Political Studies 10: Introduction to Political Studies

Professor Nigel Boyle
Office: Scott 217
Phone: 73770
Email: nboyle@pitzer.edu
Office Hours:
Mon 11:00-12:00
Wed 11:00-12:00
Wed 1:00-3:00

Professor Dana Ward
Office: Avery 207
Phone: 73177
Email: dward@pitzer.edu Office Hours:
Mon 11:00-11:45
Tues 11:00-12:00*
Wed 11:00-11:45
Thur 11:00-12:00*
Or drop in whenever.
Occasionally the TuTh office hours will have to be cancelled for meetings and talks, so it will be best to use my MW office hours.

Course Description

This course introduces students to the study of politics and its three main sub-divisions, political philosophy, comparative politics, and international relations. We will examine concepts such as human nature, power, community, the state, citizenship, rights, authority, legitimacy, freedom, equality, democracy, ideology and justice. The ways different peoples, classes, cultures and nations organize themselves politically for common purposes and for addressing conflicts will be examined also. Lectures and reading material address contemporary political issues ranging from our campus to national and global politics. The course is required of Political Studies concentrators but also serves as an appropriate general course for all other students interested in politics.

The class will meet two times each week for lectures and once each week in discussion section. Regular attendance is expected at the lectures and regular attendance and participation is expected in the discussion section. Students are responsible for all required readings. There will be unannounced quizzes on required materials over the course of the semester. Required texts are available for purchase from Huntley Bookstore. Some required readings will be available in special packets at the reserve room at Honnold Library and in the Marquis Reading Room in Mead Hall. Some required reading and other course material will be made available via the internet.

Grades

Grades will be determined on the basis of unannounced quizzes, a scheduled midterm, a final exam, a research paper, weekly discussion papers, and participation.

There will be a scheduled midterm on October 15 covering readings and lectures from the beginning of the course through October 12. The midterm will constitute twenty percent of your final grade.

The final exam will focus primarily on readings and lectures between October 12 and the last class, but will also call upon concepts covered earlier in the semester. The final exam will constitute thirty percent of your final grade.

On November 9, a research paper is due. Students will become "experts" on one of the countries in which Pitzer operates an external studies program (see the Pitzer College catalogue for the list of countries in which Pitzer operates programs) and write a 7-10 page research paper on some aspect of the political culture, institutions, and/or political processes in the chosen country. The paper will constitute twenty percent of your final grade.

You are expected to come to class each session having read the assigned materials and you are expected to keep abreast of political events around the world. There will be several unannounced quizzes covering the readings and political events. In addition, to ensure you are prepared for the discussion sections, most Fridays a one to two page paper covering a topic raised in the readings or lectures will be due at the beginning of the discussion sessions. Late papers will not be accepted. The short papers and quizzes will constitute twenty percent of your final grade.

In order for the class sessions to be productive, you must come prepared to participate. Participation is defined as regular attendance at lectures and discussion sections, and preparation for and active contributions to weekly discussion sections. For those concerned about their participation grade or particularly reticent about oral participation, the following alternative is offered: Does political participation matter? Evaluate the impact of participation on political change by examining the activities of a political party, interest group, or social movement and writing a 3-4 page paper summarizing your findings.

Grading Weight Summary

20% for the midterm;
30% for the final exam;
20% for the research paper;
20% for short discussion papers and quizzes;
10% for participation.

Required Texts: (available in Huntley Bookstore)

James N. Danziger, Understanding the Political World (Fifth Edition)
Ball and R. Dagger, Ideals and Ideologies (3rd Edition)
Several readings will be photocopied and bound for purchase in Pitzer's photocopy room.

Current events will play an important role in class discussions, papers, and exams so a subscription to the Financial Times or The New York Times or regular reading of The New York Times on the internet will be necessary. You will also be expected to be familiar with basic world geography and demonstrate that familiarity by successfully identifying countries on quizzes and exams. If you need to brush up on your geography, use "Around the World" which is a computer game that teaches geographical facts. "Around the World" can be found in the Mac computer lab in Bernard Hall. By the midterm you should be able to successfully identify all countries on all continents.

Course Content

The course is divided into three parts: (i) conceptual, (ii) comparative; and (iii) international or global. In weeks 1-6, we explore some of the concepts most important to political studies including power, human nature, community, nationality, the state, citizenship, rights, freedom, equality, ideology and justice. In addition to basic political concepts we look at micro political behavior including processes of political socialization, political psychology, and belief systems. A midterm completes this section.

The second part of the course (weeks 7-11) examines how politics is organized and institutionalized in a number of contemporary nation-states. We compare patterns of political participation, processes of political change, and variations in constitutional and institutional structures employed in a variety of countries. Students will be expected to become "experts" on one of the countries in which Pitzer operates an external studies program and write a 7-10 page research paper on their chosen country.

Weeks 12-15 treat international and global politics. We look first at the foreign policy processes through which countries conduct relations with each other. We also examine the roles of international and non-governmental organizations in managing global problems. We then look at the legacy of historical conflicts, war and warfare in international affairs and the growing role that economic issues play in global politics. In the final week of the course, we speculate on the changing shape of politics in the new millennium. A comprehensive final examination completes the course.

Weekly Topics and Readings

Week 2. September 10-14: Political Beliefs

Danziger, Chapter 2.
M. Mann, The Sources of Social Power, Chapter 1. (Course Readings).
T. Carver, "Ideology: The Career of a Concept", in Ball and Dagger, no. 1.
Euripides, "Democracy and Despotism," in Ball & Dagger, no 2.
Pericles, "Funeral Oration," in Ball & Dagger, no 3.
Aristotle, "Democratic Judgment and the 'Middling' Constitution," in Ball & Dagger, no. 4.
N. Machiavelli, "What's Wrong with Princely Rule?" in Ball & Dagger, no 5.
J. S. Mill, "Liberty & Individuality," in Ball & Dagger, no 18.

Recommended Event September 17 CMC Athenaeum "This House Would Pay Reparations for Slavery" 6:45pm (call 621-8213 to book).

Week 3. September 17-21: Political Actions

Danziger, Chapter 3
K. Marx and F. Engels, "The Communist Manifesto" in Ball and Dagger, no. 34
E. Bernstein, "Evolutionary Socialism," in Ball and Dagger, no. 36.
V.I. Lenin, "Revisionism, Imperialism, and Revolution," in Ball and Dagger, no. 37.
Rosa Luxemburg The Junius Pamphlet (1916)
Mao Zedong, "On the Peoples Democratic Dictatorship," in Ball & Dagger, no 39.
M.L. King, "Letter From a Birmingham Jail," in Ball and Dagger, no. 49.
Malcolm X "Malcolm X Speaks" in Ball and Dagger, no. 45.
D. Foreman "Putting the Earth First" Ball and Dagger, no. 53.
R. Puttman, Bowling Alone, chapters 1, 2, and 3.

Discussion Section: Incremental and Revolutionary Political Change and the "Iron Law of Oligarchy"

Week 4. September 24-28: Political Socialization
Danziger, Chapter 4.
J. S. Mill, "Democratic Participation and Political Education" in Ball & Dagger, no. 9.
R. E. Lane, "Political Observers and Market Participants: The Effects on Cognition", Political Psychology, vol. 4, pp. 455-482.

Discussion Section: "What is the relationship between personality, biology, political structures, and individual political perspectives?"

Week 5. October 1-5: States, Nations and Citizens
Danziger, Chapter 5.
E. Goldman, (online) "Patriotism: A Menace to Liberty
E. Gellner "Nations and Nationalism: definitions" (Course Readings)
B. Andersen "The Nation and the Origins of National Consciousness" (Course Readings)
A. Hitler "Nation and Race", Ball and Dagger, no. 43 B. Barber, "Jihad Vs. McWorld", Ball and Dagger No. 63.
The National Assembly of France, Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, in Ball & Dagger, no 15
The General Assembly of the UN, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) (Course Readings)

October 11 Recommended Event Lech Walesa "Democracy", Garrison Theatre, Scripps 12:15pm.

Week 6. October 8-12: Left and Right

J. Locke, "Toleration and Government," in Ball and Dagger, no. 12.
E. Burke, "Society, Reverence, and the True Natural Aristocracy," in Ball & Dagger, no 24.
W. Wordsworth, "The Poet as Conservative," in Ball & Dagger, no 26.
J. Ortega y Gasset, "The Revolt of the Masses," in Ball and Dagger, no. 27.
M. Oakshott, "On Being Conservative," in Ball & Dagger, no 28.
F. Engels, "Socialism: Utopian & Scientific," in Ball & Dagger, no 35.
M. Bakunin, "Anarcho-communism vs. Marxism," in Ball & Dagger, no. 40.
E. Goldman, "Anarchism: What It Really Stands For" in Ball & Dagger, no. 41.
B. Mussolini, "The Doctrine of Fascism," in Ball and Dagger, no. 46
G. Gutierrez "Liberation Theology", Ball and Dagger no. 49.
M. Frye, "Oppression," in Ball and Dagger, no. 53.
M. Juergensmeyer "Religious Nationalism: a global threat?" (Course Readings)
Pope Leo XIII (1891) "Rerum novarum" (Course Readings)

Discussion Section: "Is the left-right continuum more important than the libertarian-authoritarian one?"

Week 7. October 17, and 19: Political Institutions

Danziger, Chapters 6 & 7.
T. Hobbes, "The State of Nature and the Basis of Obligation," in Ball and Dagger, no. 11.
J. Adams, "What is a Republic? in Ball & Dagger, no 6.
US Declaration of Independence, Ball & Dagger, no 14
The US Constitution (Course Readings)
US Bill of Rights, Ball & Dagger, no 7
The European Union "The EU: a guide for Americans"

Week 8. October 24 and 26: U.S. Political Institutions

B.A. Rockman, "The American Presidency in Comparative Perspective: Systems, Situations, and Leaders" (Course Readings).
B.A. Loomis, "Congressional Decentralization in Design and Evolution" (Course Readings).
L.S. Maisel, "The Development of the American Parties," (Course Readings)
W. Flanigan and N. Zingale, Political Behavior of the American Electorate, chapters 4 and 5 (Course Readings)

Week 9. October 29, 31, and November 2: Power Elite, Pluralism, Class, or What?

P. Bachrach and M. Baratz, "The Two Faces of Power." APSR v.56.pp. 947-52. (Course Readings).
J. Gaventa, "Power and Participation," in Power and Powerlesness. (Course Readings).
G.W. Domhoff, The Power Elite and the State, chapters 1 and 2 (Course Readings).

Week 10. November 5, 7 and 9: Political Economy and Political Development

Danziger, Chapters 8, 9, and 10.

Week 11. November 12, 14, and 16: Political Violence

Danziger, Chapter 11.
P. Kornbluh, "Nicaragua" Chapter 16 in Intervention into the 1990s. (Course Readings).
E.S. Herman anbd F. Brodhead, Demonstration Elections, Chapters 1 and 5.

Discussion Section: Do Revolutions "consume their own children"? What do counter-revolutions consume?

Week 12. November 19, and 21: International and Global Politics

Danziger, Chapter 12.
C.W. Kegley and E.R. Wittkopf, American Foreign Policy, chapter 13 (Course Readings).
P. Brenner and P. Kornbluh, "Clinton's Cuba Calculus" (Course Readings).
J. Elliston, "The Myth of the Miami Monolith." (Course Readings).
P. Brenner, "Washington Loosens the Knot (Just a Little)." (Course Readings).

Week 13. November 26, 28, 30: The "Developed" Countries in a Globalized World

Danziger, Chapter 13.
G. Soros, "The Capitalist Threat." (Course readings)
G. Esping-Andersen, "The Structural Bases of Postindustrial Employment" (Course readings)
A. Giddens ,"Taking Globalization Seriously" (Course Readings)

Week 14. December 3, 5, and 7: The "Developing" Countries, the "New World Order" and Justice

Danziger, Chapter 14.
Amartya Sen, "Freedom Favors Development".
Adam Hochschild, King Leopolds Ghost "A reckoning".
J. Diamond, "Collision at Cajamarca".

Week 15. December 10, 12, and 14: Politics in the New Millennium

Danziger, Chapters 15 and 16.
M. Walzer, "Town Meetings and Workers' Control," Ball & Dagger no, 10.
F. Fukuyama, "The End of History?" Ball and Dagger No. 62.

Political Studies 10
Introduction to Political Studies

Fall 2002
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 10:00-10:50

Requirements and Readings

Course Description

Grades

Grading Weight Summary

Required Texts: (available in Huntley Bookstore)

Course Content

Weekly Topics and Readings

Political Studies 10Introduction to Political Studies

Fall 2002 Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 10:00-10:50 Requirements and Readings

Course Description

Grades

Grading Weight Summary

Required Texts: (available in Huntley Bookstore)

Course Content

Weekly Topics and Readings

Political Studies 10
Introduction to Political Studies

Fall 2002
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 10:00-10:50

Requirements and Readings