The HomePage of Darius Rejali - Associate Professor of Political Science at Reed College

	Comparative Revolutions Political Science 365 Spring 1999
	Prospectus Why do individuals rebel? Why do political regimes collapse through revolution rather than whither away? What is a revolution and what causes it? What do revolutions mean to those involved in them? What do social revolutions change? What do they contribute? What processes follow in the aftermath of a revolution? How can we study such complex questions without being overwhelmed? Course Requirements In this course, you will not write a term paper or take a major exam. On the other hand, you will be writing lots of tiny pieces. Assignments will include a short book report (1-2 pages); a team organization paper (2 pages); a discussion paper (10 pages for the whole team); and a class on the revolution led by the team. There will be a more complete handout on the class project itself in a few weeks. The course will emphasize (1) the ability to critically analyze a text; (2) the ability to present and discuss material clearly; and (3) the ability to develop and schematically complete a research design. Let me add a bit on each of the points: (1) Critically analyzing a text. The reading load for this course is quite heavy but unavoidable. Behind each article that I assign, there is a book or two. You will sample of a variety of different approaches to the study of revolutions. In preparing for conference, I suggest that you think about the strengths as well as the weaknesses of each approach. Criticism in this class is best when it serves as a basis for concrete suggestions as to how to proceed in the study of revolutions. (2) Ability to present and discuss material. It is important that we work well together as a conference and be responsive to each other's work. Proper conference participation including careful reading of the text, reading the texts in good faith, and responsive facilitation of discussion, and constructive team project participation - these are essential. (3) Developing a research design. The purpose of the class project is to examine how well different approaches to the study of revolutions help us understand what is happening when people rebel. You will be assigned to groups, based on your thematic interests. You will have considerable autonomy within your team but, nonetheless, you will find it helpful to have others working in the same area. The revolutions we will study will not include the grand revolutions that have been extensively analyzed. While we will read about the grand revolutions, your projects will focus on more obscure events. This will provide you with the opportunity to explore uncharted waters while at the same time evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches from a new perspective. (4) Evaluation. To ensure a fair distribution of work, each of you will be asked as well to provide me with an evaluation of the performance of yourselves and your team members. I will not be asking you to evaluate academic performance; rather, I want you to tell me who did what, when, where and how. I will provide you with some further guidance towards the end. For the moment, consider that all of you will be doing some work together away from me and I believe you should get credit for what you do. wn than instinctively reach for a book? After all, what do you hope to find there if you don't know what you're looking for? Available in the Bookstore Jack Goldstone, ed. Revolutions: Theoretical, Comparative, Historical (2nd Edition) Nikki Keddie, ed. Debating Revolutions Theda Skocpol, Social Revolutions in the Modern World Preliminary Syllabus T. Introduction Th. Gamson, "The Limits of Solidarity" from The Strategy of Social Protest, pp. 55-71. Jose Antonio Cheibub, "Mobilizing and Sustaining Collective Action in the Mexican Revolution" Politics and Society 23:2 (1995);243-258. T. Samuel Huntington, Political Order in Changing Societies, Chapter 5: Revolutions and Political Order, p. 8-24, 53-56 (the "gap hypothesis"), 264-315; 334-344. Th. Method and Work "The Uses of Comparative History in Macrosocial Inquiry" (Skocpol, Chapter 3) "France, Russia, China: A Structural Analysis of Social Revolutions (Skocpol, Chapter 6) T. The Inheritance of Marx: Wallerstein and Capitalism "Wallerstein's World Capitalist System: A Theoretical and Historical Critique (Skocpol, Ch. 2) "Revolutions and the World-Historical Develpment of Capitalism (Skocpol, Chapter 5) Th. . The Inheritance of Weber: Moore, Agricultural Conflict, and Political Results "A Critical Review of Barrington Moore's Social Origins" (Skocpol, Chapter 1) "What Makes Peasants Revolutionary?" (Skocpol, Chapter 9) T. Library Day Th. Psychology, Culture, and Ideology "Explaining Revolutions" (Skocpol, Chapter 4) "Ideologies and Social Revolutions: Reflections on the French Case" by Sewell (Skocpol, Ch. 7) "Cultural idioms and Political Ideologies: Rejoinder to Sewell" (Skocpol, Chapter 8) T. Discussion Continued "Bringing Culture Back In and Other Caveats" Jeffrey Wasserstrom, from Keddie, Debating Revolutions, pp. 155-177 "Analyzing Revolutions and Rebellions: A Reply to Critics" by Jack Goldstone, in Keddie, pp. 178-200 Thursday. Fourth Generation of Revolutionary Theories "Explaining Revolutions in the Contemporary Third World" (Skocpol, Chapter 11) "Reflections on Recent Scholrship about Social Revolutions and How to Study Them" (Skocpol, Conclusion) John Foran, "Theorizing Revolutions/Revolutionizing Theory" in Keddie, Debating Revolutions, pp. 112-135 Interim Syllabus Tuesday: Skocpol on the Iranian Revolution "The Rentier State and Shi'a Islam in the Iranian Revolution" (Skocpol, Chapter 10) "Social Revolutions and Mass Military Mobilization" (Skocpol, Chapter 12) Thursday. Abrahamian, "Fundamentalism or Populism?" from Abrahamian Khomeinism, p. 13-38. Halliday, "The Iranian Revolution in Comparative Perspective" from Halliday, Islam and the Myth of Confrontation, pp. 42-75 Tuesday Catch up- Discussion Thursday Eric Wolf, "Algeria" from Peasant Wars of the Twentieth Century, pp. 211-250. Spring Break Tuesday: Peasants, Ideology, Consciousness-Raising Abrahamian, "The Nonrevolutionary Peasantry of Modern Iran" Iranian Studies 11 (1978) 259-295 Wickham Crowley, "Ideology and Revolution: The Limitations of Consiousness Raising in Revolutionary Struggles" from Exploring Revolution, pp. 105-138. Thursday: Charismatic, Traditional, and Legal-Rational Authority Abrahamian, "Communism and Communalism in Iran: The Tudah and the Firqah-i Dimukrat" International Journal of Middle East Studies (IJMES) 1 (1970) 291-316. Voll, "Mahdis, Walis, and the New Men in the Sudan" Scholars Saints and Sufis, ed. Keddie, pp. 367-384 Bennigsen and Wimbush, "Mystics and Commissars" pp. 6-31. Tuesday: Religious Practice and Social Change Fischer, "Discourse and Mimesis: Shii'sm in Everyday Life" from Iran: From Religious Dispute to Revolution, pp. 136-146,164-180. Thaiss, "Religious Symbolism and Social Change: The Drama of Husain" in Scholars Saints and Sufis, ed. Keddie, pp. 349-366. Bennigsen and Wimbush, "Mystics and Commissars" pp. 77-109. Thursday: Studying Crowds Abrahamian, "The Crowd in Iranian Politics 1905-1953" Past and Present 41 (1968) 184-210. Moojan Momen, "The Social Basis of the Babi Upheavals in Iran (1948-53): A Preliminary Analysis IJMES 15 (1983): 157-183. Team Presentations/Classes