Summer 2017

We say justice is blind. Does this mean treating everyone in the same way? As if they are equals? As if there are no differences among them? But what if some people are marginalized, subordinated, or stigmatized? Could pretending these stratifications don't exist actually be unjust? What if different people or groups need different things for justice to be done? Would that mean a "one-size fits all" approach is fundamentally unjust? But then, how would we know who needs what? Who would be obligated? To whom? And what if there are conflicting definitions of justice? Could securing justice for some simultaneously cause others injustice? How would we mediate between these competing definitions? How would we do justice for all? Can we?

This course explores what justice might entail through contemporary Western political theory. We will begin with liberal democratic theories of justice. Then we will study texts by feminist, critical-race, queer, and other theorists to understand justice from the perspectives of marginalized, subordinated, or stigmatized groups. We will not search for definitive answers or hard-and-fast conclusions about what justice is or should be. Rather, we are interested in getting a better sense of justice's many dimensions and tensions.

Course Instructor: Dr. Paul Martorelli

This course begins with a brief historical review of the demise of the Ottoman Empire, followed by the British and French mandate over the Middle East region, the anti-colonialist revolt, the emergence of Israel, Arab-Israeli conflicts, the rise of secular nationalism, and the resurgence of Islamism in all its populist, revolutionary, conservative, and revivalist forms. We will then shift our focus to new modes of thinking about the region grounded in political economy, economic insecurity, youth bulge, and the burgeoning revolts against authoritarianism and the status quo. After examining a myriad of reasons behind social protests and movements in the region, this course will turn to comparative as well as case study approaches by focusing primarily on important changes in the Middle East landscape. We will pay special attention in the second half of the semester to the following cases: Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Syria, and Tunisia, as well as Israeli-Palestinian front.  We also take a thematic approach to examining causes of social unrest, human rights and democratic struggles, identity formation, and sectarian divide/tensions in the region.

Please note the course description is from Summer 2014

Instructor:Mahmood Monshipouri 

Email: mmonship@berkeley.edu

This class, which will   focuses mostly on the domestic politics of India, has multiple aims.   In addition to providing an overview of political developments in India since independence, this online course assesses the nature of democratic participation and representation in contemporary India-the world's largest democracy. Course is scheduled to run  Session C (June 19 - August 11).

Please note you will NOT be able to take Political Science W145A, if you are enrolled or have completed Political Science 145A. This is an on-line variation of the course.

Note: Course description is from Summer 2013

Political science deals with the behavior of individuals in settings of collective or group choice. The best course of action for any individual to take in such settings generally depends on the course of action taken by others with whom they interact. For instance, the best strategy by a candidate in an election campaign might depend on the strategy adopted by other candidates. The best approach for achieving gains in a peace settlement for one nation-state depends on how other nation-states will
react. Game theory is the analysis of decision making in situations where one individual's best action depends on the actions taken by other individuals. This course provides a relatively non-technical introduction to game theory and its application in social science, especially political science and also economics.

Course runs during Session C (June 19- August 11)

Please note you will NOT be able to take Political Science W135, if you are enrolled or have completed Political Science C135/ECON C110. This is an on-line variation of the course.

In addition, PS W135 is an advanced METHODS course. The course can NOT be used as a substitute for PS 3.  It also does NOT count towards the Political Theory distribution requirement.

Note: This description is from Summer 2015

This course presents a broad introduction to contemporary politics and society in Russia. What was Soviet-type socialism and how is its legacy shaping post-Soviet Russia? Where is Russia headed: toward democracy as it is known in the West, a new form of authoritarianism, reversion to the old system, or something else? The political upheaval and social movements that swept Russia and the other Soviet republics during the Gorbachev period will be explored. We will then examine the Yeltsin and Putin periods and current problems of political change. The topics to be investigated include the transformation of political institutions, dilemmas of movement from a command economy to a market economy, struggles among emerging social interests, public opinion, social integration and disintegration, nationalism, and Russia’s place in the world. The course is recommended for juniors and seniors only but is open to all students.

Note: Course description is from Summer 2010

This course is an introduction to the methods employed in empirical political science research. We will cover basic topics in research design, statistics, and formal modeling, considering many examples along the way. The two primary goals of the course are: (1) to provide students with analytic tools that will help them to understand how political scientists do empirical research, and (2) to improve students' ability to pose and answer research questions on their own. There are no prerequisites.

Note: Course description is from Fall 2013

This course aims to furnish students with the tools needed to study politics and society in comparative perspective. The first part of the course introduces concepts and methods of comparative analysis and examines core assumptions about human nature that underpin social scientists’ (and all of our) thinking. The second part investigates the variety of political regimes under which people live around the world. Third, we will consider the factors that influence which type of political regime prevails in particular national settings. Why do some countries get democracy while others do not? The fourth section focuses on economic development. Why are some countries able to break out of poverty while others are not? Attendance at lecture and discussion section required.

This course can satisfy either the Social & Behavioral Sciences or International Studies breadth requirement.

Politics is how we determine who gets what under conditions of scare resources. Politics is also the struggle to create and preserve a civilization that is free, fair, just, diverse, and legitimate. PS1AC asks, does American politics reinforce these principles, or does it weaken them? In particular, we will investigate the ways in which race and ethnicity, as well as wealth and socioeconomic class, operate through the formal and informal institutions of American politics to create the social outcomes we observe and experience in our daily lives. The primary goal of the course is to help students become more critical, sophisticated observers and participants in American politics.

POL SCI N1AC will still fulfill all the requirements that PS1 fulfills (e.g., major, American Institutions) but now also fulfills the "American Cultures" campus requirement. 

Students who wish to repeat PS1 and replace their grade must specifically retake PS1, not PS N1AC.  PS N1AC will not replace the grade for PS1. 

Instructor: Jacob Grumbach

The overwhelming majority of governments throughout history have been dictatorial. Even the recent spread of democracy has not extirpated authoritarian rule: as of 2012 roughly one quarter of all countries are considered full-blown autocracies. Whatever the benefits of democracy, it seems dictatorship is here to stay. This course explores the characteristics and dynamics of non-democratic regimes: how and why they come about, what sustains them, why some people resist them and others do not, and how and why they decline and fall. We will explore a variety of examples from Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Using films and novels in addition to political science literature, we will investigate how dictators maintain their power, how ordinary people react to repression, and the links between dictatorship and security and economic development.

Subfield: Comparative Politics

Note: Course description is from Summer 2014