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  • PSCI 203: Introduction to Political Theory

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    Is politics war by other means? Is it merely a practical way to meet our needs? Or is it, rather, the activity through which citizens pursue justice and the good life? And what is justice? How can it be established and secured? What are the powers and obligations of citizenship? Who should rule? Who decides? On what basis? Political theory addresses questions such as these as it investigates the fundamental problems of how we can, do, and ought to live together. The questions have sparked controversy since the origins of political thinking; the answers remain controversial now. This course addresses the controversies, focusing on major works of ancient, modern, and contemporary theory by such authors as Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Rousseau, Hegel, Mill, Marx, Nietzsche, Arendt, Rawls, and Foucault. Themes may include authority, obligation, power, war, violence, freedom, justice, equality, democracy, liberalism, capitalism, community, and pluralism, though the emphasis will vary from semester to semester. Prerequisite:    This is an introductory course, open to all, including first-year students
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  • PSCI 204: Introduction to Comparative Politics: State, Nation, and Democracy

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    The comparative study of politics looks mainly at what goes on inside countries, the domestic dynamics of political power and institutions. It asks, for example, where sovereign states come from, why political life differs so much from one country to another, and how political regimes, structures and institutions change, sometimes suddenly. Thus comparative politics is often about what citizens of countries with stable and relatively effective governments take for granted (and why they may take it for granted). In this course, we will examine several broad historical-political themes: the rise of modern state structures; the emergence of capitalism; the articulation of national identities; the spread of liberalism and democracy; and the roots of terrorism, and the effects of war and religion on politics. Worthwhile answers will require us to look at them theoretically, historically, comparatively, and through contemporary developments.
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  • PSCI 205: Political Leadership

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    This course will examine the leadership strategies of American political leaders with an emphasis on the importance of communication strategies for public sector leaders. We will study these issues by examining local, state and federal political leaders and by answering key questions specific to the political realm. We will read and watch significant speeches of American political leaders, be visited by guests with deep knowledge and insight into the world of politics and read a variety of writings by academics and practitioners on the subject. We will explore questions such as "What characteristics mark successful communication and how do leaders craft a unique and effective communications style?" and "What strategic considerations are there for female political leaders and do they have different challenges in communicating?" The first series of classes will focus on communication taking a look at some of America's best political orators, the special requirements of crisis communication and the changes that new media has brought to the practice of politics and government. We will then explore the tenets of political strategy--both in campaigns and governing. This segment of the course will take a look at the tools used in crafting a strategy and how to put together a winning coalition. The final classes in the course will explore the unique challenges and opportunities facing select sub-groups of political leaders: women, celebrity candidates and officeholders and high-achieving young political leaders--operatives and elected officials.
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  • PSCI 206: Dangerous Leadership in American Politics

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    Leadership in American politics today is typically celebrated. A common assumption is that those who do it well--whether in the presidency, the parties, social movements, organizations, or local communities--are just and legitimate agents of democratic change, and those most celebrated are those who have helped the country make progress toward its ideals. Yet to rest on this is too simple as it is, in part, an artifact of historical construction. Assessing leadership in the moment is complicated because leaders press against the bounds of political convention?as do ideologues, malcontents, and lunatics. Indeed, a central concern of the founders was that democracy would invite demagogues who would bring the nation to ruin. Complicating things further, the nature of democratic competition is such that those vying for power have incentive to portray the opposition?s leadership as dangerous. How do we distinguish desirable leadership from dangerous leadership? Can they be the same thing? Many who today are recognized as great leaders were, in their historical moment, branded dangerous. Others, whose ambitions and initiatives arguably undermined progress toward American ideals, were not recognized as dangerous at the time. In this tutorial, we will explore the concept of dangerous leadership in American history, from inside as well as outside of government. What constitutes dangerous leadership, and what makes a leader dangerous? Is it the person or the context? Who decides? How do we distinguish truly dangerous leadership from the perception of dangerous leadership? Does dangerous describe the means or the ends of leadership? Does it matter? Is leadership that privileges desirable ends, such as justice or security, at the expense of democratic means acceptable? Is democratic leadership in service of "dangerous" goals acceptable, and what are these goals?
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  • PSCI 209: Poverty in America

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    Although some protest that the U.S. is heading toward European-style socialism, social welfare programs in the U.S. differ in important ways from those in other wealthy and democratic nations. This course focuses on the adoption and development of policies to address poverty and inequality in the U.S. The issues we will explore include: What is poverty, and how do Americans perceive its dangers to individuals as well as the political community? What economic, historical, and sociological theories have been advanced to explain poverty? Why has the U.S. adopted some approaches to reduce poverty but not others? What enduring political conflicts have shaped the U.S. welfare state? Part of the Gaudino Danger Initiative.
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  • PSCI 213: Black Politics in the United States

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    Historically, African Americans have been treated as group members rather than as individuals by mainstream society; consequently, a very unique set of political attitudes and behaviors have developed among Blacks in the United States. This course explores the political history of African Americans as well as the relationship between African Americans and the American political system. Political elites as well as individual citizens and grassroots movements have influenced Black politics. In turn, we will focus on how national, state, and local governments have affected African American communities through the implementation of policies?some of which have been discriminatory while others have been aimed to ameliorate racial disparities. We will also analyze how Black Americans have responded through the political system. Since this course (nor any course) has the capacity to explore the vast history of Black politics, we will focus primarily on contemporary, African American politics between 1960 and the Obama era. Class time will be divided between lectures and class discussions.
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  • PSCI 216: American Constitutionalism I: Structures of Power

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    This course addresses the legal and political structure established by the United States Constitution and evolved over the course of American history, with emphasis on two themes: the respective powers of, and interaction among, the federal government's three branches; and the intersections, boundaries, and clashes between the federal government and the states. Some of the specific disputes covered will include court-stripping, impeachment, war powers, and the scopes of the commerce clause and Tenth Amendment. As these matters sometimes implicate debates about issues such as racial equality, privacy, and freedom of speech, we will occasionally touch on individual rights as well, but that will be covered far more extensively in American Constitutionalism II: Rights and Liberties.
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  • PSCI 217: American Constitutionalism II: Rights and Liberties

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    A recurring question will be the relevance of the undemocratic nature of the federal courts. Should the judiciary see itself as a tribune of the powerless primarily responsible for restraining the political branches? Or, alternatively, should it generally defer to the people's elected representatives? Some specific issues addressed will be abortion, affirmative action, capital punishment, same-sex marriage, and freedom of speech and religion. While the reading consists largely of Supreme Court cases, we will pay close attention to the broader social and political context surrounding these cases. Prerequisite:    Political Science 216 or permission of instructor
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  • PSCI 218: The American Presidency

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    To study the presidency is to study human nature and personality, constitution and institution, strategy and contingency. This course will examine the problems and paradoxes that attend the exercise of the most powerful political office in the world's oldest democracy: Can an executive office be constructed with sufficient energy to govern and also be democratically accountable? How much do we attribute the shaping of politics to the agency of the individual in the office and to what extent are politics the result of structural, cultural, and institutional factors? Are the politics of the presidency different in foreign and domestic policy? How are national security concerns balanced with domestic priorities such as the protection of civil liberties? How is the office and purpose of the presidency affected by an economic order predicated on private capital? Exploration of these questions will lead us to examine topics such as presidential selection, the bases of presidential power, character and leadership issues, congressional-executive relations, the media, and emergency powers. Attention will focus largely on the modern presidency, though older historical examples will also be used to help us gain perspective on these problems.
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  • PSCI 223: International Law

    3.00 Credits
    Williams College

    International law embodies the rules that govern the society of states. It spells out who can be a state and how to become one, what states can do, what they cannot do, and who can punish transgressions; it also determines the status of other actors, like international organizations, heads of state, refugees, transnational religious institutions and multinational corporations. International law is like domestic law, with one difference: the same group that makes the law enforces it. In other respects it is the same: it protects the status quo, including the distribution of power among its members; it spells out legitimate and illegitimate ways of resolving conflicts of interest; it is biased toward the powerful; it tells its members how to act to coordinate their interests and minimize direct conflict; some of it is laughable and purely aspirational, some of it necessary for survival. And like domestic law, it is enforced only some of the time, and then against the weak more than the strong. Yet law is still where we look first for justice. This course will examine the historical bases of contemporary international law, its development since World War II in the context of the Holocaust and decolonization, and current dilemmas in its practice. Students will study primary materials (treaties, order, memos and cases). This is not a law-school course, but an academic course in liberal arts.
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