GOVT 157 “Democracy and Dictatorship: Politics in the Contemporary World”
This course examines some of the major substantive topics and debates in comparative politics, the subfield of political science that preoccupies itself primarily with understanding the political dynamics that occur within different countries.
GOVT 270 -“Comparative Politics of the Middle East”
This course provides an overview of the political landscape of the contemporary Middle East and North Africa, focusing on domestic social, political and economic issues. The course materials offer a historical background of the region and of particular cases, while also exploring various theoretical debates and reflecting on pressing contemporary challenges.
GOVT 276 – “The Arab Spring and Aftermath”
This is an upper-division course that explores the complexities of political change in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) by narrowing in on the series of protests that became collectively known as “the Arab Spring,” and on their aftermath. The course is designed to accommodate both students with no previous knowledge of MENA, and those pursuing a Middle Eastern Studies certificate. Drawing primarily from theories of democratization, authoritarianism and contentious politics, the readings examine general patterns across the region, as well as developments in individual countries.
GOVT 298 – “Terrorism and Film”
This course provides an overview of the major theoretical contributions and debates in the study of terrorism and political violence. The course readings adopt diverse theoretical lenses and methodological approaches, and focus both on theoretical overviews and on specific case studies. In addition to readings, films are meant to humanize the actors and offer an opportunity to grapple with the complexity of political violence through the prism of cinema.
CSS 230 – “Sophomore Goverment Tutorial: State and Society in the Modern Age”
This course examines the rise and the evolution of the modern state. While many of the readings focus on Western Europe and the United States, the course draws on cross-regional comparisons to tease out theoretical propositions, compare historical processes across different parts of the world, and consider different understandings of the body politic.