African-American Political Thought
AS.191.110 (11)

This course surveys key writings within African-American political thought, a rich tradition that transforms the way one understands essential aspects of political science, like citizenship, nationalism, social movement strategy, democracy, state violence, and political economy. It begins with abolitionism and extends to the present day Black Lives Matter movement. The focus will be on primary texts, and classes will offer historical context. No prior knowledge in political theory needed.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Canceled
• Seats Available: 30/30
• PosTag(s): INST-PT

Introduction to Environmental Political Theory
AS.191.107 (11)

If political theory is an academic discipline that helps us understand the meanings and uses of political concepts like freedom, power, democracy, identity, and the state, then how do our understandings of these terms change once non-human nature moves from the periphery to the core of our inquiries? This course addresses this question by examining the relationship between nature and politics in core texts of liberalism, republicanism, conservatism, ecosocialism, and ecofeminism.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Canceled
• Seats Available: 20/20
• PosTag(s): INST-PT

Introduction to Democratic Theory
AS.191.108 (21)

Is democracy best understood as a form of government, or as "a way of life" that opposes the inertia and failures of state institutions? What is the difference between representative democracy and participatory democracy? How have political thinkers distinguished between a democracy and a republic? Does democracy require collective identity and if so, is it necessarily exclusionary? This course explores influential answers to these questions, from Rousseau to Martin Luther King, Jr. and beyond.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 17/20
• PosTag(s): INST-PT

Asia America: Art and Architecture
AS.010.327 (01)

This course examines a set of case studies spanning the last century that will enable us to explore the shifting landscape of Asian transnational art and architecture. Each week will focus on a different artist, group, exhibition, architect, urban space, or site to unpack artists’ and architects’ engagements with the changing landscape of immigration policies, movements to build solidarity with other artists of color, and campaigns for gender and sexual equality. The course will situate these artists within American art, and build an expansive idea of Asia America to include the discussion of artists whose work directly addresses the fluidity of location and the transnational studio practice.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 5/19
• PosTag(s): HART-NW, HART-MODERN

Impeachments and Beyond: Law, Justice, and Politics in Latin America
AS.100.391 (01)

This class invites students to examine changing legal cultures in a discussion- and primary-source-based environment, and through the lens of Latin America's political history.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Canceled
• Seats Available: 19/19
• PosTag(s): HIST-LATAM, HIST-EUROPE, INST-CP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (02)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 16/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (03)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 13/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (05)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 15/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (01)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 12/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (04)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 17/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (06)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 12/17
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (07)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Introduction to American Politics
AS.190.101 (08)

This course examines the ideals and operation of the American political system. It seeks to understand how our institutions and politics work, why they work as they do, and what the consequences are for representative government in the United States. Emphasis is placed on the federal government and its electoral, legislative, and executive structures and processes. As useful and appropriate, attention is also given to the federal courts and to the role of the states. The purpose of the course is to understand and confront the character and problems of modern government in the United States in a highly polarized and plebiscitary era.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 16/20
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (01)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 10/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (02)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 11/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

The Politics of Global Development
AS.190.245 (01)

Development is often assumed to be an economic issue. In this course we examine the politics of development on a global scale. We begin by looking at the colonial and Cold War histories of development. We then use these histories to contextualise contemporary development issues that directly affect international relations such as aid and debt, humanitarianism, food security, land “grabs”, migration and indigenous rights. The course also seeks to understand the ways in which the issues underlying global development have always connected and continue to connect the peoples and polities of the Global North and Global South.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/19
• PosTag(s): INST-IR, INST-ECON

Finding Equality in Law and Society
AS.190.325 (01)

In this class, we will ask questions about the relationship between equality, law, and society. We will investigate how people have used law in their movements for greater equality, and ask whether law has served these movements well and how it has worked. We will pay particular attention to movements based on race, gender, and economic class.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/19
• PosTag(s): SPOL-UL

National Security-Nuclear Age
AS.190.329 (01)

This course examines the impact of weapons of mass destruction on international politics with an emphasis on security issues. The first half of the course focuses on the history of nuclear weapons development during the Cold War and theories of deterrence. The second half of the class considers contemporary issues including terrorism, chemical and biological weapons, ballistic missile defense and proliferation. Requirements include a midterm, final and a ten page paper.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/19
• PosTag(s): INST-IR

Thinking Strategically
AS.191.379 (01)

Aitchison Students Only.

• Credits: 1.50
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

Education Policy
AS.191.381 (01)

Aitchison Students only

• Credits: 1.50
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (04)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 10/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (06)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 10/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (05)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (09)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 12/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (03)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 10/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (10)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 16/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (08)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

Contemporary International Politics
AS.190.108 (07)

An introduction to international politics. Emphasis will be on continuity and change in international politics and the causes of war and peace. The first half of the course will focus on events prior to the end of the Cold War, including the Peloponnesian War, the European balance of power, imperialism, the origins and consequences of WWI and WWII, and the Cold War. The second half will focus on international politics since 1990, including globalization, whether democracies produce peace, the impact of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and the prospects for peace in the 21st century. Theories of realism and liberalism will also be considered. This course was previously AS.190.209.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR

U.S. Foreign Policy
AS.190.227 (06)

This course will provide and analysis of US foreign policy with a focus on the interests, institutions, and ideas underpinning its development. While the course will offer a broader survey, the emphasis will be on important developments during the Cold War, such as the articulation of containment strategies and nuclear deterrence, and the analysis of contemporary foreign policy questions, including the problems of terrorism and failed states. In addition to security issues, attention will also be paid to significant developments in international trade policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 18/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

U.S. Foreign Policy
AS.190.227 (02)

This course will provide and analysis of US foreign policy with a focus on the interests, institutions, and ideas underpinning its development. While the course will offer a broader survey, the emphasis will be on important developments during the Cold War, such as the articulation of containment strategies and nuclear deterrence, and the analysis of contemporary foreign policy questions, including the problems of terrorism and failed states. In addition to security issues, attention will also be paid to significant developments in international trade policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 16/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

U.S. Foreign Policy
AS.190.227 (04)

This course will provide and analysis of US foreign policy with a focus on the interests, institutions, and ideas underpinning its development. While the course will offer a broader survey, the emphasis will be on important developments during the Cold War, such as the articulation of containment strategies and nuclear deterrence, and the analysis of contemporary foreign policy questions, including the problems of terrorism and failed states. In addition to security issues, attention will also be paid to significant developments in international trade policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 18/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

Introduction to Political Theory
AS.190.180 (02)

An introduction to Euro-American political thought, with a focus on the role of language, rhetoric, and Eros within politics. Texts by Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Walt Whitman, and Emma Goldman.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 14/20
• PosTag(s): INST-PT, POLI-PT

Introduction to Political Theory
AS.190.180 (04)

An introduction to Euro-American political thought, with a focus on the role of language, rhetoric, and Eros within politics. Texts by Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Walt Whitman, and Emma Goldman.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 17/20
• PosTag(s): INST-PT, POLI-PT

Introduction to Political Theory
AS.190.180 (03)

An introduction to Euro-American political thought, with a focus on the role of language, rhetoric, and Eros within politics. Texts by Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Walt Whitman, and Emma Goldman.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 7/20
• PosTag(s): INST-PT, POLI-PT

U.S. Foreign Policy
AS.190.227 (05)

This course will provide and analysis of US foreign policy with a focus on the interests, institutions, and ideas underpinning its development. While the course will offer a broader survey, the emphasis will be on important developments during the Cold War, such as the articulation of containment strategies and nuclear deterrence, and the analysis of contemporary foreign policy questions, including the problems of terrorism and failed states. In addition to security issues, attention will also be paid to significant developments in international trade policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 13/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

U.S. Foreign Policy
AS.190.227 (01)

This course will provide and analysis of US foreign policy with a focus on the interests, institutions, and ideas underpinning its development. While the course will offer a broader survey, the emphasis will be on important developments during the Cold War, such as the articulation of containment strategies and nuclear deterrence, and the analysis of contemporary foreign policy questions, including the problems of terrorism and failed states. In addition to security issues, attention will also be paid to significant developments in international trade policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 5/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

U.S. Foreign Policy
AS.190.227 (03)

This course will provide and analysis of US foreign policy with a focus on the interests, institutions, and ideas underpinning its development. While the course will offer a broader survey, the emphasis will be on important developments during the Cold War, such as the articulation of containment strategies and nuclear deterrence, and the analysis of contemporary foreign policy questions, including the problems of terrorism and failed states. In addition to security issues, attention will also be paid to significant developments in international trade policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 18/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

Environmental Racism
AS.190.402 (01)

This is an undergraduate political theory seminar that addresses the disproportionate impact of environmental destruction on racially stigmatized populations. We shall examine the logics of power whereby the natural world is subjected to exploitation and domination, in tandem with the subordination of racial subjects historically identified as closer to nature. Likewise, we will explore political and theoretical challenges to environmental racism, such as those posed by indigenous communities, decolonial theory, and political movements contesting the intersection of racial inequalities and ecological crises.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/15
• PosTag(s): ENVS-MAJOR, ENVS-MINOR, INST-PT

Introduction to Political Theory
AS.190.180 (01)

An introduction to Euro-American political thought, with a focus on the role of language, rhetoric, and Eros within politics. Texts by Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Walt Whitman, and Emma Goldman.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 9/20
• PosTag(s): INST-PT, POLI-PT

Global Environmental Politics
AS.190.381 (01)

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 4/19
• PosTag(s): ENVS-MAJOR, ENVS-MINOR, INST-IR

The Social Contract and its Discontents
AS.190.356 (01)

This course focuses on one of the most powerful stories told in the tradition of western political theory: the story of the social contract. This story is about the constitution of legitimate political authority. It is told in many ways and each version makes different assumptions, in particular about human nature, the power of reason, the value of order, and the character of justice. We examine this often-conflicting assumptions and explore how they continue to inform the way we think about the possibilities and problems of politics. Readings include texts by Arendt, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Freud, Pateman, the Federalists, Derrida, and Douglass. Final grades are based on class participation, two exams and two papers.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 5/15
• PosTag(s): POLI-PT, INST-PT

Thesis Colloquium
AS.190.498 (01)

Open to and required for Political Science majors writing a thesis. International Studies majors writing a senior thesis under the supervision of a Political Science Department faculty member may also enroll. Topics include: research design, literature review, evidence collection and approaches to analysis of evidence, and the writing process. The course lays the groundwork for completing the thesis in the second semester under the direction of the faculty thesis supervisor. Students are expected to have decided on a research topic and arranged for a faculty thesis supervisor prior to the start of the semester. Seniors. Under special circumstances, juniors will be allowed to enroll. Enrollment limit: 15.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

The Politics of Conversation
AS.191.309 (01)

If, with Aristotle, we take the human as the political animal precisely because it is that animal possessing the gift of speech, then politics makes its entrance into our lives whenever we come to speak with one another, far before we consider politics as an activity of citizens in a state, or of states in an international order. In this course we will consider conversation as a specifically political phenomenon. We will address such questions as: What are the purposes of conversation, and how do we navigate these purposes? How do we excuse, justify, explain, forgive, or agree with one another, and what do we do when excuse, explanation, forgiveness, or agreement is no longer possible? These questions have become especially pertinent in a polarized America increasingly disenchanted with the possibility of conversations ‘across the aisle’. But the politics of conversation are relevant to the whole of our relations with other people: how we talk to our family, how we come to be friends, how we cease to be lovers. Readings include works by Plato, Jürgen Habermas, J. L. Austin, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and Stanley Cavell. Recommended Course Background: One previous course in political theory or philosophy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/15
• PosTag(s): INST-PT, POLI-PT

Arab-Israeli Conflict (IR)
AS.191.335 (01)

The course will focus on the origin and development of the Arab-Israeli conflict from its beginnings when Palestine was controlled by the Ottoman Empire, through World War I, The British Mandate over Palestine, and the first Arab-Israeli war (1947-1949). It will then examine the period of the Arab-Israeli wars of 1956, 1967, 1973, and 1982, the Palestinian Intifadas (1987-1993 and 2000-2005); and the development of the Arab-Israeli peace process from its beginnings with the Egyptian-Israeli treaty of 1979, the Oslo I and Oslo II agreements of 1993 and 1995, Israel's peace treaty with Jordan of 1994, the Road Map of 2003; and the periodic peace talks between Israel and Syria. The conflict will be analyzed against the background of great power intervention in the Middle East, the rise of political Islam and the dynamics of Intra-Arab politics, and will consider the impact of the Arab Spring.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/35
• PosTag(s): INST-IR, INST-CP, ISLM-ISLMST

Party Politics from the Founding to the Progressives
AS.190.452 (01)

Though the torchlight parade has long since passed, American parties still stand in the shadow of the nineteenth-century Party Period. This course seeks to untangle the ideologies and practices of party politics from the Founding to the Progressive Era. Topics include the rise of mass parties, political violence, the coming of the Republican Party, the party politics of Reconstruction and westward expansion, corruption and the political machine, Populism, and movements for reform. We pay particular attention to comparisons between past and present, and to opportunities taken and foregone.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/15
• PosTag(s): POLI-AP, INST-AP

American Constitutional Law
AS.190.333 (01)

This course covers enduring debates about the way the Constitution has structured the U.S. government and about which powers the Constitution assigns to the federal government and to the states. We will examine these debates in the context of American political history and thought by studying the writings of prominent participants, and landmark Supreme Court cases.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/19
• PosTag(s): INST-AP, POLI-AP

The University and Society
AS.190.471 (01)

In the 20th century, American universities became the envy of the world, leading in most categories of scholarly productivity and attracting students from every nation. In recent years, though, American higher education has come to face a number of challenges including rapidly rising costs, administrative bloat, corporatization and moocification. We will examine the problems and promises of American higher education, the political struggles within the university and the place of the university in the larger society. Upper classes and Grad Students only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/15
• PosTag(s): INST-AP

Freshman Seminar: By Any Means Necessary? Political Theories of Violence
AS.191.216 (01)

Questions of violence are as old as questions of politics itself. Are politics and violence essentially the same or is politics fundamentally non-violent? Is violence the only way to achieve political change? Has the state been a force for eliminating violence and securing freedom or has it only created more conflict? Who gets to define what counts as violent, and for what purposes? This course engages such questions through a theoretical lens, often focusing on political actors and activists responding on the ground to these pertinent questions. It asks students to reconsider what they normally think violence, non-violence, and politics are. We will particularly investigate this angle through the lens of race and colonialism—reading such figures as Michel Foucault, Franz Fanon, Mao Zedong, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Angela Davis, and Ida B. Wells—as well as focusing on histories of state formation and state violence.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 19/19
• PosTag(s): n/a

Dictatorship, Dissidence and Democracy: Central Europe in the 20th Century
AS.191.333 (01)

Central Europe in the second half of the twentieth century was ground zero in the Cold War, as well as in the battle of ideas that accompanied it. In this course, we will first examine the theory of communism and the practice of Stalinism in the region; then seek to understand the tactics of dissent and the ideas behind it; and finally focus on the collapse of communist in 1989 and the struggle to “democratize” the region in the decade that followed. Over the course of the semester we will examine the relationship between political ideology and everyday life, seeking to understand what big concepts like ‘democracy’ and ‘dictatorship’ really meant for ordinary people from Warsaw and Tallinn to Budapest and East Berlin. We will also discuss Soviet, American and, in the latter part of the course, Russian foreign policy, with special emphasis on outsiders’ use of propaganda and violence to affect political change in the region.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 7/19
• PosTag(s): INST-CP, INST-GLOBAL

Thinking Organizationally about Politics
AS.191.375 (01)

Aitchison Students Only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

The Executive Branch
AS.190.406 (01)

In the 19th Century America was noted for its courts, political parties and representative institutions. Today, America’s political parties and representative institutions have declined in importance while the institutions of the executive branch have increased in importance. This seminar will examine the nation’s key executive institutions and aspects of executive governance in the U.S. Students will alternate primary responsibility for week’s readings. Every student will prepare a 10-15 page review and critique of the books for which they are responsible in class.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 3/15
• PosTag(s): INST-AP

Democracy and Political Psychology: Ideals and Realities of Democratic Citizenship
AS.191.307 (01)

This course confronts the expectations of democratic theory regarding the way citizens should think and behave with findings from political psychology with respect to how they do think and behave. Divergences of the ideals and realities of democratic citizenship often seem quite glaring and discomforting. What are the conclusions we should draw from such mismatches? Should we simply accept them or is there something to be done about them? Alternatively, should democracy be redefined or abdicated altogether? The course will center on the experience of the advanced industrial democracies – the places where one would presume democracy to work best. In addition to addressing substantive questions, the course also aims to equip students with approaches, methods, and techniques they can use in conducting their own empirical research.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/18
• PosTag(s): POLI-AP, POLI-CP, INST-AP, INST-CP, INST-PT

Democracy and Development: Theory and Cases
AS.190.382 (02)

Most wealthy countries are democracies. But not all democracies are wealthy—India, Costa Rica, and Mongolia are prominent examples of poor countries with democratic regimes. The course will examine the relation between economic development and political democratization under three big questions. (a) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does economic development promote democracy? (b) If economic development is not possible in the foreseeable future, how do countries achieve stable democratization? (c) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does democracy foster economic development?

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 16/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-CP, INST-CP, INST-ECON

Nationalism and the Politics of Identity
AS.190.379 (01)

Nationalism ties powerful organizations to political mobilization, territory, and individual loyalty. Yet nationalism is typically studied in isolation from other social formations that depend upon organizational – individual linkages. Alternative types of identity category sometimes depend similarly upon organizations that collect and deploy resources, mobilize individuals, erect boundaries, and promote strong emotional connections among individuals as well as between individuals and institutions. In this class, we study classic and contemporary works on nationalism, drawn from multiple disciplinary and analytic traditions, in the comparative context of alternative forms of identity. The focus of the class will be primarily theoretical, with no regional or temporal limitations.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/18
• PosTag(s): POLI-CP, POLI-IR, INST-PT, INST-CP

Comparative Political Behavior
AS.190.338 (01)

An introduction to the study of political behavior, emphasizing electoral behavior in democratic countries.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 12/18
• PosTag(s): INST-CP, POLI-CP

Geopolitics
AS.190.451 (01)

Intensive exploration of theories of how geography, ecology, and technology shape political orders. Case studies of ancient, early modern, global, and contemporary topics, including European ascent, industrial revolution, tropics and North South divide, climate change, geo-engineering and global commons (oceans, atmosphere and orbital space

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 3/30
• PosTag(s): POLI-PT, INST-IR, INST-PT, ENVS-MAJOR, ENVS-MINOR

Politics of Outer Space
AS.190.443 (01)

Intensive examination of the political aspects of human activities in outer space, past, present and future, with focus on militarization, earth-remote sensing, surveillance, navigation, resource exploitation, the Outer Space Treaty, and colonization.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/30
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-IR, POLI-RSCH

Democracy and Development: Theory and Cases
AS.190.382 (03)

Most wealthy countries are democracies. But not all democracies are wealthy—India, Costa Rica, and Mongolia are prominent examples of poor countries with democratic regimes. The course will examine the relation between economic development and political democratization under three big questions. (a) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does economic development promote democracy? (b) If economic development is not possible in the foreseeable future, how do countries achieve stable democratization? (c) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does democracy foster economic development?

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 20/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-CP, INST-CP, INST-ECON

Democracy and Development: Theory and Cases
AS.190.382 (01)

Most wealthy countries are democracies. But not all democracies are wealthy—India, Costa Rica, and Mongolia are prominent examples of poor countries with democratic regimes. The course will examine the relation between economic development and political democratization under three big questions. (a) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does economic development promote democracy? (b) If economic development is not possible in the foreseeable future, how do countries achieve stable democratization? (c) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does democracy foster economic development?

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 17/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-CP, INST-CP, INST-ECON

Qualitative Research
AS.190.426 (01)

This class is designed to introduce students to qualitative methodology. Practically, students will gain first-hand experience with qualitative research methods via research design, ethics review, in-depth interviewing, participant observation, and archival/primary source research. They will learn to deploy analytical techniques such as discourse analysis and process tracing. Students will also be asked to consider the merits of qualitative approaches more generally, and discuss the relative advantages of qualitative, experimental, and quantitative approaches. Questions that we will discuss include: What place should qualitative research have in a research design? Can qualitative research test hypotheses, or only generate them? Can qualitative research explain social phenomena, or only interpret them? What are the disadvantages and advantages of qualitative approaches compared to quantitative approaches? For what kinds of research questions are ethnographic techniques best suited? Is replicability possible for ethnographic field research? What criteria of evidence and analytical rigor apply on this terrain?

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 8/10
• PosTag(s): n/a

Food Politics
AS.190.405 (01)

This course examines the politics of food at the local, national, and global level. Topics include the politics of agricultural subsidies, struggles over genetically modified foods, government efforts at improving food safety, and issues surrounding obesity and nutrition policy. Juniors, seniors, and graduate students only. Cross-listed with Public Health Studies.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/18
• PosTag(s): SPOL-UL, GECS-SOCSCI, POLI-RSCH, ENVS-MAJOR, ENVS-MINOR

Democracy and Development: Theory and Cases
AS.190.382 (04)

Most wealthy countries are democracies. But not all democracies are wealthy—India, Costa Rica, and Mongolia are prominent examples of poor countries with democratic regimes. The course will examine the relation between economic development and political democratization under three big questions. (a) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does economic development promote democracy? (b) If economic development is not possible in the foreseeable future, how do countries achieve stable democratization? (c) Under what conditions, and through which mechanisms, does democracy foster economic development?

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 19/20
• PosTag(s): POLI-CP, INST-CP, INST-ECON

Public Policy Writing
AS.191.376 (01)

Aitchison Students Only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

America and the World
AS.190.331 (01)

This course is a survey of the unique position of the United States in world politics. We will cover the broader international relations literature on the dynamics of hegemony, empire, and asymmetrical relationships, from work in the realist tradition to more critical approaches. We will also assess the importance of American domestic institutions in understanding past and contemporary developments.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 1/19
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-AP, INST-IR

Russian Foreign Policy (IR)
AS.191.345 (01)

This course will explore the evolution of Russian Foreign Policy from Czarist times to the present. The main theme will be the question of continuity and change, as the course will seek to determine to what degree current Russian Foreign Policy is rooted in the Czarist(1613-1917) and Soviet(1917-1991) periods, and to what degree it has operated since 1991 on a new basis. The main emphasis of the course will be on Russia's relations with the United States and Europe, China, the Middle East and the countries of the former Soviet Union--especially Ukraine, the Baltic States, Transcaucasia and Central Asia. The course will conclude with an analysis of the Russian reaction to the Arab Spring and its impact both on Russian domestic politics and on Russian foreign policy.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 21/35
• PosTag(s): POLI-IR, INST-IR, INST-CP

Southeast Asia and US Security
AS.310.305 (01)

This survey course is designed to introduce students to Southeast Asia -- the ten member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plus Australia and New Zealand. Southeast Asia is an integral part of the broader region of East Asia and a geographic bridge to the Indian subcontinent (South Asia). Southeast Asia has been one of the great success stories in the saga of modernization and development of post-colonial Afro-Asia over the last six decades. Its resulting economic importance is matched by its strategic significance given the presence of imbedded jihadist networks and the emergence of China as a regional great power and aspirant superpower. Nevertheless, the region has been largely overlooked by senior foreign policy and defense officials in Washington. This course will equip students to fill that void by examining the region from the perspective of national security strategy -- broadly understood in its multiple dimensions. Students will be challenged to formulate some element of a viable U.S. national security strategy for the region.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 2/19
• PosTag(s): INST-CP, INST-IR

Brazilian Culture & Civilization
AS.211.394 (02)

The course is taught in English. No knowledge of Portuguese is required. This course is intended as an introduction to the culture and civilization of Brazil. It is designed to provide students with basic information about Brazilian history, art, literature, popular culture, theater, cinema, and music. The course will focus on how indigenous Asian, African, and European cultural influences have interacted to create the new and unique civilization that is Brazil today. The course is taught in English, but ONE extra credit will be given to students who wish to do the course work in Portuguese. Those wishing to do the course work in English for 3 credits should register for section 01. Those wishing to earn 4 credits by doing the course work in Portuguese should register for section 02. The sections will be taught simultaneously. Section 01: 3 credits Section 02: 4 credits (instructor’s permission required)

• Credits: 4.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 2/2
• PosTag(s): INST-NWHIST, INST-GLOBAL, GRLL-ENGL

Thinking Economically
AS.191.382 (01)

Aitchison Students Only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

Authoritarianism, Democracy, and Economic Development: Korea, Indonesia, and Myanmar
AS.310.401 (01)

East Asia’s “miracle growth” has not gone hand in hand with a decisive move toward democracy. The course explores the reasons why democratization proceeds slowly in East Asia, and seems to be essentially decoupled from the region’s fast-paced economic growth. The course is divided into three parts. Part I introduces the specifics of East Asia’s economic development strategies as well as key concepts of democracy, authoritarianism and military rule and the tensions between these theories and the East Asian experience. Part II will focus on the economic and political development experiences of Korea, Indonesia and Myanmar in light of what discussed in Part I. Finally, Part III presents lessons emerging from the comparison of Korea’s, Indonesia’s and Myanmar’s economic and political developmental trajectories.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 12/18
• PosTag(s): INST-CP

Capitalism: Politics and Political Thought in a Market Economy
AS.191.406 (01)

The United States is a capitalist economy and we live in a capitalist world. This a fact we take for granted and therefore spend little time examining. Capitalism’ proponents attribute our society’s unprecedented wealth and technological advances to this economic system. Some go so far as to claim that modern democracy and social progress are impossible without a capitalist economy. Critics point to growing social inequality and a slew of environmental ills as proof of capitalism’s unsustainability. Some suggest that capitalism is antithetical to true democracy and human flourishing. But what exactly is capitalism? How did it evolve in the USA and how does the form capitalism takes in the United States differ from the forms it takes elsewhere? And, crucially, how is capitalism shaped by – and how does it shape – contemporary politics? And how exactly is this all related to liberalism, conservatism, neoliberalism, libertarianism, socialism, and democratic socialism? This seminar is designed to help students critically approach these questions. Rather than taking simplistic pro-contra approach, this seminar will examine capitalism along four axes: as a political-economic system, a corollary set of structures and institutions, the force behind a specific form of state organization, and the determinant of how society and individuals act and see themselves. To explore these issues, we will focus on a number of contemporary political issues, with a primary geographic focus on the United States, including the following: the debates over the welfare state and socialized healthcare; unions, lobbies, and special interests; the connection between capitalism, culture, and ideology; the effects of a capitalist organization of labor of questions of race, gender, and citizenship; the commodification of the environment and other species; and the process of critique, resistance, and social change in a capitalist system. Throughout, we will discuss the theoretical and empirical ar

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 1/15
• PosTag(s): POLI-PT, POLI-AP, INST-PT, INST-ECON, INST-AP

Introduction to Social Policy: Baltimore and Beyond
AS.360.247 (02)

This course will introduce students to basic concepts in economics, political science and sociology relevant to the study of social problems and the programs designed to remedy them. It will address the many inequalities in access to education and health care, unequal treatment in the criminal justice system, disparities in income and wealth, and differential access to political power. The focus will be on designing effective policies at the national and local level to address these pressing issues. This course is open to all students, but will be required for the new Social Policy Minor. The course is also recommended for students who are interested in law school, medical school, programs in public health, and graduate school in related social science fields. This course does not count as one of the required courses for the Economics major or minor, but it is required for the Social Policy Minor. Cross list with Sociology, Economics and Political Science. Freshman, Sophomore and Juniors only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 7/25
• PosTag(s): GECS-SOCSCI

Introduction to Social Policy: Baltimore and Beyond
AS.360.247 (03)

This course will introduce students to basic concepts in economics, political science and sociology relevant to the study of social problems and the programs designed to remedy them. It will address the many inequalities in access to education and health care, unequal treatment in the criminal justice system, disparities in income and wealth, and differential access to political power. The focus will be on designing effective policies at the national and local level to address these pressing issues. This course is open to all students, but will be required for the new Social Policy Minor. The course is also recommended for students who are interested in law school, medical school, programs in public health, and graduate school in related social science fields. This course does not count as one of the required courses for the Economics major or minor, but it is required for the Social Policy Minor. Cross list with Sociology, Economics and Political Science. Freshman, Sophomore and Juniors only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 9/25
• PosTag(s): GECS-SOCSCI

Introduction to Social Policy: Baltimore and Beyond
AS.360.247 (01)

This course will introduce students to basic concepts in economics, political science and sociology relevant to the study of social problems and the programs designed to remedy them. It will address the many inequalities in access to education and health care, unequal treatment in the criminal justice system, disparities in income and wealth, and differential access to political power. The focus will be on designing effective policies at the national and local level to address these pressing issues. This course is open to all students, but will be required for the new Social Policy Minor. The course is also recommended for students who are interested in law school, medical school, programs in public health, and graduate school in related social science fields. This course does not count as one of the required courses for the Economics major or minor, but it is required for the Social Policy Minor. Cross list with Sociology, Economics and Political Science. Freshman, Sophomore and Juniors only.

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 8/25
• PosTag(s): GECS-SOCSCI

Brazilian Culture & Civilization
AS.211.394 (01)

The course is taught in English. No knowledge of Portuguese is required. This course is intended as an introduction to the culture and civilization of Brazil. It is designed to provide students with basic information about Brazilian history, art, literature, popular culture, theater, cinema, and music. The course will focus on how indigenous Asian, African, and European cultural influences have interacted to create the new and unique civilization that is Brazil today. The course is taught in English, but ONE extra credit will be given to students who wish to do the course work in Portuguese. Those wishing to do the course work in English for 3 credits should register for section 01. Those wishing to earn 4 credits by doing the course work in Portuguese should register for section 02. The sections will be taught simultaneously. Section 01: 3 credits Section 02: 4 credits (instructor’s permission required)

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 1/33
• PosTag(s): INST-NWHIST, INST-GLOBAL, GRLL-ENGL

Visualizing Data
AS.191.383 (01)

• Credits: 3.00
• Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a