Santa Monica College
Course Outline For
POLITICAL SCIENCE 14
Course Title:
Middle East Government & Politics
Date Submitted: May 1988
I.
Units:
3
IGETC Area: 4
Catalog Description:
Prerequisite: None
A comparative study of the government and politics of the Middle Eastern states. Emphasis will be
placed on study of the relationship between political development, political organization and social
structure.
II.
Required Text and References:
Possible texts include:
Leonard Binder; The Ideological Revolution in the Middle East
Michael Curtis, Ed.; The Palestinians: People, History, Politics
Yair Evron; The Middle East: Nations, Superpowers and Wars
Manfred Halpern; The Politics of Social Change in the Middle and North Africa
Tareq Ismael; The Middle East in World Politics
Government and Politics of the Contemporary Middle East
Malcolm Kerr; The Arab Cold War
Daniel Lerner; The Passing of Traditional Society: Modernizing the Middle East
Dankwart Rustou; Middle Eastern Political Systems
Hisham Sharabi; Governments and Politics of the Middle East in the Twentieth Century
Christopher Sykes; Crossroads to Israel: 1917-1948
William Quandt; The Politics of Palestinian Nationalism
III.
Course Objectives:
The course will concentrate on:
A. A systematic study of the political structure of selected Middle Eastern countries;
B. An examination of the issue of democracy in the context of the contemporary Middle East;
C. A consideration of the role played by the major powers in the politics in the area;
D. A consideration of revolution and social progress in the Middle East as a whole;
E. An assessment of the significance of the Arab-Israeli conflict as it affects the politics of those
countries not directly involved in the conflict;
F. An examination in-depth of the concept of nationalism as an applicable tool of political analysis
of twentieth century Middle Eastern history.
IV.
Methods of Presentation:
A combination of lecture and lecture-discussion approaches will be utilized. During the second-half
of the semester a seminar format may be introduced.
Santa Monica College
Political Science 14, Middle East Government and Policy
Page 2 of 2
V.
Course Content:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
VI.
Introduction to study of comparative politics
Twentieth Century history of the Middle East
Analysis of major factors in contemporary Middle Eastern politics (nationalism, revolution,
development, and culture)
Role of United States and Soviet Union in the Middle East since World War II
Critique of Arab-Israeli hostilities
Prospects for the immediate future
Methods of Evaluation:
(Actual percentages will vary from instructor to instructor but
approximate values are shown.)
A combination of appropriate forms of evaluation will be integrated in the class format. Essay
exams, short research papers (3-5 pages), and class participation will form the basis of student
evaluations.