Courses Spring 2011

I have just uploaded the syllabi for the two courses I’m teaching this semester:

• The Balance of Power; grad/undergrad lecture; [syllabus]
  This lecture course explores the role of the balance of power in the theory and practice of international relations. We will cover the development of different theoretical views on the balance of power as well as the history of the international balance of power since the turn of the twentieth century. The emphasis is analytic rather than historical. We will also address what the balance of power can highlight on recent, post-Cold War events and trends. By the end of the course, students should be conversant in the theoretical aspects of balance-of-power scholarship and also have a broad picture of the historical development of the rise and fall of great powers in the last hundred years. The course meets three times a week: twice for a lecture plus once for a discussion section.
• Military Power; grad/undergrad seminar; [syllabus]
  This seminar explores the foundations, application, evolution, and limits of military power. We will read the main foundational text on the topic — Clausewitz’s On War — and pair it with contemporary readings that complement it on the several aspects referred above. We will cover topics such as the relation between military power and politics, technology, coercion, and ethics, as well as the sources of military effectiveness, the problems of civil-military relations, and contemporary topics such as the revolution in military affairs and the problems with military occupations. By the end of the course, students should be able to have a general grasp of the main questions pertaining to the use of military power and its relation to (international and domestic) politics.