Syllabus

Short Course Description

How has the international system emerged and evolved? What motivates people and peoples to pursue war and peace? What are the roles of philosophy, ethics, and religion in global politics? How does economic and technological globalization affect decision-making and diplomacy? Is the nation-state waning? What role do domestic policies play in setting foreign policy? These are the key questions we will try to answer in this course, which aims to shed light on the literature and state-of-the-art research, to develop critical thinking and writing, and to foster a deeper understanding of contemporary issues in global politics.
This is a graduate course, and entails intensive reading. Students are required to attend each class prepared for in depth discussion of the required reading for that session. Students are responsible for maintaining a high level of active discussion, and are expected to shoulder their share of initiating discussion.