Fall/Winter Timetable

POL2418H1F L5101

Undergraduate Course Code: POL479H1F L5101

Topics in Middle East Politics

Contesting Authoritarianism in the Middle East

Themes

This course examines the politics of protest in the contemporary Middle East. The first half of the course examines the notion of political opportunity structures as outlined in social movement theory – focusing on the historical development and resilience of authoritarian states in the region. The second half of the course revolves around student research on social movement dynamics in the context of particular case studies. This is a seminar course that requires regular student participation in class, several formal presentations, various short writing assignments – article summaries, a short book analyses - and a research paper.

Texts

Quinton Wiktorowicz (ed.), Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Theory Approach, Indiana University Press, 2004; Joel Beinin and Frederick Vairel (eds), Social Movements, Mobilization, and Contestation in the Middle East and North Africa, Stanford University Press, 2nd Edition, 2013.

Format and Requirements

TBA