Political Science 111 - Comparative Politics
Fall
2019
02
4.00
Ethan Tupelo
M W 2:30PM 3:45PM
UMass Amherst
31804
Wheeler hall Room B05
etupelo@polsci.umass.edu
An introductory exploration of political systems in several nation states in various parts of the world. Coverage differs depending on the specialties and interests of instructor. Students learn about generalized comparative approaches and political development, political processes and political institutions in each state covered. (Gen.Ed. SB, DG)
Open to first year Investigating Politics RAP students in Wheeler. POLISCI 111-02
See http://www.umass.edu/rap/investigating-politics-rap
What are the state, the market, and the nation, and how did they come to be the dominant units of comparative politics? Will they survive the 21st century?
(1) Why do some countries choose leaders through voting, while others have bloody revolutions, and others simply have continuously ruling families or groups?
(2) How did some countries come to be desperately poor while others are unspeakably wealthy?
Those are some of the questions that drive the study of comparative politics as well as this course. We will study them:
(1) historically, to elucidate the roots of our contemporary institutions and systems and how they came to be
(2) from multiple perspectives, to see how politics functions at a global level, a personal level, and at the intersection of the two
(3) comparatively, to examine multiple phenomena and processes in relation in relation to one another to see what they reveal.
Through analysis of current and classic texts in comparative politics, we will grapple with how our world came to be and then apply that knowledge to contemporary issues? such as immigration, political violence, and inequality in different parts of the world. In sum, this course aims to provide you with the material we must work with and confront if we wish to understand and shape the present and future of our deeply interconnected world.
See http://www.umass.edu/rap/investigating-politics-rap
What are the state, the market, and the nation, and how did they come to be the dominant units of comparative politics? Will they survive the 21st century?
(1) Why do some countries choose leaders through voting, while others have bloody revolutions, and others simply have continuously ruling families or groups?
(2) How did some countries come to be desperately poor while others are unspeakably wealthy?
Those are some of the questions that drive the study of comparative politics as well as this course. We will study them:
(1) historically, to elucidate the roots of our contemporary institutions and systems and how they came to be
(2) from multiple perspectives, to see how politics functions at a global level, a personal level, and at the intersection of the two
(3) comparatively, to examine multiple phenomena and processes in relation in relation to one another to see what they reveal.
Through analysis of current and classic texts in comparative politics, we will grapple with how our world came to be and then apply that knowledge to contemporary issues? such as immigration, political violence, and inequality in different parts of the world. In sum, this course aims to provide you with the material we must work with and confront if we wish to understand and shape the present and future of our deeply interconnected world.