Fall/Winter Timetable

POL2418H1F L5101

Undergraduate Course Code: POL479H1F L5101

Topics in Middle East Politics

Contesting Authoritarianisms in the Middle East

Themes

The course examines authoritarian politics in the contemporary Middle East and North Africa. The first half of the course examines the theoretical literature concerning the historical evolution and political dynamics of authoritarian states in the region. The next part of the course examines debates about the application of social movement theory to the politics of protests in the region.

Texts

Quintan Wictorowicz, Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Approach, (2004); and Joel Beinin and Frederic Vairel, Social Movements, Mobilization, and Contestation in the Middle East and North Africa, 2nd Edition, (2013).

Format and Requirements

This is a seminar course entirely organized around student-led presentations and discussions facilitated by the instructor. The first part of the course is organized around discussions of weekly article presentations by students. The second part of the course will be organized around student seminars on a case study of protest politics in the region. These seminars will be the basis for the major paper. All students will also be required to write an analytical book review/critique.