POLS 3322
M-W 1:00-2:30
Spring 2010
Room: AH 304
Professor Ernesto Calvo
Office Hours: Friday 11-12
PGH 447 C – ecalvo@uh.edu
Class Syllabus and Electronic Readings:
http://calvo.polsci.uh.edu/pols_3322.htm
Introduction to Latin American Politics
Authoritarian Legacies and Democratic Politics in Latin America
In this course we will focus on the processes of democratization and democratic
governance in Latin America. The political landscape of the region has changed
dramatically in the last twenty years, as most authoritarian regimes in Latin America gave
way to democratic ones. Simultaneously, the region has experienced increasing economic
turmoil, providing new challenges to the political sustainability of these emerging
democracies. In this course we will explore issues of democratic representation and
democratic governance and learn about the challenges that authoritarian legacies present
to democratic Latin America.
The first part of the course will be dedicated to explore Latin America’s cycles of
authoritarian and democratic rule. We will also analyze the expansion of political rights
and the development of party systems. In the second part of the course we will focus on
specific problems that are critical to understand Latin America’s process of democratic
consolidation.
Course meetings will combine the format of lectures and discussion sessions.
Students are expected to attend all lectures, do all the assigned readings for the week, and
participate in class discussion. Every student will be required to select a country of Latin
America to do specific readings and research. Grading will result from a midterm exam, a
final exam and a short paper with a review of one of four possible books. Please
familiarize yourself with the academic honesty policy of the University of Houston.
Plagiarism in the paper will result in an F in the class and a note in your academic record
(http://www.uh.edu/dos/hdbk/acad/achonpol.html). Collaborative papers require a joint
10 minute presentation on the last week of classes (only groups of two students will be
allowed). The exams presuppose knowledge of the assigned readings, lectures, and class
discussions.
Learning Outcomes:
• Student will master basic concepts, theories and methods pertaining to the comparative
study of Latin America’s political institutions.
• Students will write an original discussion paper describing how our understanding of
Latin American politics has changed over time.
• Students will be able to understand how the study of Latin American politics fits within
the field of Political Science in general.
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Registering in Turnitin.com
An e-class has been created in www.turnitin.com in order for you to deposit the
class papers or any other assignment. It will also provide me with an email to contact
everyone in case of an emergency or to make class changes. In order to register go to:
www.turnitin.com and follow the registration instructions.
The information needed to register for this class is:

Class ID: 3083679

Password: calvo
Required Books:
Thomas E. Skidmore, Peter H. Smith; Modern Latin America, New York: Oxford
University Press, 2005.
One book to choose from:
1. Mario Vargas Llosa. The Feast of the Goat, New York : Farrar, Straus, and Giroux,
2001.
2. Mario Vargas Llosa. Captain Pantoja and the Special Service. ISBN: 0374522367.
3. Gabriel Garcia Marquez. One Hundred Years of Solitude.
4. Mariano Azuela. Underdogs. ISBN: 0451526252.
All other readings will be available electronically or on reserve at the library.
Week 1
Introduction
MLA Prologue and Chapter 1.
Week 2
Brazil
MLA. Chapter on Brazil.
Baker, Ames, and Renno. 2006. “Context and Campaign Volatility in New Democracies:
Networks and Neighborhoods in Brazil's 2002 Elections”, AJPS, 50(2):382-399.
Recommended movie: Central Station.
Week 3
Mexico
MLA. Chapter on Mexico.
Hiskey, J. and Bowler, S. 2005. Local Context and Democratization in Mexico.
Gibson, Edward. 1998. The Populist Road to Market Reform. World Politics.
Recommended movie: Herod’s Law.
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Week 4
Argentina
MLB. Chapter on Argentina.
Calvo, Ernesto & Maria Victoria Murillo. 2004. Who Delivers?. AJPS 48(4): 742-757.
Recommended Movie: 9 Queens
Week 5
Peru
MLB. Chapter on Peru.
Stokes, Susan. 1997. “Democratic Accountability and Policy Change: Economic Policy
in Fujimori’s Peru.” Comparative Politics Vol. 29 No. 2 (January): 209-226.
Week 6
Armed Conflicts in Central America
MLA. Chapters 8, 9 and 10
Recommended Movie: Romero.
Week 7
Review and Midterm Examination
Week 8
Authoritarianism
O’Donnell and Schmitter. 1985. Transitions from Authoritarian Rule: Tentative
Conclusions. John Hopkins.
Week 9
Party Systems in Latin America
Snyder and Samuels. 2001. Devaluing the vote. Mimeo.
Ames, Barry. 1995. Electoral strategy under open-list proportional representation.
American Journal of Political Science. Vol.39. Issue 2 (May, 1995): 406-433. [EV]
Week 10
Democratization I
Mainwaring and Perez-Linan. Latin American Democratization since 1978: Democratic
transitions, Breakdowns, and Erosions.
Recommended
Samuel P. Huntington. 1991. The Third Wave. Oklahoma U.P. Chapters 1 and 2.
Week 11
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Never Again- Human Rights in Latin America
Keck, M and Kathryn Sikkink. 1998. Activist beyond Borders. Cornell U.P. Chapter 3.
Pion-Berlin: To Prosecute or to Pardon? Human Rights Decisions in the Latin Americna
Southern Cone. Human Rights Quarterly 15 (1993). Johns Hopkins U.P.
Recommended Movie: The official Story.
Week 12
Democratization II: New Directions
O’Donnell, Guillermo. 1998. “Horizontal Accountability in New Democracies,” Journal
of Democracy 9, no. 3: 112-126.
Week 13
Of Politicians and Legislators
Carey, John. 2007. Competing Principals, Political Institutions, and Party Unity in
Legislative Voting. AJPS, 51(1): 92-107.
Amorim Neto, Cox, G; McCubbins, M. 2005. Agenda Power in Brazil’s Camara Dos
Deputados.
Week 14 - Discussion and book presentations
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