Required texts:
1) National Geographic Atlas of the Middle East, National Geographic Society, 2008.
2) James L. Gelvin, The Modern Middle East: A History, Oxford, 2011.
3) David E. Long, Bernard Reich, and Mark Gasiorowski, eds., The Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa, 6th edition, Westview, 2011.
4) Marc Lynch, Susan B. Glasser, and Blake Hounshell, eds, Revolution in the Arab World: Tunisia, Egypt, and the Unmaking of an Era, Foreign Policy, 2011. (E-book for purchase)
Purchase at: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/ebooks/revolution_in_the_arab_world
5) Council on Foreign Relations, ed., The New Arab Revolt: What Happened, What it Means, and What Comes Next, 2011. (E-book for purchase)
Purchase at: http://www.foreignaffairs.com/books/fabooks/the-new-arab-revolt?cid=oth-internal-foreign_affairs-the_new_arab_revolt
These texts are available at the college bookstore and are on reserve at the library.
Additional readings for the course are available on Electronic Reserves. For access to Electronic Reserves, go to the Middlebury College home page and select the “Current Students” link. Select “E-Res” on the left-hand side of the page, then “Electronic Reserves and Reserve Pages”. Go to “Course Reserve Pages by Instructor,” find “Mecham,” hit “View,” select PS 217, use the course password (2257qm) and open the appropriate reading.
Requirements:
Regular attendance in class and the reading of all assigned materials is expected. In addition, a map quiz, weekly informal writing assignments, a mid-term quiz, mid-term essay, case study (10 pages), and a final exam are required.
Grades will be calculated as follows:
Map quiz: 5%
Informal writing and participation: 15%
Mid-term quiz 15%
Mid-term essay 15%
Case study: 25%
Final exam: 25%
Map quiz: A map quiz is required in the first week of class.
Informal writing: Each student will post a short response (1-2 paragraphs) to a discussion question on the course website each week. The discussion question is based on the course readings for the week, and may be further discussed in class. These postings should be thoughtful personal responses to the discussion question, which incorporate your learning from the weekly readings. To receive full credit, you are required to post responses during 10 of the 13 weeks of class. Writing assignments should be posted to the course website by 9am Friday of each week.
Connect to the course web-site at sites.middlebury.edu/psci0217. Use your Middlebury College username and password to access the page for posting informal writing assignments. Writing assignments will be posted on the side-bar, titled “Weekly Discussions.” Post your response under your designated discussion section. The course website also includes the syllabus and course requirements for your reference.
Case study: The case study is due on or before the final day of class, December 9. The case study should be no more than 10 double-spaced pages in length. Select one of the political themes from the first half of the course, and apply it to a country case that is not directly addressed in the second half of the course. The case study should assess how that theme has played out in your chosen case, using reference and research materials.
- Themes (choose only one): a) Authoritarianism, b) Political Economy, c) Arab-Israeli conflict, d) Conflict in the Gulf, e) Civil Society, f) Civil Conflict, g) Human Rights, h) Islamism, i) Attempts at Liberal Reform, j) Arab Uprisings and Current Political Transitions.
- Cases (choose only one): a) Algeria, b) Tunisia, c) Libya, d) Sudan, e) Lebanon, f) Palestinian Territories, g) Syria, h) Jordan, i) Yemen, j) Oman, k) United Arab Emirates, l) Qatar, m) Bahrain, n) Kuwait.
Exam Dates:
- Mid-term quiz: Friday September 30 (taken in your discussion section)
- Mid-term essay: Friday November 4 (5 double-spaced pages, due in class)
- Final exam: Self-scheduled exam taken from Monday December 12-Friday December 16 (Twilight Hall)