Course:

PS 104  International Relations

Professor:

Michelle Murray  

CRN:

15635

Schedule/Location:

Mon    Fri   10:10 AM – 11:30 AM Olin 203

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 25

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights

(PS Core Course).  This course provides an introduction to competing theories about the structure, functioning and transformative potential of the international system.  Part I deals with the traditional problem of international life, maintaining order among relatively equal states in a condition of anarchy.  Part II calls the assumption of anarchy into question by looking at hierarchical power relationships in a variety of issue areas.  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.

 

Course:

PS 105  Introduction to Comparative Politics

Professor:

Omar Encarnacion  

CRN:

15636

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Olin 301

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 15

Crosslists: Global & International Studies

(PS core course) 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.

 

Course:

PS 109  Political Economy

Professor:

Sanjib Baruah  

CRN:

15637

Schedule/Location:

  Wed  Fri   3:30 PM – 4:50 PM Olin 202

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 22

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights

(PS core course) 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.

 

Course:

PS 115  Political Theory

Professor:

Mie Inouye 

CRN:

15997

Schedule/Location:

 Tue  Thurs    11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Olin 204

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis D+J Difference and Justice

Credits: 4

 

Class cap 22

(PS core course) This course offers a survey of Western political thought. We will examine themes like justice, freedom, and equality by exploring the writings of thinkers stretching from Plato to Malcolm X. In each case, we will attend to the particular crises these theorists addressed in their work, like civil war, revolution, democracy, and capitalism. We'll also learn how authors used their concepts and ideas to address the problems of their day, and how we may draw on them in our own political struggles.

 

Course:

PS 122  American Politics: Issues and Institutions

Professor:

Simon Gilhooley  

CRN:

15638

Schedule/Location:

 Tue  Thurs    10:10 AM – 11:30 AM Aspinwall 302

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 22

Crosslists: American Studies

(PS core course ) 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.

 

Course:

PS 209  Civic Engagement

Professor:

Jonathan Becker  + Erin Cannan

CRN:

15750

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     10:10 AM – 11:30 AM Barringer 104

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis D+J Difference and Justice

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 22

Crosslists: Human Rights

What does it mean to be engaged with your community? What can students in Annandale learn from students participating in civic engagement projects in universities in places like Haiti, Ghana and Bangladesh? This course will examine historical, philosophical and practical elements of civic engagement while exploring the underlying question of what it means to be civically engaged in the early 21st century. Together, students will explore issues related to political participation, civil society, associational life, social justice, and personal responsibility, as well as how issues like race and socio-economic status impact civic participation. The class reflects a balance between study and practice of engagement which includes interrogating theoretical notions of civic life while also empowering students to be active participants in the communities in which they are situated.  The culminating project asks students to propose a civic engagement project in their home or local community. This course will feature workshops, lectures and seminar discussions.  Special class visits will incorporate experiences of civic leaders, local officials, global not-for-profit leaders, and volunteers from communities proximate to participating OSUN campuses. The course is an OSUN Collaborative Course and an OSUN course, meaning that students will be enrolled from Al-Quds, Bard in Palestine and Ashesi University in Ghana, and will be paired with classes from the American University of Central Asia, Bard College Berlin, Brac University of Bangladesh, Central European University (Vienna), European Humanities University (Vilnius), University of Quisquaya in Haiti, and OSUN Refugee Leaning Hubs in Kenya, Jordan and Bangladesh. This is an OSUN class and is open to Bard students as well as students from multiple OSUN partner institutions. This is an Engaged Liberal Arts & Sciences (ELAS) course. In this course you will be given the opportunity to bridge theory to practice while engaging a community of interest throughout the semester. A significant portion of ELAS learning takes place outside of the classroom: students learn through engagement with different geographies, organizations, and programs in the surrounding communities or in collaboration with partners from Bard's national and international networks. To learn more please click here.

 

Course:

PS 222  Latin America:Politics/Society

Professor:

Omar Encarnacion  

CRN:

15639

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     3:30 PM – 4:50 PM Olin 301

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 18

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights; Latin American/Iberian Studies

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).

 

Course:

PS 2251  Dissent! Politics, Justice, Dignity

Professor:

Pinar Kemerli  

CRN:

15640

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     8:30 AM – 9:50 AM OSUN

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 14

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights

Why do citizens rebel? When is it legitimate to break the law? What makes resistance just? This course surveys modern theories of dissent and resistance. We will examine the characteristics, justifications, and limitations of major forms of resistance including decolonization and civil disobedience, and focus on liberal, republican, and radical perspectives on what makes such resistance necessary and just. We will also study how contemporary technological transformations have changed the forms and means of resistance and what we perceive as justice and injustice. Our goal is to acquire a historically grounded understanding of key concepts in discussions and justifications of dissent including political obligation, independence, conscience, dignity, civility, refusal, and violence/nonviolence, and learn to form connections between theoretical debates and our contemporary political dilemmas. In addition to textual resources, the course includes analysis of several movies and documentaries including Malcolm X (1992), The Square (2013), and Chi-raq (2015). This is an OSUN class and is open to Bard students as well as students from multiple OSUN partner institutions.

 

Course:

PS 241  Politics and Violence

Professor:

Pinar Kemerli  

CRN:

15641

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Olin 203

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 20

Crosslists: Human Rights

This class examines violence as a phenomenon that constitutes an important part of modern political structures and experience. We will study the place and role of violence in political institutions such as the state, law, and the penal system, and in political movements and ideologies including revolutionary thought and anticolonialism. The course begins with an analysis of systematic and structural violence in its local and global forms –  from race and healthcare to incarceration and police violence. Extreme manifestations of this kind of violence such as apartheid and genocide are also studied in this first part. The second part of the course focuses on the forms of political violence often unleashed in critique of these violent institutions and structures including revolutionary violence and insurgencies. We will examine the context and justifications of such violent dissent and focus on its diverse repertoires of actions. The final section turns to the critiques of, and alternatives to, violence, discussing the implications and limitations of both violent and nonviolent politics along the way. Students will read theoretical texts on violence and nonviolence including works by Fanon, Gandhi, Malcolm X, Charles Mills, Mahmood Mamdani, Khalil Gibran Muhammad, Andrea Ritchie and Hannah Arendt in addition to watching films such as Hotel Rwanda, Bamako and Che.

 

Course:

PS 251  Political Organizing: Theory and Practice

Professor:

Mie Inouye  

CRN:

15680

Schedule/Location:

 Tue  Thurs    3:30 PM – 4:50 PM Hegeman 106

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 22

Crosslists: American Studies; Human Rights

“Don’t mourn – organize!” has long been a refrain in American popular culture. As problems like climate change, police brutality, and economic inequality grow more daunting, political organizing – the work of uniting ordinary people in mass organizations, including labor unions, political parties, community organizations, and social movement organizations, in pursuit of shared goals – seems increasingly relevant and urgent. But how does the tedious work of door-knocking, phone-banking, and facilitating meetings add up to social transformation? Do organizers build social movements, or do they stifle them? What is the role of ideology in organizing? And what forms of leadership, ritual, and relationships are necessary to sustain mass organizations? This course will explore these questions through a mix of theoretical, historical, and practical readings by political theorists, historians, and organizers including Antonio Gramsci, Jodi Dean, Saul Alinsky, Amilcar Cabral, Ella Baker, and Jane McAlevey.  This is an Engaged Liberal Arts & Sciences (ELAS) course. In this course you will be given the opportunity to bridge theory to practice while engaging a community of interest throughout the semester. A significant portion of ELAS learning takes place outside of the classroom: students learn through engagement with different geographies, organizations, and programs in the surrounding communities or in collaboration with partners from Bard's national and international networks. To learn more please click here.

 

Course:

PS 273  Diplomacy in International Politics

Professor:

Frederic Hof  

CRN:

15643

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     10:10 AM – 11:30 AM Henderson Computer Annex 106

Distributional Area:

HA Historical Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 18

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights

This course explores the history, complexity and changing nature of diplomacy. Students will gain an understanding of the goals, constraints, and structures of diplomacy: diplomatic corps, embassies, consulates, envoys, and non-traditional diplomats. They will then examine the evolution of these components as new diplomatic tools have appeared: public diplomacy, cyber diplomacy; expeditionary (combat zone) diplomacy, and track II diplomacy. Using case studies drawn from over seventy years of national, multi-national, and international diplomatic efforts to mitigate and ultimately end the Arab-Israeli conflict, students will be exposed to the application of real-world diplomacy under the most complex, contentious, and difficult circumstances. This course will enhance students’ understanding of international relations, foreign policy formulation and implementation, the history of diplomacy, diplomatic tradecraft, and the multigenerational diplomatic efforts to end Arab-Israeli conflict.

 

Course:

PS 3020/MES 3020  Muslim Political Thought and Anticolonialism

Professor:

Pinar Kemerli  

CRN:

16244

Schedule/Location:

    Fri   12:30 PM – 2:50 PM Olin 305

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 15

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights; Philosophy; Political Studies; Study of Religions

This course explores 20th Century Muslim political thought as a modern experience of critique and resistance in the context of decolonization. It will start with an overview of the colonial situation and mid-century dynamics of decolonization and move to the works of influential theorists and activists who offered insurgent and revolutionary Muslim political ideas and ideals. Our purpose is to understand how these thinkers responded to colonial domination, imperialism and capitalist exploitation by mobilizing traditional and vernacular Islamic idioms of dissent, refusal and resistance, and in the process offered alternative visions of emancipation, justice, and dignity. We will examine both the promise and limitations of these visions within the context of their historical careers and implementations. The final part of the course focuses on the reception of these Muslim theories and thinkers in Euro-America especially within the context of the Global War on Terror and new forms of imperial domination and Islamophobia thereby unleashed. Thinkers covered include Sayyid Qutb, Ali Shariati, Malcolm X, Edward Said, Eqbal Ahmad, Humeira Iqtidar and Jaspir K. Puar.

 

Course:

PS 314  Political Economy of Development

Professor:

Sanjib Baruah  

CRN:

15644

Schedule/Location:

   Thurs    9:10 AM – 11:30 AM Olin 306

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 15

Crosslists: Environmental & Urban Studies; Global & International 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.

 

Course:

PS 385 Civic Action and Research

Professor:

Jonathan Becker + Erin Cannan

CRN:

15967

Schedule/Location:

  Tue    8:30 – 9:50 AM

 Thurs    10:10 AM – 11:30 AM

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 2

 

Class cap: 15

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Human Rights

In this upper level course, students who are leading a community engagement project deepen their understanding of civil society through participatory research and engagement that explores the structure of civil society organizations, the socio-political environment in which they operate, including the intersection between government and civil society, the root causes of social issues that they are attempting to address, and the context in which the community is addressing the issue. Students will also enhance their capacities and project management skills through a series of leadership workshops.  Each student will be required to produce a project analysis which incorporates primary and secondary research, as well as interviews of key actors in the field. Projects should focus on one of five tracks: Climate Change, Disability Justice, Youth Engagement, Social Entrepreneurship, Inclusion and Gender Equity. The course will culminate in a peer-led, OSUN-wide conference on leadership and community engagement.  Prerequisites: Students must be involved in leading a civic engagement project and have taken the CE Network Collaboration Course, OSUN CE Course or equivalent or have received and implemented an OSUN microgrant or community action award. Students must complete a course application form to be admitted. This is a 2 credit OSUN course. Select students can appeal for an accompanying two credit tutorial that would give them an option of completing four credits. Note: This course does not fulfill a post-moderation seminar requirement in PS.  This is an Engaged Liberal Arts & Sciences (ELAS) course. In this course you will be given the opportunity to bridge theory to practice while engaging a community of interest throughout the semester. A significant portion of ELAS learning takes place outside of the classroom: students learn through engagement with different geographies, organizations, and programs in the surrounding communities or in collaboration with partners from Bard's national and international networks. To learn more please click here.

 

Course:

PS 393  Race and Gender in US Constitutional Development

Professor:

Simon Gilhooley  

CRN:

15682

Schedule/Location:

 Tue      12:30 PM – 2:50 PM Olin 303

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 15

Crosslists: Africana Studies; American Studies; Gender and Sexuality Studies; Historical Studies; Human Rights

This course will explore the intersections of race and gender and the development of American constitutional law and practice. Using court opinions, arguments and broader constitutional debates, the class will provide students with a method of engaging those discourses at different historical moments. So, for example, we will talk about the compromises struck at the constitutional convention, but also about challenges to Chinese exclusion (Chae Chan Ping v. US), Japanese internment (Korematsu vs US), as well as the legal strategies used by Ruth Bader Ginsburg and reproductive rights activists. The approach will allow each episode to be a chance to explore the ethical and political stakes of various decisions and laws, but also collectively to illustrate the continuing presence and challenge of identity hierarchies within American politics and society.

 

Cross-listed courses:

Course:

ANTH 239  Action Research: Social Service, Community Organizing, and Anthropology

Professor:

Duff Morton  

CRN:

15575

Schedule/Location:

  Wed     11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Olin 305

     Fri   8:30 AM – 12:30 PM  Internship

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis D+J Difference and Justice

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 10

Crosslists: American Studies; Human Rights; Political Studies

 

Course:

ECON 203  Game Theory

Professor:

Aniruddha Mitra

CRN:

15992

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     10:10 AM – 11:30 AM Aspinwall 302

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap: 18

Crosslists: Environmental & Urban Studies; Economics and Finance;  Global & International Studies; Political Studies

 

Course:

HIST 2241  Contemporary Russia

Professor:

Sean McMeekin  

CRN:

15606

Schedule/Location:

 Tue  Thurs    11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Reem Kayden Center 101

Distributional Area:

HA Historical Analysis  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap 18

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Political Studies; Russian and Eurasian Studies

 

Course:

HR 235  Dignity and the Human Rights Tradition

Professor:

Roger Berkowitz  

CRN:

15610

Schedule/Location:

Mon  Wed     11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Olin 202

Distributional Area:

MBV Meaning, Being, Value  

Credits: 4

 

Class cap 22

Crosslists: Philosophy; Political Studies

 

Course:

HR 271  Comparative Settler Colonialism

Professor:

Ziad Abu-Rish  

CRN:

15668

Schedule/Location:

 Tue  Thurs    11:50 AM – 1:10 PM Olin 301

Distributional Area:

SA Social Analysis D+J Difference and Justice

Credits: 4

 

Class cap 15

Crosslists: Global & International Studies; Political Studies