Introduction to Comparative Politics

Introduces students to the sub-field of comparative politics or politics within states. Topics include types of regimes (i.e., democratic, authoritarian-with-adjectives, totalitarian); transitions to democracy; collapse of democratic regimes; democratizing, revolutionary and ethnic challenges to the state; and globalization. The course also pays attention to modes of analysis in comparative politics. Cases will be drawn from various regions, including Western and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America.