Introduction to International Politics (Honors)

Political Science 3810-003 Introduction to International Politics (Honors) Fall 1999

Professor: David Leblang, Wooten Hall 145, [email protected], 565-2313 Course Location and Time: Wooten Hall 116, MWF, 1:00-10:50 Office Hours: M 1:00-2:00, W 9:00-10:00, and by appointment.

Course Description The focus of this course is on the central question of international politics: What causes conflict and cooperation between states. This course addresses these questions in both their historical and contemporary contexts. That is, it seeks to understand (1) How the international system as we now know it evolved, and (2) How political and economic forces shape the functioning of that system today. In order to fully understand these questions, this course will operate on three different, yet related levels. We will be concerned with the philosophical foundations of conflictual and cooperative behavior as they are played out in the scholarship of international politics. On a second level, we will utilize some of the tools of economic analysis such as game theory and institutional analysis in order to analyze developments in the international system. Finally, we will examine some concrete cases of where there is cooperation and conflict between states.

Course Requirements There is a great deal of reading in this course--some of it very difficult. As a result, the fundamental requirement for successful completion of this class is that you actively READ the material. By active reading, I mean that your READ and ask yourself if you understand the fundamental arguments being made by the author. If you do not, ask. The only way I know if and what you (don't) understand is if you ask questions in class.

My evaluation of your work in this class will be based on three criteria: (1) Class Participation (20%); (2) Class Presentation (30%); and (3) Two Exams (25%each).

Required Texts Joseph S. Nye, Jr (1997). Understanding International Conflict: An Introduction to Theory and History, 2nd Edition. New York: HarperCollins College Publishers.

Holsti, K. J. 1996. The State, War, and the State of War. Cambridge University Press.

There are also a number of required readings that are on reserve in the library. Course Outline and Readings

Week of:

August 30 Introduction to the Course and Computer Facilities

September 6 Introduction to Political Science; What is International Politics? READ: Nye Chapters 1-2.

September 13 Theory Construction; Evolution of the International System. READ: Holsti, chapters 1 and 3.

September 20 The Balance of Power READ: Nye, chapter 3 READ: Organski (1958). “The Balance of Power,” Chapter 11 in World Politics.

September 24 Collective Security and The Power Transition. READ: Nye, chapter 4/5 READ: Organski (1958). “The Power Transition,” Chapter 12 in World Politics.

October 4 Wars of the Third Kind READ: Holsti, chapters 2, 4, 5

October 11 Issues Relating to State Strength and Legitimacy READ: Holsti, chapters 6-8

MIDTERM

October 18 Introduction to Political Economy READ: James Caporaso (1993). "Global Political Economy," in A. Finifter (ed.) Political Science: The State of the Discipline. Washington, D.C.: APSA. [only pp.451-57]. READ: James Alt and K. Alec Crystal (1983). Political Economics. Berkeley: University of California Press. [only pp.3-10].

October 25 The Politics of International Trade READ: Coughlin, Cletus et al. 1995. “Protectionist Trade Policies: A Survey of Theory, Evidence and Rationale, in Frieden and Lake (eds) International Political Economy READ: Ray, Edward John. 1995. “Changing Patterns of Protectionism,” in Frieden and Lake. READ: Dornbusch, Rudi. 1992. “The Case for Trade Liberalization in Developing Countries.” The Journal of Economic Perspectives.

November 1 International Capital Flows READ: “Capital Flows in the Global Economy.” Chapter 6 in The Economic Report of the President 1999. http://www.access.gpo.gov/usbudget/fy2000/pdf/1999_erp.pdf

November 8 Currency Crises READ: “Models of Currency Speculation.” Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Economic Letter April 1996. http://www.frbsf.org/econrsrch/wklyltr/el96-13.html. READ: The A-Zs of Crashes. http://www.adtrading.com/adt12/crashaz.hts READ: Krugman, Paul. “Bahtulism: Who Poisoned Asia’s Currency Markets?” http://www.slate.com/Dismal/97-08-14/Dismal.asp READ: Krugman, Paul. “Paradigms of Panic: Asia Goes Back to the Future.” Future. http://www.slate.com/Dismal/98-03-12/Dismal.asp

November 15 Reforming the International Financial System READ: “The Evolution and Reform of the International Financial System.” Chapter 7 in The Economic Report of the President 1999. http://www.access.gpo.gov/usbudget/fy2000/pdf/1999_erp.pdf READ: Rodrik, Dani. 1999. Governing the Global Economy: Does One Architectural Style Fit All? http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/rodrik/ifa2.pdf

November 22 The European Monetary System READ: Rudi Dornbsbusch. 1996. “Euro Fantasies,” Foreign Affairs, September-October. READ: Jeffry Frieden. 1998. “The Euro: Who Wins? Who Loses?” Foreign Policy 112:25-40. http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~jfrieden/euro.pdf READ: Martin, Andrew and George Ross. 1999. “Europe’s Monetary Union: Creating a Democratic Deficit?” Current History 98:171-75

November 29 The Debate Over Globalization READ: Rodrik, Dani. 1997. Sense and nonsense in the Globalization Debate,” Foreign Policy Spring 1997 READ: Epstein, Gerald, James Crotty and Patricia Kelly. 1996. “Winners and Losers in the Global Economic Game.” Current History 95:377-81 READ: Strange, Susan. 1997. “The Erosion of the State.” Current History 96:365-69 READ: Sachs, Jeffrey. 1998. “International Economics: Unlocking the Mysteries of Globalization.” Foreign Policy 110:97-111. READ: Krugman, Paul. “The Accidental Theorist: All Work and No Play Makes William Greider a Dull Boy.” http://www.slate.com/Dismal/97-01- 23/Dismal.asp READ: Judis, John. “Stop the World, I Want to Get Off.” http://www.slate.com/BookReview/97-01-14/BookReview.asp READ: Garrett, Geoffrey. 1998. “Global Markets and National Politics: Collision Course or Virtuous Circle? International Organization 52:787-824.