Prof. Michael Marks
Office: Smullin Hall 332
Office Tel: 503-370-6932
E-mail: mmarks
Home Page: http://www.willamette.edu/~mmarks
Office Hours: MWF 10:15-11:15; TuTh 11:15-12:15

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce students to politics and government in advanced industrial societies. Primary emphasis will be placed on democratic countries in Europe, North America, and Japan, although references will also be made to Australia, New Zealand, and the emerging industrial democracies of East Asia, along with other emerging democratic societies. Through readings, lectures and discussions, students will explore governmental structures, policy-making, popular participation, and domestic and foreign policy issues across a variety of countries. Emphasis will be placed on the current state of politics in an industrialized world undergoing fundamental change in the post-Cold War era. The nature of democracy provides the backdrop for this discussion.

The course is divided thematically into three parts. In Part One we will review the history and organization of governmental structures in advanced industrial societies. Part Two will focus on the function of government in democracies and the processes of policy formation. In Part Three we will examine the changing structure of society including social movements and the demand for greater “autonomy” in a post-industrial age.

Course Organization

The course will employ a combination of lectures and student participation. Therefore, students will be expected to have completed the readings and be prepared to engage actively in the classroom discussion.

About Class Participation

The large size of this class is not particularly suited to classroom discussion. However, people tend to learn better when they verbalize new material. Therefore, students should be prepared to discuss the readings the weeks they are assigned.

Electronic Devices in the Classroom

Laptop computers can assist in note taking and wireless Internet access on campus can aid in organized classroom exercises. However, laptop computers can also be a classroom distraction. Laptop computers are permitted in class for note taking purposes. Additionally, there may be occasions when the class as a whole may want to use the campus wireless network to look things up online. However, please refrain from checking e-mail, online chatting, websurfing, game playing, etc. during class. If you are observed doing so during class time, you will asked to no longer bring your laptop to class. Additionally, cell phones should be turned off prior to class.

Managing the Reading List

In order to profit fully from the readings, students should read the material assigned for a particular week before the scheduled classroom discussion. We will discuss the readings assuming that the students have read them ahead of time. It is absolutely necessary that students be prepared to discuss the readings in the weekly discussion sections.

Writing Assignments

1. There will be three take-home writing assignments. Questions will ask the students to analyze and evaluate some feature of the preceding weeks' thematic discussions as covered in class and in the readings. No research is required for these take-home writing assignments.

2. Each week, except those weeks in which essays (above) are due, students are to choose one of the course readings for that week and hand in, in class on Monday of that week, a short (no more than one paragraph) summary of the reading’s main points. In addition, attached to the summary should be a recent news article—either clipped from a newspaper or news magazine or printed out from an online news source—that presents a concrete example of the topic discussed in that week’s readings. For example, for the week about elections and popular participation, the summary of one of the week’s assigned readings could be accompanied by an article about upcoming elections in a country in the advanced industrial world. Finally, the weekly chapter summary and news article should be accompanied by a discussion question that asks something interesting about either the assigned chapter, the news article, or the general topic for the week. These questions will form the basis for Friday class discussions. Therefore, the best questions are ones that begin with the word “why” and ask something about why politics take place as described either in the chapter summarized, the news article attached, or both. No credit will be given for late submissions of these reading summaries. 

Grading

The final grade will be computed as follows: First writing assignment: 20%; Second and third writing assignments: 35% each; Weekly summaries of course readings: 10%. In addition, the instructor reserves the right to raise final grades for superior classroom participation, and lower final grades for deficient classroom attendance.

Incompletes will be given only under exceptional circumstances such as serious illness. You may appeal any of your grades during office hours only after you have handed in a typed, reasoned memorandum detailing the specific reasons why you think the grade you received is not justified.

Late writing assignments will be assessed a one-third grade penalty per day (e.g., a B+ paper handed in a day late receives a B, two days late a B-, etc.).

Readings

Students should purchase the following three books:

1. Jessica R. ADOLINO and Charles H. BLAKE, Comparing Public Policies: Issues and Choices in Six Industrialized Countries, (Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2001)

2. Markus M.L. CREPAZ and Jürg STEINER , European Democracies, (Sixth Edition), (New York: Pearson Longman, 2007).

3. Paul HEYWOOD, Erik JONES, Martin RHODES, and Ulrich SEDELMEIER (eds.), Developments in European Politics, (New York: Palgrave, 2006)

The readings below are noted as “ADOLINO & BLAKE,” “CREPAZ & STEINER,” and “HJRS.”

Course Schedule and Weekly Reading Assignments