Political Thought Minor

This course will look at the origins of the American political system from the end of the Seven Years' War through the Louisiana Purchase and Marbury vs. Madison, with a focusing on government under the Articles of Confederation, the Constitutional Convention, ratification controversies, the first political party system, and Jeffersonian vs. Hamiltonian approaches to government. Offered alternate years.

The development of judicial interpretation of the U.S. Constitution from 1789 to the present will be examined in this course with an emphasis on the political, social, cultural, and economic context for key Supreme Court decisions. The case study method will be used to introduce students to legal reasoning, including controversial court decisions involving race, religion, gender, and limits of government authority.

This course will explore the aspect of statecraft in international relations known as “grand strategy” from a theoretical and historical perspective. This course traces how statesmen have or have not marshalled and coordinated the political, diplomatic, military, material, cultural, and moral resources available to a state, to achieve, or fail to achieve long-term objectives in the international environment during war and peace.

This survey examines the history of East Asia from its ancient origins through the modern period, with an emphasis on the region’s most significant political and cultural developments. Specific emphasis will be on China and Japan and an understanding and appreciation of their impact on regional and global history.

This course provides an overview of Latin American history as well as provides a concentrated look at some of the major countries in Latin America. The course includes a brief examination of the colonial period, but concentrates on Latin America in the modern period, from independence to present. While Latin America was guided by the idea of progress in the nineteenth century, revolution and counter-revolution became concerns in the twentieth century. This course considers the themes of progress and revolution in modern Latin American history.

The role of religion in American public life will be examined in this course with an emphasis on the interpretation and impact of the First Amendment and the concept of "separation of church and state" on religious and political life in the United States. Offered alternate years.