POL487H1S L5101

Topics in International Politics II

Civil War and Insurgency

Themes

This course offers a broad introduction to the study of civil war and insurgency. A central objective of the course is to provide students with an introduction to the key theories about the causes, dynamics, and termination of civil wars and insurgency. Students in the course will also gain familiarity with the main methodological approaches to the study of civil war. The course is divided into three parts. The first part of the course provides an introduction to key concepts and measurements in civil war and introduces students to the main ways of approaching the study of civil war. The second part focuses on the onset of civil war and key theories about causes of civil war. The third part examines the dynamics of civil wars and insurgencies during war time. The final part of the course looks at civil war termination and ways to manage conflict

Texts

No texts will be required for purchase for this course. All texts will be available online via the University of Toronto library.

Format and Requirements

Assessment in the class will be based on class participation (20%), a critical response paper (20%), a final research paper (50%) and a group presentation (10%).