Fall/Winter Timetable
POL377H1F L0101
Topics in Comparative Politics I
The Making of Modern Democracy: From the Middle Ages to the European Union
Themes
This course examines political change in Central and Eastern Europe (with limited discussion of Western Europe) from the Middle Ages to the present day. How are democracies created and why do they collapse? We will approach this question from an historical perspective, considering in succession the multiple “layers” of historical legacies—old regime, nineteenth century, interwar period, and state socialist—in their relation to the region’s contemporary politics. Throughout, the course will introduce students to a variety of historical explanations for present-day political phenomena (especially democratization and de-democratization) as well as accounts centered on more proximate causes, such as leadership-centric and strategic interaction-based explanations.
Format and Requirements
One two-hour lecture per week. Course requirements TBA.
January 29, 2024
The winners of the 2022-2023 undergraduate awards were announced at the annual celebration, held this year on the evening of January 25. Presiding over the award ceremony were Undergraduate Director...
January 26, 2023
Congratulations to our 2021/22 undergraduate award & scholarship recipients! Following a two-year hiatus, the department was delighted to return to hosting our undergraduate awards in-person this year to celebrate our...
June 3, 2021
In a bid to motivate her students in what has been a very difficult academic year, Professor Rebecca Kingston decided to give those enrolled in the winter 2021 term of...
May 21, 2020
Congratulations to undergraduate student Cheryl Cheung who has received a University of Toronto Excellence Award (UTEA). Going into her third year majoring in political science, with minors in visual studies...
January 29, 2020
Congratulations to all our amazing undergraduate students who picked up one the department’s twenty-three awards and scholarships at our annual undergraduate awards ceremony. In attendance were Dean of Arts &...