Discussions

Discussion:

Test #1 (This test will cover the first four chapters in Essentials of Comparative Politics and the First Chapter of Cases in Comparative Politics)

For this test, you will have to understand key concepts and vocabulary of comparative politics. There is a glossary at the end of the text where you can look up all of the words that appear in bold lettering in the text. You should keep a list of those words and look up their meaning in the glossary. You can put these words on small index cards with the word on one side and the meaning on the other. More specifically, here is a list of the minimum that you need to know regarding each chapter in Essentials of Comparative Politics:

Ch. 1: -What is the study of comparative politics;
          - Quantitative and qualitative methods and their limitations;
          - Approaches popular after WW II (behavioralism, modernization theory, and post-behavioralism)
          - What are institutions and what is the institutional approach;
          - How systems are distinguished by whether they favor individual freedom or equality.
Ch.2: The State
          -The distinction between "the state, the regime, and the government:"
          -What are the different types of legitimacy and how legitimacy influences a states' power?
          -The difference between centralized (unitary) states and decentralized states;
          -Strong states, weak states, and failed states and how these relate to state capacity and state autonomy:
Ch.3: State and Society
          -How states differ according to how they are linked to societies and to divisions based on ethnic identity, national
            identity, and citizenship. Know why ethnic identity is not inherently political and why national identity and
            citizenship are political concepts.
          -How states evolved and how this evolution relates to ethnic identity, national identity, and citizenship:
          -How individuals obtain political attitudes and political ideologies;
          -Types of individual attitudes (radicalism, liberalism, conservatism, reactionary):
          -How attitudes differ from ideologies:
          -The differences between liberalism, communism, social democracy, fascism, and anarchism as ideologies.
           Also how these relate to freedom and equality.
          -What is fundamentalism and how does it relate to the decline of ideologies?
          -What are political cultures and how do they differ (traditional/secular versus Survival/Self Expression)?
Ch.4: Political Economy
         This chapter focuses on how political systems are linked to economic institutions and how the way they are so linked
          helps to define them.
         -Know how the economic links to political systems promote either individual freedom or equality (or seek to promote
           both);
         - Know relations between the market system, property, and public versus private goods;
         -Know the relationship between ideologies, economic strategies, and types of political systems;
         -Know the4 similarities and differences between four types of political economies: Liberal systems; communist systems;
          social democracies; mercantilist political economies.
         -Know what types of political economies are on the decline and what future challenges confront market economies.

You should have read the material at least twice (once just to see what is there and the other reading focused on recalling the basic points in the text). Multiple-choice questions don't test depth of knowledge. They test ability to pick out correct answers. Thus the more you see the material, the better you are likely to perform on this type of test. I do not seek to ask "trick questions" but rather to test your understanding of the material.

On the essay part, I am looking for three things: What the books states (evidence of reading); evidence of familiarity with lecture material (what I have said); and what you think (analytical skill). Be prepared to offer your views on what you have read. There will be at least three essay questions presented to you from which you will write on one (1) for your essay part of the exam.

CONFIDENCE COMES WITH PREPARATION BUT PLEASE DO NOT STAY UP DOING AN "ALL NIGHTER." STUDY HARD BUT GET REST THE NIGHT BEFORE THE TEST.

Test #2 (Great Britain, France, and introduction to liberal democracies)

For this test, you need to study all of the material but focus on the country studies (the specific chapters on Great Britain and France.) Know the chapter on liberal democracies in Essentials of Comparative Politics. Here is a list of things to know but you are responsible for all of the assigned material.

-What are the characteristics of liberal democracies, varieties of liberal democracies (strong state/weak society vs. weak society strong state, etc.), how liberal democracies evolved over time, the challenges facing liberal democracies;
-Great Britain's political evolution (its characteristics), how Britain's parliamentary system is structured, who exercises power in Britain, the major political parties and what programs and policies they support, the sources of British political stability, recent political dynamics and trends since the 70's (who has held power, what have they tried to do, how successful were they), the key issues and problems currently facing Great Britain;
-How France's political evolution is different from that of Britain; why "democracy" in France was a product of crises and what crises have produced it in; the characteristics of French political institutions (the President, the Prime Minister, the National Assembly, the Senate) especially in the Fifth Republic; the strengths and weaknesses of French political institutions; French political parties and their programs; main features of the French economy and how the economy relates to its government; the overall strengths and weaknesses of the French political system.

You should know something about the top political figures especially recent prime ministers and presidents (at least what parties they are affiliated with and what they tried to accomplish). Try to compare systems: how is Great Britain different from France? How is it the same? How do France and Great Britain differ from the United States?

CONFIDENCE COMES WITH PREPARATION BUT PLEASE DO NOT STAY UP DOING AN "ALL NIGHTER." STUDY HARD BUT GET REST THE NIGHT BEFORE THE TEST.

Test #2 (Russia & China)

You should focus on the following issues for each country for test #2. You are responsible for all of the reading. This list is just meant to help you focus on some areas a little more than others.

Russia-
-Distinguish between Marx, Lenin, Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Gorbachev, Yeltsin
-Why was the USSR move Leninist and Stalinist than Marxist?
-How did Stalin place his imprint on the USSR?
-How the party-state operated in the USSR. Know the politburo, central committee, nomenklatura, GOSPLAN, and what role these played in the system.
-What were the key successes and failures of the soviet system?
-Why was the Brezhnev era (1964-1982) known as the era of stagnation?
-How did Gorbachev differ from previous soviet rulers?
-What changes did Gorbachev try to make and with what results?
-What factors brought about the end to the USSR?
-How did Yeltsin become the leader of Russia?
-Describe the political institutions created by Yeltsin after 1992 (know the State Duma, the Federation Council, and the presidency and their relative powers).
-What key problems confronted Russia in the Yeltsin era?
-What were conditions in Russia after Yeltsin and how Russia has changed in the Putin Era?
-What are the key challenges that now confront Russia at the end of the Putin Era and the beginning of the Medvev era?

China:
Divide your study into the pre-Mao, Mao, and Post-Mao periods.
-Focus on the political culture of traditional China
-Study the factors that brought down the old traditional system
-Study the key actors in the new China after 1911 (the Kuomintang, how Marxism came to China, the struggle between nationalists and warlords, the impact of the Japanese invasion on China, the communists and what allowed them to be victorious).
-For the Mao period you should know the fundamentals of Mao's political ideas, the great campaigns he conducted, the impact of his campaigns on China, how China was changed by Mao (positive as well as negative features of his rule).
-For post-Mao period you should know how the new leadership differed from Mao; what economic, social, and political reforms they have tried to institute; how China has changed as a result of these policy changes; they key problems that confront China as we move into the 21st century.

Discussion, Test #3-

At a minimum, you should focus on the following:

Mexico:
-Know the basis of the Mexican Revolution (why there was a revolution, what kind of revolution was it, what were the consequences of the revolution on different sectors in Mexico);
-Know the organization and methods of operation of the dominant party in Mexico;
-Know the bases of power of the President and how the dominant party has been able to stay in power for most of this century;
-Know the major social, economic, and political problems that have faced Mexico after World War II.
-Know the basic policies of the Mexican government in facing these problems and who has benefited from them;
-Know the crisis of the Mexican state in the 1990's and the causes of this crisis;
-Know the opposition to the one party state developed (new parties and leaders, opposition movements, etc.);
-From lecture, what factors produced the victory of the PAN in the elections of 2000 and what problems will the PAN face in governing Mexico?
-Study the terms in Spanish found in the vocabulary words in the chapter on Mexico.

Iraq:
-The origins of the Iraqi state as it emerged from a British mandate to an independent state;
-The basic ethnic and religious divisions (Kurds v. Arabs; Sunni vs. Shia; Christians);
-The bases and nature of Iraqi nationalism;
-The rise of Sadaam Hussein;
-The ideology of the Baath Party (nationalist, secular, Pan-Arabist);
-Origins of the two wars between Iraq and the United States;
-Nature of divisions in Iraq after the fall of Hussein;
-U.S. assumptions for going to war with Iraq and whether these were true or false;
-The consequences of the recent invasion of Iraq both for Iraq and the U.S.
-How U.S. occupation of Iraq has affected the Middle East as a region.