Statecraft and the State (DIP 600)
Spring 2010
Monday 4pm-6:30pm
Dr. Robert M. Farley
Office: Patterson 467
Office Hours: Tuesday, 1-3pm
Office Telephone: 859-257-4668
E-mail: farls0@gmail.com
Introduction
The nation-state remains the most
fundamental building block of modern global society. A growing academic literature has attempted
to place the modern nation-state within the family of organizations,
collectivities, and institutions that constitute the fabric of social
existence. This literature includes work
on the relationship between state and society, on the origins of the modern
state, on the uneasy union of nation and state, and on how the state reacts to
its environment. In the past decade,
this literature on the modern nation-state has become increasingly relevant to
United States foreign policy. Policy
literature about state-building and society has developed in order to inform US
behavior in Iraq and Afghanistan. This
course examines the latter literature in the context of the former. The course begins with a survey of recent
academic literature on society, the state, and nationalism, then examines how
the international community thinks about state-building in a policy sense. The course concludes with a focus on state, society,
and the building of institutions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Format
This course will be conducted as a graduate seminar, with
minimal lectures. I expect everyone to attend, have studied the
readings, and have a familiarity with current events. Any major reputable
newspaper will suffice for the latter, although I prefer the New York Times.
Grading
Grading will be based on class participation (25%), and
three 7-9 page analytical papers (25% each).
Each of the three 7-9 page analytical papers must be typed
and double-spaced. Please do not exceed the page limit. Although
specific topic is up to you, one paper should have a regional focus, while the
other should concentrate on a particular nation-state. The papers need
not hold to any particular format (policy oriented memo, for example), but
should be internally consistent in focus. Additional research is welcome,
and may be necessary for the adequate presentation of some topics. One
paper is due on the week of your presentation (see below), one on the final day
of the course, and one at any time during the course other than those two
dates.
You will be required to make an oral presentation and
defense of one analytical paper during class. You must indicate to me a
preference for which week to present by the second week of the course, such
that I can stagger presentations. The presentation should last about fifteen
minutes, and will be followed by a fifteen minute question and answer
period. The presentation will make up 50% of your participation grade, or
12.5% of the total grade.
The papers will be evaluated on both content and
presentation. Information must be accurate, arguments must be well
thought out, and style must be compelling.
Class Materials
Purchase of the following books is strongly
recommended. When possible, purchase the specific editions noted.
Charles
Tilly, Coercion, Capital, and European States
Joel
Migdal, Strong Societies and Weak States
Patrick
Geary, The Myth of Nations
James
Scott, Seeing Like a State
Robert
Crews, The Taliban and the Crisis of Afghanistan
Charles
Tripp, A History of Iraq
Ali
Allawi, The Occupation of
Iraq: Winning the War, Losing the Peace
Week 1 (1/25): Politics
as a Vocation
Max Weber, Politics as a Vocation
Week 2 (2/1): The
Origins of the Modern State
Charles Tilly,
Coercion, Capital, and European States
Week 3 (2/8): State
and Society
Joel Migdal,
Strong Societies and Weak States
Week 4 (2/15): The
Origins of the Modern Nation
Patrick Geary, The
Myth of Nations
Week 5 (2/22): No Class
Week 6 (3/1): Care
and Feeding of the Modern State
James Scott, Seeing Like a State
Week 7 (3/8): Academic Applications
Jack Snyder, Myths of Empire
Lars
Erik-Cederman et al, Why Do Ethnic Groups Rebel?
Robert
Putnam, Diplomacy and Domestic Politics: The Logic of Two-Level Games
Week 8 (3/22): State Building
James Dobbins et al, The
Beginners Guide to Nation-Building
Week 9 (3/29): Human
Terrain?
My
Cousin’s Enemy is My Friend: A Study of Pashtun “Tribes”in Afghanistan
Vanessa M. Gezari, Rough
Terrain
Nick Masselis, Human
Terrain: A Strategic Imperative on the 21st Century Battlefield
Robert Young Pelton,
Afghanistan: The New War for Hearts and Minds
Week 10 (4/5): Afghanistan I
Robert Crews, The
Taliban and the Crisis of Afghanistan
Week 11 (4/12): Afghanistan II
Week 12 (4/19): Iraq I
Charles Tripp, A History of Iraq
Amatzia
Baram, Neo-Tribalism in Iraq: Saddam Hussein's Tribal
Policies 1991-96
Week 13 (4/26): Iraq II
Ali Allawi, The
Occupation of Iraq