POLSC 330
Spring 2012
Hours 12:10-3:50
Room 1731 HW
Office Hours: TBA
http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/polsci/faculty/Polsky
Professor Andrew J. Polsky
Office: Room 1723 HW
Phone: (212) 772-5507
e-mail: apolsky@hunter.cuny.edu
American Political Development
Course Description
The study of American political development provides a vehicle for exploring how the
American state and body politic have come to assume their present form. In this course we will
identify historical patterns, engage literature that seeks to explain political outcomes over time,
and address questions about the evidence scholars use to support analytical claims. The course
will be organized around three themes – continuity, change, and recurrence – that we will discuss
in the first unit. Here we will examine the degree to which core beliefs and the Constitution have
imposed stability on American politics, the role of events as a trigger for unanticipated change,
and the impact of cyclical forces (religious passion or partisan renewal) on political outcomes.
The remaining units of the course deal with, respectively, the process of state building/
unbuilding and the empowering/disempowering of citizens. In the second part of the course we
will trace state formation with special attention to critical junctures or turning points, the impact
of the international context on state expansion, and how anti-statist beliefs have formed the basis
for retrenchment. The third and final unit moves from the state to the citizenry: we will consider
how the state has shaped the public, the struggle over racial inclusion, and the trend toward
depoliticizing the public that some scholars identify in contemporary American politics.
Course Objectives
This course has both a substantive focus and developmental goals. The syllabus is
designed to introduce students to challenging analytical perspectives on American political
development that can illuminate broad historical patterns. In substantive terms, you will learn
about competing attempts by scholars to identify the key causal triggers of political development,
why state institutions have evolved and/or resisted change, and the forces that have shaped
political membership and participation. These are all “big questions” that will help you to view
American politics synthetically (that is, in broad terms) without sacrificing analytical rigor. At
the same time, this course aims to improve your critical thinking skills, understood here to mean
your capacity to grasp abstract concepts and theories, to appreciate how such concepts and
theories can be translated into concrete empirical claims, and to come to grips with the difficulty
of using evidence to evaluate the validity of empirical claims. You will be pressed to
Ainterrogate@ evidence – to ask questions about whether it is conclusive or indeterminate, to
reconcile conflicting evidence that seems to support different theories (or no theory), and to
consider why particular authors select certain evidence and omit other material. The shorter
written assignments and the exams are designed to improve different writing skills, including
your ability to summarize the main points of an argument succinctly, to use the readings to
engage questions that scholars debate, to explain theories clearly, and to make an argument in
which you state a thesis and support it through the use of evidence. Through the major research
paper, you will learn in a series of steps how to identify a research question, explore how
scholars view it, find appropriate evidence to answer your question, organize the evidence to
make a coherent argument, and write your argument clearly and effectively. Finally, in
presenting your work to the class, you will gain experience in expressing your ideas verbally,
defending your research, and answering questions about it.
Accessability
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and with Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Hunter College is committed to ensuring educational
parity and accommodations for all students with documented disabilities and/or medical
conditions. It is recommended that all students with documented disabilities (Emotional,
Medical, Physical and/ or Learning) consult the Office of AccessABILITY located in Room
E1124 to secure necessary academic accommodations. For further information and assistance
please call (212- 772- 4857)/TTY (212- 650- 3230).
Course Prerequisite
By department policy, all students enrolled in a 300-level course must have completed
ENG 120 or the equivalent. Students who have not done so may be dropped from the roster by
the Registrar. In addition, students must have completed PLSC 110 or 111 and have completed
45 credits overall and 9 credits in political science or must receive instructor permission to
register for the course.
Course Requirements
1) Complete assigned reading before class meetings (see attached schedule). We will not
recapitulate readings in class, but use them instead as a springboard for analytical and critical
discussions. Be aware that the volume of reading varies considerably; also, you may need to
read some assigned texts more than once. Please bring the assigned reading to class.
2) Attend class regularly and on time. Students will not be permitted to enter the
classroom late. Students who miss more than one class without a valid, documented reason shall
be penalized in the final grading (see below).
3) Participate in class discussion. To develop your capacity to use evidence to assess
theoretical claims, you need to engage it actively. You will be required to introduce one reading
(following a rubric that I will post on Blackboard), to present your research paper (see below),
and to serve as a discussant on another student’s paper, which will require a 5-10 minute
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commentary on that paper. Your grade will reflect your contribution to class meetings and the
quality of your three presentations.
4) Write seven short papers (maximum 700 words) about the assigned readings. The
first two short papers must be summaries of a reading; the remaining five must be responses to
questions that appear on the syllabus. For each class you may write only one short paper, which
must be must be submitted at the start of the class period in which the reading will be discussed.
(If you are absent, you may arrange to have someone else deliver the summary or e-mail it to
me.) Because the number of class sessions with readings is limited, be sure that you do not fall
behind. I will post guidelines for how to write a summary and how to approach response
questions on Blackboard.
5) Complete two written essay exams. There will be a mid-term and final exam, both
take-home exercises. The exams will be based on readings and discussions.
6) Complete a major research paper. The main research project will culminate in an 1820 page research paper. The project will be a multi-stage assignment, with points awarded for
successful completion of (and penalties imposed for lateness or noncompletion on) each stage. I
will suggest topics, but you will have considerable discretion. I will also give you a rubric that I
will use for grading the final paper. I will meet with you several times during the semester to
discuss your research project. You will have the opportunity to revise the final paper to improve
your grade. I will post guidelines for writing papers on Blackboard, and I strongly urge you to
review them before you write the paper. We will also discuss the research paper project
extensively in class.
7) Present your research to the class. You will make a fifteen-minute formal
presentation of your research project late in the semester and answer questions about it.
Grading
The following weights will be assigned in computing your course grade:
Participation/Presentations: 25%
Exams (two):
25%
Research paper:
50%
Participation/Presentations. Class participation will be based on timely submission of
short assignments, attendance, and regular contributions to our discussion (including your
introductory overview of one reading). Submission of the seven short writings, consistent
attendance (not more than two unexcused absences), and your introductory comments on one
reading will earn will establish a base participation grade of B. You can improve this through
active, informed comments in class. Conversely, the base participation grade will be reduced if
you fall short of the minimum expectations. More than one unexcused absences will lower the
participation grade by one-third of a letter grade, rising to one full letter grade for four or more
absences. If you submit fewer than seven short written assignments, the participation grade will
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be reduced by one-third of a letter grade, rising to one full letter grade for fewer than five
assignments. Students who miss more than five classes without valid reason and who turn in
three or fewer short writings will receive an F for class participation. You will be graded
separately on your paper presentation and your response to the paper you are assigned to discuss.
The participation and presentation grades will be weighted equally in the calculation of the
participation/presentation component of the grade.
Exams. The two essay exams will be worth 25% of the total course grade.
Research paper. I will distribute a hand-out on the research paper early in the semester
that identifies deadlines for submitting (1) a topic and preliminary bibliography, (2) a detailed
thesis statement and fuller bibliography, (3) an outline, and (4) the paper. This hand-out will
indicate the point values for each stage. You will have the opportunity to rewrite the paper, and
the grade on the rewrite will replace the original paper grade. But all earlier points will not be
affected by the rewrite, so you need to take seriously each of the intermediate steps.
I expect you to complete written assignments on time. Extensions will be given only for
valid reasons and documentation will be required. Otherwise, late work will be penalized, and
beyond a certain date will not be accepted. Just as important, you may not rewrite a paper on
which you receive a late penalty. The same conditions apply to requests for incompletes, which I
approve infrequently and which extend for only as long as the period of time during which you
were unable to work (e.g., if you were ill for one week at final exam time, you will be given one
extra week after the semester ends to complete the last paper). The exact duration of an
incomplete will be set at the time a student requests it.
Note on credit/no credit grading: College rules specify that to be eligible for credit/no
credit, students must complete all course requirements. In this course, students who wish to be
graded on the credit/no credit system must have submitted at least four short writings, must
complete both exams, and must submit the research paper. Failure to do so will void the CR/NC
option and you will receive the appropriate letter grade.
Department Honors Option
Students eligible for department honors may use the research paper for this course in
partial fulfillment of the honors requirement. You may need to do additional research and a
second revision to get my approval to submit your paper for honors, and the department
committee on honors must also approve the paper. Please discuss this option with me early in
the term.
Statement on Academic Integrity
Hunter College is strongly committed to the principle that students should do their own
work, give proper credit for information gained from any source, and acknowledge any help
received in completing assignments. I will pursue any suspected violations on written
assignments through the college’s formal mechanism for adjudicating such cases and seek the
most severe penalties permitted under college policy. Students may be asked to submit their
papers to a plagiarism detection service.
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Books
Course readings include two books and a number of book chapters and journal articles.
The book chapters have been compiled in a course pack. The pack and assigned books are
available at Shakespeare Bookstore on Lexington Avenue. The journal articles may be accessed
through the Hunter College Library Electronic Reserve System (ERES). Besides the course
pack, the following titles have been ordered for purchase at Shakespeare:
Richard M. Valelly, The Two Reconstructions: The Struggle for Black Enfranchisement
(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2004).
Theda Skocpol, Diminished Democracy: From Membership to Management in
American Civic Life (Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2003).
We use these books at the end of the semester, so you have a little time to seek the best discount
price.
Schedule of Class Assignments
Please pay attention to the notations [ERES] and [course pack] following specific
readings. Most journal articles are available through ERES; book chapters will be found in the
course pack.
January 30th. Introduction: What is American Political Development?.
Karen Orren and Stephen Skowronek, The Search for American Political Development
(Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004), pp. 120-32.
[course pack]
Paul Pierson, “Increasing Returns, Path Dependence, and the Study of Politics,”
American Political Science Review 94 (2) (June 2000): 251-67. [ERES]
Part One. Patterns of American Political Development: Continuity, Contingency, Recurrence
February 6th. The Durable Cultural Fabric of American Public Life.
Louis Hartz, The Liberal Tradition in America (1955, 1991), chap. 1. [course pack]
Rogers M. Smith, “Beyond Tocqueville, Myrdal, and Hartz: The Multiple Traditions in
America,” American Political Science Review 87 (3) (September 1993): 549-66.
[ERES]
Carol Nackenoff, “Locke, Alger, and Atomistic Individualism Fifty Year Later:
Revisiting Louis Hartz’s Liberal Tradition in America,” Studies in American
Political Development 19 (Fall 2005): 206-15. [ERES]
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Aaron L. Friedberg, In the Shadow of the Garrison State: America’s Anti-Statism and Its
Cold War Strategy (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000), chap. 1.
[course pack]
February 13th. Lincoln’s Birthday – No Class.
February 21st (Tuesday). (1) The Shaping Effects of a Constant: The Constitution and
American Political Development; (2) Disruption and Contingency.
Peter F. Nardulli, “The Constitution and American Politics: A Developmental
Perspective,” in Nardulli, ed., The Constitution and American Political
Development: An Institutional Perspective (Urbana: University of Illinois Press,
1992), pp. 3-31. [course pack]
David Brian Robertson, The Constitution and America’s Destiny (Cambridge and New
York: Cambridge University Press, 2005), chap. 8. [course pack]
David R. Mayhew, “Wars and American Politics,” Perspectives on Politics 3 (September
2005): 473-93. [ERES]
Andrew J. Polsky and Olesya Tkacheva, “Legacies versus Politics: Herbert Hoover,
Partisan Conflict, and the Symbolic Appeal of Associationalism in the 1920s,”
International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society 16 (2) (Winter 2002): 20735. [ERES]
February 27th. Periodization in American Political Development.
“Polity Forum: Roundtable on Periodization and American Politics,” Polity 37 (4)
(October 2005): 511-47. [course pack]
Andrew J. Polsky, “Partisan Regimes in American Politics,” Polity 44 (1) January 2012:
1-33. [ERES]
March 5th. Take-Home Mid-Term Due.
Part Two: State Building and Unbuilding
March 5th. Creating a State in a Stateless Society.
Fareed Zakaria, From Wealth to Power: The Unusual Origins of America’s World Role
(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1998), chap. 4. [course pack]
Daniel P. Carpenter, “State Building through Reputation Building: Coalitions of Esteem
and Program Innovation in the National Postal System, 1883-1913,” Studies in
American Political Development 14 (2) (Fall 2000): 121-55. [course pack]
James A. Morone, Hellfire Nation: The Politics of Sin in American History (New Haven:
Yale University Press, 2003), chaps. 10 and 11.
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March 12th. The Heyday of the Modern State: The New Deal and Postwar Empire.
Anthony J. Badger, “The Limits of Federal Power and Social Politics, 1910-1955, “ in
Byron E. Shafer and Anthony J. Badger, Contesting Democracy: Substance and
Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000 (Lawrence, KS: University
of Kansas Press, 2001), pp. 181-200. [course pack]
Alan Brinkley, “The New Deal and the Idea of the State,” in Steve Fraser and Gary
Gerstle, eds., The Rise and Fall of the New Deal Order, 1930-1980 (Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1989), pp. 85-121. [course pack]
Aaron L. Friedberg, In the Shadow of the Garrison State: America’s Anti-Statism and Its
Cold War Strategy (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000), chap. 2.
[course pack]
March 19th. The Anti-Statist Turn.
Julian E. Zelizer, “The Uneasy Relationship: Democracy, Taxation, and State Building
since the New Deal,” in Meg Jacobs, William J. Novak, and Julian E. Zelizer,
eds., The Democratic Experiment: New Directions in American Political History
(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2003), pp. 276-300. [course pack]
Margaret Weir, “States, Race, and the Decline of New Deal Liberalism,” Studies in
American Political Development 19 (2) (Fall 2005): 157-72. [ERES]
Daniel M. Cook and Andrew J. Polsky, “Political Time Reconsidered: Unbuilding and
Rebuilding the State under the Reagan Administration,” American Politics
Research 33 (4) (July 2005): 577-605. [ERES]
Part Three: From Citizenship to Passivity
March 26th. How the American State Formed the American Polity.
Richard R. John, Spreading the News: The American Postal System from Franklin to
Morse (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1995), chap. 2 “The
Communications Revolution,” pp. 25-63. [course pack]
William D. Adler and Andrew J. Polsky, “Building the New American Nation:
Economic Development, Public Goods, and the Early U.S. Army,” Political
Science Quarterly 125 (1) (Spring 2010): 87-110. [ERES]
William J. Novak, “The Legal Transformation of Citizenship in Nineteenth-Century
America,” in Meg Jacobs, William J. Novak, and Julian E. Zelizer, eds., The
Democratic Experiment: New Directions in American Political History
(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2003), pp. 85-119. [course pack]
April 2nd and16th. The Political Struggle over Inclusion (April 9th. No Class – Spring Recess.)
Richard M. Valelly, The Two Reconstructions: The Struggle for Black Enfranchisement.
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April 23rd and 30th. From Mass Organizations to Managed Participation.
Theda Skocpol, Diminished Democracy: From Membership to Management in American
Civic Life.
May 7th, 14th, and 21st (if necessary). Student Research Presentations.
May 21st. Take-Home Final Exam Due.
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