Courses for 2017-18
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.
Undergraduate Courses
PLSC 20750. Social Choice Theory. 100 Units.
This course will provide you with an introduction to the field of social choice theory, the study of aggregating the preferences of individuals into a "collective preference." It will focus primarily on classic theorems and proof techniques, with the aim of examining the properties of different collective choice procedures and characterizing procedures that yield desirable outcomes. The classic social choice results speak not only to the difficulties in aggregating the preferences of individuals, but also to the difficulties in aggregating any set of diverse criteria that we deem important to making a choice or generating a ranking. Specific topics we will cover include preference aggregation, rationalizable choice, tournaments, sophisticated voting, domain restrictions, and the implicit trade-offs made by game theoretic versus social choice theoretic approaches to modeling. (E)
Instructor(s): E. Penn Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 40801
PLSC 20800. Machiavelli: Discourses on Livy and The Prince. 100 Units.
Instructor(s): N. Tarcov Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 32100, SCTH
PLSC 20921. Politicized Militaries and Militarized Politics. 100 Units.
How do we define a military? What is a military’s purpose? How have militaries around the world embedded themselves into the social and institutional fabric of the state? How do military leaders act compared to their civilian counterparts when placed in similar political roles? This seminar will help students answer the following questions by introducing them to the literature on civil-military relations. The general structure of the class readings will focus on two primary themes. The first half of the course will introduce students to long-standing debates over the role of politicization in military organizations and whether such trends are desirable or not. The latter half of the class will focus on research that analyzes the militarization of politics and how such trends might subvert traditional notions of the military profession.
Instructor(s): K. Weng Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 20922. Russian State and Society under Putin: Uses of History, Myth, and Ideology. 100 Units.
In the Russian language, there is a specific phrase that conjures up historical periods of chaos brought on by domestic disorder/disintegration and foreign threat: “smuta”, or, “smutnoe vremya” [time of troubles]. Several moments in Russian history can be interpreted as contributing to a deep cultural consciousness of “smuta”, from the invasion of the Mongol Horde and the succession crises after Ivan IV and Peter I, to the post-Imperial Russian Civil War and the post-Soviet transition period. In this course, we will begin with this last “smuta” of Russia’s 1990s transition out of the Soviet Union, moving on to explore the last two decades of Vladimir Putin’s political influence and its effects on both the state and society in Russia. Particular attention will be paid to the ways in which Putin: 1) has responded to Russia’s difficult experience with transition by marshaling this and other historical memories to his aid in national mythmaking; and 2) has attempted to forge Russia’s own unique, “special path” under such ideological monikers as “conservative modernization” and “sovereign democracy.” Of crucial importance in this course are the ideational rather than institutional components of Putin’s regime: how has Putin marshalled history and myth to forge powerful ideological tools, and how have these ideological tools been put to work in and variously received by Russian society?
Instructor(s): C. Brandly Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 21402. Truth, Lies, and Opinion. 100 Units.
The recent tumult over "fake news" and the erosion of facts in public discourse picks up a long-standing debate in political thought over the role of truth, lies, and opinion. Is politics a domain where rulers should be truthful and the people should be sincere, or is it a domain where lies and cunning (realpolitik) are bound to reign supreme? Can we even clearly identify what is a truth and what is a lie when it comes to politics given the varying ideologies and perspectives through which people apprehend the world? What room can there be for truth and knowledge in democracy, which is organized around giving voice to people's conflicting opinions? In this political theory course, we will examine such questions by reading authors like Hannah Arendt, Charles Mills, Michel Foucault, Gandhi, Sandra Harding, Vaclav Havel, Niccolò Machiavelli, Friedrich Nietzsche, Plato, and Bernard Williams.
Instructor(s): D. Nichanian Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 21410. Advanced Theories of Sex/Gender. 100 Units.
This course examines contemporary theories of sexuality, culture, and society. We then situate these theories in global and historical perspectives. Topics and issues are explored through theoretical, ethnographic, and popular film and video texts.
Instructor(s): L. Zerilli Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 21400
PLSC 21505. Sex, Gender, and War. 100 Units.
This course explores the sexed, gendered, and oftentimes racialized dimensions of war. With the rise of civil wars and the decrease of interstate or world wars, the nature of warfare has changed: wars are no longer being fought in battlefields, but neighborhoods; and combatants and civilians are no longer distinguishable. Additionally, over the last century, women’s formal participation in armed groups and militaries has increased, challenging the traditional segregation of men and women into different roles during war. As such, this undergraduate seminar explores various dimensions of contemporary war, in order to understand how war is not only made possible, but is perpetuated and reinforced by sexed, gendered, and racialized inequalities. It draws from literature in armed conflict studies and gender studies, as well as from contemporary representations of gender and war in films and novels.
Instructor(s): A. Blair Terms Offered: Winter.
PLSC 21605. Power, Violence, and the Global North/South Divide. 100 Units.
Oftentimes terms such as “Global North” and “Global South” are used synonymously with West vs. the rest, and developed vs. developing countries. While each of these terms grew out of particular historical contexts, each pairing generally refers to political, economic, and sometimes, social divides that denote development gaps across the globe. This undergraduate seminar explores these divides, and examines the role that power and violence play in creating and perpetuating it. We will look at practices such as colonialism that created and reinforced the divide, before turning to phenomena such as land grabbing and climate change that hide power and condone violence. This course draws from an array of disciplines, including international history, subaltern studies, and gender studies, as well as from contemporary representations of the Global North/Global South Divide in films and novels.
Instructor(s): A. Blair Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 21701. Problems in the Study of Gender and Sexuality: Public Feminisms. 100 Units.
Recent years have seen a surge in feminist activism. From the Women’s Marches, to #MeToo and Incite!, political activists are reclaiming and reanimating feminism as a way of constituting public spaces and making claims to social justice. Contemporary struggles both take up and depart from past feminist practices in ways that are not always well understood. How has feminism historically challenged traditional ideas of the public and how are new forms of feminism developing alternative concepts of publicity? What does it mean to think about feminist activism, both past and present, as public practices of freedom? How have past feminist activists used existing forms of media to advance their cause and how do new forms of social media enable new public forms of feminism? This course will examine these and related questions in an attempt to develop a more situated understanding of the challenges and possibilities for feminism today.
Instructor(s): A. Slupek, L. Zerilli Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 11007
PLSC 21802. Global Justice and the Politics of Empire. 100 Units.
Over the last four decades, political theorists and philosophers have transcended the nation-state form and taken their concerns about redistribution, democracy, and rights global. Though often not explicitly acknowledged, this global turn emerged just at the tail end of decolonization when political and economic crises from large-scale famines to authoritarianism and ethnic violence rocked the newly emerging post-colonial world. This course will examine how contemporary debates around global justice broadly construed interact and intersect with the legacies of imperialism and decolonization. In exploring questions of redistributive justice, global democracy, human rights, and humanitarian intervention, we will consider the following questions: (1) in what ways are debates about global justice responding to the legacies of imperial rule, (2) how are the historical and contemporary manifestations of international hierarchy challenged and retrenched, and (3) is contemporary cosmopolitanism an alibi for new forms of imperialism?
Instructor(s): A. Getachew, J. Wilson Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 31802
PLSC 22515. The Political Nature of the American Judicial System. 100 Units.
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the political nature of the American judicial system. In examining foundational parts of the political science literature on courts understood as political institutions, the course will focus on the relationship between courts, other political institutions, and the broader society. The sorts of questions to be asked include: Are there interests that courts are particularly prone to support? What factors influence judicial decision-making? Are judicial decisions influenced by public opinion? What effects do congressional or executive actions have on court decisions? What impact do court decisions have? While the answers will not always be clear, students should complete the course with an awareness of and sensitivity to the political nature of the American judicial system. The course is not case-based. No prior knowledge of the judicial system is necessary.
Instructor(s): G. Rosenberg Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 24011,PLSC 42515
PLSC 22913. The Practice of Social Science Research. 100 Units.
This is a first course in empirical research as it is practiced across a broad range of the social sciences, including political science. It is meant to enable critical evaluation of statements of fact and cause in discussions of the polity, economy, and society. One aim is to improve students' ability to produce original research, perhaps in course papers or a senior thesis. A second objective is to improve students' ability to evaluate claims made by others in scholarship, commentary, or public discourse. The specific research tools that the course develops are statistical, but the approach is more general. It will be useful as a guide to critical thinking whether the research to be evaluated, or to be done, is quantitative or not. Above all, the course seeks to demonstrate the use of empirical research in the service of an argument.
Instructor(s): P. Conley Terms Offered: Autumn,Spring,Winter
Note: Open to Political Science Majors only
PLSC 23001. Southern Politics in State and Nation. 100 Units.
This course revisits V.O. Key’s foundational study of the South to consider how southern sectionalism has shaped American politics since Reconstruction. In what ways is the South a distinctive polity—and how did it come to be so? How has the region’s politics changed over time? What can we learn about the nature and corrigibility of American democracy through the southern experience? Introducing students to canonical studies of the region, we will explore the economic and historical factors that shaped the South’s political and social development in the century after the Civil War. We will also consider “exceptional” features of southern politics today—including the increasing rate of black political participation and officeholding in the region’s urban centers. Finally, we will examine how the South’s regional distinctiveness has affected institutional development and policymaking at the national level.
Instructor(s): R. Bloch Rubin Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 23313. Democracy and Equality. 100 Units.
Democracy has often been celebrated (and often criticized) for expressing some kind of equality among citizens. This course will investigate a series of questions prompted by this supposed relationship between democracy and equality. Is democracy an important part of a just society? What institutions and practices does democracy require? Is equality a meaningful or important political ideal? If so, what kind of equality? Does democracy require some kind of equality, or vice-versa? The course will begin by studying classical arguments for democracy by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and John Stuart Mill, and then focus on contemporary approaches to these questions. The course will conclude with some treatment of current democratic controversies, potentially including issues of race and representation; the fair design of elections; the role of wealth in political processes; and the role of judicial review. The course aims to deepen participants' understanding of these and related issues, and to develop our abilities to engage in argument about moral and political life. (A)
Instructor(s): J. Wilson Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 23501. International Political Economy. 100 Units.
What explains a government’s decision to block a trade deal, prevent foreign investors from gaining control of a local factory, or ban the export of rare earth minerals? This course develops theory and evidence that these decisions reflect domestic and international politics. We will discuss the political dimension of the integration of the global economy and the way that globalization separates workers, business, and consumers. Drawing on methods and theory from international political economy, we will critically examine the prospects for international cooperation on trade and immigration, as well as the future of international governance.
Instructor(s): R. Gulotty Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 24806. Strategies of Power, Resistance, and Change. 100 Units.
As the forces of populism, isolationism, ethnocentrism, and polarization increasingly shape U.S. politics, how can citizens actually affect politics and policy? What are the tools and strategies for pursuing (or resisting) change? How is power actually exerted in the modern state? In this course, we will consider how people exert, resist, and manipulate political power in modern states. We will compare and contrast democratic and authoritarian regimes; formal and informal processes; and economic, moral, and social policies.
Instructor(s): J. Patty Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 34806
PLSC 25311. Models of Ancient Politics I. Athens, Sparta, Rome. 100 Units.
This course begins a two-quarter sequence on Athens, Sparta, and Rome as models of politics and their subsequent reception and appropriation in the history of Western political thought. This quarter, we will focus on understanding the institutions, political culture, and political theory of ancient Greece and Rome through an engagement with ancient texts and modern scholarship. Readings will include Thucydides, Plato, Aristotle, Xenophon, Plutarch, Polybius, Livy, and Sallust.
Instructor(s): M. Landauer Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 35311
PLSC 25312. Models of Ancient Politics II: Modern Receptions. 100 Units.
This is the second course in a two-quarter sequence on the importance of Athens, Sparta, and Rome for Western political theory. This quarter we will focus on the reception and appropriation of ancient political models in modern European political thought. Authors to be read include Machiavelli, Montesquieu, Adams, Hume, Rousseau, Mill, and Grote, as well as modern scholars.
Instructor(s): M. Landauer & nbsp; Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 35312
PLSC 25501. Race and Imperialism in the 20th Century. 100 Units.
The turn of the 20th C. marked the legal sanctioning of Jim Crow segregation in the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson decision while the Scramble for Africa only a decade earlier had inaugurated a new era of imperial expansion. For W.E.B. Du Bois and others, these confluences indicated a singularity about the global experience of race in the 20th Century. Focusing on the period prior to WWII, this course is an effort at understanding this specificity through an engagement with the politicians, statesmen, activists, and intellectuals writing in the midst of “the problem of the color line.” The course exposes students to thinkers on both sides of the color line as we read Sir Frederick Lugard, the colonial administrator of Nigeria and a member of the League of Nations' Permanent Mandates Commission, alongside George Padmore, the anticolonialist of Trinidadian descent who played a central role in Ghana’s independence movement. To further our insights, we engage recent commentary by scholars who have sought to understand the racial formations of the 20th Century. The course aims are 1) to trace the processes—ideological, political, and economic—through which the Jim Crow color line became international and consider the reverberations of this internationalism, 2) to reexamine the crisis of WWI and the creation of the League of Nations in light of the “problem of the color line,” and 3) to trace the intellectual roots of a global anticolonial movement concerned with securing racial equality.
Instructor(s): A. Getachew Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CRES 25501
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.
Instructor(s): S. Muthu Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 25610
PLSC 25804. Feminists Read the Greeks. 100 Units.
As one scholar puts it, feminist thought has “gone a long way… toward inscribing classical Greek philosophy at the origins of some of the most tenacious assumptions about sexual difference in the Western tradition.” Since the 1970s, writing on gender, sex, and sexuality has staged a series of generative, critical, and sometimes controversial encounters with ancient Greek thought and culture. We examine the ways in which the texts and practices of ancient Greece, if not the idea of “the Greeks,” have offered theoretical and symbolic resources for feminists and others to think critically about gender as a conceptual and political category. What sorts of interpretive and historical assumptions govern these engagements? To what extent are the trajectories of gender studies and classics intertwined? Was there a concept of “gender” in ancient Greece? Of sexuality? Is it fair to say, as many have, that classical ideas about gender and the sexed body are wholly opposed to those of the “moderns”? Readings range from feminist theory to Greek mythology, philosophy, and drama to scholarship on gender and sexuality in antiquity (including Foucault, Halperin, and Winkler).
Instructor(s): D. Kasimis Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 45804, GNSE 25804, GNSE 45804
PLSC 26001. Race and Politics in the United States. 100 Units.
Fundamentally, this course is meant to explore how race, both historically and currently, influences politics in the United States. For example, is there something unique about the politics of African Americans? Does the idea and lived experience of whiteness shape one's political behavior? Throughout the quarter, students interrogate the way scholars, primarily in the field of American politics, have ignored, conceptualized, measured, modeled, and sometimes fully engaged the concept of race. We examine the multiple manifestations of race in the political domain, both as it functions alone and as it intersects with other identities such as gender, class, and sexuality.
Instructor(s): C. Cohen Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CRES 26001.
PLSC 26102. The French Enlightenment's Legacy in Political Theory. 100 Units.
The course is an introduction to the main aspects of the French Enlightenment’s political thought and its contemporary legacy. We will study major philosophers (Montesquieu, Rousseau, Voltaire, Diderot) and examine their influence on contemporary controversies on Democracy, Justice, Civilization, Europe and Empire. We will read Foucault, Habermas, Philipp Pettit, Charles Taylor and challenge the idea of a "Radical Enlightenment." For those enrolled in this course as a French course, there will be a weekly discussion session in French.
Instructor(s): C. Spector Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 36102, FREN 26118, FREN 36118
PLSC 26603. Democracy and the Immigrant in Classical Greek Thought. 100 Units.
Readers have long marveled at classical Greek thought’s ability to capture the enduring dilemmas of democratic life. But on the increasingly urgent issue of immigration, political scientists persistently bypass the Athenian democratic polis and its critics even though Athenians lived in a democracy that invited, but kept disenfranchised, a large number of free, integrated immigrants called “metics” (metoikoi). With this curiosity in mind, we seek to understand how ancient philosophers, dramatists, and orators saw the democracy’s dependence on immigrants to support its economy, fight its wars, educate its citizenry, and express a precarious way of living in the polis. On what grounds were metics excluded from citizenship? What do critics think citizenship comes to mean under such conditions? Can they shed new light on contemporary assumptions about the relationship between democracy and immigration? Readings of primary texts in translation will be paired with contemporary political theory, gender theory, and classical studies.
Instructor(s): D. Kasimis Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CRES 26603
PLSC 26800. Insurgency, Terrorism, and Civil War. 100 Units.
This course provides an introduction to asymmetric and irregular warfare. From Colombia to Afghanistan, non-state armed organizations are crucially important actors. We will study how they organize themselves, extract resources, deploy violence, attract recruits, and both fight and negotiate with states. We will also examine government counterinsurgency and counterterrorism policies, peace-building after conflict, and international involvement in internal wars. Case materials will be drawn from a variety of conflicts and cover a number of distinct topics. This course has a heavy reading load, and both attendance and substantial participation in weekly discussion sections are required.
Instructor(s): P. Staniland Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 26804
PLSC 27500. Organizational Decision Making. 100 Units.
This course examines the process of decision making in modern, complex organizations (e.g., universities, schools, hospitals, business firms, public bureaucracies). We also consider the impact of information, power, resources, organizational structure, and the environment, as well as alternative models of choice.
Instructor(s): J. Padgett Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 37500,SOCI 30301
PLSC 27600. War and the Nation State. 100 Units.
The aim of this course is to examine the phenomenon of war in its broader socio-economic context during the years between the emergence of the modern nation-state in the late eighteenth century and the end of World War II.
Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 37600
PLSC 27815. Politics and Public Policy in China. 100 Units.
As the world’s most populous country and second largest economy, China wields considerable weight globally but also stands out for its non-democratic political system. This course examines how China is governed and looks at China’s domestic governance and international policies. First, it examines political institutions and political behavior in China in historical perspective, especially since the Communist takeover of power in 1949. It emphasizes how institutions have been shaped and reshaped and the importance of leadership. Second, it considers various issues of public policy and governance, including the role of the Communist Party, state-society relations, the relationship between Beijing and the provinces, corruption, population and environment, and the role of the armed forces. Third, it examines the interaction between domestic and international factors in China’s development and considers the global implications of China’s struggle to develop. The course looks at many of these issues from a comparative perspective and introduces a variety of analytical concepts and approaches.
Instructor(s): D. Yang Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 37815
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."
Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Consent of instructor required.
Note(s): Students must attend the first class.
PLSC 28510. Jews and Arabs: Three Moralities, Historiographies & Roadmaps. 100 Units.
A distinction will be made between mainly three approaches to Zionism: essentialist-proprietary, constructivist-egalitarian, and critical-dismissive. This will be followed by an explication of these approaches’ implications for four issues: pre-Zionist Jewish history; institutional and territorial arrangements in Israel/Palestine concerning the relationships between Jews and the Palestinians; the relationships between Israeli Jews and world Jewry; and the implications of these approaches for the future of Israel/Palestine and the future of Judaism.
Instructor(s): C. Gans Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): This course may be used to fulfill the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 38510,JWSC 20233,NEHC 24800,NEHC 34800
PLSC 28620. The Intelligible Self. 100 Units.
The Delphic maxim "know thyself" is one of the cornerstones of Western philosophy. But how, exactly, do we figure ourselves out? This course examines three approaches to self-knowledge: Buddhism, Psychoanalytic Theory, and Social Neuroscience. We will learn both the theories behind each approach and how they can foster deeper perspectives on our own condition. We will explore the nature of love, guilt, anxiety, and other emotions, the origins of morality, and the many biases in our cognition. Readings include Sigmund Freud, Patricia Churchland, Daniel Kahneman, Pema Chodron, and Walpola Sri Rahula.
Instructor(s): E. Oliver Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 28701. Introduction to Political Theory. 100 Units.
This course introduces students to the study of political theory through an engagement with central issues in democratic theory. Can democracy be defended in the face of its critics? Is democratic rule the uniquely just form of collective decision-making? What legitimates central democratic institutions, such as majority rule? How can we deal with persistent disagreement in politics? What norms, institutions, and practices best express democratic values of equality, freedom, and participation? We will take up these questions and more, drawing on canonical and contemporary works of political thought.
Instructor(s): M. Landauer Terms Offered: Winter
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.
Instructor(s): M. Albertus Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 28710
PLSC 28801. Introduction to American Politics. 100 Units.
This survey course canvasses the basic behavioral, institutional, and historical factors that comprise the study of American politics. We will evaluate various modes of survey opinion formation and political participation both inside and outside of elections. In addition to studying the primary branches of U.S. government, we will consider the role of interest groups, the media, and political action committees in American politics. We also will evaluate the persistent roles of race, class, and money in historical and contemporary political life.
Instructor(s): R. Bloch Rubin Terms Offered: Autumn
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.
Instructor(s): R. Pape Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 39900
PLSC 28901. Introduction to Comparative Politics. 100 Units.
Why are some nations rich and others are poor? Why is inequality skyrocketing across the developed world? Why are some countries democratic and others are dictatorships, and what determines switching between regimes? Does democracy matter for health, wealth, and happiness? Why are some countries beset by civil violence and revolution whereas others are politically stable? Why do political parties organize themselves politically around ethnicity, language, religion, or ideology? This course explores these and other similar questions that lie at the core of comparative politics. Drawing on political science, economics, sociology, and anthropology, while utilizing a wealth of data and case studies of major countries, we will examine how power is exercised to shape and control political, cultural, and economic institutions and, in turn, how these institutions generate policies that affect what we learn, what we earn, how long we live, and even who we are.
Instructor(s): M. Albertus Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 29000. Introduction to International Relations. 100 Units.
Humans face many challenges today. These range from wars and nuclear proliferation, to economic crises and the collapse of global order. International Relations—the study of global anarchy and the commitment problems it creates between sovereign governments—offers analytical tools for understanding the causes and consequences of these challenges. This course introduces students to the scientific study of world politics, focusing on the areas of security, economic cooperation, and international law.
Instructor(s): P. Poast Terms Offered: Autumn
PLSC 29102. Game Theory I. 100 Units.
This is a course for graduate students in Political Science. It introduces students to games of complete information through solving problem sets. We will cover the concepts of equilibrium in dominant strategies, weak dominance, iterated elimination of weakly dominated strategies, Nash equilibrium, subgame perfection, backward induction, and imperfect information. The course will be centered around several applications of game theory to politics: electoral competition, agenda control, lobbying, voting in legislatures, and coalition games. This course serves as a prerequisite for Game Theory II offered in the Winter Quarter. (E)
Instructor(s): J. Patty Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 30901
PLSC 29103. Game Theory II. 100 Units.
This is a course for graduate students in Political Science. It introduces students to games of incomplete information through solving problem sets. We will cover the concepts of Bayes Nash equilibrium, perfect Bayesian equilibrium, and quantal response equilibrium. In terms of applications, the course will extend the topics examined in the prerequisite, PLSC 30901. Game Theory I to allow for incomplete information, with a focus on the competing challenges of moral hazard and adverse selection in those settings. (E)
Instructor(s): J. Patty Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): PLSC 30901 or equivalent.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 31000
PLSC 29202. The Secret Side of International Politics. 100 Units.
This course introduces students to the secret side of international politics. We will survey theoretical approaches to studying secrecy and analyze what governments do “behind closed doors.” The focus is less on learning about what states do in secret and more about how to think critically about why governments do what they do in secret and the consequences of it. Typical weeks cover intelligence collection and analysis, secret interstate partnerships, secrecy in crisis decision-making, and covert military operations during war. Questions we will address include: What agreements do diplomats negotiate privately and why? For what ends do state use secrecy in wartime? What do covert cooperative partnerships look like and when do they succeed? What espionage practices do states use and how have they changed over time? Student grades will be based largely on a research paper which requires students engage in hands-on historical research about a major event of their interest drawing on archival/declassified materials. As part of this assignment, students will receive detailed, practical guidance in the research and writing process, including how to access relevant archival materials, how to organize your research materials, how to effectively prepare to write, and how to write well.
Instructor(s): A. Carson Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): The course is run like a graduate seminar: it meets once per week and has a heavy reading load and requires original research and high quality writing. Attendance and substantial participation are essential.
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.
Terms Offered: Autumn, Spring
Note(s): Required of students who are majoring in political science and plan to write a BA thesis. Students participate in both Spring and Autumn Quarters but register only in the Spring Quarter of the third year. PLSC 29800 counts as a single course and a single grade is reported in Autumn 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.
Graduate Courses
PLSC 30301. American Politics Field Seminar I.
Instructor(s): R. Bloch Rubin, E. Oliver Terms Offered: Autumn
PLSC 30401. American Politics Field Seminar II.
Instructor(s): C. Cohen, W. Howell Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 30600. Causal Inference. 100 Units.
Instructor(s): J. Grimmer Terms Offered: Spring
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 22000 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): J. Brehm Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 30901. Game Theory I. 100 Units.
This is a course for graduate students in Political Science. It introduces students to games of complete information through solving problem sets. We will cover the concepts of equilibrium in dominant strategies, weak dominance, iterated elimination of weakly dominated strategies, Nash equilibrium, subgame perfection, backward induction, and imperfect information. The course will be centered around several applications of game theory to politics: electoral competition, agenda control, lobbying, voting in legislatures, and coalition games. This course serves as a prerequisite for Game Theory II offered in the Winter Quarter. (E)
Instructor(s): J. Patty Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 29102
PLSC 31000. Game Theory II. 100 Units.
This is a course for graduate students in Political Science. It introduces students to games of incomplete information through solving problem sets. We will cover the concepts of Bayes Nash equilibrium, perfect Bayesian equilibrium, and quantal response equilibrium. In terms of applications, the course will extend the topics examined in the prerequisite, PLSC 30901. Game Theory I to allow for incomplete information, with a focus on the competing challenges of moral hazard and adverse selection in those settings. (E)
Instructor(s): J. Patty Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): PLSC 30901 or equivalent.
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 29103
PLSC 31802. Global Justice and the Politics of Empire. 100 Units.
Over the last four decades, political theorists and philosophers have transcended the nation-state form and taken their concerns about redistribution, democracy, and rights global. Though often not explicitly acknowledged, this global turn emerged just at the tail end of decolonization when political and economic crises from large-scale famines to authoritarianism and ethnic violence rocked the newly emerging post-colonial world. This course will examine how contemporary debates around global justice broadly construed interact and intersect with the legacies of imperialism and decolonization. In exploring questions of redistributive justice, global democracy, human rights, and humanitarian intervention, we will consider the following questions: (1) in what ways are debates about global justice responding to the legacies of imperial rule, (2) how are the historical and contemporary manifestations of international hierarchy challenged and retrenched, and (3) is contemporary cosmopolitanism an alibi for new forms of imperialism?
Instructor(s): A. Getachew, J. Wilson Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 21802
PLSC 32100. Machiavelli: Discourses on Livy and The Prince. 100 Units.
Instructor(s): N. Tarcov Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 20800, SCTH
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 33901. Xenophon on Leadership. 100 Units.
Instructor(s): N. Tarcov Terms Offered: Autumn
PLSC 34806. Strategies of Power, Resistance, and Change. 100 Units.
As the forces of populism, isolationism, ethnocentrism, and polarization increasingly shape U.S. politics, how can citizens actually affect politics and policy? What are the tools and strategies for pursuing (or resisting) change? How is power actually exerted in the modern state? In this course, we will consider how people exert, resist, and manipulate political power in modern states. We will compare and contrast democratic and authoritarian regimes; formal and informal processes; and economic, moral, and social policies.
Instructor(s): J. Patty Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 24806
PLSC 35002. Race and the American State. 100 Units.
This course explores how the politics of race have shaped the American state, and how that state’s governing institutions have, in turn, altered the meaning and place of race in our polity. Drawing on work by sociologists, historians, and political scientists broadly situated at the intersection of race and institutions, we will attempt to put the U.S. in comparative perspective. Key questions we will tackle include the following: how has race affected the construction of the American state, and the composition and development of its key institutions? How has race affected national policymaking on both social and economic issues? How have state actors deployed race as a tool of governance, and how have those efforts changed over time? (B)
Instructor(s): R. Bloch Rubin Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 35311. Models of Ancient Politics I. Athens, Sparta, Rome. 100 Units.
This course begins a two-quarter sequence on Athens, Sparta, and Rome as models of politics and their subsequent reception and appropriation in the history of Western political thought. This quarter, we will focus on understanding the institutions, political culture, and political theory of ancient Greece and Rome through an engagement with ancient texts and modern scholarship. Readings will include Thucydides, Plato, Aristotle, Xenophon, Plutarch, Polybius, Livy, and Sallust.
Instructor(s): M. Landauer Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 25311
PLSC 35312. Models of Ancient Politics II: Modern Receptions. 100 Units.
This is the second course in a two-quarter sequence on the importance of Athens, Sparta, and Rome for Western political theory. This quarter we will focus on the reception and appropriation of ancient political models in modern European political thought. Authors to be read include Machiavelli, Montesquieu, Adams, Hume, Rousseau, Mill, and Grote, as well as modern scholars.
Instructor(s): M. Landauer Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 25312
PLSC 36102. The French Enlightenment's Legacy in Political Theory. 100 Units.
The course is an introduction to the main aspects of the French Enlightenment’s political thought and its contemporary legacy. We will study major philosophers (Montesquieu, Rousseau, Voltaire, Diderot) and examine their influence on contemporary controversies on Democracy, Justice, Civilization, Europe and Empire. We will read Foucault, Habermas, Philipp Pettit, Charles Taylor and challenge the idea of a "Radical Enlightenment." For those enrolled in this course as a French course, there will be a weekly discussion session in French.
Instructor(s): C. Spector Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 26102, FREN 26118, FREN 36118
PLSC 37000. Law and Politics: U.S. Courts as Political Institutions. 100 Units.
An examination of the ways in which United States courts affect public policy. Questions include: How do the procedures, structures, and organization of the courts affect judicial outcomes? Are there interests that courts are particularly prone to support? What effect does congressional or executive impact, including judicial selection, have on court decisions? What are the difficulties with implementation of judicial decisions? (B)
Instructor(s): G. Rosenberg Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Mandatory preliminary meeting and consent of instructor.
Equivalent Course(s): LAWS 51302
PLSC 37600. War and the Nation State. 100 Units.
The aim of this course is to examine the phenomenon of war in its broader socio-economic context during the years between the emergence of the modern nation-state in the late eighteenth century and the end of World War II.
Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 27600
PLSC 37815. Politics and Public Policy in China. 100 Units.
As the world’s most populous country and second largest economy, China wields considerable weight globally but also stands out for its non-democratic political system. This course examines how China is governed and looks at China’s domestic governance and international policies. First, it examines political institutions and political behavior in China in historical perspective, especially since the Communist takeover of power in 1949. It emphasizes how institutions have been shaped and reshaped and the importance of leadership. Second, it considers various issues of public policy and governance, including the role of the Communist Party, state-society relations, the relationship between Beijing and the provinces, corruption, population and environment, and the role of the armed forces. Third, it examines the interaction between domestic and international factors in China’s development and considers the global implications of China’s struggle to develop. The course looks at many of these issues from a comparative perspective and introduces a variety of analytical concepts and approaches.
Instructor(s): D. Yang Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 27815
PLSC 38510. Jews and Arabs: Three Moralities, Historiographies & Roadmaps. 100 Units.
A distinction will be made between mainly three approaches to Zionism: essentialist-proprietary, constructivist-egalitarian, and critical-dismissive. This will be followed by an explication of these approaches’ implications for four issues: pre-Zionist Jewish history; institutional and territorial arrangements in Israel/Palestine concerning the relationships between Jews and the Palestinians; the relationships between Israeli Jews and world Jewry; and the implications of these approaches for the future of Israel/Palestine and the future of Judaism.
Instructor(s): C. Gans Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): This course may be used to fulfill the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 20233,PLSC 28510,NEHC 24800, NEHC 34800
PLSC 39601. The Political Economy of International Trade. 100 Units.
This graduate seminar focuses on the political economy of international trade. We will draw on insights from international law, economics, and political science to answer research questions in international political economy and provide the foundations for the evaluation and production of empirical research. Topics include the determinants of trade policy preferences, the rationale for international trade agreements and the workings of the global trade regime. A central goal of the course is to generate ideas for student research, including papers and dissertation topics. Students are expected to have taken PLSC 43401: Mathematical Foundations of Political Methodology. (D)
Instructor(s): R. Gulotty Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 39900. 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.
Instructor(s): R. Pape Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 28900
PLSC 40600. Seminar on IR Theory. 100 Units.
This course is a PhD-level introductory survey of the major scholarly traditions in the field of International Relations. It provides an introduction to the central theoretical approaches including realism, liberalism, and constructivism and their variants. The course also exposes students to more recent non-paradigmatic research programs, reflections on the field’s development over time, and the recurring “meta-debates” which underlie many of the differences in applied areas. Seminar discussion will identify and criticize the central arguments advanced by different scholars in order to assess the relative merits of different theoretical perspectives. The course is designed to help students prepare for the Department’s IR general exam: assigned and suggested readings are a starting point for building a reading list; the course offers practice with answering exam questions; students will exercise modes of critical analysis during seminar critical to passing the exam. (D)
Instructor(s): A. Carson Terms Offered: Autumn
PLSC 40604. Militant Power Politics. 100 Units.
In what way does ISIS calculate its options differently than great powers or states in general? Over the past twenty years, the study of militant power politics has exploded both empirically, but especially theoretically. Today, there are a variety of theories of the causes, conduct and consequences of violence by militant non-state actors that rest on fundamentally different assumptions about the coherence of militant groups, the degree of rationality in their decision-making, and and the nature of their dynamics in competition with rival states. The most important are ideological, religious, ethnic, and strategic theories which also drive the principle policy choices about how to respond to militant power politics. This seminar will cover the main theories of militant power politics, encouraging students to carry out policy relevant research in this area. (D)
Instructor(s): R. Pape Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 40801. Social Choice Theory. 100 Units.
This course will provide you with an introduction to the field of social choice theory, the study of aggregating the preferences of individuals into a "collective preference." It will focus primarily on classic theorems and proof techniques, with the aim of examining the properties of different collective choice procedures and characterizing procedures that yield desirable outcomes. The classic social choice results speak not only to the difficulties in aggregating the preferences of individuals, but also to the difficulties in aggregating any set of diverse criteria that we deem important to making a choice or generating a ranking. Specific topics we will cover include preference aggregation, rationalizable choice, tournaments, sophisticated voting, domain restrictions, and the implicit trade-offs made by game theoretic versus social choice theoretic approaches to modeling. (E)
Instructor(s): E. Penn Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 20750
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: Spring
PLSC 41302. Modern Theories of the State. 100 Units.
The course will explore the context and content of late medieval and early modern theories of the state. We will read normative political and legal theory from Italy, England, Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Questions to be posed include: What is revealed about the claims made on behalf of states and sovereignty by commencing from an understanding of contemporary states as infrastructurally weak rather than strong? Early modern states evolved from earlier political forms. What political and normative work was performed by focusing, as so many theorists did, on fictive moments of origin? The overwhelming majority of macroregional powers in world history to that point had understood themselves to be empires. What contribution did thinking about empire make to the emergent notion of the national state?
Instructor(s): J. Pitts, C. Ando Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 68901
PLSC 41500. Nationalism in the Age of Globalization. 100 Units.
Nationalism has been the most powerful political ideology in the world for the past two centuries. This course examines its future in the age of globalization, focusing in particular on the widespread belief that it is an outmoded ideology. Specific topics covered in the course include: the causes of nationalism, its effects on international stability, nationalism and empires, globalization and the future of the state, globalization and national identities, the clash of civilizations, American nationalism, and the clash between Zionism and Palestinian nationalism. (D)
Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 41510. Nationalism and Multiculturalism. 100 Units.
The main goal of the course is to conduct a critical discussion of the different types of multicultural and national rights, their possible justifications, and the way they should apply in Israel, compared to some other cases. In order to facilitate this, two general topics will be discussed: the concepts of the nation and of cultural groups; a normative typology of nationalist ideologies and types of multicultural programs. These then will be applied to more particular issues such as national self-determination, cultural preservation rights, nationalism and immigration, with special attention to the Israeli case (e.g. Israel’s Law of Return, refusal to allow the return of Palestinian refugees, etc.).
Instructor(s): C. Gans Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 34801
PLSC 42515. The Political Nature of the American Judicial System. 100 Units.
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the political nature of the American judicial system. In examining foundational parts of the political science literature on courts understood as political institutions, the course will focus on the relationship between courts, other political institutions, and the broader society. The sorts of questions to be asked include: Are there interests that courts are particularly prone to support? What factors influence judicial decision-making? Are judicial decisions influenced by public opinion? What effects do congressional or executive actions have on court decisions? What impact do court decisions have? While the answers will not always be clear, students should complete the course with an awareness of and sensitivity to the political nature of the American judicial system. The course is not case-based. No prior knowledge of the judicial system is necessary.
Instructor(s): G. Rosenberg Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): LLSO 24011,PLSC 22515
PLSC 42701. Seminar in Chinese Politics. 100 Units.
This is a research-oriented seminar for graduate students interested in exploring current research on China and in conducting their own research. Our emphasis will be on the changing nature of the Chinese Party-state, central-local relations, media and censorship, corruption and anticorruption, subnational governance, the politics of law and order, regulatory politics, and political reforms. Throughout the course we’ll pay attention to the course, dynamics, and challenges of making reform. Though the readings are on China, we are to consider China’s development comparatively and in view of recent developments in political science. (C)
Instructor(s): D. Yang Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 42910. Kant's Political Thought. 100 Units.
An intensive examination of Immanuel Kant's political thought. We will examine his writings about a broad range of topics, including human nature, freedom, social relations, property, government, justice, religion, history and progress, revolution, equality and inequality, and cosmopolitanism.
Instructor(s): S. Muthu Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 43001. The Refugee. 100 Units.
This is a graduate class that critically explores the meaning of the refugee and some related questions of migration, asylum, borders, membership, diaspora, gender, and Europeanness in a wide range of texts (political, legal, literary, visual) in both contemporary and historical perspectives. How is a refugee different from a migrant? Can we talk about the refugee outside of a modern human rights framework? What relation is there between the ancient Greek notion of asylum and today’s practice? Particular attention may be paid to the case of modern Greece as a nation that not only sits at the intersections of Europe, Middle East, and North Africa and at the crossroads of immigration and emigration but also possesses a particular self-understanding as diasporic and hospitable. (A)
Instructor(s): D. Kasimis 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
Prerequisite(s): PLSC 30700 Intro to Linear Models or consent of instructor.
PLSC 43401. Mathematical Foundations of Political Methodology. 100 Units.
This is a first course on the theory and practice of mathematical methods in social science research. These mathematical and computer skills are needed for the quantitative and formal modeling courses offered in the political science department and are increasingly necessary for courses in American, Comparative, and International Relations. We will cover mathematical techniques (linear algebra, calculus, probability) and methods of logical and statistical inference (proofs and statistics). A weekly computing lab will apply these methods, as well as introduce the R statistical computing environment. (E)
Instructor(s): R. Gulotty, E. Penn Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Students are expected to have completed SOCS 30100: Mathematics for Social Sciences.
PLSC 43502. Machine Learning. 100 Units.
This course introduces techniques to collect, analyze, and utilize large collections of data for social science inferences. The ultimate goal of the course is to introduce students to modern machine learning techniques and provide the skills necessary to apply the methods widely. In achieving this ultimate goal, students will also: 1) Learn about core concepts in machine learning and statistics, developing skills that are transferable to other types of data and inference problems. 2) Develop their programming abilities in R and be introduced to Python. 3) Be introduced to substantive problems.
Instructor(s): J. Grimmer Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 43600. The Political Thought of W. E. B. Du Bois. 100 Units.
The course will survey the political thought of leading American and international intellectual W.E.B Du Bois. Because Du Bois’s intellectual and activist contributions range across the fields of history, sociology, education, fiction, philosophy, political theory, literary theory, biography, and autobiography, the course samples works by him in each of these fields. Central themes include: (1) Du Bois’s shifting understanding of race as a concept, (2) his internationalist and Pan-African orientation, (3) his turn to Marxist analysis and political commitments. The seminar will be particularly concerned with situating Du Bois thought in historical context and understanding the transformations in his thinking. (A)
Instructor(s): A. Getachew Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 44501. Marx's Capital and its Readers I. 100 Units.
This is a two-semester seminar on the critique of political economy in Karl Marx's Capital (mainly volume 1), and on how a series of mainly 20th-century and contemporary readers from a variety of intellectual traditions have interpreted, criticized, mobilized, and elaborated Marx's work. For graduate students. Enrollment in both quarters is not required, but students who wish to enroll in Part II without having taken Part I must attend the first day of the Spring quarter class and thereafter request the consent of the instructor.
Instructor(s): P. Markell Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 44502. Marx's Capital and its Readers II. 100 Units.
This is a two-semester seminar on the critique of political economy in Karl Marx's Capital (mainly volume 1), and on how a series of mainly 20th-century and contemporary readers from a variety of intellectual traditions have interpreted, criticized, mobilized, and elaborated Marx's work. For graduate students. Enrollment in both quarters is not required, but students who wish to enroll in Part II without having taken Part I must attend the first day of the Spring quarter class and thereafter request the consent of the instructor.
Instructor(s): P. Markell Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): PLSC 44501
PLSC 44701. Comparative Approaches to Civil War. 100 Units.
This course blends theoretical, empirical, and conceptual work on civil conflict with detailed studies of cases. It will assess research on civil war "onset," mobilization, violence, civilian agency, and resolution, while linking these broader literatures to conflicts in the Middle East and South Asia. The course will emphasize theoretical innovations grounded in detailed empirical knowledge, including primary texts, ethnographies, films, and other forms of cultural production. (C)
Instructor(s): P. Staniland, L. Wedeen Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 45010. Social Theory and the Economy. 100 Units.
This course will survey a variety of works in economic sociology, political economy and organization theory. The focus will be substantively on the changing character of market process, the location of production and the governance of flows of labor and capital. Theoretically, we will survey recent work in Actor-Network Theory, Experimentalist Governance, field theory and institutionalism. Among others, we will read work by Polanyi, Sahlins, Beckert, Latour, Callon, Mackenzie, Fligstein, Boltanski, Sabel, Thelen. (C)
Instructor(s): G. Herrigel Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): SOCI 40227
PLSC 45706. The Sociology of Work in Industry, Agriculture and Services. 100 Units.
This course will survey sociological and political economic writings on work and the organization of production in the main domains of contemporary political economic life: industry, services and agriculture. The first part of the course will survey the main theoretical traditions in sociology, anthropology, economics and political science that have concerned themselves with work, while the second part of the course will focus on cases and ethnographies of contemporary workplaces and production processes in both the developed and developing world. (C)
Instructor(s): G. Herrigel Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): SOCI 40228
PLSC 45804. Feminists Read the Greeks. 100 Units.
As one scholar puts it, feminist thought has “gone a long way… toward inscribing classical Greek philosophy at the origins of some of the most tenacious assumptions about sexual difference in the Western tradition.” Since the 1970s, writing on gender, sex, and sexuality has staged a series of generative, critical, and sometimes controversial encounters with ancient Greek thought and culture. We examine the ways in which the texts and practices of ancient Greece, if not the idea of “the Greeks,” have offered theoretical and symbolic resources for feminists and others to think critically about gender as a conceptual and political category. What sorts of interpretive and historical assumptions govern these engagements? To what extent are the trajectories of gender studies and classics intertwined? Was there a concept of “gender” in ancient Greece? Of sexuality? Is it fair to say, as many have, that classical ideas about gender and the sexed body are wholly opposed to those of the “moderns”? Readings range from feminist theory to Greek mythology, philosophy, and drama to scholarship on gender and sexuality in antiquity (including Foucault, Halperin, and Winkler).
Instructor(s): D. Kasimis Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 25804, GNSE 25804, GNSE 45804
PLSC 45805. Realism and Futurity in Contemporary Critical Political Thought. 100 Units.
Contemporary critical thought is characterized by a “realist turn” that departs markedly from the earlier “linguistic turn” of poststructuralist forms of theorizing. Positing the “limits of critique,” the new realism is animated by political concerns about the ways in which antirealist social constructivist approaches have generated a deep and corrosive skepticism towards the idea of any shared reality whatsoever, thus undermining collective social change. This class examines the possibilities and limits associated with the new turn to realism by putting it in dialogue with other realistic approaches to critique and its “figures/forms of the newly thinkable” (Castoriadis), including the “plausible worlds” of counterfactual judgments (Hawthorn), the pluralism of “ways of worldmaking” (Goodman), and the modality of “rhetoric as inquiry” (Struever).
Instructor(s): L. Zerilli Terms Offered: Spring
PLSC 45901. Contemporary Egalitarianism. 100 Units.
This seminar will examine different understandings of the idea of equality (moral, social and political) in contemporary analytical political thought. It will explore a series of questions that have been at the center of recent debates between egalitarians, including: what the foundation of equal moral status between persons is; whether the main reasons for objecting to social inequalities are intrinsically egalitarian or rather derive from non-egalitarian values; what (if anything) should be equalized; how justice and equality relate to each other; whether the ideal of social equality should ultimately be understood as a relationship between persons or as a distributive ideal; whether the ideal of social equality makes sense only within bounded political societies, or is instead broader in scope. We will read the work of, among others, Elizabeth Anderson, Richard Arneson, Charles Beitz, Simon Caney, G.A. Cohen, Ronald Dworkin, Thomas Nagel, Derek Parfit, John Rawls, Thomas Scanlon, Samuel Scheffler, Amartya Sen and Larry Temkin. (A)
Instructor(s): J. Wilson Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 46013. Two Faces of Security. 100 Units.
This seminar lays out a new theory of international politics and explores some of the historical cases it should explain. Standard IR theories assume that states are the only actors and that the only security threats they face are posed by other states and sometimes terrorists. My approach is that, although states are the actors, each is controlled by a domestic regime, which faces both internal and external threats. That is, the regime can be threatened externally by war or coercive diplomacy. And it can be threatened internally by riots, coups d'état, civil wars, and revolutions. Since the overriding goal of all domestic regimes is to remain in power, they must cope with the full panoply of these threats. Because internal and external threats are often intertwined, they need to be considered in an integrated way. Approaching them in isolation is incomplete and often fundamentally misleading. To explore this theory, we will examine theoretical materials, plus three kinds of cases: (1) post-revolutionary regimes; (2) rebuilding after major wars; and (3) grand strategies of major powers. (D)
Instructor(s): C. Lipson Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): This course is limited to graduate students who already have strong familiarity with IR theory.
Note(s): The course assumes students have read Waltz, Mearsheimer, Wendt, Keohane, and others, and know the field’s main theoretical perspectives. We will assume that knowledge and build on it, rather than covering that ground again. One prior graduate course in IR theory should be sufficient. Students who are unsure if they have the appropriate background should consult Prof. Lipson before enrolling.
PLSC 47701. Political Economy of International Security. 100 Units.
How do money and markets influence states' security policies? This course uses classic and current work in the field to directly explore the role of economics in creating state military power. Topics include the instruments of war finance, the economic incentives to intervene in conflict, the ability of economic interdependence to prevent conflict, how alliance policies influence the arming and trading policies of states, and labor mobility as a cause of border instability. A central goal of the course is to generate ideas for your own research, including papers and dissertation topics. (D)
Instructor(s): P. Poast Terms Offered: Autumn
PLSC 48401. Quantitative Security. 100 Units.
Since Quincy Wright's A Study of War, scholars of war and security have collected and analyzed data. This course guides students through an intellectual history of the quantitative study of war. The course begins with Wright, moves to the founding of the Correlates of War project in the late 1960s, and then explores the proliferation of quantitative conflict studies in the 1990s and 2000s. The course ends by considering the recent focus on experimental and quasi-experimental analysis. Throughout the course, students will be introduced to the empirical methods used to study conflict and the data issues facing quantitative conflict scholars. For students with limited training in quantitative methods, this course will serve as a useful introduction to such methods. For students with extensive experience with quantitative methods, this course will deepen their understanding of when and how to apply these methods. (D)
Instructor(s): P. Poast Terms Offered: Winter
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. But theories of civil war generally rest on an assumption that insurgents aim to replace state power. This seminar approaches the issue from the other end of the spectrum: armed conflict between states and “purely” criminal groups--particularly drug cartels. Cartel-state conflict poses a fundamental puzzle: Why attack the state if you seek neither to topple nor secede from it? After a brief survey of the literature on civil war and organized crime, we will study recent work on criminal conflict, particularly in Latin America. We also consider the related topics of prison-based criminal networks and paramilitaries, and explore how crime and political insurgency interact in places like West Africa and Afghanistan. Throughout, we evaluate the concepts, questions and designs underpinning current research. (C)
Instructor(s): B. Lessing Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): LACS 48700
PLSC 48801. Constitutional Law for LLM Students. 100 units.
Instructor(s): G. Rosenberg Terms Offered: Autumn
PLSC 50000. Dissertation Proposal Seminar. 100 Units.
A weekly seminar devoted to the presentation and collective discussion of several drafts of each student's dissertation proposal.
Instructor(s): E. Oliver Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 53000. Seminar on Great Power Politics. 100 Units.
The specific aim of this course is to introduce students to some of the key policy issues involving the great powers that dominate the post-Cold War world. Three topics will receive special emphasis: European security, Asian security, and the role of the United States in the larger world after the collapse of the Soviet Union. It is expected that all students in the class will be well-versed in international relations theory, and will bring their theoretical insights to bear on the relevant policy issues. The broad goal is to encourage students to appreciate that international relations theory and important policy issues are inextricably linked to each other. (D)
Instructor(s): J. Mearsheimer Terms Offered: Winter
PLSC 57200. Network Analysis. 100 Units.
This seminar explores the sociological utility of the network as a unit of analysis. How do the patterns of social ties in which individuals are embedded differentially affect their ability to cope with crises, their decisions to move or change jobs, their eagerness to adopt new attitudes and behaviors? The seminar group will consider (a) how the network differs from other units of analysis, (b) structural properties of networks, consequences of flows (or content) in network ties, and (c) dynamics of those ties. (E)
Instructor(s): J. Padgett Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): SOCI 50096