Pol Devt: State Bldng/Failure

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

Course Goals & Description In the last millennium Western Europe has undergone a radical transformation that encompassed almost all aspects of human life, from economy to society, from religion to politics. This transformation is often called 'Modernization.' Political Development refers to a sub-process of Modernization, the main component of which was the transformation of the state from feudal state to modern state. This transformation is called state building. This course addresses the following question: what factors had driven state building and what did it entail in the case of Western Europe? The course will also look at the problems and challenges of state building in non-Western European contexts, such as Russia, Japan and Sub-Saharan Africa. This course addresses the following questions: how did Japan succeed in state building? What challenges did Russia face in state building? And why did state building in Sub-Saharan Africa prove to be extremely demanding? Texts & Readings Charles Tilly, Coercion, Capital and European States, Blackwell Georgi Derluguian, Bourdieu’s Secret Admirer in the Caucasus, Chicago Eugen Weber, Peasants into Frenchman, Stanford. Sheldon Garon, Molding Japanese Minds, Princeton. Jeffrey Herbst, States and Power in Africa, Princeton Robert Bates, When Things Fell Apart, Cambridge William Reno, Warlord Politics and African States, Lynne Rienner Assignments & Expectations of Students Students’ final grade will depend on the following: Class Participation: 15% Critical Commentaries (four in total) on the books: 40% Final Research Paper 45%