POLITICAL SCIENCE 104
International Politics
Fall 2014
Dr. Samuel S. Stanton, Jr.
Office: HAL 303E
Office Hours: MWF 9am-12pm; TTh 1-2pm; By Appointment
Phone: 724.458.3854
Email: SSStanton@gcc.edu
Webpage: http://www2.gcc.edu/dept/pols/faculty/stanton/
Overview:
This is an introductory course in the study of international relations. The goal of this
course is to acquaint you with the concepts, ideas, and analytical tools necessary to
understand state behavior and relationships among actors in the international system. In
this class we will look at the major concerns, issues, and actors that characterize world
politics. We will examine various theoretical explanations for state behaviors, such as
realism, liberalism, and constructivism. We will use these theories to analyze the forces
that affect state behavior and address some of the most pressing questions in international
relations. In order to understand connections among states, we will explore vital topics
such as war, cooperation, international law, political economy, terrorism, human rights,
and the forms of conflict that characterize the international system. The primary aim of
this class is to develop critically engaged citizens with an interest in world politics!
Goals:
 To aid students in development of an understanding of International Relations that
is firmly rooted in a Christian worldview.
 To help students examine the application of this knowledge to their futures.
 To assist students in living lives glorifying and honoring God through the
advancement of knowledge.
Outcomes:
 Students will demonstrate understanding of various theories of state behavior that
are applied to understanding past, current, and future international political
behavior. (Dept. Obj. 1,2, 5, 6)
 Students will gain knowledge of causes of political conflict. (Dept. Obj. 1, 2, 5, 6)
 Students will demonstrate the ability to analyze and synthesize readings and online
lectures. (Dept. Obj. 2, 4,5, 6, 7)
 Students will demonstrate the ability to engage in research pertinent to the field of
study (Dept. Obj. 2, 4, 6, 7, 8)
General Objectives for Students Majoring in Political Science
1. Have acquired knowledge of the four major subject areas (American
Politics, Political Theory, International Relations, and Comparative
Politics) of political science
2. Be Competitive for graduate and professional school opportunities.
Political science majors with strong academic records will be competitive
for both master’s and Ph.D. programs in political science and other
professional programs and will be competitive for financial stipends.
3. Be familiar with entry level jobs suitable for political science majors.
4. Be competitive for entry level jobs suitable for political science majors.
5. Have the ability to read, comprehend, and evaluate content in professional
political science journals, scholarly books, and websites.
6. Show familiarity with, and the ability to critically evaluate, information
sources in the Social Sciences.
7. Demonstrate a mastery of research and writing skills in the field of
political science.
8. Develop and capacity to apply a Christian moral principles to issues and
topics within political science, including using a Christian perspective to
evaluate critically political ideas, public policies, and political figures.
Simply stated, our aim is that students will seek to understand the field of
politics as individuals who are committed to historic Christian thought.
Measurement of Outcomes
Explanation of materials and ability to analyze readings will be determined by course
examinations. Ability to understand critical contemporary issues will be determined by
examinations. The course paper will demonstrate student ability to analyze and develop a
research report.
Course Requirements: This course requires student participation, the completion of two
in class exams and a final exam. Also students are required to write an 8-10 page
research document.
Participation: You cannot participate if you are not present. Participation is more than
simply being in the room, participation is discussion, questioning, and answering. I
understand that emergencies do occur and that university sponsored events may require
students to miss class, please inform me one class prior to sanctioned absences and as
soon as possible in the case of emergencies. Participation represents 10% of the course
grade.
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Research Document: Student must write an 8-10 page paper that examines a topic of the
student’s choice that is pertinent to the material covered in the introduction of
international relations. The paper is due October 14, so do not procrastinate. See paper
guidelines at end of syllabus.
Exams: You will have two (2) in class exams and a final exam. Exams will be multiple
choice and short answer format. The final exam will be comprehensive per GCC
requirements.
Grades:
Participation
Research Document
Exam 1
Exam 2
Final Exam
10%
20%
25%
25%
20%
Grading Scale:
90-100
80-89
70-79
60-69
Below 60
A
B
C
D
F
Academic Dishonesty Policy
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is a serious violation of moral and academic principles. It involves
claiming as one’s own original work the ideas, phrasing, or creative work of another person.
As such, plagiarism is a direct violation of the biblical commandments against stealing,
bearing false witness, and covetousness; thus, the Grove City College policy. I encourage
our students to think seriously about the demands of their Christian faith in regards to this
issue.
We remind students that plagiarism includes the following:
1) any direct quotation of another’s words, from simple phrasing to longer passages,
without using quotation marks and properly citing the source of those words;
2) any summary or paraphrase of another’s ideas without properly citing the source of
those ideas;
3) any information that is not common knowledge —including facts, statistics,
graphics, drawings—without proper citation of sources;
4) any cutting and pasting of verbal or graphic materials from another source—
including books, databases, web sites, journals, newspapers, etc.—without the
proper citation for each of the sources of those materials; this includes any
copyrighted artwork, graphics, or photography downloaded from the Internet
without proper citation;
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5) any wholesale “borrowing,” theft, or purchasing of another’s work and presenting it
as one’s own, whether from the Internet or from another source;
6) any presentation of “ghost-written” papers—whether paid for or not—as one’s own
original work;
7) making one’s work available for copying by others, as well as copying work posted
on the Internet or otherwise made available by another.
The above statement is taken from the Grove City College Bulletin and The Crimson.
Plagiarism in written work in this course will result in a grade of 0 being assigned to that
work. Opportunity to correct and resubmit the work is based on time remaining in the
course, nature of the plagiarism (is it simply forgotten or improper citation or is it cutting
and pasting entire sections of someone else’s work), and whether or not this is a repeat
offense for the individual student.
Cheating on Examinations:
1) Rules of Plagiarism do apply to the essay section of examinations.
2) Discussion of material and sharing of notes, readings, etc. with classmates taking the
same exam is NOT cheating.
3) Cheating is defined as:
a) copying portions of any other student’s answer and claiming it as your own
b) paraphrasing portions of any other student’s answer and claiming it as your own
c) obvious sharing of answers that while not copied or paraphrased show exacting
and distinctive sharing of ideas, logical thought processes, and craftsmanship of
the answer
PENALTY:
1) violations of cheating defined as type a or b will receive a 0 for the answer that
exhibits cheating occurred.
2) violations of cheating defined by type c mean that the violation involves more than one
person. In this case the parties involved will share the grade earned by the answer. For
example if the answer earned a possible 30 points out of 33 1/3 points possible, the grade
of 30 will be divided among each party to the cheating.
3) The penalty if applied will be reported to the Student Faculty Review Committee for
their review and recommendation of any further action.
Communication: I will communicate with you as much information as possible in a
class. Check your email regularly, though, as important information will be shared as
necessary throughout the course. Always include a subject line when sending an email
to Dr. Stanton, Dr. Stanton has set up his email account to auto-delete any incoming
messages without a subject line and Dr. Stanton does not want to miss any
important emails from his students.
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Text:
Goldstein, Joshua and Jon Pevehouse. 2014. International Relations, 2013-2014 Update,
10/E, Pearson Longman. ISBN-13: 9780205971367
Other readings will be assigned throughout the course. These readings will be available
on-line or will be available in the course folder.
Course Outline: Readings listed in Parentheses (GP = Goldstein and Pevehouse text)
August 26: Intro to the Course
August 28: No Class, Dr. Stanton at APSA Meetings (Do Some Reading)
September 2-16: Concepts, Actors, Theories (GP Chps 1-3)
--What is IR and Why Study IR
--Actors, Globalization, Wars
--Realism (Read: Thucydides, ‘The Melian Dialogue’ @
https://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/melian.htm and
http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/PRISDIL.html
Watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9eV5gPlPZg)
--Liberalism and Social Theories (Read: Woodrow Wilson, ‘The Fourteen Points’ and
Alexander Wendt, “Anarchy is What States Make of It”
Watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5foxGFXNl-s)
September 18-October 2: Foreign Policy and Conflict (GP Chps 4-6) (1st Exam)
--Foreign Policy (watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND3P_3JX1BA)
--International Conflict (watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rz_eCLcp1Mc and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZOjZXi6R0A)
--Military Force Structures, Terrorism, WMDs (watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zzNtjxo-bk and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_1g_ezXuLs)
--First Exam: In Class October 2
October 7-November 6: International Organizations, Law, Human Rights, Integration
(GP Chps 7 & 10)
--International Organizations (Read: Eric Voeten, 2005. “The political origins of the UN
Security Council’s Ability to Legitimize the Use of Force,” International Organization
59, 3: 527-557)
--Human Rights
--International Integration
--Papers are Due at start of class October 14
November 11-18: International/Global Trade, Finance, Business (GP Chps 8-9)
--International Trade: (watch: http://www.c-span.org/video/?316352-2/WSJC)
--Global Finance and Business (watch: http://www.c-span.org/video/?316352-1/SJC)
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--Second Exam: In Class November 20
December 2-9: Issues in International Development (GP Chps 11-13)
--Environmental/Resource Issues (watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oiAcu7TJF4 and
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-03/national-press-club-doctor-bjornlomborg/5132004)
--Population Change
--North-South Gap?
--Foreign Aid Issues (watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEI7PDrVc9M)
--Growth of China (watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aE66iIUi9U)
Final Exam: Friday December 12, 2 pm
STYLE GUIDELINE FOR COURSE PAPER:
In Political Science, two styles are prevalent in the scholarly literature—APSA, which is
a revised form of APA and Turabian. I require use of APSA! Since the purpose of this
course is in part to correctly train you in appropriate writing technique for professional
political science work, you will find provided for you in the space below, examples of
proper citation, and proper bibliographical citations. Consult a style manual for issues of
page numbering, sectioning and sub-sectioning a paper, etc. An electronic copy of the
APSA style manual is available in the course folder on the ED server.
Paper Grading:
30% Style and Composition (grammar anyone?)
70% Content (are your statements logical, do you discuss the major points, did you do an
analysis or a report?)
TWO IMPORTANT POINTS:
POINT 1:
When I grade a paper, I will make numerical marks that correspond to the “Rules for
Writing” that follow. If on any page I am forced to make more than 5 numerical
notations, I will quit reading the paper. This is not a grammar and composition course, if
you have problems writing, get help. I do not have the time when grading papers to
spend 2 to 3 hours on an individual paper because of poor writing quality. Poor writing
quality makes it impossible to understand the content, which means you not only lose the
style and composition points, but the content as well. If you follow the “Rules” and use
the appropriate style, 30% of your grade is, to be cliché, “in the bag”.
POINT 2:
Even if a paper is stylistically and grammatically correct, and even if you make logical
arguments, discuss major points, and actually do an analytical critique rather than a
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report, you may still only earn a C or B on the assignment. Some arguments are simply
better than others. Well written papers make readers think and possibly raise arguments
that a reader might not have thought about before reading this paper. Do not confuse
making the reader baffled with making the reader think. At the end of the day, a paper
meriting an A has met all of the technical challenges of the assignment and has shown a
high degree of intellectual aptitude. A high degree of intellectual aptitude is displayed by
clarity, sharpness of wit and critique, and by how much it makes the reader think. In
short, A papers are special and rare.
RUBRIC FOR GRADING:
Introduction: 14 pts. Possible.
--good, well written intro, easily understood and explained overall purpose and
organization of the paper (11-14 pts)
--ok intro, some minor issues with details (8-10 pts)
--poor intro, numerous issues with details (4-7 pts)
--inadequate intro (0-3 pts)
Literature Review/Research of Existent Literature: 14 pts. Possible
--sound examination of relevant literature, well researched (11-14 pts)
--ok or not quite there in either literature or quality of research (8-10 pts)
--poor work (4-7 pts)
--inadequate work (0-3 pts)
Examination and Explanation of Subject Matter: 28 pts. Possible
--Solid coverage of all relevant areas of foreign policy, easily understandable, explains
origins and purposes of the foreign policies in solid detail (24-28 pts)
--Coverage and detail of issues is ok, but not outstanding, some gaps exist in explanations
of the policies (14-24 pts)
--Missing some area(s) of foreign policy coverage, poorly crafted examination of the
policies that are examined (7-13 pts)
--inadequate work (0-6 pts)
Findings and Conclusions: 14 pts. Possible
--Carefully examines and explains potential conclusions based on research (11-14 pts)
--adequately examines potential conclusions (8-10 pts)
--poor examination with illogical conclusions (4-7 pts)
--inadequate examination, missing conlcusions (0-3 pts)
Style and Grammar: 30 pts. Possible
--pts based on adherence to Rules of Writing attached to this syllabus and requirement of
no more than 5 style and grammar mistakes on any one page as stated previously in this
syllabus.
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Dr. Stanton’s Rules for Writing
Built upon the work of a long line of mentors and colleagues
Sentence Rules:
1. Do not begin sentences in any of the following ways: “There are/is…”, “This is…”,
“It is…,” etc.
2. Do not use “this,” “these,” “that,” “those,” “which,” or “it” unless the word has a
clear and unmistakable antecedent nearby. Never begin a sentence with “this” unless you
follow it immediately with a noun that re-identifies the idea to which you are referring.
3. Never publicly dangle a participle or misplace a modifier: write “Showing
unmistakable signs of ignorance, the student did not persuade his professor;” NOT> “The
student did not persuade his professor, showing unmistakable signs of ignorance.”
4. Never write an incomplete sentence (participles -- “ing” words -- cannot stand as
verbs). A verb must agree with its subject in person and number.
5. Know these three rules about commas:
a. Join independent clauses (clauses with a subject and a verb) either by using (1)
a comma with a conjunction (“Right-handers predominantly use the left side of
the brain, so left-handers are the only ones in their right minds.”) or (2) a
semicolon without a conjunction (“Right-handers predominantly use the left side
of the brain; left-handers are the only ones in their right minds.”)
b. Separate items in a series by using a comma after every item before the
conjunction (“The professor was arbitrary, arrogant, and heartless.”)
c. Never use a comma between the subject and the verb or between the verb and
its object (except for interrupting clauses that use two (2) commas).
6. Bury words like “however,” “furthermore,” “moreover,” “indeed,” etc. (conjunctive
adverbs) in the clause or sentence; do not put them at the beginning. (E.g. “The students,
however, learned something.”)
7. Be consistent when you have two or more parallel structures. With adjectives: “He
was pompous, picky, and terrorized freshmen” is wrong. “He was pompous, picky, and
fond of terrorizing freshmen” is right. With prepositions: “A student could count on his
bad temper and arbitrariness” is wrong. “A student could count on his bad temper and on
his arbitrariness” is right. With correlatives: “He graded a paper not only for content but
for style” is wrong. “He graded a paper not only for content but also for style” is right.
8. Do not end a sentence with a preposition.
9. Do not use the passive voice (“Careless students are failed by the ruthless professor”);
use the active voice (“The ruthless professor fails careless students”). Because the active
voice is direct and clear, this rule is the most important of style, but it has serious
consequences for your meaning as well. Politicians, administrators, and those foolishly
trying to avoid the consequences of their actions love the passive voice because it
protects them from facts and responsibility: “Mistakes were made.”
10. Adverbs should be adverbs. Do not do it different – if you know what I am saying.
11. Walker’s Rule for Pronouns: every pronoun should have a clear antecedent to which
it agrees in person, number, and gender.
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Paragraph and Thesis Rules:
12. Each paragraph must stick to the subject introduced by its first sentence. Most
importantly, the first sentence of the first paragraph must establish the context of your
paper. “John Wayne first appears in Stagecoach with a rifle in his hand.” NOT> “Duke
has a gun.”
13. Do not use one or two sentences as a paragraph.
14. Make the transition between your sentences and your paragraphs clear and logical.
This task is the most difficult in writing, but, as you know, life is hard.
15. Give your paper a clear thesis sentence at the end of your first paragraph. If you can
remember only one rule, this rule is the one you must remember. The first paragraph
should also demonstrate how the rest of the paper is organized.
16. Avoid using quotations to begin or end a paragraph or a paper. Your own words are
most important in those places.
17. In longer papers remind the reader of your thesis throughout the body of your paper.
Rules concerning Argumentation:
18. Never just summarize or paraphrase. Assume your reader has read/seen it. I do not
want to know what happened. I want to know your ideas about what happened.
19. Support your assertions and ideas with concrete examples, with brief quotes from the
story, book, or film you are discussing, or with a short citation from some reliable
authority.
20. Do not hedge. Words like “maybe,” “seem,” “perhaps,” and “might” do not keep you
from being wrong; they merely alert the reader to the fact that you are worried about it.
21. Avoid vague generalizations: “as we all know,” “people say,” “since the beginning
of time,” etc. Obvious claims such as “mankind would not exist without the heart” are
equally lamentable.
22. Write about works of art in the present tense, since Hamlet will be stabbing Polonius
and Roy Hobbs will be knocking the lights out with his home runs long after your
grandchildren have forgotten your name.
23. Avoid rhetorical questions.
24. Delete the phrase “in the past” from your writing as well as any hint of chronological
snobbery. Chronological snobbery is the erroneous assumption that, with the passage of
time, mankind has gotten progressively wiser. In the past such a pedantic list of writing
rules would have been unnecessary for undergraduates.
25. When citing a dictionary refer to the Oxford English Dictionary whenever possible.
Diction Rules:
26. Do not misspell words. Misspelled words look dumb; do not look dumb. Use a
dictionary or a literate friend to check your spelling. On a word processor always use
spell-check, but do not trust it! Possessing a limited vocabulary and undiscerning
between right words spelled wrongly and wrong words spelled rightly, spell-check is no
substitute for proofreading. Spell out one and two digit numbers.
27. Never use contractions.
28. A possessive without an apostrophe is a misspelled word. One exception is the
possessive of “it”: “its.” “It is” contracts to “it’s.” Since you will not use contractions,
you will never write “it’s” on a paper.
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29. Choose the best word for the context. Your papers should be a place “where every
word is at home, taking its place to support the others” (Eliot “Little Gidding,” V.217218). Beware of unintended irony: an N.C. State basketballer once explained his ability to
shoot with either hand, “yeah, I’m amphibious.” Suffice it to say this student-athlete, to
avoid drowning in his coursework, crawled out of school and into the NBA.
30. Also beware these other egregious violations of Rule Twenty-Nine (29): jargon (say
“library”; do not say “instructional media center”), cliche (say “the professor is a
conservative grouch”; do not say “the professor is an old fogey”), slang (say “the teacher
is foolish”; do not say “the teacher is a dork”), hyperbole (say “this man has too high a
regard for himself”; do not say “this man is the most arrogant jerk who ever lived”),
gobbledygook (say “now”; do not say “at this point in time”), and malapropism
(confusion of idioms; one former NFL player commented, “I really cleaned his bell; I
rang his clock”).
31. Use your smallest most Anglo-Saxon, most comfortable words; big words impress
only high school teachers and smell of the thesaurus.
32. Lose the word “very” and, like, you know, other gratuitous additives from, you know,
your written and spoken vocabulary.
33. Non-English words should be italicized. Foreign words and terms that are not
commonly used should be defined when initially used in the paper.
Format Rules:
34. Number your pages. Numbering begins on the first page of text, title pages are not
numbered.
35. Do not widow/orphan lines from lengthier quotes, single sentences from paragraphs,
sub-headings from first line of text in the section, labels of tables, charts, figures,
graphics from the table, chart, figure or graphic to which it refers.
36. Use APSA Style for your papers.
37. Give your paper an informative title. The name of the work you are dealing with is
NOT the title of your paper. “Shakespeare’s Use of Time in Hamlet” is by a thoughtful
person; “It Takes a Broken Egghead to Make a Hamlet” is by a clown; Hamlet is by
Shakespeare.
38. Italicize all full-length films, plays, and books. Do likewise with magazine and
newspaper titles. Short stories, film shorts, one-act plays, and articles go in quotation
marks (“…”). Do not underline or put your own title in quotation marks.
39. On those extremely rare occasions when you quote more than two lines of text,
indent five spaces left and right and single space the quotation, and leave off the
quotation marks.
40. When you quote from or refer to a source, cite it appropriately and include a works
cited page of some kind.
41. When you borrow and idea or paraphrase statements from existing scholarship, give
appropriate citation.
42. The first citation within a paragraph must contain the author’s name, even if it is the
same author and item from the previous citation in the preceding paragraph. Likewise,
the first citation on any page must contain the author’s name and the year of publication,
even if the citation is for the same source as the last citation on the preceding page.
43. Print your paper out only on the front side of the pages.
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44. Use 1” margins top, bottom, and right, use a 1 ½” margin on the left side of pages.
45. Use Times New Roman 12 point font.
46. If a header is used on page 1 to identify you, the course and the date, this material
should be single-spaced and have minimal spacing between it and the body of the paper
and it should be used only on the first page. Such header is not required if a title page is
used. Title pages are required for course research papers.
47. Before handing in your final copy, have an intelligent friend read your paper to you;
then fix it. Frequently save your file, and if possible keep a hard copy, and/or a version
on another drive.
48. Do not hand in a paper unless you have come to care about it. You believe in
goodness and truth; therefore, commit yourself to communicating your ideas well and
true.
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