Political culture and change in selected Middle Eastern and North African countries. Topics of study include political elites, traditional cultures, modern political ideology and institutions, conflict management, and social reform. May be repeated for credit. An analysis of the institutions and processes involved in the formation and implementation of US foreign policy, with an emphasis on developments since 1945. A course in which we study recurrent themes in American politics through novels, short stories, and films.
Subject matter varies from semester to semester.
This course ties contemporary elections and issues to what the Founding Fathers thought they believed. Cross-listed with American Studies, it provides a chance to see what happens to you because of government and elections. The Soviet Union may have crumbled, and many of the former communist states of the world may have given up on the theories of Karl Marx and embraced capitalist ideas, but Marxism still has much to tell us about the nature of politics, society and economics. This course will survey the ideas and arguments of Marx, and assess their application to current political and economic systems. This course offers students the opportunity to undertake in-depth research in a topic of their choice, under the direction of a faculty member of their choice.