POLS 291

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Class meets in Fitzelle 215 Office: 410 Fitzelle
T,Th 2-3:15 Hours: T,Th11:15-12; 3:30-4:30

This course provides an overview of the major political political systems of the Middle East region with a focus on Israel and the struggle of the Palestinian people to establish their own state. The scope of the course includes the countries of the oil-rich, Persian Gulf area and the recent history of conflict and diplomacy in the region. The role of the United States and other powerful states and international organizations in shaping that political history will be examined in light of cultural, religious, governmental and economic variables. The significance of the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis will be considered with differing perspectives on the collapse of the Oslo-initiated “peace process” and subsequent efforts to resuscitate it.

Text for the course is Congressional Quarterly, The Middle East (Eleventh edition, 2008)

Attendance Attendance is a requirement of the course. Notice that there are only 8 class meetings scheduled for this course. If you have to miss a class, please inform the instructor beforehand. As in other classes, students are responsible for documenting their legitimate absences and arranging to make up the work that they miss.

Grades will be based on one quiz, one optional assignment, and one test. The quiz will count for a maximum 20% of the grade (if the quiz grade is higher than the test a/o assignment grade); the assignment will count for 40% of the grade and the test will count as much as 100%, or as little as 40% of the course grade. The details will be explained in class.

Plagiarism (Policy statement suggested by college administration) “Academic dishonesty is defined as any act by a student that misrepresents or attempts to misrepresent to an instructor or any College official, the proficiency or achievement of that student or any student in any academic exercise for the purpose of influencing a grade on a piece of assigned work, on an examination or quiz or in a course as a whole, or that is intended to alter any record of a student’s academic performance by unauthorized means.” “A student deemed guilty of an act of academic dishonesty may, depending on the nature of the offense, be subject to one or more of the following measures: failure of the assignment or examination, failure of the course, or dismissal from the College. Furthermore, for a second offense, referral of the case to the Standing Disciplinary Board is mandatory. The penalties that may be assessed by the Board are listed under the procedures of the Standing Disciplinary Board as published in this publication; however, the normal penalty is suspension . . ."

dates outline of topics readings in CQ (and handouts)
(pages for tenth edition in parens)

April 10     Islam and the Arab world                                                  3-31; 97-139 (137-177)
                   See Quarles essay below
                         as supplementary reading on Islam

15 Judaism, Zionism and the state of Israel 33-53; 279-305 (13-45 281-304)
(see Wouk essay below)

Talk to Iran? A realist (both liberal&conservative) perspective

http://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=89785566&m=89785544&live=1
Talk to Hamas? http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89817210

Is Carter telling the truth? http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89831131

                    Palestinians in Israel, in the occupied territories, and beyond: Why did the
                    Peace Process associated with the 1993 Olso Framework Agreement collapse? 377-394
                    List extremist actions on both sides that undermined trust. How did authorities on the
                    Palestinian side and in the Israeli government fail in efforts
                    to implement the "peace process"?                             How does Egypt relate to the conflict? 217-233

24(Q) A pro-Israeli perspective on the conflict (dvd - Why did the 1993 accords collapse?)
A pro-Palestinian perspective on the conflict (video - the occupation and the US media)

29                The rise of "fundamentalist" and fanatical movements in the region
                    Iran 235-259 (241-263) (and Afghanistan)
                    and Intifada II The emergence of suicide bombing as a tactic
                    The latest analytical perspective on al-Qaeda and Osama binLaden
http://download.publicradio.org/podcast/wordforword/2008/04/25/wordforword_64.mp3

May 1 (Q)   The war in Iraq and its international impact     261-277 (237-252)
                                                                                          Syria 437-455 (403-419)
                    A badly mismanaged and heavily privatized war http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051208J.shtml

Supplementary periodical literature that will be referred to in class presentations:

Eqbal Amal, "Terrorism: Theirs and Ours" University of Colorado,
Boulder, October 12, 1998 (National Public Radio broadcast; Alternative Radio Reprints).
Fouad Ajami What the Muslim World is Watching (Al Jazeera)
New York Times Magazine, November 18, 2001; p48
Jon Lee Anderson, "Letter From Bagdad: The Unvanquished (Saddam)," The New Yorker,
December 11, 2000, pp. 76-89.
Michael Scott Doran, Somebody Else's Civil War, Foreign Affairs, Jan/Feb 2002; p.22.
David Farber, The Iran Hostage Crisis and America's First Encounter
With Radical Islam (Princeton, 2005)
Amos Elon, "Jerusalem Blues," New York Review of Books, March 27, 1997 pp 4-9.
__________ , "One Foot on the Moon, (Egypt)" New York Review of Books, April 6, 1995 pp. 32-36.
Charles Glass, Balfour, Weizmann and the Creation of Israel, London Review of Books and 7 June, 2001; p.7. __________ , "The Great Post-Zionist Lie," London Review of Books, 30 November, 2000, pp. 8-10.
Dana Harman "In Crisis, Israel Rallies Behind Settlers," Christian Science Monitor April 26, 2001, p. 1.
David Harris, The President the Prophet and the Shah -- 1979 and the Coming of
Militant Islam (Little Brown, 2004)
Sana Hasan, "My Lost Egypt," New York Times Magazine, October 22, 1995, pp 60-63.
Seymour M. Hersh, "The Traitor: The Case Against Jonathan Pollard" The New Yorker
Jan 18, 1999 pp 26-33.
Michael Howard, What's in a Name? How to Fight Terrorism, Foreign Affairs,
Jan/Feb 2002; p 8.
Seymour M. Hersh, Kings Ransom: How Vulnerable are the Saudi Royals? The New Yorker,
Oct 22, 2001; p.35.
Tim Judah, The Center of the World, New York Review of Books,Jan 17, 2002; p.10.
Robert D. Kaplan, "Eaten From Within" Atlantic Monthly, November 1994, pp 26-44.
__________ , "Identity Crisis (Syria)" Atlantic Monthly February, 1993, pp. 22-27.
Joe Klein, Closework: Why We Couldn't See What was Right in Front of Us, The New Yorker, October 1, 2001. p.44.
__________ , "Shadow Land: Who's Winning the Fight for Iran's Future?" The New Yorker, February 18 & 25, 2002; p66.
Joseph Lelyveld, "All Suicide Bombers Are Not Alike", New York Times Magazine,
October 28, 2001; p.48
Anthony Lewis, Is There a Solution? The New York Review of Books, April 25, 2002. p.4
Neil MacFarqhuar, For Palestinian Refugees, Dream of Return Endures, The New York Times April 19, 2002; pp 1,17.
Judith Miller, "Syria’s Game" New York Times Magazine, January 26, 1992, pp 12-22.
V.S. Naipaul, "After the Revolution." The New Yorker, May 26 1997, pp 46-69.
Judith Quarles, On Islam http://www.uuso.org/sermons/s120703.htm
David Remnick, Rage and Reason: Will Anyone Listen to the PLO's Voice of Restraint?
The New Yorker May 6, 2002, p. 92
Edward Said, "The One State Solution" New York Times Magazine,
January 10, 1999, pp. 37-39.
__________ , "Palestinians Under Seige," London Review of Books,
14 December 2000 8-14.

__________ , "Is Israel More Secure Now?" London Review of Books
3 Jan 2002, 9-10
Avi Shlaim "Capital Folly: Divided Jerusalem," London Review of Books
21 March 2002, 21-22.

Christian Caryl, The Suicide Bombers: Why do they do it? New York Review of Books
22 September 2005, pp 28-33.
James Fallows, Why Iraq Has No Army The Atlantic magazine December 2005, pp. 60-77.
Ehud Sprinzak, "Rational Fanatics: What Makes Suicide Bombers Tick?" Foreign Policy
Sept/Oct, 2000
Hamas timeline http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/palestine503/history.html

Deborah Sontag, Quest for Mideast Peace: How and Why it Failed. New York Times,
July 26, 2001; pp1&A10.
Herman Woulk, "What It Is to Be a Jew" in This is My God,1959, in S Barnet and H Bedau,
Current Issues and Enduring Questions (3rd edition) Boston: Bedford/St Martin's, 1993;
pp 696-700.

OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT: Critique of a Social Science Journal Article and an online media source

Select a topic and critically review in one essay (a.) one article in a scholarly journal dealing with Israel, the Palestinians, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, or US foreign policies related to politics in the Middle East and (b.) an online media source that is listed on the course syllabus.

A. Select an article published since 2003 that is interesting and readable to you. Use the list of journals below.

B. Before reading the article, ask yourself what you know about the subject, why are you interested in it and what questions you have on the topic. Then read carefully. Consider the author's objectives, her basic assumptions and the way she defines key terms. The author’s methodology or general approach to the subject may also be relevant. You must comment on the overall quality of the article in terms of how it affects your own feelings and especially your questions about the topic. You should address specific points as well as general reactions. You must relate the critique to the online media report on the topic and may find it helpful to relate to some of the readings in the CQ text we are using, the classroom presentations in this course. Express (in your essay) some of the questions that are raised in your mind as a result of reading the article and the media report on the general topic you have considered.

C. Read the article more than once and be sure to express your thinking about the article's main points. Express yourself as clearly as possible. Don't mention the writing style of the author - if he or she was difficult to understand, remember you picked the article and it was supposed to be readable. Condense your critique to three typewritten pages. Be sure to proofread it before you turn it in.

D. The articles are usually 10 pages, more or less. Don’t write about a brief book review or essay of 1-2 pages. The acceptable social science journals include the following:

American Journal of International Law (Articles must be roughly 10 pp)
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
Comparative Politics
Journal of Conflict Resolution
Journal of Palestine Studies
Journal of Politics
Foreign Affairs
Foreign Policy
International Affairs
International Security
International Organization
Online Journal of Conflict Resolution
Political Science Quarterly
Polity
Public Policy
Public Interest
World Politics
Also, the Atlantic Monthly, the New Yorker, and the New York Review of Books are acceptable interdisciplinary sources. (See or email if you have any doubts or questions.)

E. Write the citation of the article that you intend to critique on the list available in class and in my office (or just let me know via e-mail). Do not select an article that someone else has already claimed. Be sure to select your article from one of the periodicals above. Your think piece essay should be no more than 3 pp.