POSC 100: Cosmos or Chaos: Views of the World, Views of the Good Life

This seminar is based on the premise that what we believe about the fundamental metaphysical questions inevitably shapes what we believe about living a good life as human beings. Is the world naturally harmonious, or full of strife? Is it governed by divine will, or is there nothing that outranks human will? Does existence have an intrinsic purpose? We will investigate several classic answers to these questions and their implications for human life. Readings will be drawn from ancient, modern, and contemporary texts, from Homer, Plato and the Bible to Nietzsche and the current day. 6 credit; Argument and Inquiry Seminar, Writing Requirement; offered Fall 2012 -- L. Cooper

POSC 100: Media and Electoral Politics in the 2012 Election

This seminar introduces basic methods of political analysis through a case study of media and politics in the 2012 elections. Students will participate in a study of election advertising. Concepts from public opinion analysis and political psychology will be used to understand the 2012 campaigns. Our work will focus on content analysis of the effects of campaign ads and news coverage. 6 credit; Argument and Inquiry Seminar, Writing Requirement; offered Fall 2012 -- B. Allen

POSC 120: Comparative Political Regimes

An introduction to the fundamentals of government and the variety of ways politics is practiced in different countries. Capitalist democracies, transitional states and developing nations are compared. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, International Studies; offered Fall 2012, Winter 2013 -- D. Gupta, A. Montero

POSC 122: Politics in America: Liberty and Equality

An introduction to American government and politics. Focus on the Congress, Presidency, political parties and interest groups, the courts and the Constitution. Particular attention will be given to the public policy debates that divide liberals and conservatives and how these divisions are rooted in American political culture. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013 -- P. Cavanaugh, R. Keiser, S. Schier

POSC 160: Political Philosophy

Introduction to ancient and modern political philosophy. We will investigate several fundamentally different approaches to the basic questions of politics--­questions concerning the character of political life, the possibilities and limits of politics, justice, and the good society--­and the philosophic presuppositions (concerning human nature and human flourishing) that underlie these, and all, political questions. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; offered Fall 2012, Spring 2013 -- L. Cooper, M. Czobor-Lupp

POSC 170: International Relations and World Politics

A survey of factors in international relations of a geopolitical, commercial and ideological character; systems of international relations, including bipolar deterrence, polycentrism, and international organization; and dynamics of international relations, including war, diplomacy, and international economic and social development. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013 -- R. Grow, T. Myint, A. Von Hagen-Jamar

POSC 201: National Policymaking

We will explore factors that influence public policy in the U.S., beginning with the politics of the policy formation process, including nongovernmental actors (corporations, media, nonprofit organizations, citizens, interest groups), and major governmental institutions. We will discuss fundamental American political concepts such as liberty, power, and democracy, and the role of citizens. Our goals are to increase understanding of the wide array of political factors that determine the feasibility and/or desirability of a particular course of action in response to a perceived problem, and to evaluate the status of various kinds of knowledge claims, including sources of credibility. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 202: Parties, Interest Groups and Elections

Examination of the American electoral system and its components: parties, interest groups and the media. The impact of parties and interests on national policy making is also explored. The course will devote special attention to the 2008 and 2010 elections. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 204: Media and Electoral Politics: 2012 United States Election

Our analysis of media influences on politics will draw from three fields of study: political psychology, political behavior and participation, and public opinion. Students will conduct a study of the effects of campaign ads and news using our multi-year data set of content analyzed election ads and news. We study a variety of quantitative and qualitative research methods to learn how political communication affects U.S. elections. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- B. Allen

POSC 205: Issues in American Democracy

Cross-listed with POSC 305. Is direct citizen rule through participatory democracy or a reliance on policymaking by officeholders the best way to govern America? This seminar addresses the question by examining several topics--the levels of political knowledge and interest among the public, the impact of interest groups in national government, and the operation of popular rule through initiatives and referendums in American states. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 206: The American Courts

We will explore the political and institutional dimensions of courts, and consider whether and how judicial decision making differs from political decision making. Topics will include legal reasoning and the role of the judge, the institutional capacity of courts and their relation to the political branches, and the role of lawyers in the political system. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement; offered Winter 2013 -- K. Smith

POSC 208: The American Presidency

A study of the contemporary presidency, with a focus on the development of the institutional presidency, presidential personality, and the presidency's relations with other institutions in the American and international political systems. Particular attention will be devoted to the presidencies of Barack Obama and George W. Bush. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- S. Schier

POSC 212: Environmental Justice

The environmental justice movement seeks greater participation by marginalized communities in environmental policy, and equity in the distribution of environmental harms and benefits. This course will examine the meaning of "environmental justice," the history of the movement, the empirical foundation for the movement’s claims, and specific policy questions. Our focus is the United States, but students will have the opportunity to research environmental justice in other countries. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- K. Smith

POSC 214: Visual Representations of Political Thought and Action

Visual media offer an alternative method of framing political ideas and events. Images found in such texts as film, posters, and even in statistical tables can enlighten--or mislead. Readings in visual theory, political psychology, and graphic representation will enable you to read images and use these powerful media to convey your ideas and research. 3 credit; Social Sciences, Literary/Artistic Analysis, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 215: Political Communication in Comparative Context

This five-week course will focus on the major theories of political communication in an election context. Our case study will be the United Kingdom elections, which are expected to occur around May 6, 2010. Students who enroll for this course concurrently with POSC 204 on United States elections will have an opportunity to compare the legal and cultural contexts of election news coverage and advertising in the United Kingdom and United States. 3 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 216: The Initiative, Referendum and Public Policy

This course focuses on the direct democracy tools of initiative and referendum. What are the origins of these institutions and in what historical circumstances do citizens turn to them? Policy conflicts over gay marriage, regulation of tobacco, financing of sports stadiums, and the externalities of economic development will be among our topics. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- R. Keiser

POSC 218: Schools, Scholarship and Policy in the United States

What can scholarship tell us about educational strategies to reduce achievement gaps and economic opportunity? Do the policies promoted at the city, state and federal levels reflect that knowledge? How are these policies made? What is the relationship between schools and the economic class, racial composition and housing stock of their neighborhoods? Prerequisites: Sophomore Standing 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- R. Keiser

POSC 219: Protest, Power & Grassroots Organizing: American Social Movements

Why do protest movements form and who joins? How do grassroots movements achieve their aims? This class examines the strategies of grassroots political actors as they organize protest movements in civil society, forge coalitions, and give a voice to the voiceless. Comparisons are drawn between the United States, European, Asian, and Latin American experiences. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; not offered 2012-2013 -- P. Cavanaugh

POSC 220: Politics and Political History in Film

How do representations of politics in film influence our ideas about governance, citizenship, power, and authority? How do film and TV reflect values and beliefs of democratic society, particularly in the United States? These are two questions that we will consider in the course as we study films representing politics and historical events in fiction and non-fiction genres for entertainment and education. Films to be analyzed include: Battle of Algiers, Fog of War, Cape Fear (1963), Manchurian Candidate (1960), Advise and Consent, All the President’s Men, Primary, War Room, The Mushroom Club, Fahrenheit 9/11, When the Levees Broke. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Literary/Artistic Analysis, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 221: Latin American Politics

Comparative study of political institutions and conflicts in selected Latin American countries. Attention is focused on general problems and patterns of development, with some emphasis on U.S.-Latin American relations. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- A. Montero

POSC 223: Food Justice

Systems for growing, processing and distributing food have been subject to claims that they are unjust, yet problems persist. This course will examine concepts of justice and apply them to issues related to farmworkers, factory workers and others who produce our food, poverty and access to food, and genetically modified organisms as they relate to control of production.  We will ask how justice relates to sustainability.  Although the course will focus on the United States, global issues such as immigration and food sovereignty will be included.  Students will have the opportunity to explore food justice issues in other countries. 6 credit; Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- P. Cavanaugh

POSC 226: Political Psychology

This course is an introduction to political psychology, an inter-disciplinary field of study that applies psychological theory and research to the study of politics, as a theoretical alternative to rational choice models. Study will include applying psychological models to elite decision making and to political behavior of ordinary citizens. Topics include personality and political leadership, group processes and foreign policy, theories of information processing and elite decision making, malignant political aggression and punitive politics, altruism and heroic political action, etc. in light of important political issues and events. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter; offered Winter 2013 -- G. Marfleet

POSC 228: Foucault: Bodies in Politics

Are human bodies the sites where political power is constituted and legitimized? Are they sites of resistance and change, through which the construction of alternative identities and forms of discourse is incited and made possible? Drawing on philosophical, historical, and literary resources this course will explore different ways in which human bodies become politically significant. While the course will take its leading idea from Foucault’s notion of biopolitics, it will expand its approach in a direction that will include feminist perspectives, as well as prison memories from survivors and witnesses of totalitarian/authoritarian political regimes. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 229: International Institutions

Intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and citizens are all entities that shape the governance of international and global issues. This course focuses on both international organizations (IOs) and international institutions that include formal treaties and informal rules, norms, and strategies. We will study key theoretical concepts and analytical frameworks through case studies and the literature on formal organization and collective action. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- T. Myint

POSC 230: Methods of Political Research

An introduction to research method, research design, and the analysis of political data. The course is intended to introduce students to the fundamentals of scientific inquiry as they are employed in the discipline. The course will consider the philosophy of scientific research generally, the philosophy of social science research, theory building and theory testing, the components of applied (quantitative and qualitative) research across the major sub-fields of political science, and basic methodological tools. Intended for majors only. Prerequisite: Mathematics 115, 215, 245, 265, 275 or AP Statistics (score of 4 or 5). 6 credit; Writing Requirement, Does not fulfill a distribution requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter; offered Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013 -- G. Marfleet, A. Von Hagen-Jamar

POSC 231: American Foreign Policy

An introduction to the actors and processes of American foreign policymaking and to the substance of American foreign policy. The course aims to provide students with an understanding of how knowledge of the past, the global policy environment, the processes of foreign policymaking, and the specifics of a foreign policy issue come together to help determine modern American foreign policy. The course will review the structure of the international system of states, state power and interests, the historical context of American foreign policy, actors in American foreign affairs, models of foreign policy decision making, and the instruments of foreign policy. Prerequisite: Political Science 122 highly recommended. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; offered Winter 2013 -- S. Schier

POSC 235: The Costs of Conflict

This course explores the variety of ways that war and conflict are costly to society and individuals. The implications of costliness are explored abstractly through the bargaining and war literature. We follow that with an examination of the empirical work on how war is costly to participant states and what variables affect those costs. We will briefly touch on the economic effects of war before studying the effect war has on citizens, both collectively and individually, ending with a discussion of how contemporary conflict changes the lives of those who experience it. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- A. Von Hagen-Jamar

POSC 237: Southeast Asian Politics

This course will cover key thematic issues of Southeast Asian politics, including the challenges of democracy, regional integration, environmental politics, the rise of the power of non-state actors, and struggles for citizen-sovereignty of the people. We will examine these frontier issues against the background of Southeast Asia’s societal evolution through kingdoms, colonial eras, emergence of nation-states, and the influence of globalization on politics. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- T. Myint

POSC 239: The Diplomat's Craft: Three Case Studies

Diplomacy is the means by which states find common ground and resolve differences. Former ambassador Burt Levin uses three cases studies from his career to evaluate the relationships between diplomacy and policy implementation. 3 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- B. Levin

POSC 241: Ethnic Conflict

Ethnic conflict is a persistent and troubling challenge for those interested in preserving international peace and stability. By one account, ethnic violence has claimed more than ten million lives since 1945, and in the 1990s, ethnic conflicts comprised nearly half of all ongoing conflicts around the world. In this course, we will attempt to understand the conditions that contribute to ethnic tensions, identify the triggers that lead to escalation, and evaluate alternative ideas for managing and solving such disputes. The course will draw on a number of cases, including Rwanda, Bosnia, and Northern Ireland. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- D. Gupta

POSC 244: The Politics of the Celtic Fringe

This class will examine recent political, economic and social transformations that have occurred in the so-called Celtic Fringe: Scotland, Ireland, Cornwall, Wales and Galicia. We will use these regions, which have long occupied marginal positions within much larger and more powerful states, as cases to explore a variety of issues, including center-periphery relations, migration, internal colonialism, autonomous and separatist movements, and regionalism in the context of the European Union. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- D. Gupta

POSC 247: Comparative Nationalism

Nationalism is an ideology that political actors have frequently harnessed to support a wide variety of policies ranging from intensive economic development to genocide. But what is nationalism? Where does it come from? And what gives it such emotional and political power? This course investigates competing ideas about the sources of nationalism, its evolution, and its political uses in state building, legitimation, development, and war. We will consider both historic examples of nationalism, as well as contemporary cases drawn from Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the United States. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 248: The U.S.-China Relationship

This course will examine the interaction between China and America from the inception in the late 18th century to the present, with greater emphasis on more recent events. The focus will be on evaluating the underlying and persisting factors which have made Sino-U.S. relations so special and difficult. 3 credit; Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- B. Levin

POSC 250: Ancient Political Philosophy

In this course we will examine ancient political philosophy through the intensive study of Plato's Republic, perhaps the greatest work of political philosophy ever written. What is morality? Why should a person behave morally? Wouldn't it be more satisfying to be a tyrant? What is the best way of life? What would a perfect society look like? What would be its customs and institutions, and who would rule? What would it demand of us, and would that price be worth paying? These are some of the politically (and personally) vital questions addressed by the book. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; offered Fall 2012 -- L.Cooper

POSC 251: Modern Political Philosophy

The modern age has been characterized by the unprecedented advance of natural science and the attempt to achieve technological mastery of nature. How did this come about? What worldview does this express, and how does that worldview affect the way we live and think? We will investigate these questions by studying classic works by some of modernity’s philosophic founders (including Bacon, Descartes, and Hobbes) and some of its most penetrating interpreters and critics (including Jonathan Swift and Nietzsche). 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 252: Herodotus and the Origin of Political Philosophy

This course will be devoted to close study of Herodotus' Histories, a rich and delightful book that defies easy description. Herodotus has much to teach us about great questions of freedom and despotism, war and peace, and empire. He was also arguably the first great thinker to explore cultural diversity and the larger questions it raises, including questions of particularism versus universalism and nature versus convention. Students will write three 7-8 page papers and give informal class presentations. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 254: Freedom, Excellence, Happiness: Aristotle's Ethics

What does it mean to be morally excellent? To be politically excellent? To be intellectually and spiritually excellent? Are these things mutually compatible? Do they lie within the reach of everyone? And what is the relation between excellence and pleasure? Between excellence and happiness? Aristotle addresses these questions in intricate and illuminating detail in the Nicomachean Ethics, which we will study in this course. The Ethics is more accessible than some of Aristotle’s other works. But it is also a multifaceted and multi-layered book, and one that reveals more to those who study it with care. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 255: Post-Modern Political Thought

The thought and practice of the modern age have been found irredeemably oppressive, alienating, dehumanizing, and/or exhausted by a number of leading philosophic thinkers in recent years. In this course we will explore the critiques and alternative visions offered by a variety of post-modern thinkers, including Nietzsche (in many ways the first post-modern), Heidegger, Foucault, and Derrida. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; offered Spring 2013 -- M. Czobor-Lupp

POSC 256: Nietzsche and Political Philosophy

Perhaps no thinker has influenced the thought of the current age as much as Friedrich Nietzsche, whose critique of rationalism, modernity, and liberalism gave rise to what we now know as post-modernism. In this course we will engage in a close study of Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche’s most overtly political major work and perhaps his most beautiful one. Selections from some of his other work will also be assigned.Students will be required to write three 7-8 page papers and participate in seminar discussions. The latter will include informal presentations. Prerequisites: Recommend prior coursework in Political Philosophy or Philsophy. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 258: Politics and Ambition

Is personal ambition a threat to peace and the public good or is it a prod to nobility and heroism? Does it exemplify the opposition between self and society or does it represent their intersection and mutual support­--or both? Drawing on literary, philosophical, and historical works this course will take up these and other questions as part of a broad examination of the role of ambition in politics. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 259: Justice Among Nations

This course will attempt to bring to bear great works of political philosophy on the central questions of international relations, questions concerning both the moral basis of power and the character of international politics. Readings will be drawn from ancient and modern political philosophy and will culminate in an analysis and evaluation of contemporary international relations theory in light of these earlier thinkers. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 261: Power, Freedom, and Resistance.

This course will explore different ways in which Foucault sees power, not as domination and violence, but as necessarily connected to freedom, courage, and a culture of self-criticism. It will also explore Arendt’s conception of freedom as being intrinsic to the human condition and her conception of power as form of concerted action, of solidarity. The main aim of the course will be to bring these two thinkers in dialogue with each other in ways that highlight that power requires freedom, while freedom has no reality in the absence of the actual capacities of the political subjects for free action. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry, International Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- M. Czobor-Lupp

POSC 263: European Political Economy

An introduction to the politics of the European region during the post-World War II period. Students will examine the political conditions that gave impetus to the creation, maintenance, crisis, and decline of Keynesian economic policies, social welfare states, social democratic partisan alliances, and cooperative patterns of industrial relations. The course will examine the rise and reform of the project of European integration. The course will also address the particular problems faced by the East European countries as they attempt to make a transition from authoritarian, command economies to democratic, market-based economies. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 265: Capitalist Crises, Power, and Policy

This course examines the interaction of national politics and international economic activity. Topics include the relationship between national and international finance, global competitiveness, and economic development. Case studies drawn from every continent. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- A. Montero

POSC 266: Urban Political Economy

Cross-listed with POSC.366. City revenue is increasingly dependent on tourism. Cities manufacture identity and entertainment, whether we think of Las Vegas or Jerusalem, Berlin or Bilbao, the ethnoscapes of Copenhagen or the red light district of Amsterdam. As cities compete in the global economy to become playgrounds for a transnational tourist class, what is the role of urban residents? Who governs? Who benefits? Short essays or exams will be required. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- R. Keiser

POSC 267: Comparative Foreign Policy

Why do states act the way they do internationally? Why do some states act like "rogues" while others support the system? How do countries choose their allies or enemies? How do governments define their country’s national interest and respond to global changes? Foreign policy is where internal politics and external politics intersect. Understanding any country’s foreign policy requires that we pay attention to its position in the international system and its internal politics. In this course we will employ approaches from international relations and comparative politics to explore these questions across a range of countries. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Spring 2013 -- G. Marfleet

POSC 268: Global Environmental Politics and Policy

Global environmental politics and policy is the most prominent field that challenges traditional state-centric ways of thinking about international problems and solutions. This course examines local-global dynamics of environmental problems. The course will cover five arenas crucial to understanding the nature and origin of global environmental politics and policymaking mechanisms: (1) international environmental law; (2) world political orders; (3) human-environment interactions through politics and markets; (4) paradigms of sustainable development; and (5) dynamics of human values and rules. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 271: Constitutional Law I

Covers American constitutional law and history from the founding to the breakdown of the constitution in secession crisis. Extensive attention will be paid to the constitutional convention and other sources of constitutional law in addition to Supreme Court cases. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 272: Constitutional Law II

Covers American constitutional law and history from Reconstruction to the contemporary era. Extensive attention will be paid to the effort to refound the American constitution following the Civil War as manifest in the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments, and to the successive transformations which the Supreme Court worked in the new constitutional order. Political Science 271 is not a prerequisite. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 276: Arendt: Imagination and Politics

We will investigate Hannah Arendt’s conception of the political power of imagination, and explore the role hyperactive aesthetic imagination plays in the creation and mass dissemination of extreme political ideologies (i.e., tribal nationalism, racism, and Antisemitism). We will also examine how a benign active imagination, which is, nevertheless, essential to political judgment and political thinking in general, is possible at all. Readings will include The Origins of Totalitarianism, Eichmann in Jerusalem, The Jewish Writings, The Human Condition, and several of Arendt’s essays on writers, such as G. E. Lessing, Heinrich Heine, Franz Kafka, Isak Dinesen, Bertolt Brecht, and Hermann Broch. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 281: Global Society: An Approach to World Politics

One of the features of the Post-Cold War world has been the increased salience of issues such as terrorism, the environment, the influence of transnational corporations, the world-wide AIDS epidemic, the drug trade, and the crisis of refugees. The proliferation of such problems illustrates the limitations of state-centric international relations theory. This course examines new theoretical approaches to global politics that seek to understand how non-state actors and structures influence emerging patterns of global governance. We will debate as a class the extent to which a global society approach to world politics helps us to understand these transnational problems. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 288: Washington D.C.: A Global Conversation Part I

Students will participate in a seminar involving meetings with leading Washington figures in areas of global policy making and regular discussions of related readings. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 289: Washington D.C. Seminar: A Global Conversation Part II

Students will engage with leading scholars and practitioners in the field of political communication to learn how mass media, particularly TV news, influences politics. We will be especially attentive to United States news coverage of international events in new and old media and its importance in international relations, domestic perceptions of global political concerns (e.g. climate change and universal declarations of human rights). Our seminar readings will draw on research in political psychology and democratic theory. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 293: Washington D.C. Seminar: Global Conservation Internship

6 credit; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement, Does not fulfill a curricular exploration requirement; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 306: How Race Matters in American Politics*

How do the politics of race and ethnicity influence the modern development of American democracy? Problems of inequality and social marginalization. Racial attitudes and progress toward equality from the civil rights movement of the 1960s to the present. The relationship between protest and electoral politics in African American, Latino, and Asian American communities. Mechanisms for representation of racial-ethnic minorities at the national, state, and local levels of government. Controversies over racial-ethnic policy, such as affirmative action and bilingual education. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Recognition and Affirmation of Difference Requirement, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 311: Topics in Constitutional Law*

This seminar will explore selected themes in constitutional law, examining the historical development of doctrine, the philosophical issues raised by the issues and the contemporary political controversies surrounding the Court's decisions. Topics may include the separation of church and state, freedom of speech, reproductive rights, criminal justice, voting rights, and gender and sexuality in the law. Prerequisite: One of the following: Political Science 206, 270, 271. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry; offered Spring 2013 -- K. Smith

POSC 323: Cuban Politics Seminar*

The seminar will examine the major political and economic transitions in Cuban history, beginning with the wars of independence and culminating in the post-Cold War period of the Communist era. Students will engage in original research projects related to the major themes in the course. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 326: America's China Policy*

This course examines the factors that shape United States policies toward China. Topics include the early relationships in the 1800s, the problems of the war years, and the strains of the People's Republic era. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 328: Foreign Policy Analysis*

Foreign policy analysis is a distinct sub-field within international relations that focuses on explaining the actions and choices of actors in world politics. After a review of the historical development of the sub-field, we will explore approaches to foreign policy that emphasize the empirical testing of hypotheses that explain how policies and choices are formulated and implemented. The psychological sources of foreign policy decisions (including leaders' beliefs and personalities and the effect of decision-making groups) are a central theme. Completion of a lower level IR course and the stats/methods sequence is recommended. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter; offered Fall 2012 -- G. Marfleet

POSC 330: The Complexity of Politics*

Theories of complexity and emergence relate to how large-scale collective properties and characteristics of a system can arise from the behavior and attributes of component parts. This course explores the relevance of these concepts, studied mainly in physics and biology, for the social sciences. Students will explore agent-based modeling to discover emergent properties of social systems through computer simulations they create using NetLogo software. Reading and seminar discussion topics include conflict and cooperation, electoral competition, transmission of culture and social networks. Completion of the stats/methods sequence is highly recommended. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter; offered Spring 2013 -- G. Marfleet

POSC 332: Religion and Politics*

In this class, we will investigate the relationship between politics and religion around the world. It is not a class on theology or belief systems. Instead, we will focus on describing and explaining how religious beliefs and organizations affect political outcomes and vice-versa. Topics will include the relationship between religion and the state, the political dimensions of religious movements, the religious dimensions of political movements, and how religious perspectives on such issues as gender, sexuality, race, and war reinforce or clash with political values and policy. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 333: Global Social Changes & Sustainability

This course is about the relationship between social changes and ecological changes to understand and to be able to advance analytical concepts, research methods, and theories of society-nature interactions. How do livelihoods of individuals and groups change over time and how do the changes affect ecological sustainability? What are the roles of human institutions in ecological sustainability? What are the roles of ecosystem dynamics in institutional sustainability? Students will learn fundamental theories and concepts that explain linkages between social change and environmental changes and gain methods and skills to measure social changes qualitatively and quantitatively. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- T. Myint

POSC 346: Spies, Rogues and Statesmen: Intelligence and the Formation of Foreign Policy*

Collecting and interpreting information--real and not-so-real--ripples across the making of defense strategy and foreign policy. This seminar examines the link between intelligence gathering and policy formation. Case studies from WWII, the Cold War, the Vietnam era, and the Iraqi Wars. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013 -- R. Grow, B. Levin

POSC 347: America and Its Wars*

War has a special place in American history and this course will look at the changing role of armed conflict in American foreign policy. The course will be based on a series of case studies and the class will look at "large wars" such as World War II and smaller "limited engagements" in Asia and Latin America. Students will examine the debates about strategies and tactics in each of these conflicts and then merge their insights from the case studies with arguments from the larger theoretical literature about war and its role in foreign policy. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 348: Strangers, Foreigners and Exiles*

We live today in a world characterized by an intense and unprecedented migration of individuals and groups. This makes the encounter with strangers a defining feature of contemporary societies, with tremendous economic, cultural, and political consequences. In this course we will explore the role that strangers, in general, play in human life, the challenges that foreigners create for democratic politics, the promises they bring to it, and the role that exiles can perform in improving the cultural capacity of societies to grasp difference. We will read texts by Arendt and Kafka, Derrida, Sophocles, Camus, Levinas, Heidegger, and Said. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- Mihaela Czobor-Lupp

POSC 350: Ancient Political Philosophy

In this course we will examine ancient political philosophy through the intensive study of Plato's Republic, perhaps the greatest work of political philosophy ever written. What is morality? Why should a person behave morally? Wouldn't it be more satisfying to be a tyrant? What is the best way of life? What would a perfect society look like? What would be its customs and institutions, and who would rule? What would it demand of us, and would that price be worth paying? These are some of the politically (and personally) vital questions addressed by the book. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; offered Fall 2012 -- L. Cooper

POSC 350: Montesquieu

Along with Hobbes, Locke, and Spinoza, Montesquieu was one of the great founders of modern liberalism. He was especially influential on American constitutionalism. Yet perhaps more than any of liberalism’s others founders, Montesquieu grounded his teaching in a wide-ranging investigation of alternatives (including ancient alternatives) and in an exhaustive investigation of human nature. These features of his thought make him particularly useful to us, who may be seeking new-and perhaps nobler-possibilities for liberalism. In this course we will undertake a close reading of Montesquieu’s most comprehensive book, The Spirit of the Laws. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; offered Winter 2013 -- L. Cooper

POSC 351: Political Theory of Martin Luther King, Jr.

This seminar will examine the speeches, writings, and life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Students will study King as an example of the responsible citizen envisioned by the theory expressed in The Federalist, as a contributor to the discourse of civil religion, and as a figure in recent American social history. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Recognition and Affirmation of Difference Requirement, Social Inquiry, Intercultural Domestic Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- B. Allen

POSC 352: Political Theory of Alexis de Tocqueville*

This course will be devoted to close study of Tocqueville's Democracy in America, which has plausibly been described as the best book ever written about democracy and the best book every written about America. Tocqueville uncovers the myriad ways in which equality, including especially the passion for equality, determines the character and the possibilities of modern humanity. Tocqueville thereby provides a political education that is also an education toward self-knowledge. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Humanistic Inquiry, Writing Requirement, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 355: Identity, Culture and Rights*

This course will look at the contemporary debate in multiculturalism in the context of a variety of liberal philosophical traditions, including contractarians, libertarians, and Utilitarians. These views of the relationship of individual to community will be compared to those of the communitarian and egalitarian traditions. Research papers may use a number of feminist theory frameworks and methods. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 356: Visions of History in Politics

Storytelling is central to politics. Storytelling could be about the past (history as memory) or about the future (history as promise). The ways in which historical narratives are told shape political identities. They also provide different forms of political order with authority, contest political order, or aim to inspire it. This class will explore how different visions of history impact on politics and its aims. Readings will include Niccolo Machiavelli’s Discourses, Hegel’s Philosophy of History, Marx’s The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte, Arendt’s Between Past and Future, Foucault’s Society Must be Defended, and Derrida’s Specters of Marx. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- M. Czobor-Lupp

POSC 358: Comparative Social Movements*

This course will examine the role that social movements play in political life. The first part of the course will critically review the major theories that have been developed to explain how social movements form, operate and seek to influence politics at both the domestic and international levels. In the second part of the course, these theoretical approaches will be used to explore a number of case studies involving social movements that span several different issue areas and political regions. Potential case studies include the transnational environmental movement, religious movements in Latin America and the recent growth of far right activism in northern Europe. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- D. Gupta

POSC 359: Cosmopolitanism*

Is cosmopolitanism just a form of disguised imperialism or does it represent a genuine recognition and incorporation of diversity in ways that make the world a moral community? How are we to deal with strangers and foreigners? Do we have duties to strangers? Is hospitality a human right? Is it realistic to think that we can develop trans-national forms of democracy? This course will address these and other questions through a dialogue with thinkers as diverse as: Im. Kant, J. G. Herder, J. Habermas, S. Benhabib, A. Appiah, S. Muthu, J. Derrida, and B. Honig. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Humanistic Inquiry; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 361: Approaches to Development*

The meaning of "development" has been contested across multiple disciplines. The development and continual existence of past civilizations has been at the core of the discourse among those who study factors leading to the rise and fall of civilizations. Can we reconcile the meaning of development in economic terms with cultural, ecological, political, religious, social and spiritual terms? How can we measure it quantitatively? What and how do the UNDP Human Development Indexes and the World Development Reports measure? What are the exemplary cases that illustrate development? How do individual choices and patterns of livelihood activities link to development trends? 6 credit; Social Sciences, Writing Requirement, Social Inquiry, Writing Requirement, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; offered Winter 2013 -- T. Myint

POSC 364: Capitalism and Its Critics*

This research seminar examines the major debates in studies of contemporary capitalism in advanced capitalist and developing countries around the world. Moving beyond the classic theoretical debates of liberal, Marxist, developmentalist, and post-industrial arguments, the seminar will focus on recent debates concerning changes in labor markets, class structures, production systems, political institutions and social distribution, corporate governance, the multilateral system (e.g., IMF, the World Bank), supranational entities such as the European Union, and critical approaches on economic development, including new studies of the informal labor market. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning Encounter, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 365: Political Economy of Global Tourism*

As manufacturing has migrated to places with cheaper labor, many cities have turned to tourism to attract capital, employ low-skilled labor, and develop a niche in the global economy. We will pay particular attention to the consequences, for cities and their inhabitants, of the policy of tourism-driven economic development. We will also consider what it is that is being manufactured, marketed and sold in the tourist economy. Our investigation will proceed in an interdisciplinary manner, with inquiry into the political, sociological, anthropological, and economic consequences of tourism. Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites but participation in a college-level study abroad program will be an asset. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 366: Urban Political Economy*

Cross-listed with POSC.266. City revenue is increasingly dependent on tourism. Cities manufacture identity and entertainment, whether we think of Las Vegas or Jerusalem, Berlin or Bilbao, the ethnoscapes of Copenhagen or the red light district of Amsterdam. As cities compete in the global economy to become playgrounds for a transnational tourist class, what is the role of urban residents? Who governs? Who benefits? A research paper will be required. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; offered Fall 2012 -- R. Keiser

POSC 383: European Political Economy Seminar in Madrid and Maastricht: Politics of the European Union

This course examines the formation, development, institutions, laws, and policies of the European Union, with special emphasis on current issues arising from the Maastricht and Amsterdam Treaty revisions in the 1990s. Students will be divided into smaller groups to focus on different policy areas during the last two weeks of the course. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 388: European Political Economy Seminar in Madrid and Maastricht: Spanish Politics and Political Economy

This seminar will examine the institutions, actors, and movements that made Spanish democracy possible and that govern this country today. Students will explore class, gender, ethnic, and nationalist cleavages in Spanish society and learn how they have shaped institutions at the national and subnational levels. Instruction will include travel to sites outside the Madrid region. Instruction in this course will also complement the research assignment of the Spanish portion of POSC 392. 6 credit; Social Sciences, Social Inquiry, International Studies; not offered 2012-2013

POSC 400: Integrative Exercise

6 credit; S/NC; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013 -- Staff