This course teaches critical thinking by engaging students in major controversies over the analysis of key concepts in political science. It develops the students' basic skills in reading complex texts and in recognizing and analyzing assumptions, structuring and organizing arguments, and understanding and analyzing symbolic discourses. Each section of the course will raise competing perspectives and will focus on critical thinking and argument-making skills. The course will combine theoretical readings with discussions of specific political issues. Although we often do not realize it, there are few subjects that affect our lives more than politics.
Government makes the laws that govern our behavior.
It gives some of us extra access to certain opportunities by means of subsidies or tax breaks. It is supposed to protect our health and safety. This course aims to give each student the basic tools for understanding American politics. We will compare how American government is supposed to work with its actual operation. This means examining the basic ideas and institutions of American politics as well as the unwritten rules.