American Foreign Policy Since World War II
PSC 4113
Sping 2013
M-W 3:00-4:15
DaHT 104
Jonathan Monten
455 W. Lindsey St.
jmonten@ou.edu
Office Hours: Wed. 12-2
Course Description
This course examines the history and conduct of U.S. foreign policy from World War II to the
present. The course is organized into three parts. The first section looks at different theories of
foreign policy and how these might apply to the United States. The second part examines several
key debates that have shaped the development of U.S. foreign policy since the end of World War
II. The third looks at a number of policy issues in contemporary U.S. foreign policy.
As an upper-level undergraduate course, this class has several objectives. First, to give students a
grounding in the history of U.S. foreign policy and how this history continues to shape U.S.
foreign policy debates today. Second, to deepen students’ understanding of major international
relations theory and concepts and to learn how to apply these in the context of the United States.
Finally, to improve students’ ability to assess the arguments made in foreign policy debates,
including their underlying assumptions, logic, and evidence.
Course Requirements
Grading for this course breaks down as follows. The participation mark includes both active
participation in class discussions, and a presentation in one in-class debate. Further information
on the paper assignment and the two exams will be given as the semester proceeds.
Midterm Exam #1:
Midterm Exam #2:
Participation/Presentation:
Policy Paper:
20%
20%
30%
30%
University Policies
Please note the following University policies:
A. Students with Disabilities:
The University of Oklahoma is committed to providing reasonable accommodation for all
students with disabilities. Any student in this course who has a disability that may
prevent him or her from fully demonstrating his or her abilities should contact the
instructor personally as soon as possible to discuss accommodations necessary to ensure
full participation and facilitate your educational opportunities. Students with disabilities
must be registered with the Office of Disability Services prior to receiving
accommodations in this course. The Office of Disability Services is located in Goddard
Health Center, 620 Elm Ave., Suite 166, Norman, OK 73019. Voice 405/325-3852, TDD
405/325-4173, Fax 405/235-4491, Email drc@ou.edu.
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B. Religious Holidays:
It is the policy of the University to excuse absences of students that result from religious
observances and to provide without penalty for the rescheduling of examinations and
additional required class work that may fall on religious holidays. Please see the
instructor immediately if you will need to miss class any time during this semester.
C. Academic Misconduct
See http://www.ou.edu/integrity for information on student rights with regards to
academic misconduct.
Schedule of Readings
Part I: The United States and Theories of Foreign Policy
January 14: Overview and Introductions
January 16: No Class
January 21: No Class (Martin Luther King Day)
January 23: Realism and the Balance of Power
Jack Snyder, “One World, Rival Theories,” Foreign Policy, November 1, 2004.
John J. Mearsheimer, The Tragedy of Great Power Politics (W.W. Norton, 2001),
chapters 1-2.
January 28: International Cooperation: Institutions, Laws, and Norms
Jeffry A. Frieden, David A. Lake, and Kenneth A. Schultz, “International Law and
Norms,” World Politics: Interests, Interactions, Institutions (W. W. Norton, 2009).
January 30: International Cooperation: Liberal Democracy
John Ikenberry, "Why Export Democracy? The 'Hidden Grand Strategy' of American
Foreign Policy,'" The Wilson Quarterly (Spring 1999).
Michael Doyle, “Liberalism and World Politics,” American Political Science Review
(December 1986), pp. 1151-1169.
Samuel Huntington, “American Ideals vs. American Institutions,” Political Science
Quarterly (Spring 1982), pp. 15-37.
February 4: Domestic Politics and Foreign Policy Decision-Making
Michael Mastanduno, “The United States Political System and International Leadership:
A ‘Decidedly Inferior’ Form of Government?” in John Ikenberry, ed., American Foreign
Policy: Theoretical Essays.
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Robert Jervis, “Hypotheses on Misperception,” in John Ikenberry, ed., American Foreign
Policy: Theoretical Essays.
Philip E. Tetlock and Charles B. McGuire, Jr., “Cognitive Perspectives on Foreign
Policy,” in John Ikenberry, ed., American Foreign Policy: Theoretical Essays.
Yuen Foong Khong, “Seduction by Analogy in Vietnam: The Malaya and Korea
Analogies,” in John Ikenberry, ed., American Foreign Policy: Theoretical Essays.
February 6: Polarization and Public Opinion
Ole Holsti, “Public Opinion and Foreign Policy: Challenges to the Almond-Lippmann
Consensus,” International Studies Quarterly (December 1992), pp. 439-466.
Robert Y. Shapiro and Yaeli Bloch-Elkon, “Foreign Policy, Meet the People,”
National Interest (September/October 2008), pp. 37-42.
February 11: Review Session #1
February 13: Midterm #1
Part II: Key Debates in U.S. Foreign Policy Since World War II
February 18: U.S. Entry into World War II
George C. Herring, From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations since 1776
(New York: Oxford University Press, 2011), pp. 502-537.
February 20: The United States and the Post-War World, Part I
George C. Herring, From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations since 1776
(New York: Oxford University Press, 2011), chapter 14 (pp. 595-625 and pp. 635-650).
John Lewis Gaddis, Strategies of Containment: A Critical Appraisal of American
National Security Policy during the Cold War (New York: Oxford University Press,
2005), chapter 2.
Melvyn Leffler, “The American Conception of National Security and the Beginnings of
the Cold War, 1945-1948,” American Historical Review 89 (1984).
February 25: The United States and the Post-War World, Part II
John Ikenberry, “Rethinking the Origins of American Hegemony,” Political Science
Quarterly 104 (Spring 1989).
John Gerard Ruggie, Winning the Peace (Columbia University Press, 1996), chapters 2, 3,
and 5.
February 27: The Cuban Missile Crisis
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Graham Allison and Philip Zelikow, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile
Crisis (New York: Longman, 1999).
March 4: The End of the Cold War
Jeffrey Knopf, “Did Reagan Win the Cold War?” Strategic Insights 3 (August 2004).
Daniel Deudney and G. John Ikenberry, “Who Won the Cold War?” Foreign Policy 87
(Summer 1992), pp. 123-138.
March 6: The Bush Doctrine
Robert Kagan, “Power and Weakness: Why the United States and Europe See the World
Differently,” Policy Review (June 2002).
John Ikenberry, “The End of the Neoconservative Moment,” Survival (Spring 2004), pp.
7-22.
March 11: Review Session #2
March 13: Midterm #2
March 18: No Class (Spring Vacation)
March 20: No Class (Spring Vacation)
Part III: Contemporary Issues in U.S. Foreign Policy
March 25: Terrorism and Counterterrorism
The 9/11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist
Attacks Upon the United States (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2004), executive
summary.
Charles Kurzman, "Why Is It So Hard to Find a Suicide Bomber These Days?" Foreign
Policy (Sep/Oct 2011).
Leah Farrell, "How Al Qaeda Works," Foreign Affairs (March/April 2011).
Marc Sageman, "The Next Generation of Terror," Foreign Policy (March/April 2008).
Bruce Hoffman, "The Myth of Grass-Roots Terrorism," Foreign Affairs (May/June
2008).
March 27: Class Debate Topic 1: International Terrorism
Discussion Questions:
1. Does international terrorism continue to pose a major national security threat to the
United States?
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2. How should U.S. counterterrorism strategy adapt to the changing nature of
international terrorism?
Required Readings: See March 25.
April 1: Congress, the President, and Executive Power
Norman J. Ornstein and Thomas E. Mann, “When Congress Checks Out,” Foreign
Affairs 85 (November/December 2006), pp. 67-82.
William G. Howell and Jon C. Pevehouse, “When Congress Stops Wars: Partisan Politics
and Presidential Power,” Foreign Affairs 86 (September/October 2007), pp. 95-107.
April 3: Class Debate Topic 2: Intelligence Reform
Discussion Questions:
1. How has the U.S. intelligence community been reorganized since 2001?
2. Have recent U.S. intelligence reform efforts failed. If so, why?
3. Are intelligence failures inevitable?
Required Readings:
Amy Zegart, Spying Blind: The CIA, the FBI, and the Origins of 9/11 (Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 2009), chapter 8.
Richard K. Betts, “Fixing Intelligence,” Foreign Affairs 81 (January/February 2002), pp.
43-59.
April 8: Nuclear Weapons and U.S. Foreign Policy
Guest Lecturer: Joseph Ripberger
John Mueller, “The Essential Irrelevance of Nuclear Weapons: Stability in the Postwar
World.” International Security 13 (1988): 55-79.
Kier A. Lieber and Daryl G. Press, “The Nukes We Need: Preserving the American
Deterrent,” Foreign Affairs 88 (2009): 39-51.
April 10: Class Debate Topic 3: Nuclear Proliferation
Discussion Questions:
1. According to Mohamed El Baradei, former director of the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA), nuclear terrorism is "the most serious danger the world is facing." Do
you agree with this assessment?
2. Can nuclear terrorism be deterred?
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Required Readings:
Graham Allison, “Nuclear Disorder: Surveying Atomic Threats,” Foreign Affairs
(January/February 2010).
John E. Mueller, “The Atomic Terrorist,” Nuclear Proliferation Update (January 2010).
April 15: U.S. Sovereignty and Multilateralism
John Ikenberry, “Is American Multilateralism in Decline?” Perspectives on Politics 1
(September 2003): 533-550.
Willliam Wohlforth and Stephen G. Brooks "International Relations Theory and the Case
Against Unilateralism," Perspectives on Politics 3 (September 2005).
April 17: Class Debate Topic 4: International Law
Discussion Questions:
1. Has the United States become more unilateralist with respect to international law in
recent years?
2. Does adhering to international law contribute to advancing important U.S. foreign
policy goals?
Required Readings:
Antonia Handler Chayes, “How American Treaty Behavior Threatens National Security,”
International Security 33 (Summer 2008): 45-81.
Eric Posner, “Outside the Law,” Foreign Policy, October 25, 2011.
April 22: Military Intervention and Democracy Promotion
Minxin Pei and Sarah Kasper, “Lessons from the Past: The American Record on NationBuilding,” Carnegie Policy Brief No. 24 (April 2003).
Larry Diamond, “What Went Wrong in Iraq,” Foreign Affairs (September/October 2004).
April 24: Class Debate Topic 5: Humanitarian Intervention
Discussion Questions:
1. Is there an emerging global norm in favor of humanitarian intervention and the
“Responsibility to Protect” principle?
2. Does humanitarian intervention work?
Required Readings:
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Jon Western and Joshua Goldstein, “Humanitarian Intervention Comes of Age,” Foreign
Affairs (November/December 2011).
Benjamin Valentino, “The True Costs of Humanitarian Intervention,” Foreign Affairs
(November/December 2011).
April 29: Unipolarity and American Primacy
Robert A. Pape, “Empire Falls,” The National Interest (January/February 2009).
May 1: Class Debate Topic 6: The Rise of China
Discussion Questions:
1. Is conflict with China inevitable?
2. How should the United States adapt to China’s growing weight in international affairs?
Required Readings:
John J. Mearsheimer, "China's Unpeaceful Rise," Current History (April 2006), pp. 160162.
Naazneen Barma and Ely Ratner, “China’s Illiberal Challenge,” Democracy (Fall 2006),
pp. 56-68.
May 6: Policy Paper Due
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