Political Science
Chair:
Geoffrey C. Layman
Director of Graduate Studies:
Sebastian Rosato
Director of Undergraduate Studies:
Angela McCarthy
Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies:
Steven Landis
Eugene P. and Helen Conley Professor of Political Science:
Scott P. Mainwaring
Packey J. Dee Professor of American Democracy:
David E. Campbell
Packey J. Dee Professor of Political Science:
Dana Villa
Packey J Dee Professor of Political Science:
Michael C. Desch
Nancy Reeves Dreux Assistant Professor of Political Science:
Erin Rossiter
Andrew J. McKenna Family Professor:
Jeffrey Harden
Rev. Edmund P. Joyce, C.S.C., Professor of Africana Studies and Political Science:
Dianne Pinderhughes
Rev. Donald P. McNeill, C.S.C., Professor of Transformational Latino Leadership and Joseph and Elizabeth Robbie Professor of Political Science:
Luis R. Fraga
David A. Potenziani Memorial College Professor of Constitutional Studies:
Matthew E.K. Hall
Snyder Family Mission Professor:
Darren Davis
Professors:
Michael J. Coppedge; Patrick Deneen; Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C.; Saad Gulzar; Eileen Hunt; Debra Javeline; Mary Keys; Geoffrey C. Layman; Vincent P. Muñoz; Joseph M. Parent; Aníbal Pérez-Liñán; Daniel Philpott; Emilia Justyna Powell; Sebastian Rosato; Guillermo Trejo; Christina Wolbrecht
Associate Professors:
Susan D. Collins; Eugene Gholz; Andrew C. Gould; Michael Hoffman; Victoria Hui; Karrie J. Koesel; Dan Lindley; Ricardo Ramirez; Susanne Wengle
Assistant Professors:
Christina Bambrick; Richard Clark; David Cortez; Rachel Porter; Luis Schiumerini; Jazmin Sierra
Associate Teaching Professors:
Angela McCarthy; Susan Pratt Rosato
Assistant Teaching Professor:
Steven Landis
The Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame is a robust and growing department, home to more than 40 tenure-track or tenured faculty members, several excellent teaching professors, over 70 Ph.D. students, and nearly 600 undergraduate majors. Our faculty are leading scholars whose award-winning research addresses critical political questions, attracts prestigious external fellowships and grants, and is published in top academic journals and presses. Ph.D. students receive rigorous substantive and methodological training, conduct significant research projects, and maintain an impressive record of publication and placement in both academic and non-academic careers. Our exceptional undergraduate students benefit from world-class instruction along with enriching research and experiential opportunities that prepare them for top graduate programs, preeminent professional schools, and rewarding careers. The department demonstrates impressive strength across all four traditional fields of political science—American politics, world politics, international relations, and political theory—while also excelling in the newer fields of constitutional studies and political methodology. With considerable faculty expertise in qualitative, quantitative, and theoretical approaches, we are proud to be an intellectually diverse department.
The Department of Political Science offers their courses under the subject codes of: Constitutional Studies (CNST), International Security Studies (ISS), and Political Science (POLS). Courses associated with their academic programs may be found below. The scheduled classes for a given semester may be found at classearch.nd.edu.
Constitutional Studies (CNST)
CNST 20001 Introduction to the First Amendment: Freedom of Expression in Law and Culture (3 Credit Hours)
This introductory course surveys the core texts, doctrines, ideas, and cultural controversies related to First Amendment protections for free expression. We will be especially interested in some large questions: what is expression? How have our ideas of freedom of expression evolved as we enter the digital age? What kind of expression should be permissible? What happens when the public forum is fully online? What is the relationship between free expression and democratic-self government? Is there a difference between individual, group, and government speech? How do we navigate alternative ways of thinking about free expression in a global media ecosystem? We will consider a selection of exemplary cases, controversies, and literary texts: among our topics will include the following: the transformation of speech in the age of digital media; libel, satire and parody; piracy, intellectual property and copyright; privacy and surveillance; hate speech and incitement; obscenity and pornography. We will investigate the topic by studying relevant case law, literary texts (including fiction, film and new media), political philosophy, and information policy. Disclaimer: you will encounter speech that is potentially offensive and discomforting in this course. Note: this is an Office of Digital Learning Course: most of our readings and some course materials will be provided at no cost through an interactive digital platform.
CNST 20002 American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course surveys the basic institutions and practices of American politics. The goal of the course is to gain a more systematic understanding of American politics that will help you become better informed and more articulate. The course examines the institutional and constitutional framework of American politics and identifies the key ideas needed to understand politics today. The reading and writing assignments have been designed not only to inform you, but also to help develop your analytic and research skills. The themes of the course include the logic and consequences of the separation of powers, the build-in biases of institutions and procedures, the origins and consequence of political reforms, connections between demographics and politics, and recent changes in American politics in the 21st century. This semester we will emphasize the significance of the upcoming elections. Although the course counts toward the Political Science major and will prepare prospective majors for further study of American politics, its primary aim is to introduce students of all backgrounds and interests to the information, ideas, and academic skills that will enable them to understand American politics better.
Corequisites: POLS 22100
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20003 Keeping The Republic (3 Credit Hours)
Back in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked what kind of government the new American Constitution created. He responded, "a republic, if you can keep it." Today, many people are asking whether the republic-and thus democracy in America-as we know it will survive. Trust is low, polarization is high, and longstanding democratic norms are being shattered left and right. Some scholars have even suggested that the US is on the brink of a new civil war. Others, however, argue that things are not as bad as they seem.
This course tackles the big questions about current state of democracy in the United States. Is the US actually a democracy? (And is that different than a republic?) If so, how, when, and why did it become a democracy? Will the US remain a democracy? Finally, what role can YOU play in keeping the republic?
This course is designed for students of all backgrounds and majors. Whether you have thought a lot or a little about the state of democracy in America, you are welcome in this class.
Corequisites: POLS 22101
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
CNST 20200 World Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course will focus on the relationship between democratic institutions, peace, and economic/human development. While drawing on lessons from North America and Europe, we will focus largely on countries of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. During the semester, we will discuss and debate the merits of various explanations or hypotheses that political scientists have proposed to answer the following questions: Why are some countries more "developed" and democratic than others? Is development necessary for democracy or democracy necessary for development? What is the relationship between culture, development, and democracy? How do different types of political institutions affect the prospects for development and democracy? Should/how should U.S. and other established democracies promote democratization? By the end of the course, the objectives are that students (1) learn the most important theories intended to explain why some countries are more democratic and "developed" than others, (2) understand the complexity of any relationship between democracy and development, and (3) grow in the ability to think about and intelligently assess the strengths and weaknesses of strategies intended to promote democracy and development.
Corequisites: POLS 22400
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20403 Introduction to Criminology (3 Credit Hours)
Introduction to Criminology provides students with an overview of the sociological study of law making, law breaking and the resulting social responses. In this class we not only look at a variety of crimes, but we also discuss the varying methods sociologists use to collect, interpret and evaluate data, as well as how we theorize about crime and punishment. We address questions such as "Why are some people or groups labeled as criminal, while others are not?" "Do laws in both their construction and enforcement serve everyone's interests equally?" "How can the communities in which people are embedded be considered as criminogenic?" "How are poverty, race, gender and other social factors related to crime?"
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20405 Introduction to Public Policy (3 Credit Hours)
Public policy could be fairly described as applied social science. This course will introduce you to the fundamentals of public policy by (1) understanding how policy is crafted, (2) detailing the linkages between public opinion and public policy, (3) appreciating how political institutions may bound policy outcomes, (4) and exploring the ability of special interests, and other parties, to shape policy outcomes all while introducing you to various tools and frameworks for approaching the study of public policy. These tools will draw from an understanding of human behavior (psychology), markets (economics), governments (political science), and organizations (sociology) and introduce you to policy analysis. We will use a case study approach to delve into current public policy controversies including healthcare, higher education finance, and infrastructure. This course acts as the primary introductory course for the Hesburgh Minor in Public Service, but is designed for students of all majors and interests.
CNST 20600 Classics of Political and Constitutional Theory (3 Credit Hours)
An examination of a number of the fundamental texts in political and constitutional theory, with an emphasis on works of special importance to the British and American political systems.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20602 Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
This course is an introduction to political theory as a tradition of discourse and as a way of thinking about politics. The course surveys selected works of political theory and explores some of the recurring themes and questions that political theory addresses, especially the question of justice. This introductory course fulfils the political theory breadth requirement for the political science major.
Corequisites: POLS 22600
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20608 Theology, Ethics, and Business (3 Credit Hours)
This course is intended to be an introduction to Catholic moral theology customized for those discerning a career as a business professional. In the wake of ethics failures at a number of prominent corporations, business leaders have renewed their call for ethical behavior and have begun to establish criteria for hiring morally thoughtful employees and to institute ethics education in the workplace. In the first part of the course, we will examine Catholic theological ideas about conscience and how it functions in the process of making a moral decision. In the second part of the course, we will examine a selection of Catholic writings on the idea of vocation and calling, as well as the nature of human work, the relationship between workers and management, and the norms of justice that ought to govern these relations. Finally we will examine ideas about character and virtue to assess the challenges and opportunities for moral formation in a business context. Class format will combine analysis of theological texts and discussion of business cases. Course requirements include a midterm and final examination and a group project.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKDT-Core Devlopment. Theology
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20609 The Church and Empire (3 Credit Hours)
The formation of Christians' communal identity, theological imagination, and social practices have always been worked out - whether implicitly or explicitly - in relation to empire. This course explores this complex theological and historical relationship between Church and empire with particular attention to the ways Christian communities have attempted to resist the onslaught of pre-modern and modern imperialism in order to preserve the integrity of various aspects of the gospel of Christ. In the process of this exploration we will attempt, as a class, to discern some general characteristics of a counter-imperial Catholic ethos or spirituality by paying close attention to the ways the Church has compromised, negotiated, or resisted empire concerning images of Jesus, the effects of baptism, the scope of Christ's Eucharistic presence, and the legitimate modes of evangelization at the Church's disposal.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKDT-Core Devlopment. Theology
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20611 Political Philosophy (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, we will ask how we should understand the social ideals of freedom and equality, and how these ideals should be realized in a just society. To help us approach these questions, we will read a series of major philosophical works from the last fifty years, each of which falls within a distinct tradition of political thought. The traditions represented by the works we will read are liberalism, libertarianism, socialism, and anarchism. We will consider the alleged strengths and weaknesses of each tradition's distinctive approach to political justice, and explore each tradition's implications for current political controversies. Which particular controversies we focus on will be determined, in part, by a class vote.
Students majoring or minoring in political science, economics, sociology, or peace studies may be especially interested in this course.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 20613 Roman History I: the Republic (3 Credit Hours)
We will use ancient sources, material evidence and modern scholarship to attempt and reconstruct the first seven centuries of Roman history, broadly speaking, from the foundation of Rome (and the murder of Remus) to the murder of Julius Caesar and the civil war. Throughout the course, we will ask two main questions: how did the Romans manage to transform their small town into a world power in a few centuries? That is, why did the Romans, and not any other people, manage to conquer and unify the entire Mediterranean? Secondly, we will discuss the political, social and cultural consequences of this transformation. These questions exercised the Romans themselves, and some of the responses they gave will be considered in light of current scholarship. Within a broad chronological framework, we will also discuss aspects of daily life in ancient Rome: what was life like for normal people, including women and slaves, in the Roman Republic? And how was the majority of the people affected by historical change?
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 20615 History of Rome II: The Empire (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the history of the Roman Empire, from the establishment of a veiled monarchy under Augustus to the Christianization of the empire following the reign of Constantine (ca. 1st century B.C. to 5th century A.D). Throughout the course, we will analyze and interpret ancient textual and archaeological evidence, from both Italy and the provinces, to assess the multi-faceted institutions and cultures of the Roman people. This body of material includes the writings of emperors (Augustus, Marcus Aurelius) and ancient historians (Tacitus, Suetonius, Ammianus Marcellinus), as well as the personal letters of Pliny to the emperor Trajan. Major themes discussed in the course include the nature of despotism, dynasties and the problem of succession; imperial governance of the Mediterranean (central, provincial, and local); cultural diversity and acculturation (so-called "Romanization"); religions and the imperial cult (worship of the Roman emperor); citizenship; urbanism, politics, and the economy; mortality and ecology; and the discrepant identities of women, children, slaves, freedmen, and freeborn under the imperial system of Rome.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30002 Constitutional Law (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces the basic themes of the American constitution, its historical development, and debates in constitutional politics. The course employs a variety of instructional methods including Socratic method lectures, class debates, and moot court exercises in which students play the role of lawyers and justices arguing a Supreme Court case. Students will explore the social and political struggles that have defined the allocation of constitutional power, including debates over presidential war-powers, states' rights, judicial supremacy, federal power to enforce civil rights, and the recent healthcare controversy.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30003 U.S. Civil War Era, 1848-1877 (3 Credit Hours)
This course begins in 1848 and examines the coming of the Civil War, the experience of the war itself, and the period of Reconstruction up to 1877. The emphasis will be on the political, social, cultural, and legal events and decisions that were made by governmental and civilian participants, by men and women, by whites and blacks. Why were so many willing to go to war? What did they believe each side was fighting for? The sectional conflict touched every aspect of American life. In order to understand it fully, we will read not only political speeches, military reports, and judicial decisions, but also poetry, fiction, and private letters. We will examine the beliefs and values of veterans and nurses, of abolitionists and slave owners, of politicians and voters. We will also consider the way historians evaluate the war and the way in which the public remembers it.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30004 Law and Religion in US History (3 Credit Hours)
This course focuses on the historical tension between Americans' support for religious liberty under law and their belief that religious faith was essential to the success of the Republic. It will examine both official legal discourse, such as judges' rulings and popular understandings of the law as expressed in speeches and letters. Religious faith has taken many forms in the United States and so have the debates over its proper relation to the state Americans argued over how to define religious liberty. They argued over which religion best suited a republic. Some said God had made certain people inferior to citizenship, while others shot back that God had made all people equally capable. One man's piety was another man's oppression. One woman's equality was another woman's blasphemy.. We will look at the colonial background and the founders' concerns, the 19th century and its myriad of reform movements and state building, religion's role in legal thought and education, the Scopes Monkey Trial, pacifism during time of war, the Civil Rights movement and its opposition, and the rise of the New Right. Discussion will be the primary mode of instruction. In addition to a mid-term and final, there will be short writing assignments and an essay.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30006 Topics in Civil Liberties/Civil Rights (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores topics in American constitutional law related to civil liberties and civil rights. The course employs a variety of instructional methods including Socratic method lectures, class debates, and moot court exercises in which students play the role of lawyers and justices arguing a Supreme Court case. Students will explore the social and political struggles that have shaped freedom and equality in the United States, including debates over protest, hate speech, pornography, religious freedom, gun control, abortion, race, gender, and homosexuality.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30012 The American Revolution (3 Credit Hours)
When speaking of the American Revolution, many writers reach for a comment made by John Adams in 1818 that, "[T]he Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people. . ." Whether this assertion is true historically or not, it still does not adequately describe what that revolution was. The American Revolution obviously had its political elements, primarily the formation of the United States. To reach its political goals, military means were necessary. Without a successful War for Independence, there would have been no revolution. To leave matters there, however, would be insufficient. A fuller understanding of the revolution would need to address how it affected the whole spectrum of American life. It would consider the revolution as a social movement that challenged the political and social hierarchies of the day. It would also ask how the revolution affected those who were not white males, especially women, slaves, and Native Americans. Without considering the possible negative implications of the revolution, any telling would be incomplete. This class will take up these challenges and attempt to make a full-orbed presentation of the events surrounding the American Revolution. It will introduce students both to elites and to those whom the popular narrative glosses over. It will attempt to count the losses, as well as the gains, which flowed from the move to independence from Britain. Finally, it will attempt to describe the many changes through this period, which resulted, not only in a new political nation, but in a new society and culture--changes that in varying degrees are still with us today and of which contemporary Americans are the inheritors.
Corequisites: HIST 22602
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30013 American Political Parties (3 Credit Hours)
Political parties play many vital roles in American politics: They educate potential voters about political processes, policy issues, and civic duties. They mobilize citizens into political activity and involvement. They provide vital information about public debates. They control the choices--candidates and platforms that voters face at the ballot box. They influence and organize the activities of government officials. Most importantly, by providing a link between government and the governed, they are a central mechanism of representation. These roles--how well they are performed, what bias exists, how they shape outcomes, how they have changed over time--have consequences for the working of the American political system.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30016 Catholics & US Public Life (3 Credit Hours)
This course offers an overview of the interaction between Catholics and public life in America during the half century following the Second Vatican Council and the election of a Catholic as President in 1960. The course should permit students to gain a greater familiarity with the engagement and response of various Catholic individuals and groups on some major political and social-cultural issues. It will explore the extent of Catholic influence in American politics and society during the period and will explore the role of religion in shaping (or not shaping) the outlooks of a number of significant Catholic political figures beginning with JFK, RFK, and Eugene McCarthy, moving to Mario Cuomo and Daniel Patrick Moynihan down to contemporary figures. The course offers each student the opportunity to research and write a major paper on a topic of his or her choosing in this area.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30020 The United States in the Reagan Years (3 Credit Hours)
From his national television appearance in support of the doomed Goldwater presidential campaign in 1964 through his failed presidential runs in 1968 and 1976 and his presidency (1981-89) on to the official dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ronald Reagan played a significant role in, and in reaction to, major developments in American politics, foreign policy, and society. This class will consider the turbulence and protest movements of the 1960s; the conservative backlash; the individualism of the Me Decade and beyond; foreign policy issues including Vietnam, détente, the second Cold War, and the end of the Cold War; and national political disputes over issues like taxes, abortion, foreign policy and nuclear weapons.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30022 The American Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
The Constitution holds a unique place in American law and political culture. Not only is it the basis of the federal government, it provides the framework for political debates about all manner of controversial issues in modern America. Today, there is much talk of a "constitutional crisis" in the United States. What does this mean? How can a history help us make sense of the Constitution and of our politics? This course explores the historical context in which the American Constitution was framed, ratified, and amended over time. Together, we will ask and answer the questions of how and why it was written the way it was; how and why it gained legitimacy; and how it was put into practice and interpreted over time. The class will introduce students to central historical problems, which include: Is the American Constitution democratic? Did the Constitution codify slavery into law? Is originalism a useful and valid way to interpret the Constitution? Course readings will consist primarily of primary source material, though students will also read historical interpretations of the Constitution and the process of forming, amending, and interpreting it. The discussion-based class will empower students to think historically about the American Constitution by interpreting primary source material, building arguments about causes and effects of particular constitutional points, and intervening in scholarly dialogues about the founding and its legacy. Students will be evaluated primarily based on class participation, a short primary source analysis, a role-play activity, and a final paper.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30024 Women's Suffrage: Gender, Politics, and Power (3 Credit Hours)
In 2020, the United States is commemorating the centennial of the 19th Amendment, which prohibited the denial of voting rights on the basis of sex. In this course, we will take the occasion of the centennial to explore the place of women's suffrage in the development of American democracy and the political empowerment of women. We will examine such topics as the meaning of citizenship, the place of voting in the American democratic system, the woman suffrage movement and other feminist movements, the anti-suffrage movement and other conservative movements, and the participation of women in various political roles, including as candidates and office-holders. We will approach these topics with an explicitly intersectional lens, exploring the ways in which gender, race/ethnicity, and class, in particular, shape politics and power in the United States. Students in this course will also participate in a DPAC Learning Beyond the Classics film course (4-6 weeks) on women/s suffrage.
CNST 30025 Race/Ethnicity and American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces students to the dynamics of the social and historical construction of race and ethnicity in American political life. The course explores the following core questions: What are race and ethnicity? What are the best ways to think about the impact of race and ethnicity on American citizens? What is the history of racial and ethnic formation in American political life? How do race and ethnicity link up with other identities animating political actions like gender and class? What role do American political institutions the Congress, presidency, judiciary, state and local governments, etc. play in constructing and maintaining these identity categories? Can these institutions ever be used to overcome the points of division in American society?
CNST 30026 Election 2020 (3 Credit Hours)
In this class, we will examine the 2020 presidential election - in real time - and then consider its effects on America's political future. Presidential elections provide the biggest and most important stage for the drama of American democracy. The 2020 version of this democratic drama promises to be one of the most intriguing and consequential in American history. For the first time, a presidential impeachment process has played out in an election year. Meanwhile, that same impeached president is seeking reelection, a Democratic field of unprecedented size and diversity is vying for that party's presidential nomination, and Americans continue to experience the political turmoil produced by the ever-increasing polarization of our two major parties. We will address all of this - from the "invisible primary" in 2018 and 2019, to the actual primaries and caucuses, the conventions, and the fall campaign and election. It does not matter whether you already know a lot or a little about presidential politics; if you want a front-row seat to the 2020 presidential election, this is the class for you.
CNST 30027 American Conservatism from the 1950s to the Present (3 Credit Hours)
Historians have argued that conservatism has been the dominant political ideology in the United States since the late 1960s. Yet, during this time, different actors have demonstrated diverse understandings of what it means to be conservative. Furthermore, at no point during our period of study was conservatism a monolithic force. We will look at some of the key events, persons, movements, and ideas that shaped conservatism in the postwar United States. We will also read excerpts of the rich historiography on the subject that has identified various social, cultural, and political factors as driving forces behind the rise of conservatism. By contrasting such explanations with the self-image of American conservatives conveyed through their writings, communication, and activism, we will get a critical understanding of the complexity of our subject. The course will focus on sourcework. We will learn to apply the historical method to diverse material and how to ask and answer historiographical questions using sources.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30028 Presidents and Presidencies from FDR to Obama (3 Credit Hours)
This lecture and discussion course will examine the presidencies and presidential administrations from Franklin Roosevelt to Barack Obama. The course will aim to provide an overview of the principle strengths and limitations of these administrations in both foreign affairs and domestic policy. The course should appeal to those who have particular interests in American political and diplomatic history.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30030 Race and Constitutional Controversies (3 Credit Hours)
Over the course of the United States' near 250-year history, there have been many Supreme Court cases that have spoken to and impacted the fundamental bedrock of our nation. Many of these cases established legal precedent that would later take numerous decades in order to be altered or outright rejected by future Supreme Court justices. When examining many of these defining cases, we find that issues of race lie at their heart. The goal of this course is to examine this nation's historical views on race and ethnicity over time and their direct impact on major Supreme Court cases and the decisions of those justices sitting on the mightiest bench in the land. We will discuss cases ranging across history and topic, including Civil Rights (Dredd Scott v. Sanford, Brown v. Board of Education, Loving v. Virginia.), Equal Protection (Plessy v. Ferguson, Koromatsu v. U.S.) , and Affirmative Action (Gratz v. Bollinger, Fisher v. University of Texas), just to name a few. What will be seen throughout the course are the ways our nation's ideas and actions regarding race, on both governmental and societal levels, have fundamentally impacted the laws of the land and the citizens who inhabit it.
CNST 30031 The President and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
The course explores different theories of the president's role in the American constitutional system. Readings include The Federalist Papers, the writings Abraham Lincoln, works of modern scholars, and opinions of the U.S. Supreme Court. Grades will be based on midterm and final exams.
CNST 30032 Abraham Lincoln, Slavery, and the Civil War (3 Credit Hours)
This course asks how we should narrate and understand the great ordeal of Civil War and emancipation. Reading both primary and secondary sources, it considers the Civil War era and life of Abraham Lincoln in light of the rise of abolition and antislavery politics; attitudes toward race, slavery, and labor; the political and social meanings of war and emancipation; the political and social challenge of reconstructing the nation amidst the tangled legacies of racial slavery and a destructive war.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30033 The Kennedy Presidency, Its Aftermath, and the Rise of the Security State (3 Credit Hours)
Sixty years ago, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, in broad daylight, in the presence of hundreds of witnesses, while traveling in his presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas. On that day, a historic presidency came to a tragic end. Two days later,
the alleged assassin (Lee Harvey Oswald) was murdered by a Dallas nightclub owner (Jack Ruby) while being escorted from his cell by a host of police officers, raising the possibility of a conspiracy. The official investigation into Kennedy's assassination ("The Warren Report") was met with fierce public skepticism, precipitating numerous Congressional investigations that revealed extensive covert operations (both in the US and abroad) conducted by the Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that would have been relevant to those charged with investigating the assassination. When combined with an already heightened public skepticism of the assassination itself, these revelations proved to be an enduring catalyst for a slow and steady decline of public trust in government that continues unabated to our present day. In this course, we examine the origins and rise of the "security state" in the United States, its role in significant events in the Kennedy presidency, including the investigation into his assassination, and the extent of its power both before and after Kennedy's presidency. Ultimately, students will be asked whether and to what extent the demands of national security conflict with the constitutional prerogatives of a representative democracy.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WRIT - Writing Intensive
CNST 30034 The Constitution and Criminal Justice (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, we will cover extensive constitutional terrain involved in the area of criminal justice, from investigative steps through trial and sentencing. We will study significant issues in 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th Amendment law while situating them within broader philosophical concerns about justice, Catholic Social Teaching, and questions of race and equity that emerge in various areas of criminal law enforcement and adjudication.
CNST 30035 The Ideas that Made America (3 Credit Hours)
America, at its core, is an idea. The lands that became America have been imagined and in certain ways and constantly reimagined. The history of the ideas that made America is less a lesson in philosophy and more about a series of clashes between contending visions: Democracy vs. Republicanism; Free vs. Slave; Christian vs. Secular; Individual vs. Society; and Universal vs. Particular. This course traces a long arc from the Puritans to the Culture Wars to understand the ideas Americans draw upon to comprehend the world and act in it. Lectures and discussions will consider the notions of equality, democracy, pluralism, religious freedom, and the tensions between contending visions for America. Readings for this course will include autobiographies, speeches, sermons, canonical texts, lyrics, novels, newspaper articles, and poetry.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30036 Religion and Politics in America (3 Credit Hours)
“On my arrival in the United States,” wrote Alexis de Tocqueville in Democracy in America (1835), “the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention.” This course is an introduction to the history of religion in the United States from the pre-colonial period to the present, with special attention to its interplay with politics, law, and governance. Taking stock of the broad range of religious traditions that Americans have practiced, we will move chronologically through US history and explore rich primary sources like films, diaries, novels, art, sermons, and court records to help us make sense of religion’s evolving role in American politics and society. Along the way, we will delve into questions of religious pluralism and its challenges; conversion and religious experience; the legal history of the First Amendment’s religion clauses; civil religion; immigration; anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism; religion, slavery, and the civil rights movement; the shifting identities of religious “insiders” and “outsiders” in American life; the “culture wars”; and secularization, among other topics.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30037 God and Slavery in the Americas (3 Credit Hours)
More than a century before African slaves were trafficked to the Virginia colony in 1619, Christopher Columbus transported captured Indigenous peoples to Spain from the New World. The dispossession and enslavement of non-Europeans in the colonization of the Americas was justified by Christians but also condemned by Christians with different economic and political interests. This development course in theology introduces students to the challenging intersection of faith, slavery, and freedom by exploring key figures, events, and movements that have shaped the complex historical legacy of Christianity in the Americas, a hemispheric past that remains ever bound together. In addition to Christianity's role in colonial expansion and racial ideology, the course especially considers how lived faith in God provided a catalyst for the empowerment and resistance of the oppressed and their advocates in shared struggles to attain greater social justice, racial equality, and political autonomy. From the "Protector of the Indians" Bartolomé de las Casas to César Chávez, and the "Black Moses" Harriet Tubman to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the course explores these and other extraordinary figures of hope in the Americas who gave their lives to protest institutional violence and promote authentic expressions of faith. In the course, students will engage this turbulent past through a contextual approach to theology that examines idolatry, migration, land, liberty, poverty, social sin, nonviolence, and solidarity as normative categories relevant for addressing contemporary social crises afflicting our nation and the earth.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKDT-Core Devlopment. Theology
CNST 30200 International Law (3 Credit Hours)
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to international law. In the beginning of the semester, we will focus on general characteristics of international law, such as its historical development, main thinkers, subjects, and sources of law. Second, we will study several substantive areas of international law, such as human rights, international criminal law, diplomacy, and peaceful resolution of disputes. Next, we will examine international courts, such as the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. We will conclude the course by analyzing international law through the lenses of domestic legal systems. Upon completion of this course, students should be familiar with the main features of international law and its historical development.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30203 European Politics (3 Credit Hours)
In this course on European politics we will examine the literature on three major issues: regional integration, origins of modern political authority, and industrial political economy. We will seek to understand the origin, current functioning, and possible futures for key European institutions, including the EU, nation-states, social provision, unions, and political parties. Readings on the European Union, monetary politics, Germany, France, and Spain will be drawn from both scholarly sources and contemporary analyses of political events.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30211 International Criminal Justice (3 Credit Hours)
This course critically examines the phenomena of international judicial intervention and ‘criminalization of world politics'; the actors, ideas, and rationales behind the international criminal justice project; the operation of international criminal justice in a world of power politics; its accomplishments, failures, and financial costs; and the future of international criminal justice. The course includes Skype conferences with a war crimes investigator, a war crimes analyst, a defense counsel, a victim representative, a State Department official, and a staff member of the Coalition for the International Criminal Court.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30214 Roman Criminal Law (3 Credit Hours)
Perhaps our greatest inheritance from the ancient Romans is their law code and legal procedures. Students will study the development of Roman criminal law from the 12 Tables to the late antique period, including the emergence of jury courts and the persecution of Christians and heretics. By studying primary sources like Cicero's speeches and laws etched in bronze tablets, students will explore the seedy side of Roman life. Topics for discussion include murder, sorcery, bribery, forgery, treason, extortion and adultery. This course will not duplicate, but complement, Roman Law and Governance (CLAS 30210).
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30215 Catholicism and Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Catholicism and Politics poses the question, both simple and complex: How ought Catholics to think about the political order and political issues within it? The first part of the course will survey major responses to this question drawn from Church history: the early church, the medieval church, and the modern church. The second part applies these models to contemporary issues ranging among war, intervention, globalization, abortion, the death penalty, religious freedom, gender issues, and economic development. The course culminates in "Vatican III," where teams of students, representing church factions, gather to discover church teachings on selected controversial political issues.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30227 From Rasputin to Putin (3 Credit Hours)
This upper division lecture course examines some of the most important events, ideas, and personalities that shaped late Imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet periods of Russian history during the last one hundred years: from the outbreak of the First World War and the Revolutions of 1905 and 1917 through the Great Terror of the 1930s, the experience of the Second World War and the emergence of the Soviet Empire, late Stalinism and post-Stalinist developed or mature socialism, the collapse of the communist rule and the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, as well as Russia's uneasy transition "out of Totalitarianism" and into Putin's authoritarianism during the first fourteen years of the twentieth-first century. The course is designed for history majors as well as for students in other disciplines with or without background in modern Russian and East European history.
Corequisites: HIST 22355
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30232 Election/Social Protest in Latin America (3 Credit Hours)
Elections and social protest are the two most important means of political participation in Latin America today. Every year, millions of Latin Americans go to the ballot box to elect their representatives, but millions also march to their country's capitals to oust elected politicians or simply to demand public goods or policy changes. Are Latin American citizens taking to the streets to contest market-oriented reforms, as it is often portrayed? Or do they take to the streets because elections don't work in Latin America's dysfunctional democracies? Are Latin American voters electing leftist politicians to move the economies away from neoliberal policies? Do the rich vote for the Right and the poor for the Left? In this course we want to understand who votes, who protests, and why they do it. We also want to understand the relationship between elections and protest. The course first provides a general overview of democratization, economic reforms, electoral behavior and social protest in Latin America. We then analyze electoral and social dynamics in six countries: Mexico, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Venezuela, and Guatemala. The in-depth analysis of these countries will provide you with a solid understanding of markets, democracies, voters and protesters in Latin America and will give you skills on how to assess public opinion surveys.
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30233 Middle-East Politics (3 Credit Hours)
The Middle East is simultaneously one of the most strategically important regions in the world and one of the least understood. This course provides an introduction to the politics of the region from a thematic perspective. It addresses a variety of topics, including democracy, development, sectarianism, oil, and conflict. Students will be assigned readings from both historical scholarship and contemporary analysis of regional issues. When applicable, cases from across the region will be used to illustrate the themes of the course.
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30238 French Revolution & Napoleon (3 Credit Hours)
The French Revolution created a turning point in history by paving the way for modern politics and society. Napoleon's empire, on the other hand, toppled some of the oldest European monarchies and shook up the international status quo. During two and a half turbulent decades, the French destroyed feudalism, created a constitutional monarchy, founded a republic, and built an empire that stretched across the continent. Our course will focus on how the French reinvented the social, cultural, and political dimensions of their world from the 1780s to 1815. We will ask major questions such as: What were the origins of the French Revolution? How did the revolutionaries recreate political culture and social structures? Why did the Revolution radicalize at first but eventually slide into an empire? Was Napoleon the "son of the Revolution" or did he betray its major goals?
Of special note, our course includes a 4-week "Reacting to the Past" game that allows you to engage in history from a completely new perspective. During this historical role-playing unit, you will become a specific member of the National Assembly or the Parisian crowd. To win, you must pass a constitution favorable to your position while wrestling "with the threat of foreign invasion, political and religious struggles, and questions of liberty and citizenship." Although we may change the course of history within the unit, you will root your arguments in resources available to your historical persona: primary documents, political treatises, inspiring speeches, secret collaborations, and "current" events.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30242 From Humors to Hysteria: Human and Political Bodies in European History, 1517-1918 (3 Credit Hours)
Between the early rumblings of the Reformations and the last cannon shot of World War I, Europeans profoundly changed how they conceptualized bodies as experience and metaphors. During these four centuries, Europeans grounded the ways in which they interacted with each other and the world in bodily imaginings. On an individual level, the living, human body provided a means of accessing and understanding the material or spiritual world. On a collective scale, the physical body, its adornments, and its gestures provided markers that Europeans used to fracture society along axes of gender, sexuality, class, race, mental aptitude, and even sacrality. Drawing in part from their myriad imaginings of the human body, Europeans constructed metaphorical political bodies. The body politic assumed diverse forms spanning from divine right monarchs to revolutionary republics to modern nation states. Our course will lay bare the human body as culturally constructed, while fleshing out how Europeans? evolving visions affected political imaginings.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30244 Varieties of Democracy (3 Credit Hours)
The world's largest collection of information about the state of democracy all over the world resides at the University of Notre Dame. This course is a guided exploration of the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) data. It begins with a survey of the varied ways that philosophers and cultures have thought about democracy. It then explains how these traditions were distilled into a lengthy questionnaire answered by more than a thousand country experts all over the world. The course provides you will the methodological tools you need to explore the data in depth to answer questions such as: What does it mean to be "democratic"? Are there different types of democracy in the world? What are the different ways of being undemocratic? Which countries and regions are most and least democratic in each way? What trends can we observe over the past century? Are there sequences of reforms that lead to successful democratization? As the database is still growing, many students will have the opportunity to contribute to the data collection process. You will also supplement the data with independent research to produce a detailed report evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the political regime in one country and placing it in comparative and historical perspective.
CNST 30245 International Law and Human Rights (3 Credit Hours)
What role does international law have in the advancement of human rights, and how does human rights, in turn, advance international law? This course introduces university students to the general system of modern international law (e.g. its norm-generating framework involving States and non-State actors; the roles of many State and non-State authoritative decision-makers in shaping expectations of peaceful, just, and responsible behavior in the international system; its varied constellation of dispute settlement courts and tribunals, alongside the prospects and limits of enforcing State compliance with international decisions), specifically viewed from the lens of historic global, regional, and domestic challenges to human dignity that influenced the first global codification of human rights norms under the United Nations' 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, up to the present development of the current international system of protection for human rights. The course situates the framework of modern international law and civil, political, economic, social, and cultural human rights, using five examples of the historic, defining, and 'constitutionalizing moments' for the international system: 1) the international abolition of slavery; 2) the evolution from classical to modern international law in dismantling colonial empires to enshrine the self-determination of all peoples and the equality of sovereignty of all nations; 3) the outlawing of the aggressive use of force since 1929, towards the peaceful settlement of maritime and territorial disputes and the humanitarian rules applicable to armed conflict situations; 4) the establishment of international accountability of individuals and States for genocide, crimes against humanity and other human rights atrocities; and 5) the global regulation for sustainable use, shared protection, and intergenerational responsibility over natural resources (land, oceans, atmosphere, outer space).
CNST 30246 Faith Freedom & Fanaticism (3 Credit Hours)
In this course we will explore the different ways that religious institutions and ideas affect political attitudes and behaviors in various parts of the world. With a special focus on Christianity and Islam, the course will address the following questions: Why do many citizens in some countries expect religious leaders to play a prominent role in politics while many citizens in other countries do not? Why are some religious institutions more supportive of freedom of religion than others and what explains religious persecution across the world? What effect do religious institutions have on support for liberal democracy? How does globalization affect the way religion is applied to public life? How can we tell when violence is motivated by religion and what explains religiously motivated or justified violence?
CNST 30247 Post-Conflict Politics (3 Credit Hours)
The first part of course examines the legacies of protracted conflicts (mostly civil wars) on a variety of political outcomes, from state-building and democratic institutions to political participation and social movements. The second part of the course explores different mechanisms by which states and the international community have dealt with these legacies, such as international courts, transitional justice and institution-building programs.
CNST 30248 African Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Course would provide an overview to all major themes in political science focusing on the African continent. The course will cover the entire continent, though likely focus on five cases studies that parallel substantive themes. The course would first provide a grounding in colonization, decolonization and state development, but then focus primarily on contemporary political behavior and institutions. I am interested in using Bleck & Van de Walle as a primary text.
CNST 30249 US State Government & Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Although US state-level governments have been described as "laboratories of democracy" where a significant amount of policy making takes place, many of us who study political science often familiarize ourselves only with government at the federal and international levels. This is concerning because, not only do our state governments create many of the policies we experience in everyday life, but also because the federal government will often look to state policies for direction. The importance of state governments is especially evident in the case of COVID-19, as states decide for themselves how to prevent the spread of the virus and administer the vaccine, resulting in a hodgepodge of regulations across the country. State government wields a lot of power over our lives, and it is important for us to understand not only what our state-level representatives are doing, but also the law making powers they hold. This course examines state governments in the US by studying state-level officeholders, such as state legislators, and state-level institutions, including campaigns and elections. Students will learn about the powers which are reserved to the states, unique differences between state governments, and the mechanisms and consequences of lawmaking at the state-level.
CNST 30250 Democracy, Violence & Elections (3 Credit Hours)
Elections are often promoted as a non-violent means of leadership succession. However, violent elections have become a common phenomenon, both in conflict countries and advanced democracies. The recent round of intimidation and unrest in the US is one instance of electoral violence. Governors in both Michigan and Virginia were targeted in a kidnapping plot, and deaths were incurred in the US Capitol assault. In conflict countries, peace builders advocate the use of elections to resolve conflict and lay the ground for democratization. Yet, unfree and/or unfair elections have led to violence, like in the US, or worse, re-ignited civil wars. Putting together the complex relationship among violence, elections, and democracy, this course introduces students to the politics surrounding elections. Throughout this course, we will examine the causes of pre- and post-election violence and the consequences of low quality elections on peace and conflict. We will also draw on examples from different parts of the world to critically examine important concepts and theories, and we will study measures of election quality to understand how they can be used to evaluate elections as well as their measurement issues, which have implications on our understanding of democracy.
CNST 30251 American Evangelicals and Global Affairs (3 Credit Hours)
Since the end of the Cold War, American Evangelicals' political influence has increased significantly. For example, Christian Zionist have continued to contribute meaningfully to American political support for the state of Israel. Additionally, to improve human dignity, Evangelicals have established schools and promoted literacy, built clinics and dispensaries, promoted agricultural development and distributed food aid, created orphanages, and propagated values about the inherent worth of all persons. Twenty-five to thirty percent of the US population is neo-evangelical and another five to ten percent adheres to some form of evangelical theology. That means that 100 million Americans are in one way or another tied to evangelical theology and they seem to pray, think, vote, and lobby as a coalition.
This course will examine the rise of American Evangelicalism and explore matters deemed important to Evangelicals: social and political affairs, global engagement, participation in public affairs, international affairs, support of Israel, political and economic development. More generally, this course offers a compelling account of Evangelicals' influence on America's role in the world. Students will learn how to engage more thoughtfully and productively with this influential religious group - a group that has been called political kingmakers! Students will also learn about the largest protestant denomination in the world - Southern Baptists - from the professor, who was a former Southern Baptist Minister and church planter.
CNST 30252 Native American Politics and Philosophy (3 Credit Hours)
From the protests at Standing Rock, the renaming of various sports teams, and a Supreme Court decision regarding much of eastern Oklahoma, the political concerns of Native Americans have come to the fore in recent years. How is the relationship between Native North Americans and the United States (and Canada)? In this class, we will try to understand the Native American worldviews that lie behind these political conflicts by reading a variety of Indigenous North American writers. We will discuss the role of nature, spirituality, authority, and political community in Native American traditions. We will also examine how philosophic disagreements between Native American philosophy and Western philosophies can produce political conflict. Students will leave this class with a strong grasp of Native American philosophy and political concerns, as well as a good framework of Western political philosophy.
CNST 30253 Classical Islamic Political Thoughts (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the development of political thought in classical Islam (7th-14th centuries). The course runs in two parallel tracks. The first track introduces students to Islamic history and culture. Here, students will present themes that will set the background for the second track. Each class starts with student presentations on the major dynasties that ruled different parts of the Muslim world at different times with an emphasis on politically contested issues and culturally relevant debates. The second track considers the different schools of political thought: the philosophical, the juristic, and the humanist. Here, the emphasis is on textual analysis. In the second part of each class, we turn to the works of Al- Farabi, Al-Mawardi, and Ibn Khaldun and we study them within the context set by student presentations. Throughout, we consider how their work dealt with issues of political stability and conflict and we examine, within a comparative framework, their relevance for today's concerns.
CNST 30254 Europe in the Age of Revolution and Nationalism, 1789-1871 (3 Credit Hours)
Europe made a violent and dramatic entry into the modern age in the tumultuous decades from 1789 to 1871. The period opens with the French Revolution and closes with the unification of Germany and Italy. In between lie the revolutionary Reign of Terror in France, the Napoleonic Wars, the independence wars of Latin America, the revolutions of 1830 and 1848, the Industrial Revolution, and the invention of liberalism, conservatism, socialism, feminism, nationalism, democracy, atheism, and modern science. Europeans in 1789 still lived in a world that in many ways was similar to the 16th and 17th century; by 1871, the outlines of Europe in the 20th century were beginning to form. How this profound transformation occurred will be the subject of the course.
3.000 Credit hours
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30255 The Quest for Constitutional Order in the Middle East (3 Credit Hours)
The Arab Spring represented a moment of challenge to intransigent repressive structures and aspiration to new democratic constitutional orders. To understand this moment we need to appreciate the complex history of the region. This is a survey course that approaches the intellectual history of Islam from a very specific angle: its encounter with Western political and intellectual thought. We will be looking at the first encounter with Greek political philosophy during the formative period of Arab-Islamic thought, in addition to Early and Late Modern responses to the European military and cultural challenge. The historical/comparative structure of the course makes salient the continuities and discontinuities in the thematic treatment of subjects like reform, representation, forms of government, the role of the community, and the rule of law. Some of the case studies that we will consider include Ottoman administrative and constitutional reforms, Arab nationalism, Lebanese consociationalism, and the Iranian Revolution and its constitutional project.
CNST 30402 Education Law and Policy (3 Credit Hours)
This course focuses on selected legal and policy issues related to K-12 education in the United States. A central theme is the intersection of K-12 schooling and the state, with a particular focus on Constitutional issues of religious freedom and establishment, student speech and privacy, parental choice, educational opportunity, and education reform trends such as charter schools and accountability measures.
Questions examined over the course of the semester include:
What are the most basic obligations of the state with regard to its regulation of K-12 education? What are the most basic rights of parents in this regard?
In what ways does the 1st Amendment protect - and limit - the speech and privacy rights of K-12 schoolchildren?
In what ways may the state accommodate K-12 schools with an explicitly religious character? What are the Constitutional requirements with regard to religious speech or expression within K-12 public schools?
To what degree is the principle of equality manifest in the form of educational opportunity? How has this changed over time?
In what ways have education reform trends such as charter schooling and increased accountability changed the policy landscape of K-12 education?
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30403 Church, the State, and American Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
Class examines philosophical, constitutional, and political questions pertaining to religion and politics, including: Do individuals have a right to religious liberty? If so, how might that right be protected? How does the American Constitution protect the right to religious freedom? What is the proper relationship between church and state? Is religion necessary, good, or bad for liberal democracy? Readings include selections from classical, medieval, and modern political philosophy, leading cases of American constitutional law, and contemporary legal theorist and political scientists.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30405 Early Childhood Ed Policy (3 Credit Hours)
"This course covers the various issues relevant to the current early childhood education landscape. This includes theories of early learning and child development, policy development in the United States, the issues of inequality and the achievement gap (particularly related to K-12 Education Reform) and research on interventions or "what works" in early childhood programming. The advantage to understanding the theories of child development, the policy context and the intervention research is that it gives future teachers and future policymakers a foundational premise upon which to grow, analyze, learn and teach. Topics covered will include: Theories of Child Development (Infant Schools to Present), Head Start and the CCDBG, State Preschool, Inequality and the Achievement Gap in the Early Years and Interventions in Early Childhood (HighScope/Perry Preschool, Abecedarian and Chicago Parent Studies, Head Start Research).
The goal of this class is to come away with a greater understanding of the language, the history, the goals and the possibilities in this policy area as well as its connections to other social welfare programs and to K-12 schooling. Students will become more fluent in the language of early childhood education and will gain the foundational knowledge of past and current theories, laws, policies and educational interventions."
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science, WRIT - Writing Intensive
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30406 Gay Rights and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
This course will review decisions of the U.S. Supreme court regarding the constitutional rights of homosexuals. It will assess the Court's decisions in light of (1) background theories of constitutional interpretation; (2) the principles of the American Founding; and (3) present day moral arguments for and against gay rights. Readings will consist of Supreme Court cases, selections from the Ratification debate and the philosophic writings that influenced the Founding, and the writings of present-day moral philosophers on both sides of the issues. Grades will be based on mid-term and final exams, with an optional term paper for one quarter of the course grade.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30407 Constitutional Law: Powers and Institutions (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine constitutional law and interpretation in the United States, focusing on the division of powers and the authority of key institutions under the Constitution. We will consider the Court's interpretation of the scope of power granted to Congress, the executive branch, and the federal judiciary, in addition to the powers reserved to the states. We will examine the ways in which constitutional interpretation of powers and authority has changed over time and gain an understanding of where the Court stands on these issues today. In each section we will discuss pivotal moments in interpretation, such as congressional power after the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment, the expansion of the commerce power during the New Deal, and the resurgence of state powers during the Rehnquist Court's federalism revolution. We will also deal with cases currently before the Court, including those that involve the Affordable Care Act, and cases that will likely come before the Court, such as challenges to President Obama's executive changes to immigration policy. This approach will help students to consider how political factors and the changing membership of the Court affect constitutional interpretation.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30411 US Foreign Policy in the Cold War (3 Credit Hours)
This course covers the main developments in American foreign policy from World War II through the end of the Cold War. The principal topics of investigation will be wartime diplomacy and the origins of the Cold War; the Cold War and containment in Europe and Asia; Eisenhower/Dulles diplomacy; Kennedy-Johnson and Vietnam; Nixon-Kissinger and détente; Carter and the diplomacy of Human Rights; Reagan and the revival of containment; Bush and the end of the Cold War.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30414 History of American Capitalism (3 Credit Hours)
This course offers a broad thematic overview of the history of capitalism from the early sixteenth century up to the late 1980s. As a discussion-based seminar, we will devote most of our conversations to discovering, analyzing and reflecting on the transformation of the U.S. from a newly-independent British colony, to the most influential economic power in the world. Topics and themes we will consider include: the rise of early modern transnational capitalism, European imperialism and trade, and indigenous dispossession after 1492; science and technological transformations; social and economic thought; slavery and servitude, broadly construed; and characteristics of prosperity, wealth, and economic flux.
Our readings and viewings will be a mix of scholarly and primary sources, including an abundance of canonical literary and artistic material, such as novels, visual art, and film excerpts (e.g. Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House (1879), Aaron Douglas's Building More Stately Mansions (1944), and Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence (1920)). Over the course of the semester, students will draw upon this eclectic combination of sources to synthesize the dominant historical dimensions of capitalism in and beyond the U.S. via four short essays (4 - 5 pages, double-spaced-between 1,100 and 1,400 words), and a final paper (10 - 12 pages, double-spaced) based on cumulative texts.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30417 Sexual Morality and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
The "sexual revolution" began in the Western democracies sometime between the 1920s and the 1970s. This revolution saw great changes regarding the social acceptability of fornication, divorce, contraception, pornography, abortion, homosexual sex, and gay marriage. Free-market capitalism has been a major factor in this development due to its inventions, like electronic entertainment and the pill, destruction of the family as a self-sustaining economic unit (drawing men and women out of the family farm and the home shop and into the factories and offices of urban centers), and its tendency to enhance economic growth by promoting self-indulgence and weakening moral, religious, and aesthetic restraints on consumption and production. American courts played a significant role in this development by modifying constitutional provisions originally used to protect property rights and pursue equal protection for racial minorities. Popular resentment of religious imposition via the criminal law has also been a factor since opposition to sexual liberation has come mainly from religious communities. This course surveys the mutual influence of American constitutional law and the sexual revolution in America.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30419 Free Speech (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and its interpretation in American constitutional law. Students will participate in Socratic method discussions, class debates, and moot court exercises, in which students play the role of lawyers and justices arguing a Supreme Court case. Through these activities, students will explore the freedom of speech as it relates to sedition, libel, invasion of privacy, obscenity, commercial speech, broadcasting, and the internet.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30420 Cybercrime and the Law (3 Credit Hours)
Almost all crimes, or even human interactions, contain a digital component. The fact that "old" laws don't always fit "new" problems is no more apparent than in the area of cybercrimes. This course will include discussion of topics including: the methodology of typical cyber investigations, the application of the Fourth Amendment to digital evidence, and different types of cyber-specific laws enforced today. The course will also focus on the responses of both courts and legislators to the ever-evolving issues presented by computer crimes.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30423 Philanthropy & the Common Good (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore the roots of philanthropy in American society, the role philanthropy plays within the modern economy, and how philanthropic activity helps us create a better world and strive for the common good. The key component of the course requires students to act as a Board of Directors and use thoughtful analysis to award real grants to deserving nonprofits (a sum up to $50,000). Students are expected to come to each class prepared to discuss course readings, and to offer ideas and suggestions regarding the grant making process. Each student is also expected to complete two site visits to nonprofit organizations outside of normal class hours. Students will nominate nonprofits for awards and the class will systematically discuss, analyze, and ultimately vote to award the grants. Students interested in this course who are unable to register through their major/minor should contact the instructor for permission to register.
CNST 30425 Civil Rights in America (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores the Black Freedom Struggle from the Civil Rights Movement to Black Power and into Black Lives Matter. How have African Americans mobilized to secure recognition of human dignity from the American Political system? How did the Freedom Struggle shape American culture? By studying the Civil Rights Movement in America, this class opens up conversation on the central issues of American history: race, racism, rights, and freedom.
CNST 30427 The Politics of Compliance with International Law (3 Credit Hours)
Under what conditions do governments comply with international norms? How can international courts secure respect for their orders? Because international courts lack effective means of enforcement, governments often defy their rulings. We will analyze why governments adhere to court orders and how international bodies can become more effective. We will also introduce advanced methodological tools to analyze and predict compliance. Students in the seminar will have the opportunity to participate in research projects integrated to the Notre Dame Reparations Design and Compliance Lab (NDRL). Participants will be able to use the tools acquired in the course to analyze compliance with the rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the World Bank Inspection Panel, and other international bodies.
CNST 30428 Crime, Heredity and Insanity in American History (3 Credit Hours)
This course gives students the opportunity to learn more about how Americans have thought about criminal responsibility and how their ideas have changed over time. Historians contend that the 19th century witnessed a transformation in the understanding of the origins of criminal behavior in the United States. The earlier religious emphasis on the sinfulness of all mankind, which made the murderer into merely another sinner, gave way to a belief in the inherent goodness of humankind. But if humans were naturally good, how are we to explain their evil actions? And crime rates varied widely by sex and race; European women were said to have been domesticated out of crime doing. What do those variations tell us about a common human nature? The criminal might be a flawed specimen of humankind born lacking a healthy and sane mind. Relying in part upon studies done in Europe, American doctors, preachers, and lawyers debated whether insanity explained criminality over the century and how it expressed itself in different races and sexes. Alternative theories were offered. Environment, heredity, and free will were all said to have determined the actions of the criminal. By the early 20th century, lawyers and doctors had largely succeeded in medicalizing criminality. Psychiatrists now treated criminals as patients; judges invoked hereditary eugenics in sentencing criminals. Science, not sin, had apparently become the preferred mode of explanation for the origins of crime. But was this a better explanation than what had come before? Can it explain the turbulent debates in the late 20th and early 21st Centuries over variations in crime rates by race? Can it explain why men, not women, are still more likely to commit murder?
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30429 America's Culture Wars (3 Credit Hours)
Why are Americans so divided today? What explains the fracture? Why do Americans seem to live in different worlds? Why do we see reality in such divergent ways? This course suggests we can find answers to these pressing questions in the so-called Culture Wars of the late twentieth century. In the wake of the social movements of the 1960s, Americans attempted to push culture in very different directions. Some wanted to continue a cultural revolution, whereas others sought to check the brakes on this project. As a result of the push and pull, a range of intense disputes took place in political, legal, and cultural realms. This course considers a wide range of cultural flashpoints: the rise of the religious right, the advent of queer theory, the growth of radical feminism, and the birth of critical race theory. It looks at debates over censorship and art, public mores and sexuality, gender and race, academic curriculum and decolonization. We study some of the period’s most provocative films, pieces of art, music videos, and public demonstrations. It studies events such as the AIDS crisis, the Rodney King Riots, Bill Clinton’s impeachment, and the Anita Hill hearings. It attempts to bring together a wide range of voices – conservative, liberal, secular, religious, radical, and mainstream. In the end, we will speculate if the Culture War is still raging, and how we as Americans might find commonalities in our differences, in the name of reviving our own democratic traditions.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30430 Labor in America since 1945 (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores the relationships among and between workers, employers, government policymakers, unions, and social movements since the end of World War II, as well as the ways in which those relationships have shaped and been shaped by American politics and culture more broadly. The United States emerged from the Second World War as the globe's unequaled economic and political power, and its citizens parlayed that preeminence into a long postwar economic boom that created, however imperfectly, the first truly mass middle-class society in world history. At the heart of that new society was the American labor movement, whose leaders and members ensured that at least some of the heady postwar profits made it into the wallets of workers and their families - and not just the wallets of union members, as working Americans generally experienced great improvement in wages, benefits, and economic opportunity during the quarter-century ending in 1970. During those same years, civil rights activists challenged the historic workplace discrimination that kept African Americans at the bottom of the labor market, confronting the racism of employers, unions, and the government, and inspiring others, primarily Mexican Americans and women, to broaden the push for equality at the workplace. Since that time, however, Americans have experienced a transformation in the workplace -- an erosion of manufacturing and the massive growth of service and government work; a rapid decline in number of union members and power of organized labor; and unresolved conflicts over affirmative action to redress centuries of racial and gender discrimination. Meanwhile, income inequality and wealth disparities have grown every year over the past three decades. What accounts for the decline of organized labor since 1970, and why have the people of the mythic land of milk and honey experienced declining upward mobility and widening gaps between the rich and everyone else? Are these phenomena linked? What has the decline of the labor movement meant for workers specifically, and the American economy and politics more broadly? How and why have popular perceptions of unions changed over time? What has been the relationship of organized labor to the civil rights movement, feminism, modern conservatism, and the fortunes of individual freedom more broadly? What is globalization, and what has been its impact upon American workers? Through an exploration of historical scholarship, memoirs, polemical writings, and films, this course will try to answer these questions and many others. It will also address the prospects for working people and labor unions in the twenty-first century.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30431 Media & Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Although the mass media is not formally part of the U.S. government, it is arguably the most powerful institution shaping public attitudes, creating and producing information, and communicating political information to individual citizens. Almost all exposure to politics comes not from direct experience but from mediated stories. And, with the rise of the Internet, the growth of 24-hour cable news, and the decline of the "Big Three" television networks has created, a more diffuse media environment has been created. The primary purpose of this course is to analyze the role of the media in American politics and its relationship with the public, government, and candidates for office in a democratic society.
CNST 30432 Law, Bioethics, and the Human Person (3 Credit Hours)
Law, Bioethics, and the Human Person is a discussion-based course focused on "public bioethics," defined as the governance of science, medicine, biotechnology, and the practice of medicine in the name of ethical goods. Issues covered may include the ethical, legal (including constitutional), and social dimensions of abortion, assisted reproduction, end of life decision-making, assisted suicide, research involving human subjects, commodification of the human body and its parts, advances in cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging, human embryonic stem cell research, human cloning, organ donation, the definition of death, and research involving animal-human chimeras and hybrids.
CNST 30433 Schooling, Self, and Society (3 Credit Hours)
Liberal education is one of the greatest cultural achievements of the long Western tradition. But what's the point? And what exactly do we mean by liberal education? Is it education for free people or education to make people free? A people, a group, or just the individual? Privilege or liberation? We will ask why you are pursuing a liberal education. And study where it came from, how it has developed, what are its practices, and what are its justifications. We shall divide our focus between the theory and practice of education. Theorists will include Plato and other ancient, medieval, and early modern thinkers, but we shall devote considerable time to American experiments with liberal education (proponents, critics, opponents). Here we shall read selections from Booker T. Washington, John Dewey, Mortimer Adler, but also the Brazilian Paulo Freire, bell hooks, and contemporary self-described culture warriors. On the practice side: we will consider the materials and conditions of education at various places and times. We shall also practice ourselves some of the ancient and early modern techniques (of writing, reading, memorizing, and performing).
CNST 30434 Urban Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces students to major actors, institutions, processes, and policies of substate governments in the United States. Through an intensive comparative examination of historical and contemporary politics in city governments, we will gain an understanding of municipal government and its role within the larger contexts of state and national government. Among the issues we will examine are representation, race and ethnicity, neighborhood development, and governing the multicultural metropolis.
CNST 30435 The Law of American Democracy (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine ways that law structures, promotes, and governs the practice of democracy in America. Topics include key features of the American constitution, including federalism, bicameralism, the separation of powers, and judicial review; the First Amendment and the freedoms of speech and press; voting rights, elections, parties, and campaigns; and the changes caused and challenges posted by technological and other developments.
This course will be taught by a member of the Notre Dame Law School faculty. It is designed and intended for undergraduates, without legal training, but it will be taught in a manner typical for law schools and will involve engagement with, and close reading of, legal texts.
CNST 30436 Economic Sins (3 Credit Hours)
This course is a discussion-based seminar investigating a series of “economic sins.” That is, we will explore differing perspectives on a series of controversies in economics and business, such as just or fair wages, collective action problems, exploitation, asymmetry in knowledge and leverage, inequality, sweatshops, sustainability, and cronyism. How does business in a market economy give rise to such problems? How does it, or can it, address them? What is the proper role of government with respect to such issues? Readings will draw from classical and contemporary sources in economics, philosophy, theology, political science, and business ethics, and will represent a range of perspectives. This course is part of the Business and the Common Good minor.
CNST 30437 Business & Politics in America (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, we examine the sometimes productive, sometime corrosive, relationship between business and politics in America. To do so, we will focus on the ways in which the relationship between business and politics in America has facilitated the rise of extractive forms of exchange and rent-seeking practices at the expense of genuine value creation brought about by voluntary cooperation in productive activities. Throughout the course, then, we will pay close attention to debates—philosophical, theological, political—about the determinants of value in a market economy, including the relative voluntariness of its participants, the definition of “rents” as a kind of unproductive, and so extractive, form of economic activity, and the continuing appeal—for political and business leaders alike—of exercising managerial control over the masses, i.e., their fellow citizens. To illustrate the significance of these debates, and the social implications of the answers provided by their participants, we will investigate how America’s political class has been utilized as an instrument of extraction and rent-seeking by market actors throughout our nation’s history, covering the post-war Gilded Age, the Depression and New Deal, the deindustrialization and deunionization of the American economy in the 1970s, and the globalization of trade in the 1990s. Ultimately, students will be asked to reflect on the moral significance of the ends for which political and economic power has been deployed in an era marked by the rise of big business, the emergence of mass politics, and the expansion of public power to control its citizens.
CNST 30438 Election 2024 (3 Credit Hours)
In this class, we will examine the 2024 presidential election—in real time—and then consider its effects on America's political future. Presidential elections provide the biggest and most important stage for the drama of American democracy, and in 2024 the future of our democracy will be on the ballot. For the first time since 1956, we will have the same two major-party presidential candidates who ran in the last election. However, unlike 1956, which was a rather amicable contest between two political centrists, the 2024 presidential election comes on the heels of one of the two candidates participating in a concerted effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election and each political party depicting the other as a fundamental threat to American values. We will address all of this, from the "invisible primary" in 2022 and 2023, to the actual primaries and caucuses, the conventions, and the fall campaign and election. It does not matter whether you already know a lot or a little about presidential politics; if you want a front-row seat to the 2024 presidential election, this is the class for you.
CNST 30439 Surviving the Digital Apocalypse (3 Credit Hours)
The end is nigh! Who will save us from Apple or the AI replicants or the alien invasion? If you take this class, it might just be you. Do you think you have what it takes to confront the digital leviathan with its insatiable hunger for human data? If so, you will need cutting edge survival skills and friends you can trust. This course offers both in the form of radical ideas, acts of digital rebellion and real offline friendships that cannot be reduced to a group text. It also helps to know that we’ve been here before. With each new advance in human communication technology, the cultural DNA mutates and spawns new forms of art, literature, beliefs, institutions and practices. Understanding this process is the key to surviving the upheaval. In this course, we are not optimistic or pessimistic about technology, only apocalyptic. What is being revealed and what will be required to preserve our humanity?
CNST 30440 Overcriminalization of America (1 Credit Hour)
The average American, according to one legal scholar, commits three felonies a day. In this 1-credit course, we will discuss how America’s federal criminal law has become so expansive, what dangers may arise from this expansion, and what can be done about it. During this two-week course, we will study the development of the federal criminal code and the cases underlying it. Beginning with the American Founding, we will consider the purpose of criminal law and whether America’s criminal laws and regulations have strayed from this purpose. The course will be taught by the Honorable Amul Thapar, judge on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
CNST 30441 United States Foreign Policy (3 Credit Hours)
The United States is the most powerful state in the world today. Its actions are important not just for US citizens, but they also affect whether others go to war, whether they will win their wars, whether they receive economic aid, whether they will go broke, or whether they will starve. What determines US foreign policy? What is the national interest? When do we go to war? Would you send US soldiers into war? If so, into which wars and for what reasons? How do our economic policies affect others? Does trade help or hurt the US economy and its citizens? We first study several theories about foreign policy. We then examine the US foreign policy process, including the President, Congress, the bureaucracy, the media, and public opinion. To see how this all works, we turn to the history of US foreign policy, from Washington's farewell address through the World Wars and the Cold War to the Gulf War. We then study several major issue areas, including weapons of mass destruction, trade and economics, and the environment. Finally, we develop and debate forecasts and strategies for the future.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
CNST 30442 Religion, Education, and Democracy (3 Credit Hours)
This is a course in the philosophy of education. The goal of the course is to produce a philosophy of education that engenders in the current generation of students (i.e., you) responsibility for what has been called the “American proposition.” The notion of “America” is distinct from the United States of America, but is often conflated with and conveyed by the latter. It sits at the intersection of religion, education, and democracy, an intersection at which the atrophy of each is seen by many to be caused by the values of the other. With the discipline of education as its platform and Catholicism, among other voices, as a particular conversation partner, the course examines historical, contemporaneous, and ecclesial resources, including notions of the common good, humanism, and ecological thinking, to ask, among other questions: Are religion, education, and democracy commensurable or incommensurable in such ways as to facilitate social coherence in the 21st century? If not, what accounts for decades, if not centuries, of robust educational systems designed to bolster democratic and religious institutions alike? Assuming a Catholic philosophy of education as a normative reference point (as is required for the Catholicism & the Disciplines ways of knowing attribute), we will examine what relationship religion does, can, and should have with education if the latter is fundamental to democracy while democracy itself serves as the guarantor of the former, particularly in terms of religious liberty.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines
CNST 30443 Urban Ethics (3 Credit Hours)
What are cities, and how do they work? How do present (and how will future) societies respond to the challenges of pollution, sustainable development, exploitation of natural resources, equal access to infrastructure, education and welfare, human rights, food production and distribution, and energy consumption? This course welcomes students to reflect on these questions and respond to these challenges through the emerging field of urban ethics. Through lectures and readings, we will ask: 1) Can we define an “ancient urban ethics?" 2) Which disciplines are involved in urban ethics, and what strategies—from environmental to social ethics—should inform it? 3) What policies, planning documents, and environmental and information technologies from the past and present can we avail from around the world to understand urban ethics? To ground our discussions, we will read excerpts from classical literature, philosophy, and cross-disciplinary works. We will also engage resources including maps, drawings, art, photographs, and videos. As we will discover through discussion and participation, urban ethics is a field in which everyone is involved.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
CNST 30444 Law & Economics (3 Credit Hours)
This class teaches how to use the basic tools and concepts of economics to analyze the economic effects of legal rules, regulations, and enforcement methods. Examples of this "economic approach" to the study of the law are taken from the basic bodies of law in a civil society: property law, tort law, contract law, and criminal law. The course also explores the role of the state in creating and enforcing a body of law that promotes economic growth and development.
CNST 30445 Taxation in a Global Economy (3 Credit Hours)
In this course students will explore the different corporate structures firms adopt to operate in multiple countries. A key focus will be on understanding the economic and institutional factors that influence where multinational firms locate their production, sales, and management activities. Central to these decisions are the tax policies adopted by individual countries and the role of tax havens. Students will also study how tax policies affect the general economic environment in which firms operate by affecting wages, firm investment, and firm value.
CNST 30446 Jurisprudence and the US Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
This is a course in the nature of law generally and of the task of judging (often referred to as "jurisprudence") in particular. This course will study the major conceptual schools of thought that have shaped American jurisprudence, including legal positivism, natural law jurisprudence, originalism, textualism, and pragmatism. We will also examine more general philosophical frameworks beyond the American context, including the legal thought of St. Thomas Aquinas and the British philosopher of law H.L.A. Hart.
CNST 30447 The American Presidency (3 Credit Hours)
This course provides a political science perspective on the American presidency, covering the design elements of the office, fundamental features of presidential elections, the power of the presidency, and more.
CNST 30448 Comparative Courts and the Rule of Law (3 Credit Hours)
The death of a Supreme Court Justice triggers a bitter partisan battle over the impending nomination. Is this tragedy unique to the United States? Why are political parties so eager to control the Court? This course will explore how constitutional norms seek to protect judicial independence, and how political parties "game" such constitutional norms worldwide. We will analyze episodes of "packing" and "purging" of supreme courts and constitutional tribunals in different countries. We will investigate the practice of "strategic retirement" in the US Supreme Court, the threat posed by legislative majorities to judicial independence, and the slippery slope of partisan manipulation. We will also address whether judicial purges constitute opportunities for a more balanced judiciary (for instance, in terms of gender). Comparative analysis will help us learn from the experience of other nations. This course will introduce students to basic notions of game theory and quantitative analysis.
CNST 30449 Witnessing the Sixties (3 Credit Hours)
The purpose of this interdisciplinary course is twofold: to examine the social context and cultural change of the sixties and to explore the various journalistic and aesthetic representations of events, movements, and transformations. We will focus on the manner in which each writer or artist witnessed the sixties and explore fresh styles of writing and cultural expression, such as the new journalism popularized by Tom Wolfe and the music/lyrics performed by Bob Dylan. Major topics for consideration include the counterculture and the movement--a combination of civil rights and anti-war protests.
CNST 30450 Early America Today (3 Credit Hours)
Whether it is controversies about the removal of statues, bans on teaching the New York Times’s The 1619 Project, critiques of the musical Hamilton, or originalist interpretations of the United States Constitution, early America seems to have gained new prominence in debates about the present-day United States. But why does this period—which spans four centuries from approximately 1450 to 1850—hold such meaning today? And what does this history have to teach us about our present moment? In this class, we will learn about the vast, diverse, and complex world of early America and use this knowledge to better understand current issues and events. Like Americans today, early Americans dealt with pandemics, racial injustice, political corruption, and income inequality. They adapted to changing markets, globalization, and climate change. What do their experiences have to teach us about navigating these issues in our own time.
CNST 30451 LGBTQ American History (3 Credit Hours)
How have LGBTQ people shaped modern America? And how has modern America shaped LGBTQ lives and experiences? In the popular imagination, the Stonewall Riots often mark the beginning of the modern gay rights movement and a turning point in the visibility and cultural acceptance of LGBTQ people. In this course, we will think about the longer and wider histories of LGBTQ people in the United States, tracking their cultural and political histories from the late 19th century to the historical present. We will also discuss theoretical approaches to studying the history of sexuality, including how sexual and gender categories (and people’s experiences of them) have changed over time and how they intersect with histories of race, class, religion, and region. In true American studies fashion, we will think with a wide range of primary texts—spanning across music, political zines, photography, film, law, and historical newspapers—and read interdisciplinary scholarship ranging from classics in LGBTQ history to more recent works that expand our archive of LGBTQ studies. Students will also pursue a historical research project on a topic of their own choosing, bringing their own interests and insights to the class.
CNST 30453 Executive Power (1 Credit Hour)
Since our nation’s founding, we have debated (and have increasingly litigated) the appropriate balance of power among the executive (the President), legislative (Congress), and judicial (the courts) branches of the federal government. Those debates have grown more salient and frequent in recent years. As Congress seems to retreat from its historical policymaking role, presidents increasingly fill that legislative vacuum by pushing their policy agendas through executive orders, agency action, and exercising their discretion to enforce federal laws. And many of those presidential acts have been challenged in federal court, leaving the courts to resolve thorny legal issues with profound policy implications.
This seminar will focus on the evolution of presidential power, with a focus on the 21st century. The course has two substantive goals. The first is to familiarize students with the historical aspects of presidential power. The course will cover a host of legal issues involving the president, with some attention paid to historical foundations. The second is to emphasize legal developments involving the president over the last 25 years. Whatever one thinks about any particular president, most would agree that 21st-century presidents have attempted to assert presidential power and authority in new, and oftentimes untested, ways. And by all accounts, that trend shows few signs of abating, especially in the continuing absence of legislative action. Accordingly, the course materials will emphasize legal disputes arising during the Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden Administrations.
CNST 30600 The Age of Alexander (3 Credit Hours)
Over the course of ten years in the fourth century BCE, King Alexander III of Macedon conquered more territory than any empire had ever previously controlled. His battlefield brilliance and unparalleled success, the vast scale on which he operated, his rapid rise to unimaginable power, and his early death (age 33), all combined to leave an indelible impression on his contemporaries. While Alexander barely lived long enough to rule over the empire he had gained, his military conquests engendered far-reaching political, social, cultural, and religious consequences. Historians use his death to mark the beginning of a new era, referred to today as the Hellenistic Age (323-31 BCE).
This course examines the achievements of Alexander and the impact they had on the ancient world. After placing Alexander in the Greek, Macedonian, and Persian cultural contexts in which he lived, we will trace his army's journey into Asia and back. Next, we will turn to a close study of the Hellenistic world: topics include city foundations, political and social institutions, economic developments, cultural interactions, and new directions in literature and science. Finally, we will address Alexander's legacy for Greco-Roman antiquity and beyond. Ancient authors and documents will be read in translation.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30602 Politics and Conscience (3 Credit Hours)
Against a backdrop of large-scale society, mass movements, and technological bureaucracy, the invocation of "conscience" recalls the individual human person as a meaningful actor in the political sphere. But what is conscience, and what are its rights and responsibilities? What is it about conscience that ought to command governmental respect? Are there limits to its autonomy? What role should conscience play in questions of war and peace, law-abidingness and civil disobedience, citizenship and political leadership? And how does the notion of conscience relate to concepts of natural law and natural rights, rationality and prudence, religion and toleration?
This course engages such questions through readings from the Catholic intellectual tradition (Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas More, Fransisco de Vitoria, Desiderius Erasmus, John Henry Newman, Karol Wojty'a/John Paul II, and Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI) and other writers of the history of ethical-political thought (Cicero, Seneca, John Locke, Mahatma Ghandi, Jan Pato'ka, and Alexandr Solzhenitsyn). We consider also various contemporary reflections on conscience expressed in films, essays, letters, plays, short stories, speeches, and declarations, beginning with Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" and Václav Havel's speech "Politics and Conscience."
This class serves as both the capstone course for the interdisciplinary minor Philosophy in the Catholic Tradition and an upper-level elective for Political Science majors and Peace Studies minors. Its format combines lecture and seminar-style discussion.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30604 Tudor England: Politics and Honor (3 Credit Hours)
The period from 1485 to 1603, often feted as something of a 'Golden Age' for England, saw that country undergo serious changes that challenged the traditional ways in which the nation conceived of itself. These included the break from Rome, the loss of England's foothold in France, and the unprecedented experience of monarchical rule by women. Each of these challenges demanded creative political responses and apologetic strategies harnessing intellectual resources from classical, Biblical, legal, chivalric and ecclesiastical sources. This course will examine these developments. It will also look at how the English, emerging from under the shadow of the internecine dynastic warfare of the fifteenth century, sought to preserve political stability and ensure a balance between continuity and change, and, furthermore, how individuals could use these unique circumstances to their own advantage.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30605 France: From the Old Regime to the Revolution (3 Credit Hours)
France in 1700, ruled by the Sun King, Louis XIV, was the most powerful state in Europe, as well as a cultural center that drew the attention of the world. At Versailles, just outside of Paris, Louis created a palace that symbolized his authority and still stands as a masterpiece of art and architecture. Less than a hundred years later, in 1789, the French Revolution challenged and eventually destroyed the monarchy, with Louis XVI dying on the guillotine in 1793. The course will be organized around major political developments, and seeks to understand how the monarchy could grow so powerful during the seventeenth century, and then collapse at the end of the eighteenth. It will open with the establishment of the Bourbon family on the throne in 1589 and conclude with the rise of Napoleon in 1790s, with about one-third of the class concentrating on the revolutionary events that began in 1789. Understanding the political fortunes of France will involve exploring the ways in which the nation was being transformed by a combination of social pressures and cultural conflict, in particular the Enlightenment. In addition to reading a selection of works by historians students will read, view, and listen to some of the great cultural achievements of the time - the plays of Molière, the music of Lully, the novels of Voltaire, the paintings of David, to give just some examples.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30612 The Rise and Fall of Democracies and Dictatorship (3 Credit Hours)
Winston Churchill famously said in a speech in the House of Commons in 1947, "Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those others that have been tried." For generations, social scientists have studied what makes democracy emerge and then survive or break down. And because some dictatorships have huge consequences for their own populations and the world, social scientists have also devoted considerable attention to analyzing the emergence, survival, and breakdown of authoritarian and totalitarian regimes. This course will examine these issues. The first part of the course will examine different theoretical approaches to understanding why democracies and dictatorships emerge and then survive or fall. The second and longer part will focus on the emergence, survival, and fall of democracies and dictatorships in Europe and Latin America, mostly in the 20th century.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30614 Modern Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
odernity, and what it means, has increasingly become a topic of dispute in the 20th and 21st centuries, with defenders and critics on both left and right. Yet our modern heritage continues to shape even the thought of its critics and lay the groundwork for many of our unquestioned assumptions about political, social, and moral life. This course traces the story of modern political thought from its origins in the wake of the Reformation and Renaissance to the crisis of modernity experienced at the close of the XIXth. We will survey the emergence of questions surrounding justice and the nature of the state in the early social contract theorists (Hobbes, Rousseau) before moving to discuss the increasing concern over balancing the claims of individuals, civil society, and the modern state (Kant, Hegel, Mill) that arise in the wake of the French Revolution. Finally, we will trace the emergence of liberal modernity's critics who have remained influential in even contemporary evaluations of the modern project (Marx, Nietzsche). Through the close study of both text and context, we will debate to what extent the project of liberal modernity still remains valid and whether its claims have been unsettled.
CNST 30615 Liberalism and Conservatism (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore the intellectual foundations of the constellation of ideas that have become the dominant political worldviews in modern American society. The course will focus on European sources of each tradition, as well as developments of each in America. Concepts that will be explored include progress, historicism, pragmatism, liberty, equality, diversity, cosmopolitanism, localism, tradition, prescription, authority, secularism and religion, particularly Catholicism.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30619 Democracy and Virtue? (3 Credit Hours)
“Democracy & Virtue?” investigates a simple question: Does democracy foster virtue? The class will approach this question, first, through a philosophical investigation of the nature of political regimes, including democratic regimes. This investigation will take place via a careful reading of and discussions about Plato’s Republic. The class will then turn to an examination of America as a modern constitutional democracy. Our primary text for this part of class will be Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. Additional readings from Montesquieu, The Federalist, and Catholic writers will also be introduced. Students should expect to read carefully and deliberately and to participate extensively in class, which will be conducted as a seminar conversation.
CNST 30621 Christianity/Commerce/Consumer (3 Credit Hours)
The capitalism and consumerism that now influences the entire world arose within a religious culture-that of Western Christianity-whose central figure extolled poverty and self-denial, and whose most important early missionary wrote that "the love of money is the root of all evils." How did this happen? This course takes a long-term view of the emergence of modern economic life in relationship to Christianity beginning with the upturn in commerce and the monetization of the European economy in the eleventh century and continuing through the relationship between markets and Christian morality in the Middle Ages and Renaissance. It pays particular attention to the ways in which the religio-political disruptions of the Reformation era laid the foundations for the disembedding of economics from Christian ethics and thus made possible modern Western capitalism and consumerism.
Corequisites: HIST 12390
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines, WKHI - Core History
CNST 30622 17th Century England (3 Credit Hours)
England's seventeenth century provides one of the most compelling epochs of human history, full of a cast of remarkable characters. Once Elizabeth I died in 1603, a new dynasty, the Scottish royal house, the Stuarts, came to the throne in the person of James VI & I. A new political dynamic ensued. Insoluble tensions arose between perceived licentiousness in high politics on one hand and puritan moral rigour on the other, between royal control of religion and a hankering after policies based on literal Biblical interpretation and also between a gaping royal treasury and public reluctance to contribute financially to the realm. These, and other factors, resulted in the unthinkable: the dissolution of the ties that had held English politics and society together. The Civil War (or "Great Rebellion", or "Puritan Revolution" depending on the interpretation favoured) that resulted gave rise to a welter of new constitutional ideas, religious experiments and virulent anti-Catholicism. These were all set loose as King and Parliament fought for domination of the country. We will pay particular attention to the figure of Oliver Cromwell, who came to command English politics both before and after the hitherto unimaginable public execution of the king (who many believed was God's anointed). We will also ask why the English after allowing their king to be executed and their toleration a substantial Interregnum subsequently restored Charles II, their erstwhile king's son, as monarch. Remarkable figures that we will encounter and evaluate include the Leveller John Lilburne, the poet John Milton, Praise-God Barebones (yes, that is a name) and the libidinous Samuel Pepys.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30626 Contemporary Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
A survey of some of the most influential political thinkers of the late 19th and 20th century. Topics include secularization, bureaucratization, moral pluralism, individual freedom and the place of politics in contemporary life. Readings from Mill, Nietzsche, Weber, Schmitt, Arendt, Berlin, and Strauss.
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30630 Old Regime France (3 Credit Hours)
Between 1643 and 1789, France underwent one of the most pivotal national transitions in modern European history. In the second half of the seventeenth century, Louis XIV reigned as the most powerful divine right monarch on the continent. He marshaled religious ideology, set cultural standards, pursued economic projects, and waged wars to consolidate his authority over the French and foreign powers alike. Yet, by the late eighteenth century, Louis XVI's crumbling crown gave way to the Revolution. The French ultimately dethroned the king and established a republic. Our class will explore how the French negotiated this tumultuous trajectory from subjects to citizens. We will analyze three main themes over the course of the Old Regime. First, we will wrestle with issues of modern state building including administrative reform, military campaigns, financial ventures, and expansion in the New World. Second, we will study the relationship among politics, culture, and religion as the French vacillated between critique and reform. Finally, we will probe the origins of the French Revolution. These sparks ranged from Enlightenment debates over contract theory and social privilege to the stresses of everyday life including taxes and food shortages. We will close as the revolutionaries imagined nascent citizenship on the eve of the republic. In sum, this course will ask: how did European democracy find its roots in an absolute monarchy? And how did generations of French work out this transition through their everyday lives?
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 30635 Catholicism Confronts Modernity (3 Credit Hours)
This class introduces students to the history of Catholicism since the French Revolution, focusing primarily on Europe. It examines how Catholics confronted the challenges of modernity - from liberal democracy and nationalism; to capitalism and modern science; to new political ideologies such as fascism and communism. We will explore not only how these encounters transformed the Church, but also how Catholicism itself has shaped modern politics and culture. The first part of the course begins with the nineteenth-century - culture wars - between Catholics and anticlerical forces, focusing in particular on popular devotions like the Lourdes pilgrimage and the perceived "feminization" of religion. The second part of the course shifts to the twentieth century and examines the relationship between the Catholic Church and modern political ideologies such as nationalism, fascism, communism, and democracy. The third part of the course explores modern Catholic art, literature, and film. Finally, we close by examining the more recent history of Catholicism since the transformative changes of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. Readings are drawn from a range of primary sources - including novels, speeches, Church documents, works of art, and films - as well as secondary sources by historians.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines, WKHI - Core History
CNST 30638 Foundations of Constitutional Order: Political Philosophy of Citizenship & Constitutional Government (3 Credit Hours)
This seminar-style course will examine foundational questions of constitutional order. We will begin from debates about the nature of political society among contemporary thinkers, J'rgen Habermas, Pope Benedict, John Rawls, and Carl Schmitt. We will then focus on key Ancient, Medieval, and Modern thinkers: Aristotle, Aquinas, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau, and the Federalist writers. Our aim will be to attain clarity about the questions that are fundamental to every constitutional order, especially the character of our "original" or pre-political condition, the status of war and peace, the nature of political authority and law, and the proper ends of political community. This course also serves as a gateway course for the Constitutional Studies Minor.
CNST 30639 Democracy Ancient and Modern (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the theory, practice, and development of ancient Greco-Roman democracy. Particular attention is devoted to comparing ancient with modern forms of self-rule. Among the special topics studied are the origins of Greek democracy, its advantages and disadvantages as a form of government, alternatives to democracy, and democracy as an abiding legacy of classical civilization for the modern world. Familiarity with ancient Greco-Roman history is recommended, but not required.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30640 The History of American Feminist Thought (3 Credit Hours)
This course traces American feminism from the margins of democratic thought in the eighteenth century to the center of modern political discourse and culture. Drawing on primary sources and recent scholarly work, we will investigate how the goals and meaning of feminism have changed over time, as well as how the boundaries drawn around who could and could not claim the title of "feminist" have shifted. We will approach feminism as an argument - not a received truth - responsive to contemporary historical developments and marked by divisions of race, class, sexual orientation, age, and religion. Course readings are organized around major turning points in the American feminist movement and chart significant continuities and contradictions that have animated each new wave, including questions of gender difference, economic dependence, reproductive rights, marriage, subjectivity, and citizenship.
3.000 Credit hours
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30641 Religion in American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine the many ways in which religion has been fused into American politics. In doing so, we will also explore the rising tide of secularism in the United States, which many argue has resulted from a backlash to the fusion of religion and conservative politics. Then it will turn to trying to solve the puzzle of America's religious pluralism—if religion is so politically divisive, why are Americans so accepting of (most) religions other than their own? What explains the exceptions to that acceptance? What are the implications of a secularizing America for religious pluralism?
CNST 30642 The Political Philosophy of Education (3 Credit Hours)
From Plato's Republic to Rousseau's Emile to John Dewey's Democracy and Education, political philosophers have understood that education is arguably the primary way that political and social values are articulated, realized and conveyed. In this course we will examine a variety of philosophies of education, ranging from ancient to contemporary authors, exploring contending ideas and ideals of education, with particular attention to higher education and implications for our own institution, the University of Notre Dame.
CNST 30643 Politics and Religion in a Secular Age (3 Credit Hours)
What is "secularism" and what does it mean to live in a "secular age"? These questions have become increasingly more urgent in the contemporary world as we witness the rise of religious-based political ideologies (e.g., Christian nationalism, Islamism, Hindu nationalism) that threaten the ideal of a secular modern state. This course both seeks to address these questions as well as problematize the very notion of a modern tradition of secularity in the West and beyond. By tracing the development of the concept of the "secular" from its origins in Enlightenment Christianity, we will investigate the perpetual oscillation between both the proponents of secularism and the reaction against it. In particular, this course will emphasize the reformulation of the secular ideal after the collapse of Enlightenment metaphysics and religious thought among thinkers such as Marx, Nietzsche, and Weber and contemporary American non-foundationalists such as John Rawls and Richard Rorty. Finally, we will survey the so-called "post-secularists" from both Western and Islamic traditions (Habermas, Taylor, Asad, Mahmood) in order to discuss the plausibility, or even desirability, of moving beyond the secular ideal for contemporary politics. Politics and Religion in a Secular Age: What is "secularism" and what does it mean to live in a "secular age"? These questions have become increasingly more urgent in the contemporary world as we witness the rise of religious-based political ideologies (e.g., Christian nationalism, Islamism, Hindu nationalism) that threaten the ideal of a secular modern state. This course both seeks to address these questions as well as problematize the very notion of a modern tradition of secularity in the West and beyond. By tracing the development of the concept of the "secular" from its origins in Enlightenment Christianity, we will investigate the perpetual oscillation between both the proponents of secularism and the reaction against it. In particular, this course will emphasize the reformulation of the secular ideal after the collapse of Enlightenment metaphysics and religious thought among thinkers such as Marx, Nietzsche, and Weber and contemporary American non-foundationalists such as John Rawls and Richard Rorty. Finally, we will survey the so-called "post-secularists" from both Western and Islamic traditions (Habermas, Taylor, Asad, Mahmood) in order to discuss the plausibility, or even desirability, of moving beyond the secular ideal for contemporary politics.
CNST 30644 Black Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
This course will focus on the writings of Black political thinkers in the Americas, Africa, and Europe. Through critical examination of the conditions against, and contexts within, which the political theories of these thinkers are situated, this course hopes to arrive at some understanding of the principles, goals and strategies developed to contest and redefine notions/concepts of citizenship (vis-a-vis the imperatives of race/racism and the global colonial formations), humanity, justice, equality, development, democracy, and freedom.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
CNST 30645 Core Texts in Constitutionalism & Citizenship: Economics, Politics, and Justice (3 Credit Hours)
This course in American political economy seeks to understand philosophically the relationship between politics and economics. We will begin by exploring the fundamental theories of economic life in the West through the writings of Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and Pope Leo XIII, paying particular attention to arguments for and against commercial society. We will then turn to the development of the American market and its role in shaping the character of individuals and the meaning of citizenship. Readings are drawn from, among others, Franklin, Jefferson, Hamilton, Douglass, Wilson, Dewey, and DuBois. The course will end by considering the relationship between citizen and government in the contemporary United States. Throughout, we consider the ethics of the market economy, the system of production and exchange within which we live. Are its tremendous inequalities and accumulations just? How can we cultivate moderation amid consumerism? What role do virtue and leisure play in this system? Our task is to learn to produce and purchase in the service of a good life.
CNST 30646 Economy, Divine and Human (3 Credit Hours)
Economics and theology are often thought of as competing or contradictory explanations of human nature and behavior. By beginning with the theological premise that God's creation must hold together as a coherent whole, this course will instead show how economics rightly understood can illuminate our understanding of God's providential activity in the world. We will discuss the fundamental principles and insights of economics, relate them to a philosophical and theological vision of the human person in community, and show the central implications for ethics and political economy.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines, WKIN - Core Integration
CNST 30647 Neoliberalism and the American University (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the recent history of the American university. It asks how the last four decades of political-economic restructuring often described as “neoliberalism” – skyrocketing personal debt, privatization of public goods, and more – have reshaped its social function and institutional structure, its labor struggles and relation to local communities. Through readings in critical university studies, ethnic studies, and American literature, we will build a conceptual vocabulary to critically engage these transformations and, in the process, ask fundamental questions about the modern university: what it is, who it is for, and what it might yet be.
CNST 30648 Decolonial Theories (3 Credit Hours)
How do we define decolonization and/or decoloniality? What is the nature of the colonial condition these concepts seek to remedy? Decolonization and decoloniality have become a metaphor for decentering the hegemonic structure of Eurocentrism and re-positioning normative epistemologies and ontologies to include subaltern and marginalized ways of knowing, being, and doing. This course is a critical interrogation of the theories, philosophies, processes, and accounts of colonialism/coloniality and decolonization/decoloniality. The aim is to chart critical paths to rethinking the meaning and impact of these concepts. By interrogating how normative concepts, ideas, theories, and philosophies affirming the legitimacy of colonialism were employed and deployed to subjugate, exploit, and dominate colonized subjects, the course affirms a critical practice that opens new spaces for rethinking the meaning of decolonization. In this course, we will survey the core texts that have spurred decolonial theories and movements in Africa and the Americas. However, given that decolonial discourse now touches on nearly every aspect of society — past, present, and future — the topics covered in this course will by no means be exhaustive, but are designed to open intellectual space for renewed debates about the meaning and conceptual boundaries of decolonial theories.
CNST 30649 Commercial Society and the Common Good: Classic Texts (3 Credit Hours)
The last three centuries have seen the worldwide rise of Commercial Society and Democracy, creating the distinctively modern culture we now inhabit, and that inhabits us. This distinctive modernity has inspired both celebration and critique, the subjects of this seminar. The seminar emphasizes depth over breadth, exploring with intensity and leisure a very few works of deep cultural significance. The works chosen will vary from semester to semester to reflect faculty and student interests. Possible choices range from economic and social analysis to works of outstanding aesthetic distinction. For fall 2024, the seminar will focus on Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, and Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina.
CNST 30650 Introduction to Economics and Catholic Thought (3 Credit Hours)
In this course we will discuss the relationship between economics and Catholic social teaching. We will learn about key principles in Catholic social thought, read key Papal encyclicals and other writings. We will then discuss key economic concepts and empirical facts known from the field of economics, and how these relate to Catholic social teaching. Finally, we will apply these ideas to discussions on labor, capital, finance, the environment, globalization, and development.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines, WRIT - Writing Intensive
CNST 30651 Moderation in an Immoderate Age (1 Credit Hour)
With the rise of political and ideological extremism in recent decades, there have been renewed calls for moderation in politics. Yet, these appeals often seem more platitudinal than substantive. After all, what even is moderation? Is it simply a passive, unoffensive, middle-of-the-road approach to politics? Or is there a more robust understanding (and tradition) of political moderation worth recovering?
In this one-credit course, we will think about moderation as an important *virtue* in politics, especially in the liberal democratic context. After defining what it is exactly, by reading contemporary authors Aurelian Craiutu and Harry Clor, we will discuss a philosophical case for moderation through readings by Aristotle, Edmund Burke, and Michael Oakeshott. Then, we will consider a theological grounding for moderation within Christian political thought, reading selections from Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Blaise Pascal, Alexis de Tocqueville, and John Paul II. Finally, we will bring the conversation closer to home by discussing the appropriateness of moderation in response to an extreme injustice like slavery through a consideration of the varying perspectives (and actions) of Abraham Lincoln and William Lloyd Garrison.
CNST 30652 Rulers and Rebels (3 Credit Hours)
Russia under the tsars was a vast empire, a land of stunning achievement and immense inequality, mired in backwardness yet also a laboratory of modernity. Through works of scholarship, art, and cinema, and writings by Russians from the 18th to the early 20th centuries, we will explore how women and men, peasants and aristocrats, conservatives and revolutionaries, experienced the power and contradictions of the Romanov empire. This is a seminar. There will occasional lectures, but mostly we will have oral discussions about the readings, Russian historical films, and works of art that depict the everyday life of diverse groups in imperial Russian society. There are many ways of knowing the world - scientific, artistic, and other ways. Ours will be historical. This means that we will examine how the totality of life changed over time. We will consider the past from many angles, for instance, politics, culture, and the social order. We will discuss interpretations proposed by historians, analyze the primary sources on which they are based, and construct our own interpretations. We will not render facile judgments on the people of the past, but we will also explore what their legacy means for us today. We will examine imperial Russian history from three distinct perspectives: - What do we know about the actual course of imperial Russian history? - What are the original sources on which our knowledge is based? - What role do artistic representations of this era play in modern Russian culture?
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
CNST 30653 Southern Constitutionalism and the American Tradition (1 Credit Hour)
This course will explore major constitutive questions that shaped southern thinking about the political/governmental structure in the United States, principally in the post-Revolution period and in the 19th century. Among the significant questions to be explored is whether emerging southern ideas about American constitutionalism derived from founding American principles or were a departure from them. Special consideration will be given to: the historical context that prompted southern ideas and movements; the purposes for which initiatives were introduced; developing southern ideas about federalism and government authority; key southern political leaders that merit attention; the challenge of slavery as a constitutional and political question; the drive that led southerners to secession and civil war in the mid-19th century; and the constitutional framework of the Southern Confederacy.
CNST 30654 Business and the Common Good (3 Credit Hours)
This seminar focuses on the place of wealth and commerce in a well-ordered life, both for the individual and the community. Among other topics, the course takes a special interest in the rich Catholic tradition of reflection on these topics, especially the Catholic social teaching relevant to business that has emerged in the last two centuries.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKIN - Core Integration, WRIT - Writing Intensive
CNST 30655 Faith & Power: Religion, Politics, and Nationalism in a Secular Age (3 Credit Hours)
This course investigates how religion influences what Americans think about politics and how they are involved in public life, including political participation and volunteering and community service. We will examine, for example, how and why religion influences positions on controversial social and political issues, such as abortion and immigration. And how the relation between religion and politics in American society has changed from the Christian Right and Ronald Reagan to Donald Trump, evangelicals, and Christian Nationalism. At the organizational level, the course seeks to understand what religious congregations are doing for their communities and how they are active in political life, such as mobilizing protest, inviting political speakers, talking about politics, or organizing voter registration drives. The analysis will pay close attention to religious tradition differences, including investigating whether and why evangelical Protestants differ in involvement in civic and political life compared to Catholics, Black Protestants, mainline Protestants, or the nonreligious. By investigating the social roots of the relation of religion and politics, the course will shed light on the complex and shifting relationship between religion and public life in the United States.
CNST 30656 Biblical Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
This course takes a Great Books approach, placing the primary text and its interpretation at the center. Unlike some other works of political philosophy, the Hebrew Bible primarily makes its arguments through narrative, although other styles (law, oratory, poetry, etc.) are also integral to the biblical corpus. Thus in order to understand the ideas these texts hope to teach us, students must be familiarized with both the narrative itself and the tools that the narrative uses to convey ideas. The course therefore follows the principal biblical narrative--the history of Israel from Genesis to Kings--which spans the first half of the Hebrew Bible. Students will learn the story of the rise and fall of the ancient Israelite kingdom and analyze the political concepts that are deployed by the text as they arise in the narrative.
CNST 30657 Catholicism, Sex, Law, and Politics (3 Credit Hours)
In an age of growing polarization, how should human beings relate to one another, as members of families, social communities, professional callings, and civil society? This course explores ways that Catholic theology and Western political thought, particularly feminist thought, can engage each other on a fundamental aspect of human relationships: sexual difference. Though these traditions are often in tension, conversation between them will richly inform our study of the course’s core questions: How should we think about sexual difference, and how ought contemporary men and women live and work together in the family and the public sphere? We will take an interdisciplinary and historical approach, moving from the earliest days of Christianity through the medieval, Enlightenment, and modern periods and culminating in the present day. Theological sources will be drawn from Scripture, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, papal encyclicals, and writings of various Catholic theologians and philosophers. We will bring these sources into dialogue with ancient and modern political thinkers, their relationship to the tradition of feminist thought (with particular focus on first and second wave feminism), and constitutional law. Throughout the course, we will study underlying theories that inform our core questions: ideas about human nature, the meaning of sexual difference, equality, freedom, marriage and the family, human rights, and the ends of government and law.
We will aim to discover areas of compatibility between Catholicism, as a tradition of faith seeking understanding, and feminism, considered as a philosophical, political, and legal movement centrally concerned with sexual difference and its implications. The course will conclude with discussion of contemporary American debates about the relationship and roles of the sexes in marriage & the family, the home, the workplace, and public life. Students will learn both how to distinguish the modes of thought that characterize theology and political science as disciplines, and how to integrate them in order to draw conclusions about reality. They should emerge from the course not only well-formed in their own views on our focal questions, but able to engage robustly and charitably with perspectives that differ from their own.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines
CNST 30658 Rich, Poor, and War (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the interrelationships between economic injustice and violence. We begin by delineating two basic understandings of the nature of violence, that set out by Catholic social teaching and that which is dominant in American thought and law. We then investigate the gap between rich and poor both in the U.S. and worldwide. In the body of the course, we address the ways in which economic disparity intersects with the problem of violence in a wide range of social spheres, from the economic (workplace conditions), to the international political realms (terrorism, war, and revolution) to the domestic (domestic violence and sexual assault). In each case, we will examine various Christian responses to violence, from encouragement and fomentation to conciliation and forgiveness.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKDT-Core Devlopment. Theology
CNST 30659 Leadership & Virtue (3 Credit Hours)
What is effective leadership? What insights might philosophical texts and the experience of seasoned leaders give us? In this course, we will read and discuss the writings of Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas on ethics and virtue. As a counterpoint, we will read Machiavelli’s The Prince, which seems to have been written in reaction to a virtue-centered approach to leadership. A key component of the course will be to hear from accomplished leaders in various fields—business, education, the military, and non-profit organizations—to test our philosophical reflections against the actual experiences of successful leaders. Students will be asked to read the assigned texts thoughtfully, engage in class discussion, and write several short reflection papers and one longer paper.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
CNST 30660 The Abolition of Man (1 Credit Hour)
This course will examine how the very concept of being human has been transformed and confused over the last two hundred years. Beginning with a discussion of the themes set forth in C. S. Lewis’s book, "The Abolition of Man," the course will engage with a variety of texts from the nineteenth century onwards and reflect upon the impact of (and connections between) material conditions (e.g. technology) and philosophical ideas (e.g., transhumanism) on the deep questions of what it means to be a human being. It will also reflect upon how Christianity is challenged by these but also offers a cogent response.
CNST 30662 Faith and Human Flourishing (3 Credit Hours)
What does it mean to live a good life, to flourish as a human being? What does faith have to do with it? This "everyday ethics" course begins by resituating morality into the context of true happiness. We then examine various virtues, with attention to how the virtuous life is distinctive in the context of the Christian faith. We examine some particular issues (alcohol use, sexuality, end of life decisions), but our main emphasis is on how to live virtuous, fulfilling everyday lives, with careful attention to the difference faith makes in doing so.
CNST 30663 Artificial Intelligence and Human Flourishing (3 Credit Hours)
Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming society, impacting how we live as individuals and communities. This course will examine the issues raised by AI from the perspective of the Catholic understanding of the human person, Catholic theological anthropology. The course will particularly focus on how to ensure that AI promotes rather than prevents human flourishing. In the process of exploring those broad concerns, the course will address specific issues related to AI, such as whether AI could be a person, relationships with chatbots, surveillance capitalism, the implications of Catholic Social Teaching for AI, AI in warfare, bias, transhumanism, and the impacts of social media.
CNST 30664 Meat, Markets, Medicines, and Other Moral Issues (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces students to important concepts, positions, and debates in applied ethics. The course begins with a primer on normative ethics. Students are introduced to two major views in normative ethics: consequentialism and deontology. These positions reflect two contrasting answers to the question as to what makes our actions right or wrong, and what we owe to one another, morally speaking. The remainder of the course tackles real-world ethical issues, and proceeds in four parts. PART I: We engage with questions concerning the ethics of eating meat. Given the huge amounts of animal suffering found in the meat industry, are we morally required to become vegans? PART II: We critically consider the moral problems raised by certain kinds of markets, including the black market in human organs, and the use of surrogacy, and sweatshops. PART III: In the third part of the course, we investigate core issues in the ethics of medicine. One such issue concerns the shape that a state’s organ donation system ought to take; should such systems be opt-in, or opt-out? PART IV: The course concludes by examining matters of justice; for example, issues of global justice raised by widespread poverty, and justice in the distribution of educational opportunities.
CNST 30700 Citizenship & Constitutional Government Core Texts I: Classical & Christian Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
The "Core Texts in Citizenship & Constitutional Government'' course sequence offers a select group of students an opportunity to study some of the seminal texts in history and philosophy of constitutional government.
Department approval required.
CNST 30701 Citizenship & Constitutional Government Core Texts II: Modern Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
The "Core Texts in Citizenship & Constitutional Government'' course sequence offers a select group of students an opportunity to study some of the seminal texts in history and philosophy of constitutional government.
CNST 30702 Liberal Education and Citizenship (3 Credit Hours)
This class aims to understand liberal education—the ancient idea that learning is valuable for its own sake—and its relation to the human capacity to live freely. Can the pursuit of the truth make us better citizens, improve our character, or perhaps even save our souls? Or does civic piety only trap us deeper in the Cave? As students and teachers of both the liberal arts and politics, these are existential questions. Once liberal education was thought the characteristic marker of the leisured, ruling class, making it aristocratic, not democratic. To better understand whether liberal education offers something that the American democratic republic needs, this class traces its history: developing from Plato and Aristotle to the medieval university and the Renaissance humanists, it undergoes a profound critique in the early modern period and finds an uneasy home in the modern Western research university. While this model has come under repeated attack, it remains prestigious and envied across the world. Along the way, we will ask whether the university is necessarily secular or religious and consider Notre Dame's Catholic mission. In the context of today's opposition between populists and elitists, can elite graduates serve the common good?
CNST 33200 Behind the Iron Curtain (3 Credit Hours)
Was the Soviet Union a "workers' paradise" or an "evil empire?" Nearly three decades after this country transformed into what we now call "post-Soviet space," the legacy of the USSR looms large in international politics and culture. This course will offer students an introduction to Soviet history through film, which Lenin famously called "the most important of the arts," and literature, which Soviet writers used to "engineer human souls." Since the 1917 Revolution, art has had a close relationship to the Soviet state. At the same time, writers and filmmakers with individualistic and even rebellious tendencies have created some of the twentieth century's greatest masterpieces, including Dziga Vertov's Man With a Movie Camera and Mikhail Bulgakov's Master and Margarita. In this class we will explore how this tense relationship between art and the state developed in the first half of the twentieth century. Since cultural context is an important lens for our analysis, each artistic work will be accompanied by historical readings about the period in which it was produced, as well as artistic manifestos and contemporary reviews, when relevant. All films will be shown with subtitles and all readings offered in English. Students of the Russian language have the option of discussing the course material in Russian once a week with the instructor in a group for an additional course credit.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKAL - Core Art & Literature
CNST 33900 The American Dream & the American Constitution: The Life & Jurisprudence of SCJ Clarence Thomas (1 Credit Hour)
This one-credit course aims to explore the life and work of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, one of the most significant living public figures in America. The course focuses on Mr. Thomas's own words, including his writings about his own life and his Supreme Court opinions. The course will address leading themes in American politics, including race, class, gender, and constitutional law. It is open to Notre Dame students by approval of the instructor.
The course involves three sessions with Justice Thomas and a session with Michael and Gina Pack, the documentary film makers of Created Equal. Students will also attend the on-campus presentation of Created Equal by the Packs as well as Justice Thomas's on-campus lecture.
CNST 33901 Church, State, and the American Supreme Court (1 Credit Hour)
This one-credit course aims to explore fundamental First Amendment issues. Co-taught by Prof. Phillip Muñoz and Judge Amul Thapar (U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit), the course will address leading themes in American politics including religious freedom and the relationship between church and state.
Class meetings include:
5 Class sessions of 100 minutes each - Tuesday 8:15-9:55pm (Aug. 30, Sept. 6, 13, 20, 27)
2 Public class events of 120 minutes each
CNST 33902 Race and American Constitutionalism (1 Credit Hour)
By the end of June 2023, the American Supreme Court will hand down a decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. The case is likely to be one of the most consequential decisions on race and the American Constitution in recent history. This one-credit course will examine the decision and its various opinions. Prior Supreme Court precedents on affirmative action and the larger legal and political issues surrounding the case will also be addressed.
The course will be co-taught by the Honorable Amul Thapar, judge on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and Prof. Vincent Phillip Muñoz.
CNST 36001 Directed Readings (1-3 Credit Hours)
This one-credit Directed Readings section is for graduating seniors in the CNST minor who have not yet taken the gateway course. It will meet during the first 4-5 weeks of the spring semester (exact schedule TBD). Please email Tyler Castle (tcastle2@nd.edu) for more information and approval.
CNST 40001 Civil Liberties (3 Credit Hours)
Most courses in constitutional law narrate the Supreme Court's evolving positions on constitutional rights and institutions. This course starts not with the Supreme Court but with the <i>Federalist Papers</i>, from which it develops a general theory of the social and economic goals or ends of constitutional government in America. It then uses this theory as a framework for assessing the Supreme Court's position on property rights, race relations, personal privacy, and the place of religion in American life. This exercise can yield results that make for lively class discussion, not only about the Court, but about the adequacy of the Constitution itself. Grades will be based on a midterm and a final exam, with a paper option in lieu of the final.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 40003 Political Disappointment in the 20th Century (3 Credit Hours)
This seminar explores literature and culture connected with 20th-century US social movements and their periodic failures. The 20th century included periods when major expansions in American democracy seemed possible, even inevitable. But these periods often ended without delivering on their transformative potential. In this class, we will analyze political disappointment and disillusion as it turns up in fiction and poetry, journalism and memoir, music and film, feminist best sellers and classics of psychoanalytic theory, by Ralph Ellison, Sigmund Freud, Audre Lorde, Tillie Olsen, Ezra Pound, Adrienne Rich, Nina Simone, Richard Wright, and others. In all of this, we will explore how individuals and collectives work to produce political meaning in and out of season. Course requirements will include two substantive essays, presentations, and active participation in online and in-class discussions.
CNST 40606 Race and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
Was the American Constitution originally a pro-slavery constitution that changed over time to a constitution that outlawed slavery and state-supported racial discrimination? Did the Civil War and subsequent developments through the civil rights acts of the 1960's represent a commitment implicit in constitutional principles from the nation's beginning? Do these constitutional principles embrace active governmental efforts to achieve an equal-opportunity society, including equal educational opportunity and an end to racism, a "private" attitude? Do constitutional principles promise a color-blind society? Or do they promise no more than color-blind governments? This course addresses these questions. Readings will include state documents like the Declaration of Independence and The Federalist Papers, the speeches of American politicians and other public figures, and decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court regarding slavery, public accommodations, education, voting, housing, and employment. Grades will be based on mid-term and final exams. Texts TBA.
CNST 43001 Citizenship and the American Novel (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore how civic life is represented in American fiction. We will take up questions of form and style as they relate to distinctive visions of the common good in such novels as Nathaniel Hawthorne's House of the Seven Gables, Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, Henry Adams's Democracy: An American Romance, Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, Katherine Anne Porter's Pale Horse, Pale Rider, Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, and Chang-Rae Lee's Native Speaker.
CNST 43002 Abraham Lincoln's Political and Constitutional Thought (3 Credit Hours)
We will study the political thought and statesmanship of Lincoln. We will pay special attention to his constitutional thought and action and examine whether he provides a valid model of constitutionalism in times of emergency. Readings will include Lincoln's works and historical studies of the Lincoln era. We will also view and discuss a number of film portrayals of Lincoln.
CNST 43604 Radical Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course is a consideration of classic, politically Left texts in modern political theory that pose direct challenges to liberal theories of democracy: socialism and anarchism. Typical readings from: Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Luxemburg, Gramsci, Lukács, Godwin, Proudhon, Bakunin, and Kropotkin.
Enrollment is limited to students with a minor in Constitutional Studies.
CNST 43607 Catholicism and Empire (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores the historical relationship between the Catholic Church and the rise and fall of European overseas empires since the sixteenth century. We will consider how Catholic missionaries both reinforced and resisted colonial power structures; how the Church made sense of racial, religious, and cultural differences in its efforts to evangelize colonial subjects; how African, Asian, and Latin American Catholics developed their own distinctive spiritual practices; and how Catholics in both Europe and its former colonies grappled with the challenge of decolonization and how to undo the legacies of colonialism within the Church itself. Readings will be drawn from a range of sources, including missionary diaries and manuals, memoirs, artwork, papal encyclicals, films, novels, works of theology, and historical scholarship.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines, WKHI - Core History
CNST 46001 Directed Readings (3 Credit Hours)
Independent study for Constitutional Studies minors.
International Security Studies (ISS)
ISS 10200 International Relations (3 Credit Hours)
This course provides an introduction to the study of international relations. It covers several approaches to and issues in the field, including theories of international politics, war, nuclear weapons, terrorism, trade, finance, globalization, international law and human rights, and the environment.
Corequisites: POLS 22200
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
ISS 30201 United States Foreign Policy (3 Credit Hours)
The United States is the most powerful state in the world today. Its actions are important not just for US citizens, but they also affect whether others go to war, whether they will win their wars, whether they receive economic aid, whether they will go broke, or whether they will starve. What determines US foreign policy? What is the national interest? When do we go to war? Would you send US soldiers into war? If so, into which wars and for what reasons? How do our economic policies affect others? Does trade help or hurt the US economy and its citizens? We first study several theories about foreign policy. We then examine the US foreign policy process, including the President, Congress, the bureaucracy, the media, and public opinion. To see how this all works, we turn to the history of US foreign policy, from Washington's farewell address through the World Wars and the Cold War to the Gulf War. We then study several major issue areas, including weapons of mass destruction, trade and economics, and the environment. Finally, we develop and debate forecasts and strategies for the future.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
ISS 30210 US National Security Policymaking (3 Credit Hours)
This course serves as a gateway for subsequent coursework in international security. It is a required course in the Notre Dame International Security Center's undergraduate certificate program requirements, but it is also appropriate for, and open to, any Notre Dame students interested in U.S. national security policymaking. It will begin with an account of the history and development of U.S. national security policy from the Founding through the present. Next, it examines the current state of the primary institutions involved in U.S. national security policymaking. Finally, it explores the tools and instruments of military statecraft as applied by the United States. The course culminates with a simulation exercise in which students will role-play key participants in the U.S. national security policymaking process. At a minimum, that students will gain from it the analytical tools, historical knowledge, and current-events background to become more informed citizens, particularly with respect to important national debates about when and how our country should use military force. At a maximum, the course may lead some students to become interested enough in the topic to pursue a career in either the practice or the study of U.S. national security policy. The current draft version of the syllabus is posted at https://www3.nd.edu/~dlindley/handouts/ND_NDISC_cert_gateway_syl.pdf.
ISS 41901 US Intelligence and Foreign Policy Decision-Making (1 Credit Hour)
This course is a one-credit, three week examination of the intelligence community's role in national security policymaking.
Political Science (POLS)
POLS 10000 Why Political Science? (1 Credit Hour)
What is political science? We will cover the major requirements, minors and programs, internship opportunities, and ways to get involved in the political science department. To get a better sense of the discipline, students will learn about the major (sub)fields in political science including American Politics, International Relations, Comparative Politics, Political Theory, and Political Methodology. Guest lecturers from each field will allow students to meet with prominent political scientists and learn more about their subfields. This course will also provide students with an opportunity to discern their academic and professional interests in political science.
POLS 10001 Political Science Today (3 Credit Hours)
What is political science? What is the difference between political science and politics? How does learning about political science inform political opinions? To better understand the discipline, students will learn about the major fields (or topics) in political science including American Politics, International Relations, Comparative Politics, Political Theory, and Political Methodology. This course will also allow students to discern their academic and professional interests in political science. For political science majors, this course fulfills the 1-credit Why Pols? Major requirement.
POLS 10100 American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course surveys the basic institutions and practices of American politics. The goal of the course is to gain a more systematic understanding of American politics that will help you become better informed and more articulate. The course examines the institutional and constitutional framework of American politics and identifies the key ideas needed to understand politics today. The reading and writing assignments have been designed not only to inform you, but also to help develop your analytic and research skills. The themes of the course include the logic and consequences of the separation of powers, the build-in biases of institutions and procedures, the origins and consequence of political reforms, connections between demographics and politics, and recent changes in American politics in the 21st century. This semester we will emphasize the significance of the upcoming elections. Although the course counts toward the Political Science major and will prepare prospective majors for further study of American politics, its primary aim is to introduce students of all backgrounds and interests to the information, ideas, and academic skills that will enable them to understand American politics better.
Corequisites: POLS 22100
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 10101 Keeping The Republic (3 Credit Hours)
Back in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked what kind of government the new American Constitution created. He responded, "a republic, if you can keep it." Today, many people are asking whether the republic-and thus democracy in America-as we know it will survive. Trust is low, polarization is high, and longstanding democratic norms are being shattered left and right. Some scholars have even suggested that the US is on the brink of a new civil war. Others, however, argue that things are not as bad as they seem.
This course tackles the big questions about current state of democracy in the United States. Is the US actually a democracy? (And is that different than a republic?) If so, how, when, and why did it become a democracy? Will the US remain a democracy? Finally, what role can YOU play in keeping the republic?
This course is designed for students of all backgrounds and majors. Whether you have thought a lot or a little about the state of democracy in America, you are welcome in this class.
Corequisites: POLS 22101
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 10200 International Relations (3 Credit Hours)
This course provides an introduction to the study of international relations. It covers several approaches to and issues in the field, including theories of international politics, war, nuclear weapons, terrorism, trade, finance, globalization, international law and human rights, and the environment.
Corequisites: POLS 22200
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 10400 World Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Comparative politics is the study of world politics. More technically, it is the subfield of political science that uses the comparative method to study the politics within nations. The focus on politics within nations distinguishes comparative politics from international relations, another subfield of political science concerned with studying politics across nations – e.g. diplomacy, war, trade, international organizations. This course introduces students to big questions in comparative politics that are also of fundamental relevance for the world today. We will examine theories and evidence concerning three themes: States and Political Regimes, Democracy (its emergence, quality and erosion), and Development. The course focuses on substance, but we will also evaluate the quality of the evidence and theoretical logic underpinning influential ideas in comparative politics. Though the course is organized around questions, the readings and lectures will often draw on the experience of individual countries. We will also read widely, covering political science, history, economics, sociology, evolutionary biology and anthropology, and draw on specialized readings as well as clips and pieces aimed at a broader audience.
Corequisites: POLS 22400
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 10600 Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
This course is an introduction to political theory as a tradition of discourse and as a way of thinking about politics. The course surveys selected works of political theory and explores some of the recurring themes and questions that political theory addresses. This introductory course fulfils the political theory breadth requirement for the political science major.
Corequisites: POLS 22600
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
POLS 12200 International Relations Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Discussion Section for International Relations.
Corequisites: POLS 10200
POLS 12400 Introduction to Comparative Politics Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Discussion section for corequisite Comparative Politics.
Corequisites: POLS 10400
POLS 12600 Political Theory Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Students need to register for the required corequisite lecture, POLS 10600 "Political Theory" to be enrolled in this class.
Corequisites: POLS 10600
POLS 13181 Social Science University Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
A seminar for first-year students devoted to an introductory topic in political science in which writing skills are stressed.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: USEM - University Seminar, WKSS - Core Social Science
Students in the Holy Cross College or St. Mary's College colleges may not enroll.
POLS 13196 Honors Seminar: The Politics of Artificial Life: AI, Genetic Engineering, and Pandemics (3 Credit Hours)
By reading science fiction and political philosophy born of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818), we will investigate the complex ethics and politics of making artificial forms of life through the interventions of human culture, science, and technology in the wider environment. We will focus on three critical 21st-century manifestations of human-made or artificial life: genetic engineering of children through CRISPR-Cas9 and other biotechnologies; making artificial intelligence as smart as or smarter than humans; and the spread and exacerbation of viral zoonotic pandemics through global systems of economics and politics.
POLS 20100 American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
The purpose of this course is for students to become familiarized with American government. First, we will explore the structure of government including the origins of democracy, the founding of The United States, and the components of our Constitution. Secondly, we will discuss the connection between the structure of government and those who govern. This political linkage includes public opinion, political parties, the media, and voting and elections. Thirdly, we will review the three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. Finally, we will address what government does – i.e., laws, policies, and executive action. Throughout this semester, we will stay current on our knowledge of breaking news and politics; watching or reading the news is a requirement for our success in understanding how our government works. In short, the class is organized into four sections: (1) the structure of government, (2) political linkage, (3) the branches of government, and (4) the role of government.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 20101 Keeping The Republic (3 Credit Hours)
Back in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked what kind of government the new American Constitution created. He responded, "a republic, if you can keep it." Today, many people are asking whether the republic-and thus democracy in America-as we know it will survive. Trust is low, polarization is high, and longstanding democratic norms are being shattered left and right. Some scholars have even suggested that the US is on the brink of a new civil war. Others, however, argue that things are not as bad as they seem.
This course tackles the big questions about current state of democracy in the United States. Is the US actually a democracy? (And is that different than a republic?) If so, how, when, and why did it become a democracy? Will the US remain a democracy? Finally, what role can YOU play in keeping the republic?
This course is designed for students of all backgrounds and majors. Whether you have thought a lot or a little about the state of democracy in America, you are welcome in this class.
Corequisites: POLS 22101
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 20200 International Relations (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces the major questions, theories, and topics in the study of international relations. The course is divided in three parts. The first part focuses on the main schools of international relations theory and how they understand the effects of anarchy on the international system. The second part covers major topics in the study of international relations in two issues areas. We will first examine topics in international security pertaining to the causes, conduct, and mitigators of violence among state and non-state actors. We will then focus on topics in international political economy, such as the distributive effects of trade, the rise of finance, economic development, among others. The last part of the course centers on the future of world order. We will study how key stakeholders of the international system define and articulate their interests in a world where power is increasingly diffused.
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Evaluate critically the readings by examining the logic, data, and conclusions presented by the author(s).
- Understand the assumptions and conclusions of the main schools of international relations theory regarding the effects of anarchy in the international system.
- Isolate the main sources of peace and conflict in international politics.
- Identify which international actors, institutions, and processes shape world politics.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 20400 World Politics: An Introduction to Comparative Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Comparative politics is the study of world politics. More technically, it is the subfield of political science that uses the comparative method to study the politics within nations. The focus on politics within nations distinguishes comparative politics from international relations, another subfield of political science concerned with studying politics across nations – e.g. diplomacy, war, trade, international organizations. This course introduces students to big questions in comparative politics that are also of fundamental relevance for the world today. We will examine theories and evidence concerning three themes: States and Political Regimes, Democracy (its emergence, quality and erosion), and Development. The course focuses on substance, but we will also evaluate the quality of the evidence and theoretical logic underpinning influential ideas in comparative politics. Though the course is organized around questions, the readings and lectures will often draw on the experience of individual countries. We will also read widely, covering political science, history, economics, sociology, evolutionary biology and anthropology, and draw on specialized readings as well as clips and pieces aimed at a broader audience.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 20600 Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
This course is an introduction to political theory as a tradition of discourse and as a way of thinking about politics. The course surveys selected works of political theory and explores some of the recurring themes and questions that political theory addresses, especially the question of justice. This introductory course fulfils the political theory breadth requirement for the political science major.
Corequisites: POLS 22600
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
POLS 22100 American Politics Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Discussion section for corequisite American Politics.
POLS 22101 Keeping The Republic Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
This is the Friday discussion section, a corequisite for our new course POLS 20101 Keeping the Republic.
POLS 22200 International Relations Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Discussion section for corequisite International Relations.
Corequisites: POLS 10200
POLS 22400 World Politics: An Introduction to Comparative Politics Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Discussion section for corequisite Comparative Politics.
Corequisites: POLS 10400
POLS 22600 Political Theory Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
Discussion section for corequisite Political Theory.
Corequisites: POLS 10600
POLS 30005 The United States Congress (3 Credit Hours)
This course is a comprehensive introduction to the workings of the contemporary U.S. Congress. We will examine who runs for and who wins seats in Congress, the lawmaking processes in the House and Senate, and the roles of parties and leaders in the two chambers. The purpose of this course is to examine two fundamental questions: (1) what do members of Congress do and why and (2) how do the individual and collective actions of members of Congress explain national policy? We will examine the process of legislating as well as the role of political parties, leaders, and interest groups. Throughout the semester, we will debate the common criticism that “Congress is broken” and consider its effectiveness as an institution. Is policymaking too partisan? Is the public’s disapproval of Congress justified?
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 30007 Reading Trump's America (3 Credit Hours)
One of the ironies of the Trump era is that a president who disdains reading has elicited an onslaught of books about his time and his administration. Memoirs of the white working class. Manifestos of political resistance. Studies of authoritarianism and populism. Tracts on the future of liberalism and conservatism. Works on race and protest. Meditations on truth. Debates over immigration. Studies of gender and identity. Investigations of White House mayhem. Works on the future of democracy itself. This seminar is a journalistic and intellectual exploration of some major political and cultural debates from the past four years, through the books that have grappled with them.
POLS 30010 American Political Parties (3 Credit Hours)
Political parties play many vital roles in American politics: They educate potential voters about political processes, policy issues, and civic duties. They mobilize citizens into political activity and involvement. They provide vital information about public debates. They control the choices--candidates and platforms that voters face at the ballot box. They influence and organize the activities of government officials. Most importantly, by providing a link between government and the governed, they are a central mechanism of representation. These roles--how well they are performed, what bias exists, how they shape outcomes, how they have changed over time--have consequences for the working of the American political system.
Prerequisites: (POLS 10100 or POLS 10098 or POLS 20100)
POLS 30021 Women and American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, students will learn about the role of gender in American politics by examining women voters, candidates, and officeholders. The first part of the course will center around women voters, including both the struggle for suffrage and women's voting choices today. The second part of the course will center around women who seek and hold political office, both how they gain political office and what they do once they gain it. Students will learn how gender affects the decisions that voters and members of both Congressional and state legislatures make. Students will be evaluated through one exam and two essays, as well as through their participation in the class.
POLS 30022 Public Opinion and Political Behavior (3 Credit Hours)
A principle tenet underlying democratic governance is the belief that public opinion or the "will of the people" should dictate governmental behavior. To the extent this belief is a realistic consideration, difficult questions remain concerning the capacity for citizens to develop reasoned opinions and how to conceptualize and measure opinion. This course explores the foundations of political and social attitudes and the methodology used to observe what people think about politics.
POLS 30024 Media and Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Although the mass media is not formally part of the U.S. government, it is arguably the most powerful institution shaping public attitudes, creating and producing information, and communicating political information to individual citizens. Almost all exposure to politics comes not from direct experience but from mediated stories. And, with the rise of the Internet, the growth of 24-hour cable news, and the decline of the "Big Three" television networks has created, a more diffuse media environment has been created. The primary purpose of this course is to analyze the role of the media in American politics and its relationship with the public, government, and candidates for office in a democratic society.
POLS 30025 Politics in the Age of Social Media (3 Credit Hours)
The beginning of the internet age started with many feeling optimistic about its potential effects on politics, as in theory, it significantly decreased the cost of information. Today, social media’s impact on our politics is often described as null at best, profoundly negative at worst. In this course, we will discuss how elites, activists, and the public have used social media to engage in political processes, go over how this appears to influence public opinion, and look at what the future holds for social media’s use in politics. Finally, we will ask whether social media, and the internet more broadly, has fundamentally changed politics, or if it is just one more step in a long line of technological advancements used in predictable patterns.
POLS 30028 Religion in American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine the many ways in which religion has been fused into American politics. In doing so, we will also explore the rising tide of secularism in the United States, which many argue has resulted from a backlash to the fusion of religion and conservative politics. Then it will turn to trying to solve the puzzle of America's religious pluralism—if religion is so politically divisive, why are Americans so accepting of (most) religions other than their own? What explains the exceptions to that acceptance? What are the implications of a secularizing America for religious pluralism?
POLS 30032 Women's Suffrage: Gender, Politics and Power (3 Credit Hours)
In 2020, the United States is commemorating the centennial of the 19th Amendment, which prohibited the denial of voting rights on the basis of sex. In this course, we will take the occasion of the centennial to explore the place of women's suffrage in the development of American democracy and the political empowerment of women. We will examine such topics as the meaning of citizenship, the place of voting in the American democratic system, the woman suffrage movement and other feminist movements, the anti-suffrage movement and other conservative movements, and the participation of women in various political roles, including as candidates and office-holders. We will approach these topics with an explicitly intersectional lens, exploring the ways in which gender, race/ethnicity, and class, in particular, shape politics and power in the United States. Students in this course will also participate in a DPAC Learning Beyond the Classics film course (4-6 weeks) on women/s suffrage.
POLS 30034 Latinos in U.S. Politics (3 Credit Hours)
The U.S. Census estimates there are over 55 million Latinos living in the U.S. today; and by 2060, that number is expected to double. In this course, we will explore the implications of these demographic trends for U.S. politics - past and present. Divided into three main sections, the course is designed to provide students with a broad overview of Latinos in American politics. Beginning with the question of who counts as "Latino," the first section addresses the history of Latino sub-groups in the United States, Latino identity, and shifts in the demographics of the U.S. Latino population over time. In the second section, we will focus on Latino political behavior - from public opinion to protest, voting to campaigning for elected office. In the third section, we will explore the consequences of political institutions. Here, we will explore the development of U.S. immigration policy and the militarization of immigration law enforcement, with particular focus on how the general public, activists, and policymakers are responding to these institutional processes.
POLS 30035 Race/Ethnicity and American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces students to the dynamics of the social and historical construction of race and ethnicity in American political life. The course explores the following core questions: What are race and ethnicity? What are the best ways to think about the impact of race and ethnicity on American citizens? What is the history of racial and ethnic formation in American political life? How do race and ethnicity link up with other identities animating political actions like gender and class? What role do American political institutions the Congress, presidency, judiciary, state and local governments, etc. play in constructing and maintaining these identity categories? Can these institutions ever be used to overcome the points of division in American society?
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 30037 Black Chicago Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces students to the vast, complex and exciting dimensions of Black Chicago Politics. First, institutional structures, geographic distribution and population characteristics will inform students about the sociodemographic background of the African American population in the city, but also other racial and ethnic groups. Second, the course explores varying types of political expression that have developed over more than a century, including electoral politics, mass movements, partisan politics; it will also examine the impact of the Chicago machine, and of the Washington era on the political and economic status of African Americans in the city. Third, public policy developments in housing, education and criminal justice will be discussed. Fourth, the course also compares Black political standing with other racial and ethnic groups in the city. Finally, the course will introduce students to the long tradition of social science research centered on the city of Chicago.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 30039 Black Politics in Multiracial America (3 Credit Hours)
This course undertakes a broad examination of black politics in multiracial America. Racial issues have provoked crises in American politics; changes in racial status have prompted American political institutions to operate in distinctive ways. The course examines the interface of black politics with and within the American political system. How successful have blacks been as they attempted to penetrate the electoral system in the post civil rights era. What conflicts and controversies have arisen as African Americans have sought to integrate the American system of power. Now that the laws have been changed to permit limited integration, should African Americans integrate politically, that is should they attempt to 'deracialize' their political appeals and strategy, with an effort to "crossover politically;" are some approaches such as those of President Barack Obama "not black enough?" What internal political challenges do African Americans face; some such as the increasing importance of class and socioeconomic factors, as well as gender and sexuality may reshape the definition of the black community. What intellectual challenges and strategic choices are they facing as the American population has grown increasingly multiracial. Finally, in light of these demographic changes in American life and American politics, how stable will past patterns of political participation, and political organizations and institutions of African American politics remain.
POLS 30040 Introduction to Public Policy (3 Credit Hours)
Public policy could be fairly described as applied social science. This course will introduce you to the fundamentals of public policy by (1) understanding how policy is crafted, (2) detailing the linkages between public opinion and public policy, (3) appreciating how political institutions may bound policy outcomes, (4) and exploring the ability of special interests, and other parties, to shape policy outcomes all while introducing you to various tools and frameworks for approaching the study of public policy. These tools will draw from an understanding of human behavior (psychology), markets (economics), governments (political science), and organizations (sociology) and introduce you to policy analysis. We will use a case study approach to delve into current public policy controversies including healthcare, higher education finance, and infrastructure. This course acts as the primary introductory course for the Hesburgh Minor in Public Service, but is designed for students of all majors and interests.
Prerequisites: POLS 10100 or POLS 10098 or POLS 20100
POLS 30045 Politics of Inequality in America (3 Credit Hours)
In the past four decades, the United States has experienced an unprecedented rise in income and wealth inequality. Inequalities across multiple other dimensions (race, ethnicity, geography, and gender) are also pervasive. This course examines a multitude of questions related to politics, policy, and varieties of inequality. How has the American political system and the policies it produces affected levels of inequality in the U.S.? How has inequality shaped American politics and policy? What is the relationship between income and power? What are the political consequences of increasing income inequality? What are the implications of racial and ethnic inequities for the quality of democratic representation? Which policies increase political inequality? What are effective remedies for unequal influence? Finally, which institutions move democratic practice furthest towards full democratic equality and which ones serve to reinforce historical hierarchies? This course is designed to help students understand the political causes and consequences of inequality in America and consider potential interventions to support human flourishing for all.
POLS 30047 The Policy - Making Process (3 Credit Hours)
The course examines the public policy-making process at the federal, state, and local levels. Students will explore a specific policy problem affecting the South Bend metropolitan area. The goal will be to write and present a policy brief to local decision-makers in public policy.
POLS 30048 Politics of Public Policy (3 Credit Hours)
In the United States, public policy has the potential to be a consequential mechanism to address the most vexing and important social and economic problems: inequality, poverty, mass incarceration, climate change and much more. But policies do not appear out of thin air. They are the product of complex political processes. Even after policies are made, political decisions determine how they are implemented and to what end. In order to evaluate or change policy, we must understand politics. That is the focus of this course. We begin with a review of theoretical approaches to conceptualizing and studying public policy. We then explore key policy actors (the President, interest groups, denizens etc.), as well as core aspects of policy design and implementation. Finally, we closely study contemporary policy arenas. Along the way, students will be challenged to grapple with the paradoxes of policy making and to envision pathways to substantive change. Father Hesburgh famously credited President Lyndon Johnson's commitment to civil rights with "changing the face of America." This class recognizes that dramatic policy change must consider the politics behind that change and politics seeking to maintain the status quo. This course fulfils the capstone requirement for the Hesburgh Program in Public Service.
POLS 30050 Southern Constitutionalism and the American Tradition (1 Credit Hour)
This course will explore major constitutive questions that shaped southern thinking about the political/governmental structure in the United States, principally in the post-Revolution period and in the 19th century. Among the significant questions to be explored is whether emerging southern ideas about American constitutionalism derived from founding American principles or were a departure from them. Special consideration will be given to: the historical context that prompted southern ideas and movements; the purposes for which initiatives were introduced; developing southern ideas about federalism and government authority; key southern political leaders that merit attention; the challenge of slavery as a constitutional and political question; the drive that led southerners to secession and civil war in the mid-19th century; and the constitutional framework of the Southern Confederacy.
POLS 30051 Urban Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces students to major actors, institutions, processes, and policies of substate governments in the United States. Through an intensive comparative examination of historical and contemporary politics in city governments, we will gain an understanding of municipal government and its role within the larger contexts of state and national government. Among the issues we will examine are representation, race and ethnicity, neighborhood development, and governing the multicultural metropolis.
POLS 30060 Constitutional Law (3 Credit Hours)
This course introduces the basic themes of the American constitution, its historical development, and debates in constitutional politics. The course employs a variety of instructional methods including Socratic method lectures, class debates, and moot court exercises in which students play the role of lawyers and justices arguing a Supreme Court case. Students will explore the social and political struggles that have defined the allocation of constitutional power, including debates over presidential war-powers, states' rights, judicial supremacy, federal power to enforce civil rights, and the recent healthcare controversy.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 30063 The Constitution and Criminal Justice (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, we will cover extensive constitutional terrain involved in the area of criminal justice, from investigative steps through trial and sentencing. We will study significant issues in 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th Amendment law while situating them within broader philosophical concerns about justice, Catholic Social Teaching, and questions of race and equity that emerge in various areas of criminal law enforcement and adjudication.
POLS 30064 The President and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
The course explores different theories of the president's role in the American constitutional system. Readings include The Federalist Papers, the writings Abraham Lincoln, works of modern scholars, and opinions of the U.S. Supreme Court. Grades will be based on midterm and final exams.
POLS 30068 Topics in Civil Liberties and Civil Rights (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores topics in American constitutional law related to civil liberties and civil rights. The course employs a variety of instructional methods including Socratic method lectures, class debates, and moot court exercises in which students play the role of lawyers and justices arguing a Supreme Court case. Students will explore the social and political struggles that have shaped freedom and equality in the United States, including debates over protest, hate speech, pornography, religious freedom, gun control, abortion, race, gender, and homosexuality.
POLS 30071 Gay Rights and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
This course will review decisions of the U.S. Supreme court regarding the constitutional rights of homosexuals. It will assess the Court's decisions in light of (1) background theories of constitutional interpretation; (2) the principles of the American Founding; and (3) present day moral arguments for and against gay rights. Readings will consist of Supreme Court cases, selections from the Ratification debate and the philosophic writings that influenced the Founding, and the writings of present-day moral philosophers on both sides of the issues. Grades will be based on mid-term and final exams, with an optional term paper for one quarter of the course grade.
POLS 30073 Constitutional Law: Powers and Institutions (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine constitutional law, history, theory, practice, and interpretation in the United States. We will focus on the Constitution's structural features, including popular sovereignty, judicial review, separation of powers, and federalism. Students will engage perennial debates and questions as well as present-day controversies.
POLS 30075 Sexual Morality and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
The "sexual revolution" began in the Western democracies sometime between the 1920s and the 1970s. This revolution saw great changes regarding the social acceptability of fornication, divorce, contraception, pornography, abortion, homosexual sex, and gay marriage. Free-market capitalism has been a major factor in this development due to its inventions, like electronic entertainment and the pill, destruction of the family as a self-sustaining economic unit (drawing men and women out of the family farm and the home shop and into the factories and offices of urban centers), and its tendency to enhance economic growth by promoting self-indulgence and weakening moral, religious, and aesthetic restraints on consumption and production. American courts played a significant role in this development by modifying constitutional provisions originally used to protect property rights and pursue equal protection for racial minorities. Popular resentment of religious imposition via the criminal law has also been a factor since opposition to sexual liberation has come mainly from religious communities. This course surveys the mutual influence of American constitutional law and the sexual revolution in America.
POLS 30077 Free Speech (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and its interpretation in American constitutional law. Students will participate in Socratic method discussions, class debates, and moot court exercises, in which students play the role of lawyers and justices arguing a Supreme Court case. Through these activities, students will explore the freedom of speech as it relates to sedition, libel, invasion of privacy, obscenity, commercial speech, broadcasting, and the internet.
POLS 30101 The American Presidency (3 Credit Hours)
This course provides a political science perspective on the American presidency, covering the design elements of the office, fundamental features of presidential elections, the power of the presidency, and more.
POLS 30102 Election 2020 (3 Credit Hours)
In this class, we will examine the 2020 presidential election - in real time - and then consider its effects on America's political future. Presidential elections provide the biggest and most important stage for the drama of American democracy. The 2020 version of this democratic drama promises to be one of the most intriguing and consequential in American history. For the first time, a presidential impeachment process has played out in an election year. Meanwhile, that same impeached president is seeking reelection, a Democratic field of unprecedented size and diversity is vying for that party's presidential nomination, and Americans continue to experience the political turmoil produced by the ever-increasing polarization of our two major parties. We will address all of this - from the "invisible primary" in 2018 and 2019, to the actual primaries and caucuses, the conventions, and the fall campaign and election. It does not matter whether you already know a lot or a little about presidential politics; if you want a front-row seat to the 2020 presidential election, this is the class for you.
POLS 30103 Election 2024 (3 Credit Hours)
In this class, we will examine the 2024 presidential election—in real time—and then consider its effects on America's political future. Presidential elections provide the biggest and most important stage for the drama of American democracy, and in 2024 the future of our democracy will be on the ballot. For the first time since 1956, we will have the same two major-party presidential candidates who ran in the last election. However, unlike 1956, which was a rather amicable contest between two political centrists, the 2024 presidential election comes on the heels of one of the two candidates participating in a concerted effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election and each political party depicting the other as a fundamental threat to American values. We will address all of this, from the "invisible primary" in 2022 and 2023, to the actual primaries and caucuses, the conventions, and the fall campaign and election. It does not matter whether you already know a lot or a little about presidential politics; if you want a front-row seat to the 2024 presidential election, this is the class for you.
POLS 30104 The Kennedy Presidency, Its Aftermath, and the Rise of the Security State (3 Credit Hours)
Sixty years ago, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, in broad daylight, in the presence of hundreds of witnesses, while traveling in his presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas. On that day, a historic presidency came to a tragic end. Two days later, the alleged assassin (Lee Harvey Oswald) was murdered by a Dallas nightclub owner (Jack Ruby) while being escorted from his cell by a host of police officers, raising the possibility of a conspiracy. The official investigation into Kennedy's assassination ("The Warren Report") was met with fierce public skepticism, precipitating numerous Congressional investigations that revealed extensive covert operations (both in the US and abroad) conducted by the Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that would have been relevant to those charged with investigating the assassination. When combined with an already heightened public skepticism of the assassination itself, these revelations proved to be an enduring catalyst for a slow and steady decline of public trust in government that continues unabated to our present day. In this course, we examine the origins and rise of the "security state" in the United States, its role in significant events in the Kennedy presidency, including the investigation into his assassination, and the extent of its power both before and after Kennedy's presidency. Ultimately, students will be asked whether and to what extent the demands of national security conflict with the constitutional prerogatives of a representative democracy.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WRIT - Writing Intensive
POLS 30105 Religion and Politics in America (3 Credit Hours)
“On my arrival in the United States,” wrote Alexis de Tocqueville in Democracy in America (1835), “the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention.” This course is an introduction to the history of religion in the United States from the pre-colonial period to the present, with special attention to its interplay with politics, law, and governance. Taking stock of the broad range of religious traditions that Americans have practiced, we will move chronologically through US history and explore rich primary sources like films, diaries, novels, art, sermons, and court records to help us make sense of religion’s evolving role in American politics and society. Along the way, we will delve into questions of religious pluralism and its challenges; conversion and religious experience; the legal history of the First Amendment’s religion clauses; civil religion; immigration; anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism; religion, slavery, and the civil rights movement; the shifting identities of religious “insiders” and “outsiders” in American life; the “culture wars”; and secularization, among other topics.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
POLS 30106 Executive Power (1 Credit Hour)
Since our nation’s founding, we have debated (and have increasingly litigated) the appropriate balance of power among the executive (the President), legislative (Congress), and judicial (the courts) branches of the federal government. Those debates have grown more salient and frequent in recent years. As Congress seems to retreat from its historical policymaking role, presidents increasingly fill that legislative vacuum by pushing their policy agendas through executive orders, agency action, and exercising their discretion to enforce federal laws. And many of those presidential acts have been challenged in federal court, leaving the courts to resolve thorny legal issues with profound policy implications.
This seminar will focus on the evolution of presidential power, with a focus on the 21st century. The course has two substantive goals. The first is to familiarize students with the historical aspects of presidential power. The course will cover a host of legal issues involving the president, with some attention paid to historical foundations. The second is to emphasize legal developments involving the president over the last 25 years. Whatever one thinks about any particular president, most would agree that 21st-century presidents have attempted to assert presidential power and authority in new, and oftentimes untested, ways. And by all accounts, that trend shows few signs of abating, especially in the continuing absence of legislative action. Accordingly, the course materials will emphasize legal disputes arising during the Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden Administrations.
POLS 30107 U.S. State Government and Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Although US state-level governments have been described as "laboratories of democracy" where a significant amount of policy making takes place, many of us who study political science often familiarize ourselves only with government at the federal and international levels. This is concerning because, not only do our state governments create many of the policies we experience in everyday life, but also because the federal government will often look to state policies for direction. The importance of state governments is especially evident in the case of COVID-19, as states decide for themselves how to prevent the spread of the virus and administer the vaccine, resulting in a hodgepodge of regulations across the country. State government wields a lot of power over our lives, and it is important for us to understand not only what our state-level representatives are doing, but also the law making powers they hold. This course examines state governments in the US by studying state-level officeholders, such as state legislators, and state-level institutions, including campaigns and elections. Students will learn about the powers which are reserved to the states, unique differences between state governments, and the mechanisms and consequences of lawmaking at the state-level.
POLS 30108 Institutions, Politics, and Policy (3 Credit Hours)
Policy can be seen as an output of political institutions and an output of the political process. Scholarship has also begun to identify where policies may impact institutional design and politics. This class will examine the relationship between political institutions, linking institutions such as the media, religion, and special interest groups, elite and mass politics, and public policy. We will engage in questions dealing with the impact of institutional design on policy outcomes, how electoral law shapes representation, how public opinion may or may not shape policy outputs, and the general responsiveness of elites to citizenship demand. From there we will have a conversation about measuring the quality of democracy.
POLS 30113 The Politics of Poverty in the United States (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the contemporary and historical politics of poverty in the United States. How policy and political actors frame both the causes of poverty and wealth, and the capabilities and rights of those experiencing poverty has led to varying policy responses throughout history. The assumptions underlying these debates and policies not only have long lineages, but also have intended and unintended consequences on those experiencing or near poverty. The readings and
class discussion will bring together a theoretical understanding of the scholarly debates surrounding poverty and the empirical consequences of policies emanating from those debates. These policies include the spheres of cash assistance and the labor market, healthcare, food assistance, housing, family and childcare, tax, and broader economic configurations. We will focus as well on the actors and political processes (legislative, administrative, and judicial) at the heart of these efforts. By extension, this course will deepen the students' understandings of the role of ideologies, individuals, and institutions in shaping and responding to problems in our society.
POLS 30115 Institutions, Inequality, and American Democracy (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores how economic, social, and political inequality is reflected in various components of the U.S. governing system and how U.S. political institutions shape the distribution of power and economic well-being. We will examine the role of Congress, the presidency, courts, separation of powers, veto points, and federalism in reproducing economic and social inequality. We will also examine how economic and racial inequality is embedded in the design of U.S. political institutions. A core ongoing theme of the course is whether and how U.S. democracy can survive and thrive in the face of a variety of enduring inequalities. The course will include a combination of lectures and discussions. Assessment will be based on a series of short written assignments and/or quizzes as well as a substantial final paper with a collaborative and individual option.
POLS 30118 The Politics of Polarization (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine the causes, current state, and consequences of polarization in American politics. The course will consider various conceptualizations of polarization, including ideological polarization, affective polarization, and asymmetric polarization. Students will also compare polarization at various levels of politics, from the mass public to activists and party elites. Beyond partisan polarization, the course will also address partisan sorting and the ways in which Americans now appear politically polarized across various boundaries including religiosity, education status, and geography. Students will develop a broad understanding of polarization in American politics and grapple with what the future looks like for a polarized America.
POLS 30120 Political Polarization (3 Credit Hours)
Political polarization in American politics has reached a new level of contentiousness in the last two to three decades. The media tells us members of the American public are balkanized into red and blue states, whose respective residents clash along partisan lines during every national election. Headlines proclaim we are a nation divided, the moderate middle is a thing of the past, and there is no remedy in sight. In this course, we will investigate the breadth and depth of political polarization in the United States among politicians, activists, and the public, as well as its social, partisan, and political origins. We will also consider the consequences of political polarization for American democracy, including its impact on electoral politics, democratic representation, and public policy.
POLS 30122 The Politics of Demographic Change (3 Credit Hours)
As the United States rapidly undergoes changes to its demographic landscape, politics will inevitably change as well. This course addresses these potential implications by investigating foundational work in population change and politics. Students who take this course will take a deep dive into how past, present and future changes to the racial, ethnic and cultural landscape of the U.S. can alter politics. We will address a variety of ideas: whether the increasing size of racial minority groups promotes harmony or conflict; the role of emotion in individual reactions to demographic change; the coming "majority-minority" flip, where whites are projected to become a minority; and how different causes (e.g. immigration, changing birth rates) of racial and ethnic demographic change affects politics in different ways.
POLS 30127 The Law of American Democracy (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine ways that law structures, promotes, and governs the practice of democracy in America. Topics include key features of the American constitution, including federalism, bicameralism, the separation of powers, and judicial review; the First Amendment and the freedoms of speech and press; voting rights, elections, parties, and campaigns; and the changes caused and challenges posed by technological and other developments.
POLS 30134 Immigration Politics and Policy (3 Credit Hours)
Immigration is an issue of increasing importance in the United States. Few issues have generated as much debate and emotion as the immigration policy. The goal of this course is to provide students with an overview of the critical normative and academic questions in political science regarding immigration in the U.S. What factors have affected contemporary and historical immigration policy in the United States? In particular how have economics, demographics, politics, religion, culture, environmental concerns, and ethnic and nationalist interests impacted the nature of immigration politics and policy? How have groups leveraged political influence for desired immigration policy outcomes? We will study the impact of worldwide immigration and population trends on the formulation of American policy. The emphasis will be on an academic understanding of how immigration policy has been affected by domestic and international demographic and political factors.
POLS 30136 Latinos in the Future of America: Building Transformative Leadership (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine the opportunities and challenges facing Latino communities today as they simultaneously transform and are transformed by their continuing growth in U.S. society. Through a careful examination of the biographies of leaders in Latino communities, we will examine what role they have each played in empowering Latino communities to advance in business, arts, education, community organizing, entertainment, medicine, religion, law, academia, politics, and other areas. The course will coincide with the Transformative Latino Leadership Speaker Series sponsored by the Arthur Foundation through the Institute for Latino Studies. Students in the class will have the opportunity to interact with invited leaders in several setting including the classroom, meals, receptions, and university-wide events. The primary course requirement is a research essay about the life and career of a chosen leader.
POLS 30142 Philanthropy & the Common Good (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore the roots of philanthropy in American society, the role philanthropy plays within the modern economy, and how philanthropic activity helps us create a better world and strive for the common good. The key component of the course requires students to act as a Board of Directors and use thoughtful analysis to award real grants to deserving nonprofits (a sum up to $50,000). Students are expected to come to each class prepared to discuss course readings, and to offer ideas and suggestions regarding the grant making process. Each student is also expected to complete two site visits to nonprofit organizations outside of normal class hours. Students will nominate nonprofits for awards and the class will systematically discuss, analyze, and ultimately vote to award the grants. Students interested in this course who are unable to register through their major/minor should contact the instructor for permission to register.
POLS 30150 Urban Politics and the Conflicts of Government (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, the study of Urban Politics will be examined through the lens of the institutions, issues, and individuals that make up these substate governments. Using historical and contemporary examples throughout the history of city governments in the United States, we gain a greater understanding of municipal government and its role within the larger context of state and national governments. City governance, though, is uniquely impacted by differences in representation, administration, and the role of political influence. Issues of concern, ranging from economic growth and resource allocation, racial conflict, sustainability, and others, are ever more pronounced in the context of city governance. The study of Urban Politics adds a greater context necessary in understanding the complexities of American Politics.
POLS 30154 Education Law and Policy (3 Credit Hours)
This course focuses on selected legal and policy issues related to K-12 education in the United States. A central theme is the intersection of K-12 schooling and the state, with a particular focus on Constitutional issues of religious freedom and establishment, student speech and privacy, parental choice, educational opportunity, and education reform trends such as charter schools and accountability measures.
Questions examined over the course of the semester include:
What are the most basic obligations of the state with regard to its regulation of K-12 education? What are the most basic rights of parents in this regard?
In what ways does the 1st Amendment protect - and limit - the speech and privacy rights of K-12 schoolchildren?
In what ways may the state accommodate K-12 schools with an explicitly religious character? What are the Constitutional requirements with regard to religious speech or expression within K-12 public schools?
To what degree is the principle of equality manifest in the form of educational opportunity? How has this changed over time?
In what ways have education reform trends such as charter schooling and increased accountability changed the policy landscape of K-12 education?
POLS 30155 Jurisprudence and the U.S. Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
This is a course in the nature of law generally and of the task of judging (often referred to as "jurisprudence") in particular. This course will study the major conceptual schools of thought that have shaped American jurisprudence, including legal positivism, natural law jurisprudence, originalism, textualism, and pragmatism. We will examine as well as more general philosophical frameworks beyond the American context, including the legal thought of St. Thomas Aquinas and the British philosopher of law H.L.A. Hart.
POLS 30157 Healthcare and the Poor (3 Credit Hours)
The relationship between health and poverty is complex and challenging. The inability of the poor to maintain adequate nutrition, shelter and have access to preventative medical care can contribute to their poor health status. But even if one isn't poor, one illness or hospitalization can test their ability to meet both their ability to meet the financial burden of their medical care as well as their other needs. In either case, individuals have to face difficult choices between their health and other material needs.
This course examines the consequences of the health risks the poor face and the difficulties that they have in obtaining medical care whether they are uninsured, seek "charitable" care, or utilize public programs such as Medicaid. The course will also examine the impact of the Affordable Care Act that will require all individuals to have at least a minimal level of health care coverage.
POLS 30161 Black Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
This course will focus on the writings of Black political thinkers in the Americas, Africa, and Europe. Through critical examination of the conditions against, and contexts within, which the political theories of these thinkers are situated, this course hopes to arrive at some understanding of the principles, goals and strategies developed to contest and redefine notions/concepts of citizenship (vis-a-vis the imperatives of race/racism and the global colonial formations), humanity, justice, equality, development, democracy, and freedom.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
POLS 30162 Conservatism after Trump (1 Credit Hour)
The Presidency of Donald Trump has upended not only American politics, but also American conservatism. This 1-credit participatory seminar will examine the future of conservatism in America through the study of contemporary conservative political thinkers and their critics.
POLS 30163 Race and Constitutional Controversies (3 Credit Hours)
Over the course of the United States' near 250-year history, there have been many Supreme Court cases that have spoken to and impacted the fundamental bedrock of our nation. Many of these cases established legal precedent that would later take numerous decades in order to be altered or outright rejected by future Supreme Court justices. When examining many of these defining cases, we find that issues of race lie at their heart. The goal of this course is to examine this nation's historical views on race and ethnicity over time and their direct impact on major Supreme Court cases and the decisions of those justices sitting on the mightiest bench in the land. We will discuss cases ranging across history and topic, including Civil Rights (Dredd Scott v. Sanford, Brown v. Board of Education, Loving v. Virginia.), Equal Protection (Plessy v. Ferguson, Koromatsu v. U.S.) , and Affirmative Action (Gratz v. Bollinger, Fisher v. University of Texas), just to name a few. What will be seen throughout the course are the ways our nation's ideas and actions regarding race, on both governmental and societal levels, have fundamentally impacted the laws of the land and the citizens who inhabit it.
POLS 30166 Hate Speech: Threats to States, Societies, and Peoples (1 Credit Hour)
The weaponization of speech is constantly in the news. Today incendiary speech has unprecedented political repercussions. In this course, we will engage in deep readings of primarily political 20th and 21st century texts that have been accused of sowing hate. This 1 credit course aims to provide students a safe analytical space to have deep encounters with texts that the general reader is discouraged from reading. While this course is not an exhaustive overview of all hate speech, it will offer students the opportunity to engage with primary sources seldom found in the classroom across the political spectrum. Together, we will explore what makes these texts dangerous, identify commonalities, and pull out the "pedestrian" aspect of many of them. The arc of the course will focus on developing a framework for analysis and coming to terms with the question: Is some speech simply too dangerous to permit? This course counts as 1 general elective credit and does not count toward the political science major or for a University or College core requirement.
POLS 30170 Entitlement Reform: Social Security and Medicare (3 Credit Hours)
With an aging population and concerns with the magnitude of government debt, the future obligations of Social Security and Medicare have made prompted policy makers to actively consider reforms of these government entitlement programs. This course will examine the following topics. What is the economic status of the elderly? How do government programs assist the elderly (the broad range of assistance from tax preferences and means tested programs such as food stamps and Supplemental Security Income to the universal programs such as Social Security and Medicare)? What role do these government programs play in retirement policy? Are governments too generous or should the elderly take on greater responsibility for their retirement years? What reforms are being proposed currently for reform of Social Security and Medicare?
POLS 30173 Cybercrime and the Law (3 Credit Hours)
Almost all crimes, or even human interactions, contain a digital component. The fact that "old" laws don't always fit "new" problems is no more apparent than in the area of cybercrimes. This course will include discussion of topics including: the methodology of typical cyber investigations, the application of the Fourth Amendment to digital evidence, and different types of cyber-specific laws enforced today. The course will also focus on the responses of both courts and legislators to the ever-evolving issues presented by computer crimes.
POLS 30174 Forensic Psychology of Cybercrimes (3 Credit Hours)
The use and interaction with digital devices and the internet are ingrained in our lives. This course will introduce students to the principles of forensic psychology as they apply to cybercrime offenses. Students will learn the psychology of various types of offenders, including those of hackers, online child offenders, cyber stalkers, and identity thieves. Students will also learn the psychology of the online activities of those who have carried out mass killings.
POLS 30175 Digital Deviance: The Psychology of Tech-Facilitated Offenders (3 Credit Hours)
Ingrained in our daily lives, the use and interaction with digital devices and the internet have given rise to technology-facilitated crimes. This course introduces the psychology behind these offenses and their perpetrators. Students will delve into the motivations and behaviors of diverse offenders, such as hackers, online child offenders, cyber stalkers, and identity thieves. Additionally, the course explores the psychology of individuals engaged in
online activities linked to mass killings, alongside essential techniques of threat assessment. By comprehending the psychological aspects of digital deviance, students will be better equipped to address and mitigate the challenges posed by technology-driven criminal behaviors.
POLS 30189 Gender, Politics, and Power (3 Credit Hours)
The class begins by exploring the concepts of gender, politics, and power, and related concepts such as intersectionality, patriarchy, sexism, and stereotypes. With that foundation, we turn our attention to two arenas in which gender and politics interact in the US: social and political movements and women as political actors. We will examine how women negotiate movements and how gender shapes structure, tactics, and outcomes for both women's movements (e.g., suffrage, feminist, conservative, #metoo) and other movements (such as the Progressive and civil rights movements). Finally, we will consider the constraints, opportunities, and impact of women in political roles, such as voter, candidate, and office-holder, with special attention to the 2022 US midterm elections. While grounded in political science, the course engages substantially with philosophy, history, sociology, and economics as well.
POLS 30195 How Do Americans Feel About Racial Inequality? (3 Credit Hours)
The course "How Do Americans Feel About Racial Inequality?" examines citizens' perceptions of racial inequity throughout history. More specifically, the class investigates the tactics and strategies that political leaders have used to influence the racial perceptions of the mass public. Through the examination of the Reconstruction Era, the Civil Rights Movement, and former presidents, this class will explore the evolution and subtleties of racial attitudes. We will read from authors and activists like Frederick Douglass, Fanny Lou Hamer, SNCC, John Lewis, Martin Luther King, and Dick Gregory. Specific topics discussed are the Southern strategy, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Dixiecrats, racial resentment, stereotypes, and dog-whistle politics.
POLS 30198 Race, Power, and Political Participation (3 Credit Hours)
Despite, or perhaps because of the history of enslavement, exclusion, and continued discrimination against racial and ethnic minorities in the United States, many Americans have organized and mobilized in search of a more perfect union. These struggles can be seen within the Civil Rights Movement, Black Panther Party, Chicano Student Movement, American Indian Movement, Immigrant Rights Movement, and the recent Black Lives Matter protests. Through analysis of political movements and moments in American history, this course will examine the concept of political power, the avenues often excluded groups take to participate in politics, and what it means for those groups to successfully transform American democracy. Along the way we will read works from authors such as the American Founders, W.E.B. Du Bois, Huey P. Newton, G. William Domhoff, Frances Fox Piven, James Baldwin, and others.
POLS 30201 United States Foreign Policy (3 Credit Hours)
The United States is the most powerful state in the world today. Its actions are important not just for US citizens, but they also affect whether others go to war, whether they will win their wars, whether they receive economic aid, whether they will go broke, or whether they will starve. What determines US foreign policy? What is the national interest? When do we go to war? Would you send US soldiers into war? If so, into which wars and for what reasons? How do our economic policies affect others? Does trade help or hurt the US economy and its citizens? We first study several theories about foreign policy. We then examine the US foreign policy process, including the President, Congress, the bureaucracy, the media, and public opinion. To see how this all works, we turn to the history of US foreign policy, from Washington's farewell address through the World Wars and the Cold War to the Gulf War. We then study several major issue areas, including weapons of mass destruction, trade and economics, and the environment. Finally, we develop and debate forecasts and strategies for the future.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 30202 States Power Global Gov. (3 Credit Hours)
Why do international organizations exist? Do they shape outcomes in international politics? This course considers the role that international institutions have played in addressing global problems. Some argue their role is trivial, since there is no international police force that can constrain states. Others argue their role is profound, as institutions help states overcome important barriers to cooperation. You will apply these theories to understand institutions governing economic stability, human rights, climate change, global development, and more. To do so, you will complete several writing assignments where you step into the shoes of world leaders. You will assess whether your state should join and comply with
international organizations; when it might make sense to leave them; and how new institutions should be designed to address the world’s greatest challenges.
POLS 30206 Politics of the United Nations (3 Credit Hours)
This course analyzes the structure, function, and purpose of the United Nations in global politics using IR theory and quantitative research. This course includes consideration of notable past and current events, emerging international issues, and the roles of international diplomacy and peacekeeping for meeting 21st Century challenges to global governance.
POLS 30210 US National Security Policymaking (3 Credit Hours)
This course serves as a gateway for subsequent coursework in international security. It is a required course in the Notre Dame International Security Center's undergraduate certificate program requirements, but it is also appropriate for, and open to, any Notre Dame students interested in U.S. national security policymaking. It will begin with an account of the history and development of U.S. national security policy from the Founding through the present. Next, it examines the current state of the primary institutions involved in U.S. national security policymaking. Finally, it explores the tools and instruments of military statecraft as applied by the United States. The course culminates with a simulation exercise in which students will role-play key participants in the U.S. national security policymaking process. At a minimum, that students will gain from it the analytical tools, historical knowledge, and current-events background to become more informed citizens, particularly with respect to important national debates about when and how our country should use military force. At a maximum, the course may lead some students to become interested enough in the topic to pursue a career in either the practice or the study of U.S. national security policy. The current draft version of the syllabus is posted at https://www3.nd.edu/~dlindley/handouts/ND_NDISC_cert_gateway_syl.pdf.
POLS 30220 International Law (3 Credit Hours)
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to international law. In the beginning of the semester, we will focus on general characteristics of international law, such as its historical development, main thinkers, subjects, and sources of law. Second, we will study several substantive areas of international law, such as human rights, international criminal law, diplomacy, and peaceful resolution of disputes. Next, we will examine international courts, such as the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. We will conclude the course by analyzing international law through the lenses of domestic legal systems. Upon completion of this course, students should be familiar with the main features of international law and its historical development.
POLS 30222 International Criminal Justice (3 Credit Hours)
This course critically examines the phenomena of international judicial intervention and ‘criminalization of world politics'; the actors, ideas, and rationales behind the international criminal justice project; the operation of international criminal justice in a world of power politics; its accomplishments, failures, and financial costs; and the future of international criminal justice. The course includes Skype conferences with a war crimes investigator, a war crimes analyst, a defense counsel, a victim representative, a State Department official, and a staff member of the Coalition for the International Criminal Court.
POLS 30229 Genocide in the Modern World (3 Credit Hours)
This course investigates modern genocide. We will consider several cases: Armenia, the Jewish Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda, and possibly Darfur and/or Gaza, and examine the conditions that lead to genocidal violence. We will also examine the uses of humanitarian interventions, trials, and strategies of societal reconciliation, and relevant conceptions of justice, guilt, forgiveness and moral responsibility.
Enrollment limited to students in the Political Science department.
POLS 30242 The Geopolitics of Energy (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines how oil and natural gas have shaped international relations from the early twentieth century to the present, with a particular focus on conflict. It begins by introducing students to the fundamentals of global energy production, consumption and trade, and then briefly surveys the political history of oil as it relates to the great powers. The course then moves on to contemporary issues, including the political significance of "fracking" technology, the role of the United States in protecting Persian Gulf oil, and the extent to which Russia's dominant natural gas position might translate into political influence in Europe. These and other topics are examined through numerous theoretical lenses, including theories of resource conflict, economic interdependence, political coercion, and petro-aggression.
POLS 30260 International Political Economy (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the interaction of politics and economics in the international arena. We begin with a brief historical exploration of the international political economy, and introduce four analytical perspectives on state behavior and international outcomes. Topics include trade policy, foreign direct investment and multinational corporations, international capital flows, exchange rate regimes and currency unions (including European Monetary Union), financial crises, and the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.
POLS 30261 Political Economy of Inequality (3 Credit Hours)
In the last several decades, in many countries around the world - including countries such as the United States, UK and India - inequality has been found to have increased. Although this is not true for every country, it has attracted a great deal of attention among scholars and the media. This course systematically examines the economics and politics of inequality. It will first examine different concepts of inequality among people and countries, and discuss ways of measuring inequality. It will then examine trends in inequality over time. It will examine whether an increase in inequality is a Bad Thing and, if so, why? Most of the course will be devoted to examining the determinants of inequality in order to explain changes in it, and the implications of inequality for the economy, politics and for society.
POLS 30265 The Political Economy of Defense and War (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the relationships among resources, technologies, and national power as countries try to protect themselves in an uncertain global environment, specifically how countries convert latent power (wealth) into realized power (especially military forces). It covers particular topics including the importance of developing new technologies and the role of government and especially militaries in promoting innovation; the role that concentration of scarce resources (e.g., oil) and production (e.g., rare earths in China or semiconductors in Taiwan) in particular countries plays in national security; the effect of globalization of trade and investment on the likelihood, the conduct, and the results of war; and the effects of peacetime defense investment and wartime mobilization on the strength of the broader economy. By the end of the course students will have developed an understanding of how economic issues affect strategic and political thinking about international relations that they can use to assess events around the world and pundits' and politicians' comments about International security throughout their lives.
POLS 30266 Political Economy of Globalization (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the intersection of politics and economics in an increasingly global world. Economic interdependence has increased dramatically over the past fifty years. While this has raised living standards in many countries, it has also given rise to new social, economic, and political tensions. This course offers an analytical framework for evaluating the consequences of globalization and provides an overview of several theoretical approaches to and empirical issues in today's global economy. The course is divided into three main sections. The first part of the course focuses on understanding what is meant by 'globalization' as well as an introduction to several contending theories of globalization. The second part of the course will focus on managing globalization, and will evaluate different options available to states, institutions, and other actors. The final section of the class will be devoted to empirical issues associated with globalization. Topics discussed include: the environment, corruption, human rights, non-governmental organizations, democratization, and regional trading blocs.
POLS 30267 Politics of Global Finance (3 Credit Hours)
Cross-border financial flows are one of the most important aspects of contemporary globalization. This course explores their effects on domestic and international politics. Do multinational corporations consider political factors when deciding whether or not to invest in a country? And how do their investments impact a country's development? Does the international bond market influence what policies governments can undertake? Why does the Chinese government want to control its exchange rate and how does that affect American interests? Could the 2008 financial crisis happen again? Is increased exposure to international financial flows responsible for the growth of populist movements in the United States and Europe? In addition to engaging with these questions through the readings and class discussion, students will develop their own research project based on personal interests.
POLS 30271 The Political Economy of International Development (3 Credit Hours)
This course looks at why some countries are more economically developed than others, and why some are developing more than others, using a political economy perspective. It discusses alternative meanings and measures of development. It then examines alternative views on the constraints to development, at different levels of analysis, individual, sectoral, national and global. In so doing it analyzes economic factors, and their interaction with broader political, social and cultural factors, and explores both problems internal to countries and to those arising from international interactions and globalization. Finally, it critically examines different strategies and policies for development.
POLS 30280 Ethics of International Relations and War (3 Credit Hours)
War belongs to the ugly reality of human history, and it would be naive to believe that this will change soon. The course addresses the specifically ethical dimensions involved with warfare - the question of legitimate reasons for going to war, the moral limits to warfare, and the moral challenges after the end of a war. We will proceed "inductively," starting with concrete issues, developing more general categories, and finally trying to find moral foundations. We will first read two dramas by Shakespeare and Schiller on two leaders in two of the bloodiest wars of European history, the Hundred Years' War and the Thirty Years' War, Henry V and Wallenstein, then study Michael Walzer's classical work Just and Unjust Wars and the recent book on post-war justice, a topic ignored by Walzer, by David Chwon Kwon: Justice After War. We will finally read the first and the third parts of my own book Morals and Politics, which lays out both foundations for ethics and moral strategies for dealing with some of the greatest political challenges of our time.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
POLS 30281 The China Challenge: Guns, Trade, and Confucius (3 Credit Hours)
China has gone from international isolation to a superpower in the last three decades. How has China orchestrated its meteoric rise? How have US policies facilitated and hindered China's efforts to close the power gap? Does China's rise present a challenge to American hegemony and an attack on the U.S. constructed post-WWII order? Are the world's two most powerful states locked in a 'Thucydides Trap' destined for war? This course analyzes China's ascendance through international relations theories and practices.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WRIT - Writing Intensive
POLS 30303 The Science and Strategy of Nuclear War (3 Credit Hours)
This course gives an overview of nuclear phenomena such as nuclear fission and fusion. The material also involves nuclear weapons and their medical and physical consequences. Scenarios for war and peace, proliferation of nuclear weapons material, and recent diplomatic history are also discussed. The course is open to all students and the typical enrolment is about 90.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKIN - Core Integration, WKST-Core Science & Technology
POLS 30304 The Science and Strategy of Nuclear War (3 Credit Hours)
An introductory course, for non-science majors, providing an overview to a broad range of topics and aspects of nuclear weapons and warfare in the 21st century, providing students with both an understanding of the science behind nuclear weapons (including nuclear fission and fusion, effects of shock and thermal radiation, electromagnetic pulses, etc.) as well as an understanding of the strategic aspects of the nuclear revolution. This course is jointly taught and sponsored by the Department of Physics and the Department of Political Science.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKIN - Core Integration, WKST-Core Science & Technology
POLS 30306 Great Power Politics After the Cold War (3 Credit Hours)
Destined for War? Great Power Politics after the Cold War: Our world has changed a lot in the last 30 years. From triumphant declarations of the "end of history" after the collapse of the Soviet Union to the mire of the War on Terror, and now with China's rise becoming more evident every day, global affairs has seen its share of ups and downs. This class will focus exclusively on international politics since the end of the Cold War, with specific attention paid to the actions and interactions of the great powers in the system - the US, Russia, China, and the European Union. We will examine how the various theoretical paradigms within the field of international relations seek to explain these events, and evaluate their proposed accounts. By the end of the class, students will possess broad knowledge of world political events that have taken place in the last 30 years and have an understanding of how political science has sought to understand these events.
POLS 30307 Foundations of Conventional War (3 Credit Hours)
Foundations of Conventional War introduces students to the underlying mechanisms and gradual evolution of combat from The First World War to today. The course will frame these mechanisms and evolutions around theoretical bedrock concepts, such as Steven Biddle's "Modern System" and Clausewitz's concept of Friction. Students will learn how these foundational concepts have varied over time due to technological, tactical, and social change. The course will then shift to contemporary conflicts to illustrate how foundational concepts might change due to emergent conditions on modern battlefields such as the current Russian invasion of Ukraine or hypothetical Taiwanese invasion scenarios. Students will produce simple models of combat to demonstrate foundational concepts as a final project.
POLS 30308 Global Politics in an Age of Populism and Nationalism (3 Credit Hours)
Throughout the past century, nationalism and populism have stood as two of the most powerful forces in global politics. The recent successful political campaigns of those such as Donald Trump, Victor Orban, and Jair Bolsonaro have displayed the enduring need for both scholars and students of politics to understand and examine these two political dynamics. This course will first explore the conceptual foundations of nationalism and populism and the debates surrounding their sources. Next, students will examine the consequences for both domestic and foreign policy, including such issues as trade, regime durability, international institutions, and war. Finally, the course will investigate both historical and contemporary cases of nationalist and populist leaders across the globe
POLS 30310 Policymaking for a Global Era (3 Credit Hours)
Policymaking for a Global Era provides students with the intellectual foundations necessary to understand the dilemmas and opportunities faced by decision-makers during the policymaking process. The course has three modules. The first investigates how policymakers' world views and choices are shaped by experimental, cultural, normative and decision making structures. It also examines how regime type and country size constrain policymakers' options. The second module examines the numerous domestic and international actors and factors that influence the foreign policymaking process in the U.S. - including the presidency, intelligence services, the Congress, media, NGOs, international institutions, and foreign governments. In the third module we study policymaking in three Asian countries - China, India, and Vietnam. This comparative approach illustrates how elements such as culture, country size, and regime type, which were introduced in the first module, affect these countries foreign policymakers' decisions. The course concludes with a policymaking crisis simulation that employs the lessons learned throughout the course. The course assignments are three 5-page policy memoranda and robust class participation.
POLS 30311 The Politics of Compliance with International Law (3 Credit Hours)
Under what conditions do governments comply with international norms? How can international courts secure respect for their orders? Because international courts lack effective means of enforcement, governments often defy their rulings. We will analyze why governments adhere to court orders and how international bodies can become more effective. We will also introduce advanced methodological tools to analyze and predict compliance. Students in the seminar will have the opportunity to participate in research projects integrated to the Notre Dame Reparations Design and Compliance Lab (NDRL). Participants will be able to use the tools acquired in the course to analyze compliance with the rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the World Bank Inspection Panel, and other international bodies.
POLS 30317 Civilian-Military Relations: An Introduction (3 Credit Hours)
What is the relationship between the armed forces and society? This course will explore the many dimensions one might consider in answering such a question. We will explore the political, economic, and social effects of the armed forces on civilian life We will discuss issues relating to matters such as just war theory, the distinction between combatants and non-combatants, conscription, the law of armed conflict and international humanitarian law, the "guns versus butter" debate, military regimes versus civilian control over the armed forces, technological change, health concerns surrounding veterans, and the roles of race, gender, and sexual orientation in the military.
POLS 30318 International Relations Theory and History: Europe 1919 - 1939 (3 Credit Hours)
Few experiences have exerted more influence on our understanding of international politics than those of crisis-ridden Europe between the two World Wars. Academics, policymakers, and laypeople alike frequently point to the failure of the League of Nations, Hitler's expansionist hypernationalism, or the "appeasement" crises of the 1930s when debating how to identify, understand, and respond to some of the most pressing international challenges of our time. This course offers an overview of European interwar history through the lense of international relations theory and debates several purported lessons of the period for policymakers today. Students thus engage a series of topics within international relations, ranging from the role of institutions in international politics to the causes of war and the interaction of economic and security policy. In the process, students familiarize themselves with key events of the interwar years, including the Occupation of the Ruhr, the Abyssinia Crisis, and the Munich Agreement.
POLS 30319 The Coup d etat (3 Credit Hours)
The intervention of the military into politics remains one of the oldest phenomena of mankind and often radically alters the trajectory of a state. The coup detat remains one of the fundamental and enduring problems of leadership. This course will introduce students to this unique political phenomenon. We will visit theories that explain why the military at times enters into politics, as well as why some coup attempts fail while others succeed. We will also explore variation in the frequency of coups across history and regions, their consequences, and the modern challenges posed by those attempting to circumvent the political process to achieve power.
POLS 30320 Climate Change and Armed Conflict (3 Credit Hours)
To what extent does climate change pose a threat to national and international security? In this course, we will consider how the biophysical consequences of a changing climate reverberate through economic, social, and political systems to cause armed conflict between states and within them. We will examine at length the causal linkages between environmental change and war and scrutinize the empirical evidence. In addition, we will discuss the potential for political institutions, adaptation, and mitigation to prevent climate-related violence. Throughout the course, we will explore contemporary conflicts to illustrate key points and discuss how climate change shapes today?s international security landscape and concurrent policy debates.
POLS 30321 Global Environmental Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Global environmental politics is a field of political science that examines how political processes shape environmental outcomes and vice versa. On the one hand, it is concerned with issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss, deforestation, and natural resource use. On the other hand, it studies things like political institutions, social movements, party systems, and state-business relations. All the while, it places these ideas in a cross-national, global perspective. Throughout this course, students will grapple with both foundational and emerging questions in the study of global environmental politics. Why do some governments have stronger environmental policies than others? When do interest groups support or oppose different forms of environmental regulation? What role do social movements play in supporting diverse coalitions of environmental interests? How do voters form and express preferences for or against environmental action?
POLS 30326 Political Violence (3 Credit Hours)
As the quotation above suggests, an underlying assumption of this course is that ordinary people can, under certain circumstances, act in exceptionally violent and abhorrent ways. Indeed, violence deployed for political purposes is as old as humankind itself and its threat remains
eerily relevant in our own era. How and to what end is violence practiced? Why are some societies plagued by recurrent violence while others appear to be mostly free of it? What explains who participates in violence and why? What are the consequences of violence for society? In answering these questions, we will visit examples from multiple continents and time periods, seeking to grasp the mechanisms at play and gaining an understanding of ongoing policy debates. Crucially, we will leave the classroom with a deeper appreciation of how difficult these questions are to answer. At the same time, we will lean on empirical evidence in order to evaluate competing theories that offer plausible answers.
POLS 30334 Religion in International and Global Relations (3 Credit Hours)
What is the relation between religion and conflict in international and global relations? What is the relation between religion and peacebuilding, locally and globally? The so-called resurgence of religion to global politics, conventionally dating back to the Iranian Revolution of 1979, challenged the secularist myopia that informed policy makers and theorists of international relations. But it took the events of September 11th, 2001 to fully catalyze a process of rethinking the role of religion, on both the levels of theory and practice within the contexts of international relations. Both theorists and practitioners in the arenas of international relations are trying to decipher how to theorize religion into the existing explanatory paradigms of realism, liberalism, and constructivism. The course will examine these conversations, dating back to Westphalia of 1648 and the historical role of religion in the construction of the international system of nation-states. The course will also discuss the explicit integration of the imperative to engage religious communities and promote religious freedom into explicit strategies of American foreign policy and combating violent extremism at home. These issues will be discussed through a consideration of the history of orientalism and Islamophobia as well as the legacy of colonialism.
POLS 30344 Post-Conflict Politics (3 Credit Hours)
The first part of course examines the legacies of protracted conflicts (mostly civil wars) on a variety of political outcomes, from state-building and democratic institutions to political participation and social movements. The second part of the course explores different mechanisms by which states and the international community have dealt with these legacies, such as international courts, transitional justice and institution-building programs.
POLS 30345 Contemporary Civil Wars (3 Credit Hours)
Most current wars are civil wars, and these are longer and more violent than other forms of conflict. This course explores the politics of contemporary civil war. It examines the logic of rebel strategy, key trends in violence, and transnational dynamics including trafficking, terrorism, and international intervention. It takes a multi-scale approach to probe the roles of armed groups, civilians, national militaries, humanitarian organizations, and United Nations peace operations. It examines how the interaction among these actors reshapes the strategies, local economies, and duration of war. Students will compare the voices and experiences of civilians and rebels in warzones with intervention and conflict mitigation at the global level, and will examine implications for post-conflict transitions and conflict mitigation strategies. Students will build skills in conflict analysis, evidence, and assess gaps between public narratives of civil war and clandestine actions.
POLS 30350 Security Affairs in the Asia Pacific (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores security issues in the Asia Pacific. With the region’s growing importance and China’s rise, scholars and practitioners have debated whether Asia is ripe for rivalry and the appropriate strategic posture that the US should adopt in the region. To answer these critical questions, this course will begin by introducing students to foundational theoretical lenses, with a particular focus on application of the theories and assessing what “security” means. The second part of the course will explore some of the most pressing security challenges in Asia, ranging from traditional issues such as the Taiwan Strait, the Korean Peninsula, territorial disputes in the South China Sea, to some of the nontraditional issues such as climate change, emerging technology, global governance, or economic statecraft. This course will conclude by exploring the key contours of contemporary debates over US strategy in Asia: should the US increase, maintain, or decrease its engagement, and what are the priorities and instruments of statecraft that may be involved?
POLS 30351 Global Activism (3 Credit Hours)
This course is about transnational networking, mobilizing, and campaigning for or against social change. Equal attention is paid to conceptual and substantive issues. Conceptual issues include framing, strategies, and actors. Among the substantive issues examined are human rights, women's rights, gay rights and gay marriage, climate change, and global gun control. We are particularly interested in the emergence over the last two decades of a ‘global right wing' and the globalization of the culture wars.
POLS 30363 Exploring Global Development (3 Credit Hours)
An introduction to the field of international development, with particular focus on the various disciplines that have contributed to and shaped the development discourse. Readings, lectures, and discussions will draw from various disciplines, including economics, political science, sociology, anthropology, environmental and technological sciences, public health, law, and gender studies, among others. We will examine debates on the meaning and measurement of development; alternative approaches to, and methods in, the study of development; and attempts to address some of the main development challenges facing the world today. There will be a central focus on understanding "what works" in development. Working together in teams, students will conceptualize and design an international development project using "real world" constraints.
POLS 30364 States, Markets & Development (3 Credit Hours)
Market-oriented reforms known as ‘neoliberalism’ have dominated the reform agenda across the world. These reforms were passed amidst tremendous political contestations and have delivered varying degrees of success. For the developing countries that faced the additional/simultaneous challenges of building ‘good’ institutions and governance systems, these reforms have resulted in questionable outcomes. Given this, today’s emerging economies have been forced to re-assess the benefits of market-oriented reforms, and those with policy space and political will/capacity have embarked on new reform experiments. The module introduces the students to the complexities and challenges of economic reforms in the fast-growing economies by placing politics at the heart of the analysis. The course is comprised of two parts. The first part provides the theoretical and conceptual foundations for examining the processes and outcomes of economic reforms. It discusses the limitations and dangers of designing and implementing reforms without consideration of the broader concept of states and markets or sufficient engagement with politics. This is because policy always produces new winners and losers, and as a result provokes resistance from those who believe they will lose wealth, status, or power. The second part investigates reforms in key areas of the political economy where there have been significant reforms and where distributive tension and conflicts are rampant. These include privatization, trade liberalization, industrial policies, debt and macroeconomic stabilization, tax and fiscal, and social policy reforms, food and nutrition, among others. Given the importance of national and regional contexts when discussing politics, the course draws cases from a wide range of geographical areas including East Asia, Latin American and Sub-Saharan Africa. The module concludes by examining the implications of factoring politics and local contexts into economic reforms for development policy and management and discusses whether new development paradigms and models exist for emerging economies.
POLS 30371 National Security Innovation in the Contemporary United States (3 Credit Hours)
This course will utilize methodologies and materials from the National Security Innovation Network's "Hacking for Defense Program" to help students identify, work through and provide possible solutions for contemporary, real-life issues in national security. Examples of previous projects include working with the U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center to standardize policy related to integrating advanced technology to ensure a more resilient and capable military force. In the process, students will learn about institutional stakeholders involved in military, diplomatic, intelligence, and other national security-related fields. They will develop a greater understanding of the policies they pursue and some of the challenges they confront in developing and implementing these policies. Students will also advance their networking skills as they connect with representatives of these organizations, including during a weeklong trip to Washington, D.C., to facilitate direct student contact with some of these institutional actors and enhance students' understanding of the policymaking environment in the federal government. The innovative coursework will involve a blend of traditional readings, asynchronous resources, and student work-product will include weekly reaction papers to the assignments and project briefs, a final presentation to the project sponsor, and a student-produced video documenting their progress and attainment of learning goals. To enroll, students should apply by completing a simple application to compete for a class seat and award. Apply here: https://omva.nd.edu/national-security-innovation/
Experience Washington D.C.:
This week-long learning experience will allow students to meet with government officials and policymakers who will offer insights and outlook on national and global affairs. In addition, the program includes conversations with Fortune 500 executives, financiers, international business leaders, distinguished medical professionals, and prominent Americans with diverse backgrounds. This trip will take place from June 20 to 24, 2022. Travel and accommodations will be arranged through the course. This is a mandatory component of the course. All costs will be covered.
POLS 30401 Latin American Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Politics of Latin America is intended to be a multi-disciplinary introduction to critical issues within contemporary Latin American culture, society, politics, and economy. An assumption behind the organization of this course is that many of the traditional boundaries between different disciplines in the social sciences and the humanities are drawn somewhat arbitrarily, and that a more comprehensive understanding of Latin America can, and even should, be approached from a number of different analytic and disciplinary lenses. Thus, we will trespass traditional disciplinary boundaries from time to time over the course of the semester. The course is divided into two major parts. The first part is organized around a number of key analytic lenses, which we will employ sequentially with an aim to gaining a deeper appreciation of important aspects of contemporary Latin America. We will begin with a discussion of the utility of "culture" as a tool for understanding Latin America. Is there such a thing as "Latin America" understood as a discrete category of countries, and if so, what do they share in common? We will follow this discussion with an exploration of what is certainly a chief cultural expression among any people, an exploration of levels of religiosity and their relationship to social and political behavior. Other key features of culture will be woven into the analyses of the case studies we will undertake for the remainder of the course. We will explore the wide variation in the quality of democratic governance in different Latin American countries. And we will we look to some of the sources of that variation, including democratic institution building, economic and social policy making, and the persistence of populist politics, and forces in the international arena, such as U.S Foreign Policy, among other factors. In the remainder of the course, we will look specifically at country-cases in comparative perspective, in particular Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Colombia and Venezuela. In selecting these cases, I have made a conscious decision to sacrifice breadth for greater depth. An effort will be made throughout the discussion of the cases to make broader comparisons with a wider range of Latin American cases.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 30406 Elections and Social Protest in Latin America (3 Credit Hours)
Elections and social protest are the two most important means of political participation in Latin America today. Every year, millions of Latin Americans go to the ballot box to elect their representatives, but millions also march to their country's capitals to oust elected politicians or simply to demand public goods or policy changes. Are Latin American citizens taking to the streets to contest market-oriented reforms, as it is often portrayed? Or do they take to the streets because elections don't work in Latin America's dysfunctional democracies? Are Latin American voters electing leftist politicians to move the economies away from neoliberal policies? Do the rich vote for the Right and the poor for the Left? In this course we want to understand who votes, who protests, and why they do it. We also want to understand the relationship between elections and protest. The course first provides a general overview of democratization, economic reforms, electoral behavior and social protest in Latin America. We then analyze electoral and social dynamics in six countries: Mexico, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Venezuela, and Guatemala. The in-depth analysis of these countries will provide you with a solid understanding of markets, democracies, voters and protesters in Latin America and will give you skills on how to assess public opinion surveys.
POLS 30407 Dictatorship, Democracy and War in Latin America (3 Credit Hours)
Why have some countries in Latin American developed into democracies, while others have seen the rise of dictatorships? Why have some countries remained at peace while others are often at war? This course examines historical, economic, regional, and international factors that have influenced political development in Latin America.
POLS 30415 The Rise and Fall of Democracies and Dictatorship (3 Credit Hours)
Winston Churchill famously said in a speech in the House of Commons in 1947, "Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those others that have been tried." For generations, social scientists have studied what makes democracy emerge and then survive or break down. And because some dictatorships have huge consequences for their own populations and the world, social scientists have also devoted considerable attention to analyzing the emergence, survival, and breakdown of authoritarian and totalitarian regimes. This course will examine these issues. The first part of the course will examine different theoretical approaches to understanding why democracies and dictatorships emerge and then survive or fall. The second and longer part will focus on the emergence, survival, and fall of democracies and dictatorships in Europe and Latin America, mostly in the 20th century.
POLS 30420 Memory, History, and Violence in the Middle East (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the interplay between history, memory and violence in the modern the Middle East. We will discuss specific case studies of violence and war and their social, political and cultural dynamics of commemoration, forgetfulness and silence. The course will start with an overview of theories and concepts emanated from the field of Memory Studies and then continue with our case studies. These will include the Lebanese civil war (1975-1990), the 1948 war that led to the establishment of Israel and Palestinian displacement, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, the violent regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, the Armenian genocide during World War I and the Algerian war of independence (1955-1962).
POLS 30421 European Politics (3 Credit Hours)
In this course on European politics we will examine the literature on three major issues: regional integration, origins of modern political authority, and industrial political economy. We will seek to understand the origin, current functioning, and possible futures for key European institutions, including the EU, nation-states, social provision, unions, and political parties. Readings on the European Union, monetary politics, Germany, France, and Spain will be drawn from both scholarly sources and contemporary analyses of political events.
POLS 30425 Nationalism and National Movements in the Middle East (3 Credit Hours)
This course studies the intellectual origins, political developments and social and cultural manifestations of nationalism and national movements in the Middle East. We will begin with a theoretical survey of nationalism in general and then proceed to discuss specific cases of national movements (Zionist, Arab, Lebanese, Iraqi, Turkish, Iranian, Egyptian). We will use these cases to analyze themes such as historiography and nationalism, anti-colonialism, gender, religion and art as they have been manifested in these national movements.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
POLS 30441 Middle East Politics (3 Credit Hours)
The Middle East is simultaneously one of the most strategically important regions in the world and one of the least understood. This course provides an introduction to the politics of the region from a thematic perspective. It addresses a variety of topics, including democracy, development, sectarianism, oil, and conflict. Students will be assigned readings from both historical scholarship and contemporary analysis of regional issues. When applicable, cases from across the region will be used to illustrate the themes of the course.
POLS 30450 Global Indigenous Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Indigenous people often appear to be people without property. Whether it is outside observers who presume that they never had a "proper" economy of individual possessions, or whether it is indigenous representatives who define themselves as having lost their property, their land, their traditions, their languages, what and who is indigenous is defined by an absence. In contemporary contexts of globalization, however, indigenous traditional knowledge as intellectual property has become a lightning rod of political action. There has been a corresponding redefinition of the indigenous from the criterion of autochthony or priority to relations of dispossession or appropriation. Anthropology has continued comparative study of the variety of theories of, or knowledge about, property and its place in the construction of individuals and collectivities in indigenous societies. This course connects cultural categories of property with ethnographic scenes of its alienation to explore the emerging role of culture as emblem, itself a kind of property. We ask how indigenous appropriation of the culture concept and colonial appropriation of the environmental knowledge, art, language, and land of indigenous cultures furthers the cycle of symbolic and material exchange that defines indigeneity.
POLS 30460 Globalization in Africa and the US (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore contemporary globalization trends across Africa and in the United States. It will focus on the ways that international forces and new technologies are affecting citizens and countries on the African continent as well as in the US. Over the course of the semester, we will share lectures, discussions, and group work with a "sister class" at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. Through case studies and reviews of current events, the course will explore a diverse set of topics including technological change and development, the environment, migration, art and culture, trade, investment and aid, and contentious politics. The course will attempt to highlight the new opportunities for citizens as well as the challenges that remain for countries in the globalized world.
POLS 30465 Politics of China (3 Credit Hours)
This course offers a general introduction to the politics of contemporary China. After background on the imperial and Republican periods and the development of the Communist revolution, we will focus on major political events in the People's Republic: land reform, Hundred Flowers Campaign, Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution, Democracy Wall, Opening and Reform, Tiananmen Uprisings, Beijing Olympics, etc. Then we proceed to a thematic discussion of popular participation and protest, state control, the emergence of civil society groups, and major challenges facing contemporary China. The basic objectives of this course are to provide a working knowledge of Chinese politics and to encourage a critical evaluation of the positive and negative aspects of China's socialist experiment.
POLS 30466 Hong Kong Decolonized and Recolonized (3 Credit Hours)
Colonialism is almost universally denounced. When, then, would Hong Kong activists wave the Union Jack in various demonstrations over the years? Why do they long for the British colonial era as the good old days? This course examines Hong Kong's struggle for democracy and autonomy in the intersection of colonial and Chinese history. It discusses what happened before and after the city's return to the Chinese government under the "one country, two systems" model in 1997. It studies how Hong Kong, once "a city of protest," has been turned into a city of fear today. Under the draconian National Security Law imposed in 2020, Hong Kong has effectively been recolonized. An estimated half a million Hong Kongers will have left by 2023. This class will supplement academic readings with memoirs and documentaries. It will also bring in Hong Kong activists to speak to the class about their dreams and despair.
POLS 30470 Global Asia: Political, Economic and Social Transformation in the Chinese Century (3 Credit Hours)
Scholars have long speculated about the rise of Asia, but Asia has already risen. Asian economies are driving global growth; Asian governments are some of the largest purveyors of foreign aid and investment; and Asian superpowers like China are shaping and shifting geopolitics. This course, taught by a political scientist and a historian, offers students the opportunity to unpack the complexity and diversity of Asia across time and space. We will explore Asia through political and historical concepts against the background of China's evolving role within the region. At the same time, we will focus on elevating diverse Asian voices to understand how historical concepts and political and economic trajectories have shifted over time and what it means for domestic and global audiences in the 21st century.
As an integration course, our focus is analytical and interdisciplinary: we examine the political, economic, and social trajectory of Asia to shed light on the most dynamic region of the world. We also devote considerable time to understanding how historical legacies and patterns such as colonialism or economic imperialism impact Asia today. Lectures, assigned readings covering a wide range of primary and secondary sources in political science and history, and a discussion-oriented format introduces students to issues ranging from populism, party-state capitalism, and poverty alleviation to soft and sharp power, demographic crises, surveillance, and social unrest. All majors and backgrounds are welcome. No prior knowledge of Asian languages or topics is required.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History, WKIN - Core Integration
POLS 30472 Russian Politics (3 Credit Hours)
As a major global powers, Russia is an important country in world politics. With a history of multiple revolutions in one century, contemporary Russia is also a fascinating site to study political change. This course introduces students to Russian politics and fosters their understanding of the country's contemporary social, economic and political transformation and its recent history. Among other questions, we will discuss the challenges of the post-Soviet economic transformation (privatization, liberalization, energy-related issues, the rule of law, for example), the nature of the post-Soviet regimes (the type of democracy, authoritarian backsliding, for example) and Russia's changing relationship vis-a-vis the US, Europe and other CIS countries. While the class focuses on contemporary Russia, it will also engage with the post-Soviet transformation of other CIS countries, including Ukraine and Central Asia. In addition to the empirical developments, this course will engage students with theoretical debates in comparative politics and political economy, including theories on the role of institutions, interests and ideas in social and political change. No prior classes in comparative politics are necessary. Students who have taken Professor Javeline's or Professor Lyanders classes on Russia are encouraged to enroll; this class will follow up, not duplicate their content.
POLS 30482 Identity Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Identity politics has recently regained attention as a major force in political behavior. In this course, we will examine the features of identity politics that bear on individuals' political preferences and decisions. Using both historical and contemporary examples, we will analyze the role of identity considerations in electoral behavior, protest, and partisanship, among other areas. Some of the identity categories studied will be race, gender, and religious affiliation. The course includes cases both within the American context and international comparisons.
POLS 30485 Comparative Courts and the Rule of Law (3 Credit Hours)
The death of a Supreme Court Justice triggers a bitter partisan battle over the impending nomination. Is this tragedy unique to the United States? Why are political parties so eager to control the Court? This course will explore how constitutional norms seek to protect judicial independence, and how political parties "game" such constitutional norms worldwide. We will analyze episodes of "packing" and "purging" of supreme courts and constitutional tribunals in different countries. We will investigate the practice of "strategic retirement" in the US Supreme Court, the threat posed by legislative majorities to judicial independence, and the slippery slope of partisan manipulation. We will also address whether judicial purges constitute opportunities for a more balanced judiciary (for instance, in terms of gender). Comparative analysis will help us learn from the experience of other nations. This course will introduce students to basic notions of game theory and quantitative analysis.
POLS 30486 Comparative Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
The rationale for studying constitutions in comparative context is that we learn more when we put into dialogue diverse perspectives. Indeed, the most important debates in constitutionalism recur across time and place. Although dozens of countries have confronted similar questions, they very often come to different answers. This course explores different instances of constitutionalism, connecting them to the broader political cultures from which they emerge. We examine the political values and moral theories that inform such concepts as liberty, equality, and community within various constitutional traditions. We will debate such elusive concepts as constitutional identity and amendment. In addition to these big theoretical questions, we explore the similarities and differences of institutional arrangements across systems, including understandings of judicial review, the role of constitutional courts, and varying approaches to constitutional maintenance and change. Ultimately, this course aims at greater understanding of constitutionalism in general and the particular cases of it that we study. Moreover, by studying constitutions in comparative context we gain insights into American constitutional understandings, as well.
POLS 30492 Contention in China (3 Credit Hours)
Why do pro-democracy efforts in China repeatedly fail? If Chinese leaders aim to build a harmonious society, why are there routine contentious protests by workers, peasants, religious followers, middle-class property owners, lawyers, and minorities? How do the marginalized and disadvantaged fight against social injustices in China? Why is there no organized democracy movement despite the prevalence of sporadic protests? Is Confucianism preventing Chinese development towards a more democratic society? This course examines key contentious episodes in modern China, from the 1911 Revolution through the Cultural Revolution and the Tiananmen Movement to more scattered rightful resistance and minority protests in recent years.
Enrollment is limited to students with a program in Peace Studies (Supp.) or Peace Studies.
POLS 30497 Varieties of Democracy (3 Credit Hours)
The world's largest collection of information about the state of democracy all over the world resides at the University of Notre Dame. This course is a guided exploration of the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) data. It begins with a survey of the varied ways that philosophers and cultures have thought about democracy. It then explains how these traditions were distilled into a lengthy questionnaire answered by more than a thousand country experts all over the world. The course provides you will the methodological tools you need to explore the data in depth to answer questions such as: What does it mean to be "democratic"? Are there different types of democracy in the world? What are the different ways of being undemocratic? Which countries and regions are most and least democratic in each way? What trends can we observe over the past century? Are there sequences of reforms that lead to successful democratization? As the database is still growing, many students will have the opportunity to contribute to the data collection process. You will also supplement the data with independent research to produce a detailed report evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the political regime in one country and placing it in comparative and historical perspective.
POLS 30504 Human Rights Reparations: Design and Compliance (3 Credit Hours)
The course will explore the current state of reparations for human rights violations, as prescribed by international courts, tribunals, commissions, and other adjudication bodies. We will develop two disciplinary perspectives and integrate them in a collective research project. The first perspective will examine, from a legal standpoint, the sufficiency and adequacy of reparation measures light of international human rights law and the general law of international responsibility, and will inquire into the political and civil society challenges resulting in unmet reparations for complex human rights violations, such as slavery and the trans-Atlantic slave trade, climate change impacts, refugees and displacements from migration, genocide and mass atrocities during conflicts. The second perspective will explore the political conditions under which governmental actors comply with human rights reparations, and what non-governmental actors can do to promote compliance.
POLS 30505 Democracy, Violence, and Elections (3 Credit Hours)
Elections are often promoted as a non-violent means of leadership succession. However, violent elections have become a common phenomenon, both in conflict countries and advanced democracies. The recent round of intimidation and unrest in the US is one instance of electoral violence. Governors in both Michigan and Virginia were targeted in a kidnapping plot, and deaths were incurred in the US Capitol assault. In conflict countries, peace builders advocate the use of elections to resolve conflict and lay the ground for democratization. Yet, unfree and/or unfair elections have led to violence, like in the US, or worse, re-ignited civil wars. Putting together the complex relationship among violence, elections, and democracy, this course introduces students to the politics surrounding elections. Throughout this course, we will examine the causes of pre- and post-election violence and the consequences of low quality elections on peace and conflict. We will also draw on examples from different parts of the world to critically examine important concepts and theories, and we will study measures of election quality to understand how they can be used to evaluate elections as well as their measurement issues, which have implications on our understanding of democracy.
POLS 30510 Policing in Democracy: A Comparative Approach (3 Credit Hours)
What is the role of the police in a democracy? What are their powers? Who makes their rules and provides oversight? Do we even need them? How do citizens respond to the realities of being policed through political activism, day-to-day interactions, and music and literature? While the police are charged with maintaining one of the most fundamental functions of the state, the “monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force”, the answers to these questions vary dramatically around the world and throughout history. Partially driven by recent scandals involving police violence, activists, politicians, public security professionals, and social scientists have been carefully reconsidering their views on policing, recognizing the police as powerful political actors and policing policies as dynamic policy arenas. In this course, we will explore the history of crime fighting and police forces in the modern era, then dive into current debates and research about the organization, mission, and oversight of police forces in contemporary democracies, including social movements advocating for police reform. This course has a global perspective, gaining understanding of local experiences in the United States through comparative study of primarily Latin American, British, and Western European systems.
POLS 30535 From Rasputin to Putin (3 Credit Hours)
This upper division lecture course examines some of the most important events, ideas, and personalities that shaped late Imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet periods of Russian history during the last one hundred years: from the outbreak of the First World War and the Revolutions of 1905 and 1917 through the Great Terror of the 1930s, the experience of the Second World War and the emergence of the Soviet Empire, late Stalinism and post-Stalinist developed or mature socialism, the collapse of the communist rule and the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, as well as Russia's uneasy transition "out of Totalitarianism" and into Putin's authoritarianism during the first fourteen years of the twentieth-first century. The course is designed for history majors as well as for students in other disciplines with or without background in modern Russian and East European history.
Corequisites: HIST 22355
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
POLS 30540 Ukrainian and Russian Culture (3 Credit Hours)
The claim that Russians and Ukrainians are one people, “a single whole,” has been resounding in Russian mass media, film, and other discourses for the last two decades. Putin took a pronounced colonial turn with his return to the Presidency in 2012, describing Russia as a state-civilization, in which Russians and Ukrainians are joined in “spiritual unity.” History thus serves as a justification for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This course will look at historical facts and cultural artifacts of Russia and Ukraine to determine the roots of Russia’s current aggression in Ukraine. Among others, the course will discuss the following questions. Is Kyivan Rus part of Russian or Ukrainian history, or neither? Does Ukraine have its own history and culture that is distinct from Russian? Are Ukrainians divided into Russian-speakers (aspiring to join Russia) and Ukrainian-speaking nationalists (aspiring to EU)? The course will examine the origins, points of intersection and divergence of Ukrainian and Russian cultures through the lens of history, art, and literature from the Christianization of Rus (10th century) to the present time. We will look at the history of Russian imperialism, centuries of appropriation of Ukrainian cultural achievements, annihilation of Ukrainian traditions, extermination of Ukrainian intellectuals, and the politics of Russification with the purpose to see how the current events reflect a tendency that has already existed for centuries.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKAL - Core Art & Literature
POLS 30543 Nothing is True and Everything is Possible: Politics, Media, and War in Putin’s Russia (3 Credit Hours)
In 1987, the Soviet Union was the largest political entity on the planet. Four years later, it had vanished from the map entirely. In this interdisciplinary course, you will learn about the ‘new Russia’ that has emerged in the three decades since this stunning collapse. Drawing on an array of resources in English translation, you will explore the politics, media, and culture of the post-Soviet period: from the lawless years of the “wild 90s” under Boris Yeltsin to the return of totalitarianism under Vladimir Putin and his brutal invasion of Ukraine. In so doing, your study of contemporary Russia will lead us to discuss some of the most pressing questions in global politics today. What is the nature of truth and power in Putin’s dystopian propaganda state? Should the current leadership in Russia be described as a fascist regime or neo-Soviet? And, perhaps most importantly, how did Russia’s democratic experiment ultimately end with the launch of the largest war in Europe since 1945—and what lessons might this failure hold for America and the rest of the world?
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKAL - Core Art & Literature
POLS 30548 African Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Course would provide an overview to all major themes in political science focusing on the African continent. The course will cover the entire continent, though likely focus on five cases studies that parallel substantive themes. The course would first provide a grounding in colonization, decolonization and state development, but then focus primarily on contemporary political behavior and institutions. I am interested in using Bleck & Van de Walle as a primary text.
POLS 30550 Democracy and Dictators (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines how gender and sexuality are understood, constructed, and implicated in relations of social power in various regions of the world. It will integrate scholarship from anthropology and women and gender studies to explore how ideas of maleness, femaleness, trans, queer, and heterosexual are reproduced, contested, and transgressed within different social contexts and the everydayness of these categories. We will learn about cultural changes in conceptions of gender and sexuality in North and South America, SWANA (South West Asia/North Africa), Southeast and East Asia, Central and Southern Africa, and Europe. In the first half of this course, we will consider traditional themes in cultural anthropology, including kinship, morality, ritual, emotion, politics, and the circulation of goods and labor, to examine how different communities produce cultural knowledge about gender and sexuality. The second half of this course will address contemporary themes such as activism, violence, and gender and sexual oppression. Using our knowledge of anthropological theories developed in the first half of the course, we will take up topics of concern such as masculinity and violence, LGBTQ rights and pinkwashing, and gender and nationalism to understand how gender and sexuality are relevant to post-colonial contexts and settler-colonial resistance movements.
POLS 30552 East Asian Cities in the Global Economy: From Growth to Governance (3 Credit Hours)
The extraordinary rise of East Asia during the past several decades is in large part a story of the region's metropolises - from Tokyo and Seoul to Hong Kong and Shanghai. Following decades of booming growth, such cities have emerged as crucial pivots in the global economy, pulsating with the activity of industry, commerce, finance, and innovation. But the very success of such cities has introduced tremendous challenges for urban policymakers, from overcrowding, inequality, and environmental strain to the political balancing act of being at once patriotic and cosmopolitan. To what extent have the governance capabilities of East Asian metropolises kept pace with these cities' economic growth, and to what extent have such cities emerged not just as global economic hubs but also as policy innovators and political beacons?
This seminar-style course examines the rapidly changing economic roles and political identities of East Asian metropolises between the post-World War II period and the present, combining a theoretical look at the political economy of cities with in-depth case studies of some of the region's most dynamic urban centers. We start by exploring contemporary debates about the problems and the promise of cities in an era of economic globalism and resurgent political nationalism. We then look at the various ways in which the East Asian context for urban growth and governance differs from that of the liberal west. The course then makes a deep dive into the development and governance experiences of eight East Asian cities, using paired case studies (Tokyo and Seoul, Hong Kong and Taipei, Shanghai and Shenzhen, Chongqing and Chengdu) to explore how national and historical contexts have shaped the growth trajectories and governance models of different metropolises. During the final weeks of the course, we look at how the distinctive development trajectories of East Asian cities have, in turn, influenced their approaches to international politics and pressing global policy challenges.
POLS 30553 The Political Economy of East Asian Development (3 Credit Hours)
This course examines the late 20th and early 21st century 'economic miracles' of several East Asian countries and the political, social, and spatial factors underpinning them. We will explore similarities, differences, and interdependencies in the development trajectories of Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and mainland China, and will debate how accurate and useful concepts like "the developmental state" and "state capitalism" are in describing the political economy of the region. To what extent has China's economic rise followed the existing playbooks of its East Asian neighbors? What human costs and developmental distortions have accompanied booming industrial and urban growth? And what lessons does East Asia's experience offer for the contemporary developing world?
POLS 30556 Global populism and the future of democracy (3 Credit Hours)
Social scientists and journalists have used the word "populism" to describe a wide variety of leaders, social movements, and political parties, but there are profound disagreements regarding the meaning of populism, its causes and effects on democracy. In the first part of this course, we will use tools from conceptual analysis to examine different ways of defining populism. Is it an ideology? A political strategy? A style of leadership? Are these complementary or contradictory approaches? Once we have conceptual clarity on what populism is, we will assess the main theories that explain the causes and effects of populism. In particular, we will focus on the effect that populism can have on the rise and fall of democratic regimes. Is populism a threat or a boost to democratic politics? Finally, we will use the previous discussions to analyze different cases of populism in the United States, Europe, and Latin America.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 30561 Democracy and Development in India (3 Credit Hours)
When India gained independence from British Rule in 1947, observers noted that the likelihood of such a poor country remaining democratic was limited. Yet, over 70 years later, India remains a thriving democracy. This course explores how a country with hundreds of social, economic, ethnic and linguistic cleavages managed to consolidate democracy, when other less diverse countries slipped back into authoritarianism. It also explores how a country with a history of social discrimination against former untouchables (now Dalits) and women implemented corrective mechanisms to improve the conditions of marginalized groups and give them political representation and voice. To explain the persistence of Indian democracy we will examine elite bargaining, the deployment of force, accommodation of regional leaders and their political aspirations, economic development and the constant reconfiguration of caste, party and religious alliances.
POLS 30562 Women's Rights Movements (3 Credit Hours)
From the right to vote to the right to decide, the fight for women's rights has transformed public and private life across the world. This fight, however, has not necessarily been unified, nor has it been without obstacles. In this course, we will explore how movements for women's rights have changed through recent history, and how has it impacted politics around the world. This course will introduce general theories for social movements and collective action while analyzing the most relevant moments of social movements for women's rights in history. Students will be invited to reflect on how traditional theories of social movements lack a gender-perspective, how some of the most important social movements have ignored women as rights subjects. This course looks at the experiences of women's social movements from a comparative perspective. We will delve into analysis of cases from North and Latin America, Southeast Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East.
POLS 30567 Faith, Freedom, and Fanaticism: Religion and Politics in the World Today (3 Credit Hours)
In this course we will explore the different ways that religious institutions and ideas affect political attitudes and behaviors in various parts of the world. With a special focus on Christianity and Islam, the course will address the following questions: Why do many citizens in some countries expect religious leaders to play a prominent role in politics while many citizens in other countries do not? Why are some religious institutions more supportive of freedom of religion than others and what explains religious persecution across the world? What effect do religious institutions have on support for liberal democracy? How does globalization affect the way religion is applied to public life? How can we tell when violence is motivated by religion and what explains religiously motivated or justified violence?
POLS 30595 International Development in Practice: What works in Development (3 Credit Hours)
This class aspires to develop relevant knowledge and practical skills for students interested in engaging in positive change in a complex world. In this course on international development, students will: 1) examine the processes that bring about individual and societal change in an international context;2) explore the roles, complexities, opportunities and constraints of development projects in areas such as poverty reduction, social development, health and education; and, 3) develop practical skills related to project design, planning, management, negotiations, communications, and the evaluation of international development projects. A central theme of the course is to understand what have we learned over the past decades from systematic research and from experience in the field about "what works." The course makes use of cases studies and draws lessons from instructive stories of failure as well as inspirational stories of change. The course focuses significant attention on "bright spots" in development- specific interventions that have made meaningful contributions. The course aspires to help train students to think like creative, effective, and thoughtful development professionals. A central feature of the course will be the opportunity to work throughout the semester as a member of a "Development Advisory Team" directly with an international development organization client who has identified a specific problem or opportunity. Development clients for the class are organizations in Bangladesh, Chile, Haiti, and India, among others.
POLS 30597 Criminal Justice and Human Rights (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine the comparative institutional design of criminal justice institutions, such as the police, prosecution offices, and the judiciary, and how those institutions are variedly implemented worldwide, with a particular focus on the Global South. We will explore how those institutions deal with issues such as large-scale criminal violence, the militarization of public safety, or femicides. Additionally, the course will critically analyze how those institutions affect the fulfillment of human rights, such as the prohibition of torture, the right of access to justice for victims, or the prohibition of discrimination. We will study how international human rights and humanitarian law are used to deal with the obstacles and challenges of accessing justice amongst impunity. Last, we will look at forms of criminality management beyond the regular criminal justice system, such as restorative justice, indigenous legal systems, and transitional justice.
POLS 30600 The Death of God and the Birth of Modernity: Religion in Modern Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
“God is dead,” proclaims Friedrich Nietzsche’s Madman in a parable. Interpreted in a certain way, this statement means that the god of the Christian religion no longer inspires widespread, popular belief and so cannot serve as the basis for political life. Taken on its own, this evocative phrase has become emblematic of the modern world and its reputed secularism. But what does this phrase really mean? Is it true? And if it is true, what would the consequences be for how we engage in politics in the modern world? This course will explore these related questions through the close analysis of classic texts in political theory. We will begin the course by examining challenges to Christian ethics and belief in the works of Machiavelli and Spinoza. Additionally, we will see how the “death” or overthrow of a certain interpretation of the Christian God led to a large-scale reshaping of European society during the Reformation. We will next examine several optimistic views about the potentially beneficial effects of God’s death on society and politics. This section of the course will include readings from Hume and Marx. Finally, we will examine the work of Nietzsche himself to see how “God’s death” is perhaps best understood as an ambiguous phenomenon. For if it is true, as Nietzsche's Madman says, that “we ourselves have killed God,” what possibility of absolution is there for such an immense crime?
POLS 30601 Catholicism, Sex, Law, and Politics (3 Credit Hours)
In an age of growing polarization, how should human beings relate to one another, as members of families, social communities, professional callings, and civil society? This course builds understanding of this problem by exploring ways that Catholic theology and Western political thought, particularly feminist thought, can engage each other on a fundamental aspect of human relationships: sexual difference. Though these traditions are often in tension, conversation between them will richly inform our study of the course’s core questions: How should we think about sexual difference, and how ought contemporary men and women live and work together in the family and the public sphere? We will take an interdisciplinary and historical approach, moving from the earliest days of Christianity through the medieval, Enlightenment, and modern periods and culminating in the present day. Theological sources will be drawn from Scripture, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, papal encyclicals, and writings of various Catholic theologians and philosophers. We will bring these sources into dialogue with ancient and modern political thinkers, their relationship to the tradition of feminist thought (with particular focus on first and second wave feminism), and constitutional law. Throughout the course, we will study underlying theories that inform our core questions: ideas about human nature, the meaning of sexual difference, equality, freedom, marriage and the family, human rights, and the ends of government and law.
We will aim to discover areas of compatibility between Catholicism, as a tradition of faith seeking understanding, and feminism, considered as a philosophical, political, and legal movement centrally concerned with sexual difference and its implications. The course will conclude with discussion of contemporary American debates about the relationship and roles of the sexes in marriage & the family, the home, the workplace, and public life. Students will learn both how to distinguish the modes of thought that characterize theology and political science as disciplines, and how to integrate them in order to draw conclusions about reality. They should emerge from the course not only well-formed in their own views on our focal questions, but able to engage robustly and charitably with perspectives that differ from their own.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines
POLS 30602 The Abolition of Man (1 Credit Hour)
This course will examine how the very concept of being human has been transformed and confused over the last two hundred years. Beginning with a discussion of the themes set forth in C. S. Lewis’s book, "The Abolition of Man," the course will engage with a variety of texts from the nineteenth century onwards and reflect upon the impact of (and connections between) material conditions (e.g. technology) and philosophical ideas (e.g., transhumanism) on the deep questions of what it means to be a human being. It will also reflect upon how Christianity is challenged by these but also offers a cogent response.
POLS 30610 Tyranny and the Tyrant: Pivotal Writings in Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
This course will employ eastern and western, classical, medieval, and modern sources to familiarize students with the theoretically apprehensible features of the phenomena that are universally described under the heading of tyranny. The syllabus will include both writings intended for tyrants and would-be tyrants, and writings intended for citizens and subjects.
Altogether, students will learn (1) about the ways in which tyrannies have been theorized to come to be and pass away, (2) about the observed characteristics of tyrannical and despotic regimes, (3) about the attitudes and practices recommended by a wide range of political thinkers toward regimes and states of the relevant kind, (4) both the necessary and the frequently observed characterological features of the figure of the tyrant. This course will also, as it reaches the more modern parts of the syllabus, deal with related concepts such as authoritarianism and totalitarianism.
POLS 30622 Contemporary Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
A survey of some of the most influential political thinkers of the late 19th and 20th century. Topics include secularization, bureaucratization, moral pluralism, individual freedom and the place of politics in contemporary life. Readings from Mill, Nietzsche, Weber, Schmitt, Arendt, Berlin, and Strauss.
POLS 30627 War and Peace in Modern Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
Why do wars occur? Are there fundamental differences between interstate and civil wars? What can the prevalence and persistence of war teach us about politics? Is a more peaceful world possible? If so, how might we achieve it? This course explores these and related questions through a selection of readings from the history of modern political thought. Beginning with Machiavelli, Bacon, Hobbes, and Spinoza, the course examines the origins of a secular science of war and peace in the early modern period. It then turns to the economic, geographic, military, and gender determinants of war and peace in Montesquieu, Hume, Rousseau, and Wollstonecraft before taking up the question of perpetual peace in Rousseau, Kant, Hegel, and Marx. It ends with an examination of nationalism, imperialism, and colonialism through the writings of Nietzsche, Lenin, Arendt, and Dubois along with antecedents to contemporary international relations theory in Morgenthau, Butterfield, and Herz.
POLS 30650 Moderation in an Immoderate Age (1 Credit Hour)
With the rise of political and ideological extremism in recent decades, there have been renewed calls for moderation in politics. Yet, these appeals often seem more platitudinal than substantive. After all, what even is moderation? Is it simply a passive, unoffensive, middle-of-the-road approach to politics? Or is there a more robust understanding (and tradition) of political moderation worth recovering?
In this one-credit course, we will think about moderation as an important *virtue* in politics, especially in the liberal democratic context. After defining what it is exactly, by reading contemporary authors Aurelian Craiutu and Harry Clor, we will discuss a philosophical case for moderation through readings by Aristotle, Edmund Burke, and Michael Oakeshott. Then, we will consider a theological grounding for moderation within Christian political thought, reading selections from Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Blaise Pascal, Alexis de Tocqueville, and John Paul II. Finally, we will bring the conversation closer to home by discussing the appropriateness of moderation in response to an extreme injustice like slavery through a consideration of the varying perspectives (and actions) of Abraham Lincoln and William Lloyd Garrison.
POLS 30653 Politics and Conscience (3 Credit Hours)
Against a backdrop of large-scale society, mass movements, and technological bureaucracy, the invocation of "conscience" recalls the individual human person as a meaningful actor in the political sphere. But what is conscience, and what are its rights and responsibilities? What is it about conscience that ought to command governmental respect? Are there limits to its autonomy? What role should conscience play in questions of war and peace, law-abidingness and civil disobedience, citizenship and political leadership? And how does the notion of conscience relate to concepts of natural law and natural rights, rationality and prudence, religion and toleration?
This course engages such questions through readings from the Catholic intellectual tradition (Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas More, Fransisco de Vitoria, Desiderius Erasmus, John Henry Newman, Karol Wojty'a/John Paul II, and Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI) and other writers of the history of ethical-political thought (Cicero, Seneca, John Locke, Mahatma Ghandi, Jan Pato'ka, and Alexandr Solzhenitsyn). We consider also various contemporary reflections on conscience expressed in films, essays, letters, plays, short stories, speeches, and declarations, beginning with Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" and Václav Havel's speech "Politics and Conscience."
This class serves as both the capstone course for the interdisciplinary minor Philosophy in the Catholic Tradition and an upper-level elective for Political Science majors and Peace Studies minors. Its format combines lecture and seminar-style discussion.
POLS 30654 Catholicism and Politics (3 Credit Hours)
Catholicism and Politics poses the question, both simple and complex: How ought Catholics to think about the political order and political issues within it? The first part of the course will survey major responses to this question drawn from Church history: the early church, the medieval church, and the modern church. The second part applies these models to contemporary issues ranging among war, intervention, globalization, abortion, the death penalty, religious freedom, gender issues, and economic development. The course culminates in "Vatican III," where teams of students, representing church factions, gather to discover church teachings on selected controversial political issues.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines
POLS 30655 Citizens of the World: Cosmopolitanism and its Critics (3 Credit Hours)
The late 20th and early 21st centuries have witnessed the rise of left and right social movements across the Western world challenging the principles of freedom, toleration, and social progress at the heart of liberalism. Many of these movements contest liberalism’s focus on the atomistic individual as the primary unit of social and political life, positing that the particularistic identities of various social groupings—including those of family, religion, class, and nation—take precedence in political life. Such criticisms lie in sharp distinction to both Enlightenment-era optimism about the potential for a future world-state (cosmo-polis) and contemporary attempts to spread democracy and enact an international human rights regime. This course hopes to understand these contemporary nationalist movements by exploring the Enlightenment foundations of liberalism and its utopian emphasis on universal human rights and a future world-state. In this vein, we will read works by Immanuel Kant, Nicolas de Condorcet, Edmund Burke, and Mary Wollstonecraft. To explore the opposition between cosmopolitanism and nationalism in the contemporary world, we will also consider works by Karl Marx, Hannah Arendt, Frantz Fanon, W.E.B. Du Bois, Benedict Anderson, and Yoram Hazony.
POLS 30656 Human Rights and Human Wrongs (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine theories of human rights and their applications and implications for international politics.
POLS 30658 Biblical Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
This course takes a Great Books approach, placing the primary text and its interpretation at the center. Unlike some other works of political philosophy, the Hebrew Bible primarily makes its arguments through narrative, although other styles (law, oratory, poetry, etc.) are also integral to the biblical corpus. Thus in order to understand the ideas these texts hope to teach us, students must be familiarized with both the narrative itself and the tools that the narrative uses to convey ideas. The course therefore follows the principal biblical narrative-the history of Israel from Genesis to Kings-which spans the first half of the Hebrew Bible. Students will learn the story of the rise and fall of the ancient Israelite kingdom and analyze the political concepts that are deployed by the text as they arise in the narrative.
POLS 30659 The Political Philosophy of Education (3 Credit Hours)
From Plato's Republic to Rousseau's Emile to John Dewey's Democracy and Education, political philosophers have understood that education is arguably the primary way that political and social values are articulated, realized and conveyed. In this course we will examine a variety of philosophies of education, ranging from ancient to contemporary authors, exploring contending ideas and ideals of education, with particular attention to higher education and implications for our own institution, the University of Notre Dame.
POLS 30662 Church, the State, and American Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
Class examines philosophical, constitutional, and political questions pertaining to religion and politics, including: Do individuals have a right to religious liberty? If so, how might that right be protected? How does the American Constitution protect the right to religious freedom? What is the proper relationship between church and state? Is religion necessary, good, or bad for liberal democracy? Readings include selections from classical, medieval, and modern political philosophy, leading cases of American constitutional law, and contemporary legal theorist and political scientists.
POLS 30664 Liberalism and Conservatism (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore the intellectual foundations of the constellation of ideas that have become the dominant political worldviews in modern American society. The course will focus on European sources of each tradition, as well as developments of each in America. Concepts that will be explored include progress, historicism, pragmatism, liberty, equality, diversity, cosmopolitanism, localism, tradition, prescription, authority, secularism and religion, particularly Catholicism.
POLS 30665 American Political & Constitutional Thought (3 Credit Hours)
In "American Political & Constitutional Thought," which serves as the gateway course for the Constitutional Studies minor, we shall study fundamental texts of the American constitutional and political tradition in an attempt to answer questions such as: What is the purpose of government? What is the meaning of political equality? What is political liberty and how is it best secured? Since we lack the time for a comprehensive survey of American political thinkers, we shall examine select statesmen and critical historical periods, focusing on the Founding era, Lincoln and the slavery crisis, and the Progressive era and New Deal.
POLS 30675 A I Before and After Frankenstein (3 Credit Hours)
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818) is understood as one of the founding texts of modern political science fiction. It is also a source for modern ideas of artificial intelligence (AI). In this course, we will explore both the intellectual sources (Hobbes, Milton, Locke, Defoe, Rousseau, Wollstonecraft) and legacies (Lovelace, Turing) of Shelley's innovative and influential literary conception of AI in the form of Frankenstein's Creature. We will also study some of the major filmic adaptations of Frankenstein on the question of the ethics and politics of making artificial forms of life and intelligence.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKAL - Core Art & Literature
POLS 30678 Political Authority and the Rule of Law (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores the contested relationship between sovereignty and the rule of law. Through close readings of foundational texts, students will examine how political authority is constituted, justified, and constrained across historical and theoretical contexts. We will consider questions such as: What legitimates sovereign power? Can law bind the sovereign? How do liberty and legal authority coexist? The first part of the course surveys the early modern theories of Bodin, Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, and Rousseau. The second unit examines the ways in which the American founders approached the tensions, in theory and practice, between the need for political authority and the maintenance of the rule of law. The third section turns to the Weimar crisis, where legal theorists like Hans Kelsen, Carl Schmitt, and Hermann Heller developed diametrically opposed accounts of sovereignty and the rule of law. Finally, the course closes with an examination of contemporary debates about sovereignty and the challenges facing the rule of law in the twenty-first century. Throughout the course, students will develop analytical skills in political and legal theory, sharpen their writing through two essays, and engage in critical discussion of enduring issues at the heart of modern political life.
POLS 30700 Democracy and Virtue? (3 Credit Hours)
“Democracy & Virtue?” investigates a simple question: Does democracy foster virtue? The class will approach this question, first, through a philosophical investigation of the nature of political regimes, including democratic regimes. This investigation will take place via a careful reading of and discussions about Plato’s Republic. The class will then turn to an examination of America as a modern constitutional democracy. Our primary text for this part of class will be Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. Additional readings from Montesquieu, The Federalist, and Catholic writers will also be introduced. Students should expect to read carefully and deliberately and to participate extensively in class, which will be conducted as a seminar conversation.
POLS 30702 Roman Law and Governance (3 Credit Hours)
An introduction to the nature and influence of Roman law, one of the most celebrated and distinctive elements of ancient Roman culture. The course surveys the development of Roman civil and criminal law from the very early and enigmatic Twelve Tables to the very late and amazingly great Digest of Justinian. Topics covered include legal procedures, the creation of law, and Roman jurisprudence, all of which are studied in the broad context of Roman government and administration. The lasting effects of Roman law on modern legal systems are also considered.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKHI - Core History
POLS 30705 Why the Church? (3 Credit Hours)
The subject of the course is Catholic apologetics in the generation of millennials (and Gen Z). Studies show that teens and young adults are leaving the Church in large numbers and that the ones who stay do not subscribe to Church teachings. Seeking to "meet them where they are," the course begins with an examination of contemporary trends in the religious lives of millennials, with a particular focus on Catholics. It proceeds to examine the major reasons why millennials are leaving the Catholic Church and to engage students in arguments for and against the Church's positions on: the rationality of God, science, sex and marriage, the Church's role in historical injustices, and politics. In the final portion of the course, we will pivot to a "positive apologetics" look at the case for the Church through beauty and the witness of the saints, modes of engagement that are said to appeal to the millennial generation. The course concludes with the case for the resurrection of Jesus. Taught in the political science department, the course considers the political dimension of each unit, corresponding to the politicized character each of the disputed questions in the mind of contemporary young adults who are leaving the Church, as studies of opinion demonstrate. The course will be taught with a range of students in mind: those who are confident in their Catholic faith and wish to learn how to persuade others; those who are unsure of their Catholic faith; those who are of a different Christian or religious faith and interested in learning about the Catholic faith; and those who are skeptical of the Catholic faith.
Corequisites: POLS 32705
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKCD-Core Cathol & Disciplines
POLS 30707 Foundations of Constitutional Order: Political Philosophy of Citizenship & Constitutional Government (3 Credit Hours)
This seminar-style course will examine foundational questions of constitutional order. We will begin from debates about the nature of political society among contemporary thinkers, Jurgen Habermas, Pope Benedict, John Rawls, and Carl Schmitt. We will then focus on key Ancient, Medieval, and Modern thinkers: Aristotle, Aquinas, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau, and the Federalist writers. Our aim will be to attain clarity about the questions that are fundamental to every constitutional order, especially the character of our "original" or pre-political condition, the status of war and peace, the nature of political authority and law, and the proper ends of political community.
POLS 30708 Journalism as Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
In this course, we will study the relationship between political theory and journalism. Rather than reading solely canonical political theory tests, we will read selections of important works from the history of political thought alongside journalistic writings. The class will be separated by important concepts in political thought, such as power, judgement, community, revolution, and freedom. For each concept, we will read both theoretical accounts and journalistic studies. In doing this, we will examine how philosophic concepts help us understand real-life happenings. We will also address how journalists use philosophic ideas to provide accounts that are more than mere documentation, in effect acting as political educators. Philosophic readings will include work from Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Karl Marx, Michel Foucault, and Franz Fanon. Journalistic readings will include selections from Thucydides, Hannah Arendt, Joan Didion, Tom Wolfe, James Baldwin, Gay Talese, Janet Malcolm, and Robert Caro. In their own work, students will address the class' questions both via scholarly study and their own projects of journalistic political theory.
POLS 30714 Citizenship & Constitutional Government Core Texts I: Classical & Christian Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
The "Core Texts in Citizenship & Constitutional Government'' course sequence offers a select group of students an opportunity to study some of the seminal texts in history and philosophy of constitutional government. Students will study classical texts with Prof. Susan Collins (Fall) and modern texts with Prof. Mary Keys (Spring), including: Plato, Aristotle, the Bible, Augustine, Aquinas, Locke, Rousseau, Tocqueville, and others. Through small seminars, students will engage in a year-long conversation about justice, equality, liberty, and the rule of law. The sequence is designed for students looking for and willing to engage in deep, deliberate, and careful study of core texts of Western constitutionalism. No application required.
POLS 30719 The Fall of the Weimar Republic and the Rise of Hitler (3 Credit Hours)
Why did one of the most cultivated European nations in a few years be transformed into probably the most murderous totalitarian system of history? Aim of the course is to study, first, several aspects of the Weimar republic that render the transition to National Socialism less enigmatic. We will read the Weimar constitution, study several of the works of the leading jurist Carl Schmitt, who both intelligently interpreted the constitution and later became a fanatic supporter of Nationalsocialism, and look at literary and filmic expressions of the slow dissolution of bourgeois morality. We will, secondly, read Joachim Fest's biography of Hitler, Hannah Arendt's classical study of totalitarianism, and Robert Paxton's Anatomy of Fascism, which offers a comparative perspective.Students will be encouraged to reflect on the question of whether a repetition of the events in 1933 is possible.
POLS 30720 Law, Bioethics, and the Human Person (3 Credit Hours)
Law, Bioethics, and the Human Person is a discussion-based course focused on "public bioethics," defined as the governance of science, medicine, biotechnology, and the practice of medicine in the name of ethical goods. Issues covered may include the ethical, legal (including constitutional), and social dimensions of abortion, assisted reproduction, end of life decision-making, assisted suicide, research involving human subjects, commodification of the human body and its parts, advances in cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging, human embryonic stem cell research, human cloning, organ donation, the definition of death, and research involving animal-human chimeras and hybrids.
POLS 30724 American Politics and Literature (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores the links between politics and literature in America, focusing on the way in which fiction is able to provide a unique view of politics. The course will pair great American short stories, poems, and novels with political writings and documents of the corresponding time, giving insight into how the political concerns of each era are expressed its literature. The course will take a historical approach, beginning with the founding era then examining writings from the Civil War times, early populism, the civil rights era, and more, ending with a discussion of our current day. Throughout, the course will ask questions such as: Can literature give us insight into politics that treatises, news, and historical documents cannot? How can literature serve as a commentary on or intervention into politics? What are the limits of understanding politics through literature?
POLS 30725 Modern Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
Modernity, and what it means, has increasingly become a topic of dispute in the 20th and 21st centuries, with defenders and critics on both left and right. Yet our modern heritage continues to shape even the thought of its critics and lay the groundwork for many of our unquestioned assumptions about political, social, and moral life. This course traces the story of modern political thought from its origins in the wake of the Reformation and Renaissance to the crisis of modernity experienced at the close of the XIXth. We will survey the emergence of questions surrounding justice and the nature of the state in the early social contract theorists (Hobbes, Rousseau) before moving to discuss the increasing concern over balancing the claims of individuals, civil society, and the modern state (Kant, Hegel, Mill) that arise in the wake of the French Revolution. Finally, we will trace the emergence of liberal modernity's critics who have remained influential in even contemporary evaluations of the modern project (Marx, Nietzsche). Through the close study of both text and context, we will debate to what extent the project of liberal modernity still remains valid and whether its claims have been unsettled.
POLS 30726 Politics and Religion in a Secular Age (3 Credit Hours)
What is "secularism" and what does it mean to live in a "secular age"? These questions have become increasingly more urgent in the contemporary world as we witness the rise of religious-based political ideologies (e.g., Christian nationalism, Islamism, Hindu nationalism) that threaten the ideal of a secular modern state. This course both seeks to address these questions as well as problematize the very notion of a modern tradition of secularity in the West and beyond. By tracing the development of the concept of the "secular" from its origins in Enlightenment Christianity, we will investigate the perpetual oscillation between both the proponents of secularism and the reaction against it. In particular, this course will emphasize the reformulation of the secular ideal after the collapse of Enlightenment metaphysics and religious thought among thinkers such as Marx, Nietzsche, and Weber and contemporary American non-foundationalists such as John Rawls and Richard Rorty. Finally, we will survey the so-called "post-secularists" from both Western and Islamic traditions (Habermas, Taylor, Asad, Mahmood) in order to discuss the plausibility, or even desirability, of moving beyond the secular ideal for contemporary politics. Politics and Religion in a Secular Age: What is "secularism" and what does it mean to live in a "secular age"? These questions have become increasingly more urgent in the contemporary world as we witness the rise of religious-based political ideologies (e.g., Christian nationalism, Islamism, Hindu nationalism) that threaten the ideal of a secular modern state. This course both seeks to address these questions as well as problematize the very notion of a modern tradition of secularity in the West and beyond. By tracing the development of the concept of the "secular" from its origins in Enlightenment Christianity, we will investigate the perpetual oscillation between both the proponents of secularism and the reaction against it. In particular, this course will emphasize the reformulation of the secular ideal after the collapse of Enlightenment metaphysics and religious thought among thinkers such as Marx, Nietzsche, and Weber and contemporary American non-foundationalists such as John Rawls and Richard Rorty. Finally, we will survey the so-called "post-secularists" from both Western and Islamic traditions (Habermas, Taylor, Asad, Mahmood) in order to discuss the plausibility, or even desirability, of moving beyond the secular ideal for contemporary politics.
POLS 30727 Native American Politics and Philosophy (3 Credit Hours)
From the protests at Standing Rock, the renaming of various sports teams, and a Supreme Court decision
regarding much of eastern Oklahoma, the political concerns of Native Americans have come to the fore in
recent years. How is the relationship between Native North Americans and the United States (and Canada)?
In this class, we will try to understand the Native American worldviews that lie behind these political
conflicts by reading a variety of Indigenous North American writers. We will discuss the role of nature,
spirituality, authority, and political community in Native American traditions. We will also examine how
philosophic disagreements between Native American philosophy and Western philosophies can produce
political conflict. Students will leave this class with a strong grasp of Native American philosophy and
political concerns, as well as a good framework of Western political philosophy.
Prerequisites: POLS 20600 or GOVT 20600
POLS 30730 Radical Political Theory in 20th-Century France and America (3 Credit Hours)
Radical politics has usually been associated with Leftist political movements such as Marxism, feminism, anti-racism, anti-colonialism, etc. This course investigates one source of radical political thinking in French existentialist philosophy: how were ideas about the meaning of freedom, oppression, and personal identity extended to new contexts and questions between 1940 and the 1960s? Additionally, we will evaluate debates between French thinkers on various issues, such as the relationship between politics and violence as well as the promise (or peril) of communism. Our primary authors will include Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Simone de Beauvoir, Frantz Fanon, among others. Finally, we will turn to the influence of these French thinkers in America, particularly among "second-wave feminists" and the Black Power Movement. To what extent did these Americans rely upon French thought to transform how they conceived of political action? And how does this heritage shape how we think about the radical politics of race, gender, and class in the present?
POLS 30737 Global Freedom of Speech in the Digital Age (3 Credit Hours)
Designed for English majors, this cross-disciplinary course is an invitation to thinking about contemporary freedom of expression as it has been reshaped by technosocial, economic, and legal features of the digital age. We will approach the topic through case law, short fiction (including near-future speculative fiction), cinematic and televisual works, political philosophy, and the history of mass media. Among the subjects of scrutiny will be: the purpose of free speech in pluralistic democracies; intersections of law, literature and technology; the counter-majoritarian First Amendment; disinformation and propaganda; hate speech; platform governance and emerging information architectures; parody, satire, copyright, and intellectual property. The course may be of special interest to those considering the application of an English major to the study of law or careers in media and technology.
POLS 30744 Liberal Education and Citizenship (3 Credit Hours)
This class aims to understand liberal education—the ancient idea that learning is valuable for its own sake—and its relation to the human capacity to live freely. Can the pursuit of the truth make us better citizens, improve our character, or perhaps even save our souls? Or does civic piety only trap us deeper in the Cave? As students and teachers of both the liberal arts and politics, these are existential questions. Once liberal education was thought the characteristic marker of the leisured, ruling class, making it aristocratic, not democratic. To better understand whether liberal education offers something that the American democratic republic needs, this class traces its history: developing from Plato and Aristotle to the medieval university and the Renaissance humanists, it undergoes a profound critique in the early modern period and finds an uneasy home in the modern Western research university. While this model has come under repeated attack, it remains prestigious and envied across the world. Along the way, we will ask whether the university is necessarily secular or religious and consider Notre Dame's Catholic mission. In the context of today's opposition between populists and elitists, can elite graduates serve the common good?
POLS 30751 Citizenship & Constitutional Government Core Texts II: Modern Constitutionalism (3 Credit Hours)
The "Core Texts in Citizenship & Constitutional Government'' course sequence offers a select group of students an opportunity to study some of the seminal texts in history and philosophy of constitutional government. Students will study classical texts with Prof. Susan Collins (Fall) and modern texts with Prof. Mary Keys (Spring), including: Plato, Aristotle, the Bible, Augustine, Aquinas, Locke, Rousseau, Tocqueville, and others. Through small seminars, students will engage in a year-long conversation about justice, equality, liberty, and the rule of law. The sequence is designed for students looking for and willing to engage in deep, deliberate, and careful study of core texts of Western constitutionalism. No application required.
POLS 30753 Tragedy and Political Theory (3 Credit Hours)
Tragedy is a word we use for when things go terribly wrong. Classic tragic dramas feature sons who kill their fathers and wed their mothers, sons who kill their mothers and are driven insane, and uncles who execute their nieces. In nearly all of these and other instances that are called tragic, there is an insoluble conflict between two different actors and their irreconcilable worldviews. The most troubling thing about tragedy is that it happens not because of the actors' baseness or ignorance, but because they are righteously committed to what they think is good or just. This unwavering commitment to a moral or ethical principle is the basis of the concept we will explore in this course: tragic conflict of values. We will read several classic texts of political philosophy to ask and perhaps answer the following questions about tragedy and tragic conflicts: Is it possible to live a good life without an almost irrational commitment to a worldview? What is a moral value? Are all values compatible or commensurable, or is it inevitable that certain values (truth, justice, peace, love) will clash with others? Could there ever be a state or common form of life in which the values of individuals are universally shared? Is democracy a form of government that encourages value plurality or homogeneity? We will spend most of our time reading political philosophy from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, including Marx, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Weber, and Heidegger. We will also spend some time with Plato and the Ancient Greek tragedians to understand the historical origins of the concept of tragedy that has proved so enduring in political thought. Each of the thinkers on our syllabus will help us confront the possibility of the tragedy of human life: that is, that human life, especially political life, may involve individuals in potentially dangerous commitments or entanglements that they cannot foresee and from which they cannot escape. While for some of our thinkers it is desirable to reduce the possibility of tragic dilemmas, other of our listed thinkers view the possibility of tragedy as a prime condition for a good life. The goal is that the student leave this course with a greater knowledge of political philosophy but also possess a better understanding of him or herself and the values that they hold.
POLS 30775 The Quest for Constitutional Order in the Middle East (3 Credit Hours)
The Arab Spring represented a moment of challenge to intransigent repressive structures and aspiration to new democratic constitutional orders. To understand this moment we need to appreciate the complex history of the region. This is a survey course that approaches the intellectual history of Islam from a very specific angle: its encounter with Western political and intellectual thought. We will be looking at the first encounter with Greek political philosophy during the formative period of Arab-Islamic thought, in addition to Early and Late Modern responses to the European military and cultural challenge. The historical/comparative structure of the course makes salient the continuities and discontinuities in the thematic treatment of subjects like reform, representation, forms of government, the role of the community, and the rule of law. Some of the case studies that we will consider include Ottoman administrative and constitutional reforms, Arab nationalism, Lebanese consociationalism, and the Iranian Revolution and its constitutional project.
POLS 30807 Research Methods for Fieldwork in the Developing World (3 Credit Hours)
This course prepares undergraduate students for independent field research in a developing country. Although the focus of the course is on the developing world, many of the strategies and research methods are relevant to research in other settings and we encourage all interested students to register. The first part of the class focuses on the utility of research on topics of development - both in foundational academic research as well as in the creation and evaluation development projects. The second part exposes students to various field research methodologies, including ethnography, archival research, interviews, surveys, and experiments as well as some theoretical and logistical considerations for research design. We will engage in a variety of hands-on practicum exercises to solidify classroom learning during this section. The last part of the course will concentrate on student workshops to hone their own research designs for upcoming individual field research.
This course is interdisciplinary, and focused on field research methods. We will *briefly* touch on topics of research design, such as developing a research question, a theoretical framework, and hypothesis testing, as well as analysis of data and evidence. However, we encourage students to see this course as a complement, rather than a substitute, for discipline specific research methods and analysis courses.
POLS 30810 The Social Uses of Data (3 Credit Hours)
This course is intended to introduce students to both the practice and social implications of data science, with a focus on social science research methods. The semester is broken into two halves. First, we will learn to use R, a statistical programming language, to transform, analyze, and learn from data. During the second half of the semester, the course becomes more discussion-focused as we investigate the role of modern data collection and analysis in society at large. Readings explore topics such as algorithmic criminal sentencing, chatbots, and the use of data analysis for mystical purposes. Students will leave the course with the skills to independently perform the fundamentals of data science.
POLS 30813 Simulating Politics and Global Affairs (3 Credit Hours)
Politics, markets, and the environment are all spheres of development that are fundamentally shaped by the action and interaction of many individuals over time. For example, the Arab Spring protests, the shortage of medicines in Caracas, and the rising water temperatures of the Baltic Sea are all system-level outcomes arising from the individual actions of thousands or even billions of people. In these spheres, leadership is often weak or non-existent. Scientists call these "complex systems." Complexity is difficult to study in the real world. Instead, scientists often approach these phenomenon using computer simulations (sometimes called agent-based models, social network models, and computational models). The goal is to build computer models of development that link the actions and interactions of individuals to the system-level outcomes. This class will use the perspective, literature, and tools of complexity science to approach core questions in the field of development.
POLS 30815 How to (Not) Lie with Stats (3 Credit Hours)
Are stay-at-home orders effective during a pandemic? Should parents allow kids to have screen time? What role did demographic shifts play in the 2020 elections? Does the infield shift work? Modern society constantly faces questions that require data, statistics, and other empirical evidence to answer well. But the proliferation of niche media outlets, the rise of fake news, and the increase in academic research retraction makes navigating potential answers to these questions difficult. This course is designed to give students tools to confront this challenge by developing their statistical and information literacy skills. It will demonstrate how data and statistical analyses are susceptible to a wide variety of known and implicit biases, which may ultimately lead consumers of information to make problematic choices. The course will consider this issue from the perspectives of consumers of research as well as researchers themselves. We will discuss effective strategies for reading and interpreting quantitative research while considering the incentives researchers face in producing it. Ultimately, students will complete the class better equipped to evaluate empirical claims made by news outlets, social media, instructors, and their peers. The goal is to encourage students to approach data-driven answers to important questions with appropriate tools rather than blind acceptance or excessive skepticism.
POLS 30817 Digital Forensic Analysis (3 Credit Hours)
Digital devices and communications are a part of daily life. From computers to cell phones to online accounts, we generate a significant digital footprint. As such, most civil and criminal investigations contain a nexus to digital evidence.This course will cover the principles of digital forensic analysis, including ElectronicDiscovery and the forensic process of Extraction, Processing, and Analysis. Students will learn and develop skills related to: acquiring smartphone, computer, removable media,and other forensic images; analyzing artifacts, file systems, and registry data; use of multiple methods and verification features to validate findings; and how to generate reports and distribute findings to share digital forensic results quickly and easily. Students will have the opportunity to use commercial digital forensics software to participate in hands-on lectures and practical exercise. This will include conducting digital forensic analysis on a computer, an iOS device, an Android device, and multiple items from cloud accounts. At the conclusion of the course, students will have a firm base knowledge of digital forensics and be able to independently perform digital forensics exams.
POLS 30904 Psychology of Information Analysis (3 Credit Hours)
The world is full of information that we are continuously evaluating. As part of the human thought process, we build mental models through which we process, analyze, and form conclusions as to the meaning of that information. This is a natural function of the human cognitive process. We construct our own version of reality based on the information that we have. The problem with this is that we frequently make judgments on large amounts of incomplete and ambiguous information. This is something that the mind is poorly wired to deal with effectively. In addition, we often fail to recognize our inherent biases in evaluation, cause & effect, and estimating probabilities. Some of these biases include confirmation, hindsight, anchoring, availability, and self-serving. The pitfalls set by the human mental process for analyzing information cannot be eliminated; they are part of us. What can be done is to learn how to look for and to recognize these mental obstacles, and how to develop procedures designed to offset them. We must distinguish between what you know and what you believe. The difference between fact and opinion; between knowledge and thinking. Through primary source readings and a declassified book from a government intelligence agency, students will learn how to be self-conscious about their reasoning processes. Students will learn techniques for critical thinking, creative thinking, and analytical thinking. About how you make judgments and reach conclusions, not just about the judgments and conclusions themselves. The goal is to equip students with the thinking and reasoning skills necessary to better construct a more accurate reality.
POLS 32705 Why the Church? Discussion (0 Credit Hours)
These are the Friday discussion sections required, as a co-requisite, for POLS 30705, Why the Church? lecture course.
Corequisites: POLS 30705
POLS 33001 Intermediate Special Topics Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
Special topic seminars in political science offer a unique learning experience, delving into niche areas within the discipline. These seminars are designed to provide students with the opportunity to engage deeply with specialized subjects in a small class setting. This structure fosters robust discussions and allows for a more personalized and interactive exploration of the material. The specific subject matter for each seminar varies by semester, reflecting current research, faculty expertise, and emerging trends in political science. To discover the topic of any given special seminar, students can consult Path, NOVO, and the political science department's webpage.
POLS 33002 Intermediate Special Topics Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
Special topic seminars in political science offer a unique learning experience, delving into niche areas within the discipline. These seminars are designed to provide students with the opportunity to engage deeply with specialized subjects in a small class setting. This structure fosters robust discussions and allows for a more personalized and interactive exploration of the material. The specific subject matter for each seminar varies by semester, reflecting current research, faculty expertise, and emerging trends in political science. To discover the topic of any given special seminar, students can consult Path, NOVO, and the political science department's webpage.
Enrollment limited to students in the Political Science department.
POLS 34161 Black Political Thought (3 Credit Hours)
What is Black Political Thought? For what purpose was it established? What are its relationships to the anti-colonial idea of decolonization and the post-colonial critique of the colonial? This course aims to explore answers to some of these questions. The course focuses on the writings of Black political thinkers/concepts in the UK/Europe. Through critical examination of the conditions against, and contexts within which, Black political theories/philosophies are situated/produced, this course hopes to arrive at some logical understanding of the principles, goals, and strategies developed to contest and redefine the concept of citizenship (vis-à-vis the imperatives of race/racism and the global colonial formation), humanity (ontological implications), ethical commitments to justice, democracy, and freedom.
POLS 35901 Internship (3 Credit Hours)
The goal of the internship program is to provide opportunities to integrate coursework with real work experience. Interns are able to explore career options, gain valuable work experience, and build their resume. The Political Science department can help connect students with a variety of organizations in the South Bend community. Students may also receive credit for an internship they have arranged, but must receive approval from the instructor prior to starting the internship. During the semester, students commit 6 hours per week to interning, preferably in two 3-hour blocks of time. During the summer, students commit to interning 20 hours per week for six weeks. Interested students should contact slandis@nd.edu
POLS 35902 Exoneration Justice Clinic Internship (2 Credit Hours)
Under the guidance of law school students and staff lawyers, interns participating in the Exoneration Justice Clinic (EJC) will review correspondence from inmates claiming wrongful convictions based on actual innocence in Indiana prisons and conduct research into the validity of the claims. Interns will also research resources available to assist exonerees upon release from prison to reintegrate into the community. The EJC is located at 806 Howard Street in South Bend. During the semester, interns will work 6-8 hours per week including a mandatory meeting on Thursdays from 12:30-2:00pm (no exceptions/late arrivals).During the summer, interns will work 40 hours per week for 8 weeks. To apply, contact slandis@nd.edu.
Course may be repeated.
POLS 35903 Social Concerns Internship (0-3 Credit Hours)
The Social Concerns Internship enables students to actively engage with a social concern related to the complex layers of poverty. The primary goals for the internship are to enhance students' education framework, expand community-engaged service, and widen their understanding of local and global poverty. By pairing students with community partner organizations, students will work with people who are directly impacted by conditions of poverty. Through mentorships and guided fieldwork, students will focus on getting to know community members as individuals, learning personal narratives, expanding perspectives, and developing professional skills for working with community organizations. Students can understand the lives of the people they would like to engage with and be more in tune with the intersectional aspects that hinder their daily lives. Internships cover a wide range of social concerns, including education, healthcare, legal services, housing, hunger, labor, and community-building efforts. Through a catholic social teaching and social justice framework, the internships aim to achieve a mutually beneficial relationship where they can debunk assumptions about people, communities, and systems, as well as contribute to the efforts of the many organizations attempting to address this pressing problem. The Social Concerns Internship is open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors who have completed a relevant foundational course such as CST 33001, PS 23000, or Political Science students who have received departmental permission from Carolina Arroyo (carroyo@nd.edu). Students may propose other relevant foundational courses as the prerequisite as well. The course will meet in person for a bi-weekly course work rotation on Wednesdays 2:20pm-3:35pm. Please email Lulu Moyo at lmoyo@nd.edu by December 12th and an application will be sent to you along with further information.
POLS 40064 Race and the Constitution (3 Credit Hours)
Was the American Constitution originally a pro-slavery constitution that changed over time to a constitution that outlawed slavery and state-supported racial discrimination? Did the Civil War and subsequent developments through the civil rights acts of the 1960's represent a commitment implicit in constitutional principles from the nation's beginning? Do these constitutional principles embrace active governmental efforts to achieve an equal-opportunity society, including equal educational opportunity and an end to racism, a "private" attitude? Do constitutional principles promise a color-blind society? Or do they promise no more than color-blind governments? This course addresses these questions. Readings will include state documents like the Declaration of Independence and The Federalist Papers, the speeches of American politicians and other public figures, and decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court regarding slavery, public accommodations, education, voting, housing, and employment. Grades will be based on mid-term and final exams. Texts TBA.
POLS 40074 Civil Liberties (3 Credit Hours)
Most courses in constitutional law narrate the Supreme Court's evolving positions on constitutional rights and institutions. This course starts not with the Supreme Court but with the <i>Federalist Papers</i>, from which it develops a general theory of the social and economic goals or ends of constitutional government in America. It then uses this theory as a framework for assessing the Supreme Court's position on property rights, race relations, personal privacy, and the place of religion in American life. This exercise can yield results that make for lively class discussion, not only about the Court, but about the adequacy of the Constitution itself. Grades will be based on a midterm and a final exam, with a paper option in lieu of the final.
POLS 40076 Church and State: A Moot Court Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
This course will explore the development of Supreme Court jurisprudence relating to the separation of church and state over the last century through a series of moot court exercises. Students will play the role of lawyers and justices and retry famous Supreme Court cases on five topics: public aid to parochial schools, school prayer, public aid to parochial school students, religion in public schools, and religion in the public square. "Interested students should contact the instructor."
POLS 40320 International Human Rights Policy (3 Credit Hours)
International human rights have undergone impressive development in the past 75 years. Yet current challenges, ranging from populism and authoritarianism to digital repression and global warming, threaten human rights. This course helps students to formulate promising policy responses to these threats. It first introduces the main international human rights institutions, laws, and policies. It then discusses, with the help of invited human rights practitioners, the most prominent challenges to them. Third, and most importantly, it assists students in devising detailed policy solutions to pressing human rights problems they are passionate about. For example, students can propose to amend existing human rights treaties to close glaring loopholes, reform monitoring and sanctioning mechanisms to improve compliance, and plan campaigns to shame violators or mobilize support for new human rights treaties.
POLS 40350 National Security in a Dangerous World (1 Credit Hour)
This course taught by Senator Joe Donnelly, who served on the Senate Armed Services Committee and the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, examines the changing role. Topics include cybersecurity, disinformation, warfare technology, non-state actors, nuclear policy, NATO and the U.S./Europe relationship, the Middle East, terrorist financing, and the qualities and importance of leadership.
POLS 40360 Am. Experience in Vietnam & After with Sen. Jim Webb (1 Credit Hour)
Webb's War: The American Experience in Vietnam and After Through the Eyes of Senator Jim Webb. This course will provide the intellectual background for Notre Dame International Security Center students who will be accompanying former Secretary of the Navy and Senator Jim Webb on a one week visit to Vietnam over fall break 2022. The course will consist of lectures, discussions, and background readings and be co-lead by Senator Webb and Professor Michael Desch. Upon completion of the visit, each student will write a brief policy recommendation on some aspect of U.S.-Vietnamese relations.
POLS 40472 Soviet and Post-Soviet Russia (3 Credit Hours)
This course will examine the political system of the Soviet Union, why it lasted and why it collapsed. It will then examine the transition from Soviet rule to the contemporary Russian political system and the various problems of transition.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKSS - Core Social Science
POLS 40490 Sustainability: Principles and Practices (3 Credit Hours)
This interdisciplinary course explores the challenges of environmental sustainability through social, economic, scientific, and theological lenses. Taught jointly by professors from the natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences, the course aims to instill broad, integrative and critical thinking about contemporary global environmental problems whose solutions will depend on multidisciplinary approaches. This gateway course to the Minor in Sustainability is open to all students interested in a deep exploration of these critical issues. Students considering the Minor in Sustainability are encouraged to take this course during their sophomore year. Requirements include a field trip and two hours of community volunteer work.
POLS 40491 Solutions: Science, Politics, and Saving the Planet (3 Credit Hours)
Studying environmental politics can be a gloomy pursuit. There are a myriad of devastating problems and a seeming scarcity of scientific and technological fixes. Technical fixes aside, there is the even more problematic scarcity of political fixes. Political institutions often seem to obstruct rather than facilitate environmentally sound policies, and the mass public and political leaders often prioritize competing goals and policies. This course is designed to understand whether the pessimism is warranted and to search for the optimism: What are the best opportunities, scientific and political, for saving the planet? What can realistically be accomplished?
POLS 40505 Cities, States, and Global Governance (3 Credit Hours)
At a moment when global challenges - from climate change to inclusive development to public health threats - loom large, many nation-states seem unable to come together to address them. In what ways are the world's cities and subnational governments working on their own and in concert to meet these challenges? This course examines the distinctive roles and capacities of cities, provinces, and states in managing global policy issues and explores different modes of trans-local cooperation and coordination. We start by considering the global governance shortcomings of nation-states and exploring the multilevel character of key policy challenges. We next use case studies from different issue-areas to assess how action by subnational governments is contributing to but also complicating solutions. We conclude by discussing the limitations of subnational approaches to global challenges and considering the most appropriate policy roles and portfolios for subnational actors in the 21st century.
POLS 40520 China, Development, and the Global South (3 Credit Hours)
What are Beijing's objectives towards the developing world and how have they have evolved and been pursued over time? In light of China's unprecedented Belt and Road Initiative and increasingly assertive military activities far from its shores, the answer to this question is perhaps more important than ever before. This course analyzes and explains China's strategies in Southeast Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, Africa, Middle East, and Latin America, and evaluates their effectiveness. It is informed by the functionally organized academic literature, but uses a regional approach that allows for comparisons among regions based on their economic, political, military, and social characteristics. Topics will cut across the overlapping political, economic and security spheres, with particular attention paid to how different developing countries have perceived and responded to China's rapidly growing engagement and influence. This structure allows us to consider not only the unique features of Chinese engagement in each region, but also place them in the larger context of Beijing's strategy towards other developing regions and the developing world as a whole. This course will be of great interest to students and scholars interested in international development, Chinese foreign policy, comparative political economy, and international relations.
POLS 40750 Abraham Lincoln's Political and Constitutional Thought (3 Credit Hours)
We will study the political thought and statesmanship of Lincoln. We will pay special attention to his constitutional thought and action and examine whether he provides a valid model of constitutionalism in times of emergency. Readings will include Lincoln's works and historical studies of the Lincoln era. We will also view and discuss a number of film portrayals of Lincoln.
POLS 40801 Senior Thesis Research Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
This fall course is for seniors who are currently writing a senior thesis. The course will guide students through the first semester of the thesis-writing process from fine-tuning the research question and methodology to compiling a literature review and organizing the thesis. It will also provide students opportunities to present their work in class. Although the course introduces students to a variety of methodologies and the logic of research it is not intended to teach particular statistical techniques.
POLS 40805 Research Design and Methods (3 Credit Hours)
This course aims to introduce students to research design and the methods used for investigating political issues. Throughout the semester, students will learn how to conduct original research and present their research designs to their colleagues. This course aims to provide students with tools to critically analyze the strengths and weaknesses of methodological approaches used in research. Overall, this course is designed to instruct students on the appropriate way to conduct social science research. To meet the objectives of this course, we will explore (1) the logic of social science research, (2) the elements of the empirical research process, and (3) research design. Throughout the semester, students will develop an original research project.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 40810 Quantitative Political Analysis Using Stata (3 Credit Hours)
Students in this course will learn to understand the most common statistical techniques used in political science and acquire the skills necessary to use these techniques and interpret their results. A mastery of these techniques is essential for understanding research on public opinion and voting behavior, electoral studies, and comparative research on the causes of democracy. For each topic, students will read works to orient them to key issues and debates. They will learn the reasoning behind the statistical analysis in these readings and create their own spreadsheet programs to execute such analyses. They will then download and clean datasets actually used in the published research, replicate selected analyses from these readings using the statistical package Stata and write short papers evaluating the inferences defended in the published research.
POLS 40811 Quantitative Political Analysis (3 Credit Hours)
This course is designed to achieve three objectives: (1) introduce you to research and quantitative analysis in political science, (2) help you become critical consumers of political information and policy-oriented reporting, and (3) give you the ability to answer questions of social scientific importance using data. Throughout the course, we'll discuss the complexities of generating good research designs, starting with how to ask interesting questions and how to measure concepts of interest to social scientists. Students in this course will learn to understand the most common statistical techniques used in political science and acquire the skills necessary to use these techniques and interpret their results. A mastery of these techniques is essential for understanding research on public opinion and voting behavior, electoral studies, and comparative research on the causes of democracy. The target audience for this course is undergraduate students with interest in the social sciences (not only Political Science), who want to use quantitative approaches to solve important problems, as well as develop marketable analytical skills.
POLS 40812 Qualitative Political Analysis (3 Credit Hours)
Qualitative Political Analysis introduces the core qualitative methods used in political science. Students will learn about applying the scientific method in qualitative research; the links between theory and evidence; research design appropriate to research questions, including comparing the strengths and weaknesses of qualitative and quantitative research methods; the difference between systematic, evidence-based research and anecdotal work; and important techniques for analysis, inference, and interpretation, including case studies research. This course can help prepare students to write a thesis in political science, but students do not need to plan to write a thesis for the course to be useful in their other studies and in their post-graduate careers. This course also serves as one of the core classes in the political science department's methods specialization, but students who are not pursuing the specialization are also most welcome and will find the course useful. The main goal of the course is to help students build their analytical skills -- to learn how political scientists think but also simply to learn to think better.
POLS 40813 Applied Quantitative Methods (3 Credit Hours)
Students in this course will learn to understand, and to use, the most common statistical techniques used in political science.
They will apply this methodological training to the development of a research project that will culminate in a paper modeled upon, and suitable for submission for publication in, peer reviewed scholarly journals. No prior understanding of or experience with statistical methods is expected. While students are encouraged to develop their own projects, and course time will be devoted to precisely the question of how we develop and craft ideas into do-able research projects, some recommended paper topics will be provided. This course is especially recommended to students contemplating graduate work in the social sciences.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 40814 Analyzing Public Opinion & Voting Behavior (3 Credit Hours)
Scholars, pundits, politicians, and citizens alike have begun asking questions about American democracy. Is the U.S. still a democracy? If so, how strong and stable is American democracy? The answers to those questions depend not just on politicians and political parties, but also on citizens. For democracy to work, citizens have to take an interest in politics, have clear opinions on political issues, make informed voting decisions, and be committed to democratic values. In this class, we will analyze American public opinion and voting behavior to assess the degree to which U.S. citizens live up to their end of the democratic bargain. We will do that in three ways. The first is normative: We will discuss the role that citizens should play in democratic government and what democracy requires of citizens. The second is through existing research. What have scholars of public opinion and voting behavior discovered about Americans’ success in fulfilling our democratic responsibilities over the last few decades? The third is through original research. Students will learn how to conduct their own analyses of American public opinion and voting behavior. We will discuss how surveys are conducted, how to write survey questions, and how to conduct statistical analysis of data from surveys on public opinion and voting behavior. Then students will conduct their own original research using data from the latest edition of the American National Election Studies, the preeminent academic survey of the American electorate.
POLS 40815 Visualizing Politics (3 Credit Hours)
This course is an introduction to political, economic, and social issues through the medium of visual displays. This kind of course has become feasible because data are now abundant and easy to access and software for displaying and analyzing data are available and easy to use. The ability to examine and display data is an increasingly valuable skill in many fields. However, this skill must be complemented by the ability to interpret visual displays orally, and by a commitment to use data responsibly: to reveal, rather than slant or distort, the truth. We will discuss examples concerning drugs, marriage, climate change, development, economic performance, social policy, democracy, voting, public opinion, and conflict, but the main emphasis is on helping you explore many facets of an issue of particular interest to you. You will learn to manage data and produce your own graphics to describe and explain political, social, economic (or other!) relationships. The graphics will include line and bar graphs, 2D and 3D scatterplots, motion charts, maps, and others.
POLS 41020 American Politics Research Lab (2 Credit Hours)
The American Politics Research Lab provides resources, training, guidance, and coordination for research projects in American politics. Regular activities include training workshops, research presentations, question-and-answer sessions, project updates, and special topic discussions. Undergraduate members of the lab will be exposed to graduate-level training in research design, publication strategies, and professional development, and they will work collaboratively with graduate students and faculty by providing research assistance for ongoing projects in American politics.
Course may be repeated.
POLS 41901 Policy Lab (1 Credit Hour)
In this 1-credit policy lab, students analyze and propose solutions for real-world policy challenges within a specific policy domain. Students will enhance their understanding of a particular area of public policy.
POLS 41902 Policy Lab (1 Credit Hour)
In this 1-credit policy lab, students analyze and propose solutions for real-world policy challenges within a specific policy domain. Students will enhance their understanding of a particular area of public policy.
POLS 43001 Junior Writing Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
Writing seminars are devoted to a specialized topic. These seminars give students a chance to take an advanced course in a seminar setting, with an emphasis on research skills and discussion. The individual topic of each seminar can be found on the political science web page listing of course descriptions. The course will fulfill a writing seminar requirement for the major and is restricted to junior political science majors only, but will be opened to senior political science majors after the 2nd day of junior course registration.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WRIT - Writing Intensive
Course may be repeated.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 43002 Junior Seminar (topics vary) (3 Credit Hours)
Writing seminars are devoted to a specialized topic. These seminars give students a chance to take an advanced course in a seminar setting, with an emphasis on research skills and discussion. The individual topic of each seminar can be found on the political science web page listing of course descriptions. The course will fulfill a writing seminar requirement for the major and is restricted to junior political science majors only, but will be opened to senior political science majors after the 2nd day of junior course registration.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WRIT - Writing Intensive
Course may be repeated.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
POLS 43561 Introduction to Politics (2.5 Credit Hours)
This course examines the roots of political science within a wide academic discipline of politics going back to the ancient Greeks and also by using multiple countries as comparisons, including Ireland. Different practices of government and administrative layouts are defined and exemplified to connect to each country's overall health in both past and present in economic and social term.
POLS 43640 Justice Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
An examination of major theories of justice, both ancient and modern. Readings include representatives of liberal theorists of right, such as John Rawls, as well as perfectionist alternatives. The course also serves as the core seminar for the philosophy, politics, and economics concentration.
Satisfies the following University Core Requirements: WKIN - Core Integration, WKSP - Core 2nd Philosophy
POLS 45997 Exoneration Justice Clinic Internship (2 Credit Hours)
Permission required. Limited to junior and senior POLS majors.
Under the guidance of law school students and staff lawyers, interns participating in the Exoneration Justice Clinic (EJC) will review correspondence from inmates claiming wrongful convictions based on actual innocence in Indiana prisons and conduct research into the validity of the claims. Interns will also research resources available to assist exonerees upon release from prison to reintegrate into the community.
The EJC is located at 806 Howard Street in South Bend. Interns will work 40 hours per week for 8 weeks from June 7 to August 6. To apply
-contact the instructor carroyo@nd.edu
-your resume
-a one-page statement of interest stating why you are interested in this internship and what you hope to learn.
Submit the 3 documents to Carolina Arroyo, carroyo@nd.edu no later than May 7, 2021 at noon.
POLS 45999 Summer Internship (1 Credit Hour)
Summer internships are an excellent way to explore career options, to gain valuable work experience and to build your resume. Students who have secured an unpaid summer internship can apply for academic credit by contacting the Director of Internships. To qualify for credit, internships must have prior approval, must be unpaid, be at least 6 weeks in duration and provide at least 100 hours of work.
Course may be repeated.
POLS 46902 Directed Readings (3 Credit Hours)
Students on the dean's list are eligible for independent study on a topic of the student's choice, under the supervision of a faculty member.
Course may be repeated.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.
Enrollment limited to students in the Political Science department.
POLS 47905 Research Apprenticeship (1 Credit Hour)
This variable credit (0 or 1) course offers undergraduates a chance to learn about and participate in the research experience. After several training sessions, students are assigned to a faculty member to work on an ongoing faculty research project.
Course may be repeated.
Enrollment is limited to students with a major in Political Science.