CPO 3990 Cuba, Castro and the USA

The course will carry out an analysis of Cuban politics, domestically and in relation to the USA, from the outbreak of the Spanish-American War to the present, with special emphasis on the Castro era (i.e., 1959 to the present). The analysis will compare Cuba's standard of living, political conditions, and relations with the USA before and after Fidel Castro seized total power in the early years of the Cuban Revolution. Some attention will be paid to how Cubans who came to the USA after Castro have fared, especially politically.

Upon completing this course, students will be able, orally and in writing, to

1. Identify the principal features of Cuban politics, both domestically and in relation to the USA, across several periods, i.e., the semi-democracy of the first two decades of independence, the Machado and Batista dictatorships, the 1940 Constitution and the two elected Autentico administrations of the 1940s, the second Batista dictatorships and the Castro dictatorship

2. Compare alternative explanations for the outbreak of the Cuban revolution

3. Recognize parallels and contrasts between Fidel Castro and other charismatic totalitarian dictators (e.g., Mussolini, Hitler)

4. Assess the benefits and costs of the Castro regime from the point of view of both rulers and ruled

5. Assign probabilities to possible post-Castro Cuban political futures in light of what transpired in Spain after Franco and in Romania after Caecescu, among other pertinent examples

6. Evaluate the political activities of Cuban-Americans

Syllabus-fall 2010 (pdf)

CPO 4303 Politics of Spain, Portugal, and Latin America

This course examines the democratization of Spain, Portugal, and most Latin American countries in light of their troubled past, so rife with dictatorships, revolutions, and civil wars. First we will consider the backdrop of dictatorship and revolution against which the more recent democratic developments have taken place. Then we will examine the impact of political leadership and institutional forms on the establishment and persistence of democracy. We will explore, as well, the relationship between democracy and the market, and the impact of economic performance on the resilience of democratic institutions. Finally, we will look into deviant cases, countries which have either not gone democratic, such as Cuba, and those which have regressed, such as Venezuela. Reading material will include works of historical fiction, a biography, and a conventional text. Take-home essays will make up the bulk of the grade for the course.

Syllabus-spring 2011(pdf)

INR 2002 International Politics

 Most of the earth’s surface is divided into entities, called states, composed of a certain extent of populated territory and a government which attempts, with various degrees of success, to regulate or control what happens inside it.  The principal subject of study in international politics is relations between states.  Most of the time, most countries are at peace with their neighbors.  They may have disputes in which one or the other of both states threaten to use force or may even use it in a limited way, but most of the time these conflicts are settled without all-out war.  Occasionally, though, conflicts do escalate to the level of war, and sometimes these wars take a frightful toll in human lives and property.  In this course, we will ask questions such as, What factors are associated with peaceful as well as warlike relations among states?  Under what conditions do governments decided to go to war?  Under what conditions are the deadliest wars fought?  What accounts for the very long periods of peace between wars?  Is there anything that can be done to promote peace or is war, like death and taxes, something that is inevitable?  We will seek answers to these questions in two rival theories in the field.  They go by the name of “realism” and “liberalism” or “institutionalism.”  In this course, the realist view is represented by Professor John J. Mearsheimer, author of The Tragedy of Great Power Politics and the liberal view by Michael Mandelbaum, author of The Ideas that Conquered the World.  Peace, Democracy, and Free Markets in the Twenty-First Century.  We will read, discuss, and evaluate these books carefully.  Attendance and daily written summaries of the reading assignments are required.  There will be two exams and two short take-home written assignments.

Syllabus-spring 2007(PDF)

INR 3006 Conflict, Violence, and Peace

This course addresses violent political conflict within nation-states. The focus of the course is less on the causes of conflict, which are many, spanning the gamut from the economic to the ethno-cultural to the ideological, as to the conditions under which political conflicts are more or less likely to turn violent, and, once they do, the conditions under which they are resolved and the warring parties cease killing each other and agree to manage their differences by political rather than military means.  We will pay particular attention to ethno-political violence and the menu of policies available to domestic governments and international agencies to ameliorate it.  We will also explore the conditions which lead combatants in a civil war to go to the negotiating table, to reach agreements, and to implement those agreements to put an end to the fighting.  Attendance is required, as is daily written summaries of the readings.  We will read two books (Keeping the Peace by Byman and Committing to Peace, by Walter, selections from a third, Ending Civil Wars, by Stedman, Rothchild, and Cousens, as well as articles from other sources.  There will be two exams and one take-home written assignment.

Syllabus-spring 2011(pdf)

POS 6006 Study of Politics

This course, POS 6006 The Study of Politics, is an overview of the discipline. This summer we will read carefully, think, discuss, and write about three recently published books, one each in American, comparative, and international politics. These books represent some of the very best work done in their respective fields. We will also read selections from the 100th anniversary issue in The American Political Science Review, which includes articles on the evolution and development of the discipline, along with commentaries on “classic” contributions to the field.  The objective of the course is twofold: to familiarize yourselves with the principal things that political scientists claim to know about the principal subjects we study and that you convey this understanding as clearly as you are capable, both orally and in writing. In the process of acquiring substantive knowledge about the science of politics, you will develop or sharpen analytical and communication skills that have applications in the practical world of work in your life after UWF.

Syllabus-summer 2011(PDF)

CPO 3773 Great World Leaders

In this course we will review, compare, evaluate and hopefully learn from the careers of great political leaders from around the world.  By “great leaders” I mean statesmen whose impact on their country and the world is judged by subsequent generations to have been positive, having achieved a certain earthly immortality, their influence extending well beyond their place and time.  Great leaders tend to come to the fore in times of domestic or international crisis.  They are founders, saviors, or restorers of states or regimes.  To that end, we will read selections from Plutarch’s Lives, and closely examine the biographies of several leaders from more recent times. 

Syllabus-fall 2009(PDF)

CPO 3990 Dictatorships

The course will carry out a comparative analysis of dictatorships across time and space, with special attention paid to 20th century totalitarian regimes, including those of Hitler, Stalin, and Mao.  The analysis will focus on some of the causes for the rise and fall of these dictatorships, their ruling personalities and methods, the costs imposed on their subject populations, and their long-term effects on the politics of their respective countries. The course will begin with selections from classic writings on tyranny from Plato, Aristotle, Suetonius, and Machiavelli.  Then, using scholarly texts, novels, and films, we will examine historical cases from several continents, drawing parallels and contrasts across them.

Syllabus-spring 2011(pdf)  

POS 3413 The Presidency

We begin our exploration of the American presidency with a critical overview of the constitutional parameters of the executive office. What did our founding fathers expect from an executive? From there we examine how the presidential institution has evolved since the founding. The presidency definitely has a somewhat different place now in our separated system of branches sharing power than it once did. One of the most important features we address is how individual presidents have impacted the scope and direction of the office. We highlight the important role of personal style, leadership, persuasion, and charisma as an influence on American government as a whole. Finally, we evaluate competing theories of presidential power to see how useful they are in explaining contemporary presidential politics.

Syllabus-fall 2011(pdf)

POT 4204 American Political Thought

This course will survey what Americans have written about politics from colonial times to more recent times.  Along with an anthology of excerpts, we will read two autobiographies—those of Benjamin Franklin and Frederick Douglass, two self-made men who lived a century apart.  Assessment of student learning will take the form of tests and essays.

Syllabus-spring 2010(pdf)

POT 4601 Masters of Political Thought

The essence of political theory is the study of regimes. By regime is meant the system of government and its relations to the rest of society, those institutions where people live, learn, work, worship, and play. This involves inquiring into what is and has been as well as what could be, i.e., the real, the ideal, and the possible. This course examines what a few of the greatest political thinkers have written about these things. The objectives of the course are that you learn the basic ideas espoused by these thinkers, comparing and contrasting them, and that you use their ideas as a foil against which to formulate and express your own thoughts about how politics is and how it could or could not be. There will be no exams, as such. Grading will be based on three essays- two mid-term essays and one final one- summarizing and commenting on the material. More will be expected of graduate students in terms of quantity and quality of work.

Syllabus-fall 2010 (pdf)