:10pm

HEG 204

SSCI

Cross-listed: American Studies Since at least Eisenhower’s warning of the developing military-industrial complex, scholars have been concerned with the intrusion of the military into modern civilian life. This course will critically examine the claim that a militarization of society has occurred, how it may have taken place, and what the consequences of such a development would be. Topics will include the rise of privatized military companies, the growth of paramilitary police units, military-industrial relations, and the effects of the Afghan and Iraq wars on US Society. Class size: 22

15540

PS 246 POLITICS OF CENTRAL ASIA

Emil Dzhuraev

. . . . F

11:50 am-1:10pm

OLIN 310

SSCI

2 credits Why is building good states so difficult? Examples are always illuminating. The five Central Asian countries, caught in the middle of such neighbors as Russia, China, Afghanistan and Iran, present a mix of many problems of comparative politics. Anchored on the theme of state-building, this course takes up a range of issues salient for the region: the Soviet legacy, informal politics, authoritarianism, corruption, identity politics, and geopolitics. The course also specifically posits the question of the possibility of democracy and the challenge of democratization in a difficult geopolitical context. Through this probing survey of these countries, the course proposes some answers as to why building good states should be difficult. Class size: 18

15370

PS 262 Race & Political Theory

Michiel Bot

M . W . .

3:10pm-4:30pm

OLIN 201

SSCI/DIFF

Cross-listed: Human Rights In this course, we will closely study works of political and critical theory that analyze the relation between race and politics. We will address topics such as: the political production of the excluded; the relations between race, nation, and class; imperialism and anti-colonial liberation struggles; the relations between racism, secularism, and religion; intersections of anti-racist politics and feminism; multiculturalism as a reality and multiculturalism as an ideology; and the concept of dispossession. The syllabus will likely include texts by Hannah Arendt, Aimé Césaire, Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno; Frantz Fanon, Sylvia Wynter, bell hooks, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X., Etienne Balibar and Immanuel Wallerstein, Talal Asad, Mahmood Mamdani, Judith Butler and Athena Athenasiou, Angela Davis, and Drucilla Cornell. Class size: 22

15373

PS 269 THE PRACTICE OF COURAGE: Self-Thinking AND Political CouragE FROM ANTIGONE TO EDWARD SNOWDEN

Roger Berkowitz

M . W . .

1:30pm-2:50pm

ARENDT CENTER

HUM

Cross-listed: Human Rights, Philosophy An anonymous protestor in a white shirt faced down tanks in Tiananmen Square and halted a massacre. Rosa Parks would not get up and launched the civil rights movement. And Wendy Davis would not sit down and helped galvanize women’s advocates across the country. What makes some people dare to speak truth to power and resist injustice while others cooperate in oppression or evil? Political courage comes not from a superhuman morality but flows from internal strength. Only those who know themselves and love themselves can risk themselves, secure in the belief that what they do is right and just. Courageous actors are self-thinkers who have the courage to be who they are even when ‘who they are’ is dangerous for the status quo. But how are we to understand and nurture the genesis of spiritual and moral courage in the face of a world increasingly beset by impersonal and bureaucratic systems of evil? Where can we find the courage to be advocates for good in world where all the incentives lead us to turn quietly away? Readings combine theoretical accounts from Hannah Arendt, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Plato, Stanley Milgram, and Paul Tillich with examples of political courage including Antigone, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Ralph Ellison, Mahatma Gandhi, Daniel Ellsberg, Edward Snowden, and suicide bombers. This course is part of the College Seminar “The Practice of Courage.” It is open to Sophomores and Juniors and is limited to 16 students. Students are required to attend three evening lectures on Mondays from 6-8. There will also be dinner discussions with guest speakers and students from other sections of the College Seminar. Class size: 16

15620

PS 273 Diplomacy & Development

James Ketterer

M . W . .

11:50am-1:10pm

RKC 111

SSCI

Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights The course explores the history, complexity and changing nature of diplomacy and international development.  Students will gain an understanding of the basic goals, constraints and structures of diplomacy: diplomatic corps, embassies, consulates, aid missions, attaches, envoys and the use of non-traditional diplomats.  They will then examine the evolution of those components and contexts to include public diplomacy, cyber diplomacy, diplomacy in combat zones and the use of international development as a foreign policy tool.  Using selected diplomatic crises as case studies, students will analyze the roles played by different government agencies, militaries, international & regional organizations, the media, public interest groups, private foundations, contractors, commercial interests, educational institutions, and law enforcement officials. Students will explore how nations communicate with each other in the 21st century (formally and informally) and will use in-class simulations and videoconferences with students across the Bard international network to explore the roles played by different actors in addressing immediate crises and longer-term diplomatic issues.  This course will enhance students’ understanding of international relations, foreign policy formulation and implementation, and diplomatic history. Class size: 18

15454

PS 314 Political Economy of Development

Sanjib Baruah

. T . . .

1:30pm-3:50pm

OLIN 304

SSCI

Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights The study of economic development of the “Third World” has gone through several intellectual phases. The first generation of scholars viewed the process somewhat optimistically as the global extension of modernity. Neo-Marxist critics tried to locate Third World underdevelopment in the history of colonialism and in the persistence of structures of dependency of Third World countries.   “Post-development” theorists took on the idea of development itself.   Globalization and the emergence of a new international division of labor, has reframed the debates. Developing countries like Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico and South Africa are now members of the G-20 group of countries, which many see as a likely successor to the G8 group of leading industrial economies.  After reading representative authors of competing theoretical traditions, we will move on to concrete cases. This segment will be shaped partly by student interest. The course is meant as an Upper College seminar for students with some prior background in issues of development (through  PS 222: Political Economy, or other courses).  Research papers and class presentations are among the requirements. Class size: 15

15371

PS 332 Anarchism - No Gods, no Masters!

Pinar Kemerli

. . W . .

1:30pm-3:50pm

HDR 106

SSCI

Cross-listed: Human Rights Anarchism is perhaps one of the most misunderstood and caricatured political ideologies. In this class, our goal is to take anarchism seriously and study it as a complex social and political tradition and practice that involves a robust critique of the liberal-democratic tradition and modern capitalism. Questions that we will raise and explore include: What is anarchism and how has it historically evolved? How many different kinds of anarchism are there? What are the foundational values and principles of anarchism(s)? What distinct anarchist movements existed globally and how did they differ from each other? How do anarchist movements define their relationship to violence? Can we talk about a “come-back” of anarchism today? We will cover a broad range of theorists including Bakunin, Kropotkin, Hakim Bey, Alexander Berkman, and Emma Goldman, and address particular historical practices of anarchism including the experience of the French Commune, anarchism during the Russian Revolution, the Spanish Civil War, American anarchism, and Anarchists Against the Wall. Class size: 15

15574

PS 330 DEMOCRACY AFTER DICTATORSHIP

Omar Encarnacion

. T . . .

10:10am- 12:30pm

OLIN 308

SSCI

Cross-listed: Human Rights What makes democracy possible in the wake of an experience with dictatorial rule? This timeless question serves as an entry point for this comparative politics seminar on “democratization,” a field of study that examines what social and political factors grease the transition to democracy and facilitate its consolidation; why does the consolidation of democratic institutions and practices proceeds faster in some countries than in others; and how do new democracies settle the legacies of human rights abuses left behind by the old regime, and what are the consequences of whatever decisions are made about those abuses for the emerging democratic regime? These questions are examined in this seminar through an expansive analysis of the theoretical literature on democratization and a wealth of empirical materials drawn from a wide range of countries that have embarked upon a transition to democracy since World War II. The first half of the course examines the concepts and issues in the study of democratization, like the meaning of democracy and the factors aiding in the rise and consolidation of democratic governance--from culture, to the economy, to the behavior of the elite and ordinary citizens. The second explores the politics of democratization in five cases: Germany after the Nazi regime; Spain after the Franco dictatorship; Argentina after military rule; Russia after Communism, and Egypt after the Mubarak regime. Class size: 15

15455

PS 352 Terrorism

Christopher McIntosh

. T . . .

10:10am- 12:30pm

ASP 302

SSCI

Cross-listed: Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights The September 2001 terrorist attacks irrevocably changed US politics and foreign policy, giving rise to more than a decade of war, expanded surveillance domestically and abroad, the use of torture and indefinite detention and most recently a targeted killing policy through the use of drone strikes around the globe.  While only recently coming to dominate the US national security agenda, terrorism as a political activity has a long history.  This seminar will provide a theoretical and empirical examination of terrorism as a political phenomenon.  The first part of the course will explore the conceptual and theoretical debates surrounding terrorism.  Topics discussed will include the distinctions between terrorism and other forms of political violence, why individuals and groups resort to terrorism to achieve political goals, the role of religion and ideology in motivating terrorist groups, and the importance of state sponsorship in supporting terrorist activity.  The second part will address the challenges of counterterrorism, including the strengths and weaknesses of counterterrorist tools such as military force, diplomacy, intelligence and law enforcement, the relationship between counterterrorism and democracy, the role of the international community in stopping terrorism.  Throughout the course special effort will be made to situate the US experience with terrorism in a comparative and historical perspective through an examination of prominent case studies drawn from different regions and time periods.

Class size: 15

15450

PS 353 The End of TRADE UNIONISM

David Kettler

M . . . .

10:10am- 12:30pm

OLIN 101

SSCI

Cross-listed: Sociology The course opens with a consideration of the political importance of organized labor, especially in the post World War Two period and primarily in the United States, as a reference point for the assessment of the causes and consequences of the present steep decline in union membership and power that is the primary subject. Unions will be viewed both as social movements and as interest groups, whose presence in the political system was a major source for the view of American democracy as “pluralist” in character. Special attention will be paid to the legal and political institutionalization of trade unions during their period of prominence, as well as to the resistant powers that successfully dismantled those supports, given the economic changes that challenged the institutions. The course offers a perspective on many aspects of power and resistance in American political life. Class size: 15