Comparative Politics

The following courses will enable regular or visiting faculty members to examine topics in Comparative Government not treated in the established curriculum. Subjects may therefore vary each time the course is offered.

India, soon the most populous nation in the world, became independent in 1947 and has since surprised observers by its capacity to remain a democracy. Although the achievement is remarkable – free and relatively fair elections have happened almost continuously since Independence, a unique case among countries with similar socio-economic characteristics – the degree to which democratic India has been able to effectively respond to the enormous political, social and economic challenges it was left with in 1947 remains an open question. Accordingly, the class will focus on contrasting arguments suggesting that democracy was successful and beneficial to basic Indian citizens, with arguments emphasizing its limitations and its persistent inability to tackle some of the country’s gravest issues. The first part of the class, spanning over 2-3 weeks, will be historical in nature. In order to provide students with necessary contextual information for the rest of the class, we will read about and discuss the main political changes in India from the end of the colonial era to the current period. Drawing from a very diverse set of readings, the rest of the class will then be structured around the following questions: To what extent are the state institutions that were developed after independence really responsive to citizens' needs? To what extent are they fair and independent from the various forces that threaten democracy and stability? Were sixty years of democracy able to challenge the power monopoly of old elites? If so, what were the new political forces that emerged? How did politicians handle the country’s potential for open conflict between “communities” and between rich and poor? Has democracy managed to reduce poverty? Dist: SOC; WCult: NW.

This course examines the intersection of ethnicity and politics by drawing on a combination of theoretical works and case studies to answer questions such as: What are ethnic groups and why might they matter for political behavior? How do political institutions shape ethnic identities? When does ethnicity serve as the basis for conflict and violence? Our focus will be comparative, and we will explore many parts of the world, particularly Africa, India, and Latin America. Dist:  INT or SOC WCult: CI.

This course is an introduction to comparative political economy, the comparative politics of domestic economic policies. Topics include:  market reforms in developed, developing, and postsocialist countries, varieties of welfare capitalism, income inequality and political stability, (de)regulation and privatization, federalism, the effects of political institutions on economic development, interest groups, property rights, the rule of law, and corruption. We will look in depth at both developed and developing countries, with an emphasis on understanding why they choose (or end up with) the policies and institutions that they have, even when in some cases these policies and institutions might hamper development or increase poverty. The central goal of this course is to develop students' ability to reason through political explanations of economic policies.

This course explores the century-old conflict as seen from the competing, and changing, narratives of Israelis and Palestinians. We shall begin by looking at the history of Zionism and the response of the Palestinian Arab community to the British mandate. We'll then consider the founding of the state of Israel and the formation of the post-1948 Palestinian national movement. We shall especially focus on the aftermath of the 1967 war, the start of the Israeli occupation, and look at its impact on Israeli institutions, the economy, and political parties; and look correspondingly at the formation and strategies of the Palestine Liberation Organization (then, to the founding of Hamas). We shall look, finally, at contemporary economic developments in light of the global forces operating on the region, and consider the plausibility of a two-state solution as compared with others. Dist: INT or SOC; WCult: NW.

The political transitions that were set in motion in the Middle East and North Africa in December 2010--collectively described as the Arab Spring or the Arab Uprising--are but the beginning of a long process of adjustments local regimes and societies will need to make to account for greater, and more viable, demands for accountability and transparency of local rulers.

It is virtually impossible, however, to understand both the emergence of this latest wave of contestation in the Arab world and its likely future without comprehending first the emergence of the highly authoritarian regimes in the Middle East since the region's independence roughly half a century ago. The first part of this course covers this historical emergence of middle eastern regimes since the early 1950s.

In each country--Libya, Tunisia,Egypt, Syria, Bahrain, Morocco, Algeria--elites have responded differently to the uprising, depending in part on the institutional repertoire each country possessed. As yet, it is unclear what the different trajectories of each country's period of upheaval will be, but they all share important common political elements and developments: transitional arrangements as the first phase of contestation comes to an end, proposed elections leading to constitution-making processes and to referendums that are meant to introduce--or re-introduce--forms of constitutional government.

In order to understand this protracted process, we will study the mechanics of transition through a comparative case-study approach in particularly Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, and Bahrain. Peripherally we also study the question of why the Arab Gulf states have been relatively immune from popular uprisings, and we incorporate in our discussion as well the role international actors (the United Nations, the Arab League, the African Union, the European Union) have played in the unfolding of the uprisings and beyond. Dist:  INT or SOC WCult: NW.

This course examines the political, economic and social development of the five countries of the Andean region of South America (Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia).  It contrasts the current governance and economic policy approaches taken by the five countries as a means of analyzing variables linked to the consolidation of democracy and sustained economic development.  Dist: INT; WCult: NW.

The role of the media in violent conflict situations has become and increasing critical area of study and research over the past generation.  The Israeli-Palestine conflict and the role of the media within the conflict will serve as the central focus of the course.  Comparing current conflicts to previous wars- including wars such as Korea and Vietnam, Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Chechnya - we find that they relatively limited in scope.  Yet, while violent conflicts in almost every part of the world, including Asia, Africa, Europe (the Ukraine and Russia), most of the world's attention focuses on the Middle East

This course examines how countries in Europe and North America are responding to (and being transformed by) international migration.  In the first half, we will focus on the determinants of migration, as well as governments’ attempts to manage and control population flows. In the second half, we will examine the increasingly contentious politics surrounding immigrant settlement, and will investigate the consequences of policies that seek to promote the exclusion or inclusion of immigrants after arrival.

For decades the Arab Gulf states--Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait--were viewed both economically and politically as anomalies, utterly dependent on world oil markets for their development, conservative if not backward, and marked by highly authoritarian regimes. However, the creation within the region of the Gulf Cooperation Council as an economic bloc, and the emergence of Dubai as a post-oil financial and commercial center for the region, are clear indicators of the changing economic (and perhaps political) fortunes of the local countries.

In several ways the economic growth patterns within the region, and the active state intervention within the local economies, hint at the possibility of the emergence of some form of developmental states in the Arab Gulf, sustained by enormous inflows of oil revenues, that stands in stark contrast to how they have traditionally been treated in the development literature. In this course we analyze the growth of the Arab Gulf economies since the discovery of oil, the particular problems they faced as so-called "rentier states", and the interlinked challenges of political and economic development they encountered. We also investigate how the six countries have dealt, both economically and culturally, with the long-term and unavoidable effects of globalization that have irrevocably altered local societies. Dist: INT or SOC; WCult: NW.

In this course, we will attempt to answer one question: why has it been so difficult for democracy to take hold in most of the Soviet successor states? We will focus primarily on Russia. We will examine some of the problems of the Yeltsin era: asymmetric federalism, corrupt privatization, and the rise of the oligarchs. We will then analyze Putin's attempts to promote a 'dictatorship of the law' without encouraging the development of a Western-style democracy. Towards the end of the course, we will put Russia's experience in perspective by examining the persistence of authoritarianism in most of Central Asia, the Caucasus, Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova, as well as the emergence of democratic regimes in the Baltic states. DIST: SOC.

An intensive study of the political development, institutions, and behavior of selected West European countries. Special attention will be paid to the problems of political change and to present trends in the study of comparative politics. Prerequisite: Government 4, or permission of the instructor. Dist: SOC or INT; WCult: W.

The latest wave of economic globalization has differently affected various regions of the world. One of the most often repeated (and disputed) assertions is that the economic power of the United States is fading and that the fortunes of the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) as well as other selected Emerging Economies ("the Second World") will mark the dawn of a more equal and, economically speaking, a more balanced global economy. The most recent financial crisis has put into question many of the assertions on both sides of this debate, in ways that question the very basic assumptions analysts of the global economy have been making since the creation of the Bretton Woods system in the aftermath of World War II. In this course we investigate the impact of the economic boom of the last two decades, the current crisis, and their impact on the economic fate and standing of particularly the United States, India, China, and Russia. We focus in part on efforts to create a new financial architecture for the global economy, and investigate how the debate between markets and state intervention has been affected by the ongoing financial crisis--and what this may mean for both countries that rely extensively on markets, and for those that strategically promote state intervention. Dist: INT or SOC; WCult: NW.

For the better part of a century, the conflict over Palestine has defied resolution.  The tensions and instability it has generated have profoundly affected--and been affected by--both international relations and the domestic politics of a wide range of countries.  This course examines the changing external and local forces that have shaped the confrontation.  Using primary as well as secondary sources, we will try to understand how the various parties to the conflict have defined its stakes, understood their interests, viewed their adversaries,  mobilized support, and formulated policy.   We will consider grassroots politics as well as elite calculations.  We will look at the role played by ideas, institutions, material interests, and leadership, at both the regional and the broader international levels.  We will end by assessing the current prospects for a settlement. Dist: INT; WCult: NW.

Controversy surrounds the future of Jerusalem - and not just in our times.  For more than 3,000 years, ever since Jerusalem first appeared on the stage of history as a Holy City and the City of the Kingdom, it has been enveloped in political and theological struggles.  Countless battles and wars have been associated with Jerusalem, the city that is home to the three monotheistic religions. Dist: SOC.

This class provides an introduction to the political and economic development of Latin America in the latter half of the 20th century. We will focus on only six of the countries in this vast and diverse region: Argentina, Chile, Cuba, El Salvador, Colombia and Mexico. Our analysis will emphasize the following themes: political systems and regime change; economic strategy; U.S. foreign policy; social movements and revolution; democratization; identity politics; and human rights. Dist: SOC; WCult: NW.

As one of the world's few remaining socialist regimes, Cuba is unique. But Cuba is also subject to many of the forces that have shaped other countries in Latin America and the third world: a heritage of Spanish colonialism and slavery, a geography that contains a limited array of natural resources and a system of government that has evolved under the constant shadow of the United States. This course examines the politics and culture of Cuba in the 20th and early 21st centuries in order to understand Latin American politics-and politics more generally. Dist: SOC or INT.

The course will cover more than hundred years of struggle between the Jewish national movement, aka the Zionist movement, and the Arab-Palestinian national movement, through exploration of the belief systems, political and military practices, perceptions of justice, and narratives of both movements and of political and religious factions within each of them.  Dist: SOC or INT; WCult: CI.