Political Science @ Chicago

Courses

Courses for 2013-14

The University uses a five-digit course numbering system. Courses whose first digit is less than “3” are considered College-level courses. Those courses whose first digit is “3” or higher are considered graduate-level. In general, College courses whose first digit is “1” are considered to be introductory or meeting first-year general education requirements.

Letters in parentheses refer to the department's course distribution areas. (A) Theory; (B) American Politics; (C) Comparative Politics; (D) International Relations; (E) Methodology.

Please note: Courses and descriptions subject to change.

Autumn 2013

PLSC 20800. Machiavelli: The Prince and Discourses. 100 Units.

This course is a reading and discussion of The Prince and the Discourses on Livy, supplemented by portions of Livy's History of Rome. Themes include the roles of princes, peoples, and elites; the merits of republics and principalities; the political roles of pagan and Christian religion and morality; war and empire; founding and reform; virtue, corruption, and fortune; the relevance of ancient history to modern experience; reading and writing; and theory and practice. (A)

Instructor(s): N. Tarcov Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 29300,PLSC 32100,SCTH 31710,LLSO 21710

PLSC 22600. Introduction to Political Philosophy. 100 Units.

In this course we will first investigate what it is for a society to be just. Among the questions we will consider in this portion are the following: In what sense are the members of a just society equal? What freedoms does a just society protect? Must a just society be a democracy? What economic arrangements are compatible with justice? Authors to be discussed here include John Rawls, Robert Nozick, and G. A. Cohen. In the second portion of the course we will consider one pressing injustice in society in light of our previous philosophical conclusions. Possible candidates include, but are not limited to, racial inequality, economic inequality, and gender hierarchy. Here our goal will be to combine our philosophical theories with empirical evidence in order to identify, diagnose, and effectively respond to actual injustice. (A)

Instructor(s): B. Laurence Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 21601,LLSO 22612,PHIL 21600

PLSC 24001. Leviathan. 100 Units.

A close reading of the entirety of Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan. (A)

Instructor(s): J. Cooper Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 22214,PLSC 34001

PLSC 27403. Carl Schmitt's Political Thought. 100 Units.

This course is devoted to the political thought of controversial conservative Weimar lawyer and National Socialist partisan, Carl Schmitt. We will read and discuss his major works on sovereignty, the exception, legal theory, parliamentary government, liberalism versus democracy, and "the political." Students are expected to come to the first session having read Political Theology in its entirety. (A)

Instructor(s): J. McCormick Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Prior consent of instructor.
Note(s): Seven week course to commence in Week 4.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 47403,FNDL 28305

PLSC 28000. Organization, Ideology, and Political Change. 100 Units.

This course centers on the comparative analysis of the emergence and institutionalization of public bureaucracies in the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany, Japan, and the former Soviet Union. The aim is to see whether there are distinctly different patterns of organizational rationality or whether bureaucracies are all culturally unique. (C)

Instructor(s): B. Silberman Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 26503,PLSC 38000

PLSC 28615. Politics and Human Nature. 100 Units.

This course explores commonalities among psychoanalytic theory, Buddhism, and studies of emotions and brain physiology, particularly as they relate to questions of the self and political life. In addition to exploring each of these theories, we investigate particular questions (e.g., inevitability of conflict, dynamics of obedience and authority, emotional power of ideology, and non-Western understandings of human consciousness). (A)

Instructor(s): E. Oliver Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Third- or fourth-year standing.
Note(s): Class limited to fifteen students.
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 28613

PLSC 28710. Democracy and the Politics of Wealth Redistribution. 100 Units.

How do political institutions affect the redistribution of wealth among members of a society? In most democracies, the distribution of wealth among citizens is unequal but the right to vote is universal. Why then have so many newly democratic states transitioned under conditions of high inequality yet failed to redistribute? This course explores this puzzle by analyzing the mechanisms through which individual and group preferences can be translated into pro-poor policies, and the role elites play in influencing a government's capacity or incentives to redistribute wealth. Topics include economic inequality and the demand for redistribution, the difference in redistribution between democracy and dictatorship, the role of globalization in policymaking, and the effects of redistribution on political stability and change. (C)

Instructor(s): M. Albertus Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 28710

PLSC 29000. Introduction to International Relations. 100 Units.

This course introduces main themes in international relations that include the problems of war and peace, conflict and cooperation. We begin by considering some basic theoretical tools used to study international politics. We then focus on several prominent security issues in modern international relations, such as the cold war and post–cold war world, nuclear weapons, nationalism, and terrorism. We also deal with economic aspects of international relations, such as globalization, world trade, environmental pollution, and European unification. (D)

Instructor(s): C. Lipson Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 39800

PLSC 29700. Independent Study. 100 Units.

This is a general reading and research course for independent study not related to the BA thesis or BA research.

Terms Offered: Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
Prerequisite(s): Consent of faculty supervisor and program chair.
Note(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

PLSC 29800. BA Colloquium. 100 Units.

The colloquium is designed to help students carry out their BA thesis research and offer feedback on their progress. The class meets weekly in Autumn Quarter and every other week in Winter Quarter.

Terms Offered: Autumn, Winter
Note(s): Required of fourth-year students who are majoring in political science majors and plan to write a BA thesis. Students participate in both Autumn and Winter Quarters but register only once (in either Autumn or Winter Quarter). PLSC 29800 counts as a single course and a single grade is reported in Winter Quarter.

PLSC 29900. BA Thesis Supervision. 100 Units.

This is a reading and research course for independent study related to BA research and BA thesis preparation.

Terms Offered: Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
Note(s): Required of fourth-year students who are majoring in political science and plan to write a BA thesis. Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

PLSC 30200. Political Economy for Public Policy. 100 Units.

This course is designed to serve three interrelated goals. It is an introduction to core concepts in the study of political economy. These concepts include collective action, coordination, and commitment problems; externalities and other forms of market failure; principal-agent relationships; problems of preference aggregation; and agenda setting and voting. The course also introduces basic concepts in game theory, including Nash equilibrium, subgame Perfection, and repeated games. It is not, however, a suitable substitute for a game theory course for doctoral students in the social sciences. Finally, the course provides an overview of some of the key insights from the field of political economy on how institutions shape and constrain the making of public policy, with special attention to various ways in which governments can and cannot be held accountable to their citizens.

Instructor(s): E. Bueno de Mesquita Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PPHA 30800,INRE 30800

PLSC 30300. Survey of American Politics. 100 Units.

A survey of some of the main themes, topics and approaches in the study of American politics and government. (B)

Instructor(s): E. Oliver Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 30500. Introduction to Data Analysis. 100 Units.

This course is an introduction to the research methods practiced by quantitative political scientists. The first part lays out the enterprise of empirical research: the structure and content of theories, the formulation of testable hypotheses, the logic of empirical tests, and the consideration of competing hypotheses. The second part considers the implementation of empirical research: the potential barriers to valid inferences, the strengths and limitations of research designs, and empirical representations of theoretical constructs. The final part provides hands-on experience with the two kinds of analyses most frequently performed by quantitative political researchers: contingency tables and regression. (E)

Instructor(s): M. Dawson Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Open to Political Science Ph.D. students only.

PLSC 32100. Machiavelli: The Prince and Discourses. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): N. Tarcov Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 29300,SCTH 31710,LLSO 21710,PLSC 20800

PLSC 34001. Leviathan. 100 Units.

A close reading of the entirety of Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan. (A)

Instructor(s): J. Cooper Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 24001,FNDL 22214

PLSC 35200. Political Theory and Social Neuroscience. 100 Units.

This course utilizes recent advances in cognitive neuroscience to investigate claims by political theorists (both classical and contemporary) about human nature and political organization. Topics include the inter-relationship between affective and cognitive information processes, the physiology of morality, the meaning of self-governance, and the possibility for making essential claims about human nature, particularly as they relate to processes of political organization. Readings will draw from both the political science cannon as well as recent journals and books in neuroscience. (A)

Instructor(s): E. Oliver Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 36201. Race, Ethnicity and Politics in Comparative Perspective. 100 Units.

The primary objective of this course is to offer a comparative approach to understanding the relationship between race, inequality, and politics. It focuses primarily on examples from Latin America and the United States, and is organized in three sections. In the first, we explore the relationship between capitalist expansion, the modern-nation, state and the socio-historical construction of "race". In the second section, we explore differences in political elites' approaches to the question of race in the period of nation building. We discuss how different ethno-racial groups were incorporated into, or excluded from, the nation both through legal institutions and nationalist ideologies. In the final section, we analyze the emergence of black and indigenous social movements as a critical response to the failure of the nationalist project. Throughout the course we analyze the different ways race, ethnicity, and identity are understood in these distinct contexts, and also explore how race intersects with other axes of power, such as class and gender. (C)

Instructor(s): T. Paschel Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): LACS 36201

PLSC 36601. Political Philosophy and Race. 100 Units.

An examination of some selected, recent treatments of race, racial oppression and racial politics by contemporary philosophers and political theorists. Readings likely to include the work of Tommie Shelby, Elizabeth Anderson, Thomas McCarthy and David Scott among others. (A)

Instructor(s): R. Gooding-Williams Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 38000. Organization, Ideology, and Political Change. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): B. Silberman Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 28000,LLSO 26503

PLSC 39800. Introduction to International Relations. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): C. Lipson Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 29000

PLSC 41101. The Politics of Wealth Redistribution. 100 Units.

How do political institutions affect the structure and scope of wealth redistribution initiatives? This graduate seminar will introduce students to the scholarly literature on redistribution, focusing primarily on recent work. We will study the causes and consequences of redistribution, focusing both on the institutions that shape incentives for governments to implement redistribution, as well as the mechanisms, actors, and international conditions that can erode government incentives or capabilities to redistribute. The emphasis of the course will be twofold: rigorously examining the inferences we can draw from existing work, and designing research that can contribute to a better understanding of the fundamental questions regarding redistributive policies. (C)

Instructor(s): M. Albertus Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 43100. Maximum Likelihood. 100 Units.

The purpose of this course is to familiarize students with the estimation and interpretation of maximum likelihood, a statistical method which permits a close linkage of deductive theory and empirical estimation. Among the problems considered in this course include: models of dichotomous choice, such as turnout and vote choice; models of limited categorical data, such as those for multi-party elections and survey responses; models for counts of uncorrelated events, such as executive orders and bookburnings; models for duration, such as the length of parliamentary coalitions or the tenure of bureaucracies; models for compositional data, such as allocation of time by bureaucrats to task and district vote shares; and models for latent variables, such as for predispositions. The emphasis in this course will be on the extraction of information about political and social phenomena, not upon properties of estimators. (E)

Instructor(s): J. Brehm Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 46001. Sources of Order in International Politics. 100 Units.

This course in international relations theory builds on students' prior graduate training to explore four distinct but overlapping sources of international order: coercion, norms, institutions, and contractual bargains. Students will discuss and critique existing literature in all four areas and write a major paper. The course presumes students have had some prior coursework at the graduate level in international relations theory, security studies, or international political economy. (D)

Instructor(s): C. Lipson Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 46514. Participatory Politics. 100 Units.

The topic of participatory politics is one that has animated scholars across subfields of political science and beyond the discipline. In this class we will explore how the idea of participatory politics has been conceptualized and interrogated by theorists, those studying American politics, and now by communication scholars interested in the impact of new media on the practice of politics. Throughout the course we will analyze how our understanding of political participation is often interpreted through and contingent upon historical setting, group, and tools of engagement. (B)

Instructor(s): C. Cohen Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 47000. Politics without Sovereignty? 100 Units.

In recent years, historical circumstances – European integration, unprecedented levels of global migration, the rise of non-state actors, transnational capital flows – have led political theorists to diagnose the waning of state sovereignty. In this moment, political theorists have also attacked "the sovereign subject" as an impossible and destructive philosophical ideal. In this seminar, we will explore the concept of sovereignty – what it has historically meant, why its viability is currently in doubt, and whether it is possible (or advisable) to envision politics without sovereignty. In the course's first section, we will examine classic early modern formulations of sovereignty. In the following weeks, we will explore contemporary critiques of sovereign subjectivity; contemporary analyses of the ostensible crisis of state sovereignty; and contemporary projects to conceive politics without sovereignty. (A)

Instructor(s): J. Cooper Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 47403. Carl Schmitt's Political Thought. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): J. McCormick Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Prior consent of instructor.
Note(s): Seven week course to commence in Week 4.
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 28305,PLSC 27403

PLSC 48700. Crime, Conflict and the State. 100 Units.

Scholars of civil war emphasize the importance, and perhaps primacy, of criminal profits for insurgencies, especially in the post-cold war era. This seminar approaches the issue from the other end of the spectrum: armed conflict between states and "purely" criminal groups. We then expand the focus and explore how crime and political insurgency interact in places like West Africa, Afghanistan, and Latin America. Throughout, we evaluate the concepts, questions and designs underpinning current research. (C)

Instructor(s): B. Lessing Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 50000. Dissertation Proposal Seminar. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): L. Wedeen Terms Offered: Autumn

PLSC 50600. Literature of Japanese Political Institutions. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): B. Silberman Terms Offered: Autumn

Winter 2014

PLSC 22400. Public Opinion. 100 Units.

What is the relationship between the mass citizenry and government in the U.S.? Does the public meet the conditions for a functioning democratic polity? This course considers the origins of mass opinion about politics and public policy, including the role of core values and beliefs, information, expectations about political actors, the mass media, economic self-interest, and racial attitudes. This course also examines problems of political representation, from the level of political elites communicating with constituents, and from the possibility of aggregate representation. (B)

Instructor(s): J. Brehm Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CRES 22400,LLSO 26802

PLSC 25610. Authority, Obligation, and Dissent. 100 Units.

What is the basis of political authority? What, if anything, makes it legitimate? Under what conditions are we obliged to follow the laws and orders of government authorities? Under what conditions can we legitimately disobey such laws or orders, or even engage in violent rebellion? How have some of the most influential political thinkers answered such questions historically and which of their theories are most helpful for illuminating these issues for us today? Readings include classic writings by Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Burke, Paine, Kant, Thoreau, Gandhi, Fanon, and Martin Luther King, Jr. (A)

Instructor(s): S. Muthu Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 25610

PLSC 26100. To Hell with the Enlightenment. 100 Units.

This course's aims are twofold: (1) to introduce the student to some of the writings attacking the Enlightenment in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; and (2) show how these writings created a concept of political modernism and a theory of the aesthetic state. Among others, we read Schiller, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Croce, Mead, Mussolini, and A. Rosenberg. (A)

Instructor(s): B. Silberman Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 26109. Core Values of the West. 100 Units.

This course examines the fundamental values of liberal Western democracies, including freedom of speech and religion, equality under law, individual autonomy, religious toleration, and property rights. We consider what these values mean, their historical origins and development, and debates about them in theory and in practice. This course is divided between lectures, which present each topic, and discussions. (A)

Instructor(s): C. Lipson Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): At least two prior college-level courses in U.S. or European history.
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 26109

PLSC 26201. New Media and Politics. 100 Units.

Throughout history "new media," for better or worse, have on occasion transformed politics. The use of radio to share Roosevelt's fireside chats and of television to broadcast the Civil Rights Movement are recognized as landmark moments when "new media," intersecting with political life, changed the course of political engagement. Today's "new media" (the Internet, digital media production, and computer games) may also radically change how we think about and engage in politics. This course will explore the historical and potential impact of new media on politics. (B)

Instructor(s): C. Cohen Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CRES 26201,AFAM 26201

PLSC 27103. Islam Online. 100 Units.

Research seminar for advanced undergraduates and graduate students on Islam and politics online. The broad themes with which this course will engage include: religion and technological change, interpretive approaches to big data, state power, media and social network activism. (C)

Instructor(s): I. Hussin Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Attendance at the first meeting is required for enrollment.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 37103

PLSC 27216. Machiavelli's Political Thought. 100 Units.

This course is devoted to the political writings of Niccolò Machiavelli. Readings include The Prince, Discourses on Livy's History of Rome, selections from the Florentine Histories, and Machiavelli's proposal for reforming Florence's republic, "Discourses on Florentine Affairs." Topics include the relationship between the person and the polity; the compatibility of moral and political virtue; the utility of class conflict; the advantages of mixed institutions; the principles of self-government, deliberation, and participation; the meaning of liberty; and the question of military conquest. (A)

Instructor(s): J. McCormick Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Prior consent of instructor.
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 28200,PLSC 52316,FNDL 28102

PLSC 27702. Political Leadership: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives. 100 Units.

This course will examine both classical and contemporary analyses of leadership, with a particular focus on the relationship between executive authority and democratic politics. We will read traditional authors such as Cicero, Livy, Plutarch and Machiavelli as well as contemporary analyses of modern political leadership, especially of the American Presidency. (A)

Instructor(s): W. Howell, J. McCormick Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Limited enrollment.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 37702,LLSO 27704

PLSC 27815. Politics and Public Policy in China. 100 Units.

This course offers a historical and thematic survey of Chinese politics and of salient issues in China's public policy. We review the patterns and dynamics of political development or lack thereof in the Mao and reform eras, including the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and the politics of reforms. Later sections of the course look at China's political institutions, leadership, as well as various issues of governance and public policy, including state-society relations, the relationship between Beijing and the provinces, corruption, population and environment. Emphasis is on how institutions have provided the incentives for change as well as how institutions have been transformed. (C)

Instructor(s): D. Yang Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 28100. Russian Politics. 100 Units.

One of the major world powers, Russia commands a nuclear arsenal and vast energy reserves. This course will help us to understand Russia's political development which is inextricable from the country's history and economy. After reviewing some milestones in Soviet history, we shall focus on the developments since the fall of the 'evil empire.' Political institutions, economy, foreign policy, and social change will all receive some attention. (C)

Instructor(s): S. Markus Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 28400. American Grand Strategy. 100 Units.

This course examines the evolution of American grand strategy since 1900, when the United States first emerged on the world stage as a great power. The focus is on assessing how its leaders have thought over time about which areas of the world are worth fighting and dying for, when it is necessary to fight in those strategically important areas, and what kinds of military forces are needed for deterrence and war-fighting in those regions. (D)

Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 49500

PLSC 29700. Independent Study. 100 Units.

This is a general reading and research course for independent study not related to the BA thesis or BA research.

Terms Offered: Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
Prerequisite(s): Consent of faculty supervisor and program chair.
Note(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

PLSC 29800. BA Colloquium. 100 Units.

The colloquium is designed to help students carry out their BA thesis research and offer feedback on their progress. The class meets weekly in Autumn Quarter and every other week in Winter Quarter.

PLSC 29900. BA Thesis Supervision. 100 Units.

This is a reading and research course for independent study related to BA research and BA thesis preparation.

PLSC 30600. Causal Inference. 100 Units.

This is the second course in quantitative methods in the University of Chicago's political science Ph.D. program. The course serves as both an introduction for the mechanisms by which political scientists draw causal inferences using quantitative data as well as an introduction for the basic statistical tools necessary for quantitative research in the social sciences. (E)

Instructor(s): A. Simpser Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 34301. Topics in Black Politics. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): M. Dawson Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 34714. Chinese Politics in Comparative Perspective. 100 Units.

This is a research-oriented seminar for graduate students interested in conducting their own research on Chinese politics. Topics covered have included state-building, the changing dynamics of Communist rule, the political economy of reform and development, and state-society relations. China's development will also be considered in comparative perspective and in view of developments in political science. (C)

Instructor(s): D. Yang Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 37103. Islam Online. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): I. Hussin Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Attendance at the first meeting is required for enrollment.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 27103

PLSC 37702. Political Leadership: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): W. Howell, J. McCormick Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Limited enrollment.
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 27704,PLSC 27702

PLSC 38800. Weimar Political Theology. 100 Units.

In this course, we will examine the explosion in theological thinking among Jewish intellectuals during the Weimar period. Authors surveyed include Hannah Arendt, Walter Benjamin, Martin Buber, Hermann Cohen, Gershom Scholem, Franz Rosenzweig, and Leo Strauss. (A)

Instructor(s): J. Cooper Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 41001. Rule of Law in Comparative Politics. 100 Units.

This graduate seminar explores the concept of "rule of law" and its empirical applications in comparative politics. We begin by scrutinizing the theoretical multi-dimensionality of the concept. The bulk of the course examines empirical studies from the developing and post-communist worlds focusing on formal institutions, enforcement, social capital, and other factors. (C)

Instructor(s): S. Markus Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 41501. Foundations of Realism. 100 Units.

The aim of this course is to explore some of the core concepts and theoretical ideas that underpin realist thinking. Given the richness of the realist tradition and the limits of the quarter system, many important issues cannot be addressed in any detail. (D)

Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 42400. Politics, Art, and Aesthetics. 100 Units.

What is the meaning of art for politics? What is the political significance of the differentiation of an "aesthetic" domain of activity and experience in Euro-American modernity? Can aesthetic judgment serve as a model for political judgment? What can the study of art and aesthetics teach us about how and when people experience events, objects, or spaces as (politically) meaningful or engaging? This seminar approaches such questions both historically and thematically, through the close reading and discussion of important works in the philosophy of art and aesthetics, political theory, and art history and criticism. Readings vary. (A)

Instructor(s): P. Markell Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 43300. Political Psychology. 100 Units.

This course is about how the human mind can shape our attitudes and behaviors in the realm of politics. Do our personalities matter for our political choices? How much does what we learn from others determine our political beliefs, or is it most given by self- interested status? When we introduce heuristics, or cognitive short- cuts, to our decisions, what biases follow? How much of what we think about politics comes from our sense of identity, or those we feel are most similar to? Can we trust political actors, and under what kinds of conditions? When is a message persuasive, and why? (B)

Instructor(s): J. Brehm Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 46211. New Media and Political Participation. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): C. Cohen Terms Offered: Winter

PLSC 46701. Political World of the Indian Ocean. 100 Units.

Politics as viewed through the Indian Ocean world requires close attention to boundaries and borders, but also networks and circulations; to insularity as well as to migration and porosity; to great power politics and their local transformations. Themes include: boundaries and belonging; diaspora; markets and trade; networks; transoceanic Islam; legal transplant and institutional transmission. (C)

Instructor(s): I. Hussin Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Attendance at the first meeting is required for enrollment.

PLSC 49500. American Grand Strategy. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 28400

PLSC 52316. Machiavelli's Political Thought. 100 Units.

This course is devoted to the political writings of Niccolò Machiavelli. Readings include The Prince, Discourses on Livy's History of Rome, selections from the Florentine Histories, and Machiavelli's proposal for reforming Florence's republic, "Discourses on Florentine Affairs." Topics include the relationship between the person and the polity; the compatibility of moral and political virtue; the utility of class conflict; the advantages of mixed institutions; the principles of self-government, deliberation, and participation; the meaning of liberty; and the question of military conquest. (A)

Instructor(s): J. McCormick Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Prior consent of instructor.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 27216,LLSO 28200,FNDL 28102

PLSC 55201. Topics in Social Theory. 100 Units.

This is a graduate course in which we read and discuss important texts in social theory. The specific topics and texts vary from year to year. (A)

Instructor(s): W. Sewell Terms Offered: Winter

Spring 2014

PLSC 22200. Introduction to Political Economy of Development. 100 Units.

This course introduces the political economy of development. Our key question is: Why is life in some countries and regions "better" than in others? We explore different approaches to this question, using theories from economics and politics. Along the way, we examine a selection of topics of substantive interest that may include poverty, inequality, corruption, gender and development, health, the rule of law, microcredit, and remittances. (C)

Instructor(s): A. Simpser Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Advanced standing.

PLSC 22825. Philosophy and Public Education. 100 Units.

This course will critically survey the various ways in which philosophy curricula are developed and used in different educational contexts and for different age groups. Considerable attention will be devoted to the growing movement in the U.S. for public educational programs in precollegiate philosophy.

Instructor(s): R. Schultz Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 22820

PLSC 24500. Hannah Arendt's The Human Condition. 100 Units.

This seminar will be devoted to a reading of Hannah Arendt's The Human Condition (1958), one of the most influential works of political theory written in the twentieth century. Through careful study of the meaning and function of Arendt's often-puzzling distinctions among "public," "private" and "social" and among "labor," "work," and "action," we'll try to understand her account of the significance and prospects of human activity, including especially political activity, in modernity. Topics of special concern may include: the relation between philosophy and politics; Arendt's relationship to Marx and to the Marxist critique of capitalism; the meanings of work and leisure in the twentieth century and beyond; the nature and basis of political power and freedom; the relations between art and politics; the significance of city life for politics; and many others. While The Human Condition will be at the center of the course, the book will be supplemented and framed by other material, including essays on related subjects by Arendt; excerpts from some of the other thinkers with whom Arendt was in conversation; and material by later writers that will help us situate Arendt in the larger contexts of twentieth-century intellectual life, and which will also give us different angles on some of the key issues in Arendt's book. (A)

Instructor(s): P.Markell Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 34500,FNDL 22212

PLSC 28300. Seminar on Realism. 100 Units.

The aim of this course is to read the key works dealing with the international relations theory called "realism." (D)

Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): Limited enrollment.

PLSC 28900. Strategy. 100 Units.

This course covers American national security policy in the post–cold war world, especially the principal issues of military strategy that are likely to face the United States in the next decade. This course is structured in five parts: (1) examining the key changes in strategic environment since 1990, (2) looking at the effects of multipolarity on American grand strategy and basic national goals, (3) focusing on nuclear strategy, (4) examining conventional strategy, and (5) discussing the future of war and peace in the Pacific Rim. (D)

Instructor(s): R. Pape Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 39900

PLSC 29201. Ethnic Rights. 100 Units.

The aim of this undergraduate course is to examine the emergence of cultural rights within the broader human rights movement. Indeed, cultural or ethnic rights were part of a third generation of human rights which moves beyond purely civil and political rights, to definitions that include social, economic and cultural rights. Among the many rights embedded in the notion of cultural rights are the rights to political and cultural autonomy, natural resources, and territory, typically for indigenous peoples. In this course, we analyze how these cultural rights emerged in international human rights institutions and discourse, as well as how they have been translated back into, and transformed by, local political struggles around the world. Throughout the course, the students will have the chance to learn from and engage with a number of organizations and activists in Chicago that work on indigenous and cultural rights. (C)

Instructor(s): T. Paschel Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 29201

PLSC 29401. Arab Uprisings. 100 Units.

This course examines the reasons for and variations in contemporary uprisings in the Middle East. At once theoretical and empirical, the class focuses on events in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Syria, and Libya and considers them in relation to prevailing social scientific theories of change and management. We shall cover the following topics: the causes and meanings of "revolution;" the rise of new social movements in a neoliberal era; the various roles of the military; vigilante justice; the importance of digital publics; popular culture and artistic practices in the context of ongoing tumult; generational conflict; the causes of civil war; authoritarianism and its "reinvention(s);" practices of piety and the role of Islam; and the politics of foreign intervention. (C)

Instructor(s): L. Wedeen Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 39401

PLSC 29500. Drugs, Guns, and Money: The Politics of Criminal Conflict. 100 Units.

This course examines armed conflict between states and criminal groups, with a focus on Latin America's militarized drug wars. Why do states decide to crack down on cartels, and why do cartels decide to fight back? Are drug wars "insurgencies"? If so, can they be won? Why does drug violence vary over time, over space, and between market sector? We will study these issues from historical, economic, criminological, and cultural perspectives. Throughout, we focus on the interplay of domestic and international politics in formulating and enforcing drug policy. (C)

Instructor(s): B. Lessing Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 27307

PLSC 29700. Independent Study. 100 Units.

This is a general reading and research course for independent study not related to the BA thesis or BA research.

Terms Offered: Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
Prerequisite(s): Consent of faculty supervisor and program chair.
Note(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

PLSC 29900. BA Thesis Supervision. 100 Units.

This is a reading and research course for independent study related to BA research and BA thesis preparation.

PLSC 30700. Introduction to Linear Models. 100 Units.

This course will provide an introduction to the linear model, the dominant form of statistical inference in the social sciences. The goals of the course are to teach students the statistical methods needed to pursue independent large-n research projects and to develop the skills necessary to pursue further methods training in the social sciences. Part I of the course reviews the simple linear model (as seen in Stat 220 or its equivalent) with attention to the theory of statistical inference and the derivation of estimators. Basic calculus and linear algebra will be introduced. Part II extends the linear model to the multivariate case. Emphasis will be placed on model selection and specification. Part III examines the consequences of data that is "poorly behaved" and how to cope with the problem. Depending on time, Part IV will introduce special topics like systems of simultaneous equations, logit and probit models, time-series methods, etc. Little prior knowledge of math or statistics is expected, but students are expected to work hard to develop the tools introduced in class. (E)

Instructor(s): M. Hansen Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 33200. History of International Thought. 100 Units.

The field of International Relations long traced its history through traditions and conceptions (realism, liberalism, anarchy, international society) understood to be derived from a series of founding figures and moments--Grotius, Hobbes, Kant, the 1648 Westphalia treaties, and others. At the same time, the history of international thought was until recently relatively neglected by political theorists and intellectual historians. This course examines some of the most influential "originary" figures and moments for theorists of international relations, alongside recent historical work, in order to reconsider possibilities for international theory and the history of international thought. (A)

Instructor(s): J. Pitts Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HMRT 33200

PLSC 33300. Interpretive Methods in the Social Sciences. 100 Units.

This course is designed to provide students with an introduction to interpretive methods in the social sciences. Students will learn to "read" texts and images while also becoming familiar with contemporary thinking about interpretation, narrative, ethnography, and social construction. Among the methods we shall explore are: semiotics, hermeneutics, ordinary language theory, and discourse analysis. (E)

Instructor(s): L. Wedeen Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 33800. Nietzsche's Critique of Modernity. 100 Units.

An examination of Nietzsche's mature philosophical thought, with special attention to Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Beyond Good and Evil, and On the Genealogy of Morals. (A)

Instructor(s): R. Gooding-Williams Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 34500. Hannah Arendt's The Human Condition. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): P.Markell Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 22212,PLSC 24500

PLSC 35901. Enlightenment Political Thought. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): S. Muthu Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 36100. Civil War. 100 Units.

Civil war is the dominant form of political violence in the contemporary world. This graduate seminar will introduce students to cutting edge scholarly work and to the task of carrying out research on internal conflict. We will study the origins, dynamics, and termination of civil wars, as well as international interventions, post-conflict legacies, and policy responses to war. A variety of research approaches will be explored, including qualitative, quantitative, and interpretive methods, micro- and macro-level levels of analysis, and sub- and cross-national comparative designs. Our emphasis throughout will be on designing rigorous research that persuasively addresses important questions. (D)

Instructor(s): P. Staniland Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 39401. Arab Uprisings. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): L. Wedeen Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 29401

PLSC 39900. Strategy. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): R. Pape Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 28900

PLSC 41002. Corporate Political Activity. 100 Units.

This is a graduate-level seminar on the political role of modern corporations. How do firms articulate their agenda in the political arena? Other topics include corporate social responsibility, regulatory capture, corporate governance, corruption, etc. Empirical studies will be drawn from diverse regional settings. (C)

Instructor(s): S. Markus Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 41203. Political Regimes and Transitions. 100 Units.

Despite a shift toward democracy in much of the world, many states have remained solidly autocratic while others are plagued by political instability. This graduate seminar will introduce students to fundamental questions in the study of political regimes: What distinguishes democracy from dictatorship? How does the functioning of democratic institutions affect democratic survival? Why are some dictatorships more stable than others, and what role do institutions such as legislatures, parties, and elections play in their stability? What political and economic factors explain regime transitions, and why do transitions tend to cluster both spatially and temporally? The course will examine how these questions are addressed in current scholarship, with an emphasis on enabling students to design research projects that contribute to our understanding of how political regimes function, persist, and change. (C)

Instructor(s): M. Albertus Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 41600. Liberalism and American Foreign Policy. 100 Units.

This course examines how America's liberal tradition affects its foreign policy. (D)

Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 41601. Political Ethnography. 100 Units.

In this practice-oriented graduate seminar, we explore how to best integrate ethnographic methods into the study of politics. The course aims to introduce graduate students to different perspectives on the possibilities and limitations of ethnographic approaches, as well as allow graduate students to develop their own ethnographic research projects. Scholars across a wide range of disciplines have increasingly used ethnography to better understand the practice of politics. In so doing, they have begun to carve out a methodological approach that might be called political ethnography. We will survey these ethnographic texts written by political scientists, sociologists and anthropologists. We will also analyze the logic of inquiry implicit in ethnographic approaches, as well as address practical issues related to how to conduct ethnographic research. (E)

Instructor(s): T. Paschel Terms Offered: Spring

PLSC 42200. Political Science and Law. 100 Units.

Social science approaches to law and legal politics; law and society; rights and democratic change; international and transnational jurisdictions; comparative legal institutions. (C)

Instructor(s): I. Hussin Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): Attendance at the first meeting is required for enrollment.

PLSC 44612. Political Economy of Corruption and Development. 100 Units.

This course is a graduate-level seminar covering recent theoretical and empirical research, organized around the following questions. First, what are the consequences of corruption for socio-economic development? Does corruption help or hinder it? Second, what are the causes of corruption? Is corruption affected by political and economic institutions, regime type, bureaucracy, resource endowments, or culture? Third, why has corruption varied over time within a country or state? On the empirical side, the course will emphasize issues of measurement and inference: how can one draw reliable conclusions about these questions, and what are the pitfalls along the way? The empirical readings encompass qualitative, quantitative, observational, and experimental approaches. (C)

Instructor(s): A. Simpser Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LACS 44612

PLSC 50900. Comparative Case Study Method. 100 Units.

This course will examine the core epistemological and methodological issues surrounding the case study method. (E)

Instructor(s): R. Pape Terms Offered: Spring

The University of Chicago