Comparative Study of Political Systems
MENA-politics (Middle East & North Africa politics resources)
Extra Course Resources | Blackboard for submitting papers to discussion boards
Syllabus | Abel's Course
Packet | PCL Reserve
Items | Supplementary
Biblio | Pix
This is the "core" seminar in Comparative Politics intended primarily
for graduate students entering the comparative field. We will
critically examine contemporary Weberian, Marxist, and
post-structural approaches (including rational choice as well as the
fuzzy post-modern stuff) to the comparative study of politics. We
will move from strategies of comparative investigation to underlying
theoretical approaches and then examine substantive contemporary
issues in light of our methodological and theoretical preparations.
While there is little overlap with the readings offered in political
economy seminars, we will be interested in industry structures as
well as formal political structures because some of the most
interesting contemporary comparative political studies draw heavily
upon Marxian and non-Marxian traditions of political economy.
Contemporary political transitions can only be understood in the
context of interdependence, and this interdependence has reached its
fullest expression in global financial markets.
Last updated 25 August 2004
Department
of Government, College of
Liberal Arts, University of
Texas at Austin.
Questions, Comments, and Suggestions to
chenry@mail.utexas.edu