Dpi-421 Power Shifts: Understanding Global Change through History
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- Professor Arne Westad ST Lee Professor of US-Asia Relations
- Required reading Nye, Joseph. Is the American Century Over Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, 2015 Teaching Two weekly sessions
- NOTE: 9/29 lecture will be held at 8.45am-10am in Land Lecture Hall, B-400. Video recording of the session will be made available on Canvas Assessment
- Class outline 1. What are power shifts
- 2. Athens, Sparta, and (possibly) Persia
- 3. The Rise and Fall of Rome
- 4. The Han Empire and the Making of China
- 5. Religion: The Rise of Islam
- 6. Trade: The Portuguese and Dutch
- 7. The Rise and Fall of the Spanish Empire
- 9. World War I and Its Effects
| DPI-421
Power Shifts: Understanding Global Change through History Fall 2016 Tuesday and Thursday, 2.45pm-4.00pm, L130 Review Sessions: (non-compulsory) Every second Friday (outlined in the following), 2.45pm-4pm, Belfer L1 (Weil Town Hall) Book Discussion Sessions (non-compulsory): Friday the 9/16, 9/30, 10/14, 10/28, at 2.45pm-4pm, Belfer L1 (Weil Town Hall) Professor Arne Westad ST Lee Professor of US-Asia Relations 124 Mt. Auburn St. Suite 200N-256 Email: Arne_Westad@hks.harvard.edu Office hours: Tuesday, 10am-12pm Course Assistant: David Allen Email: david_allen@hks.harvard.edu Faculty Assistant: Jennifer Valois Email: Jennifer_Valois@hks.harvard.edu Course outline Nobody can understand the present without a keen understanding of the past. After all, history is all we have to go on in providing the resources for making sense of the world we live in. Successful policymakers often understand this and turn a view of the past to their advantage in interpreting the present. They understand how any good strategy is grounded in a sound view of history. History and historical methodologies can give policymakers a keener appreciation of what is possible to do, but also of what must be avoided and what needs to be changed. History is mainly about change; relentless, often confusing processes, over which individuals, communities, and even states seemingly have little say. But by studying change at key points in human history, we can prepare ourselves better for taking charge of our future, and for promoting or steering change when needed. This course looks at major shifts in history from European and Asian antiquity up to today. It looks at power in all its dimensions – material, demographic, technological, ideological, military, or religious – and shows how it has influenced and been influenced by major transformations in global history. Our aim is to better identify the key causes of power shifts, but also to get an impression of the fickleness of established orders in times of tectonic change. Introductory books These four books have had a tremendous impact on how people understand issues of power shifts in international affairs. They are extensive, provocative, and not always consistent. As such, they are recommended reading for the course, and we will do four sessions – one for each book – in which we will discuss the main ideas contained in them. These sessions will be led by Professor Westad, and they are non-obligatory. You will not be graded on participation. But they are highly recommended for getting a better understanding of what power shifts debates are all about. Kennedy, Paul M. The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000. New York, NY: Random House, 1987. Acemoglu, Daron, and James A. Robinson. Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. New York: Crown Publishers, 2012. Darwin, John. After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires, 1400-2000. New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2009. Morris, Ian. Why the West Rules-- for Now: The Patterns of History, and What They Reveal about the Future. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2010. Required reading Nye, Joseph. Is the American Century Over? Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, 2015 Teaching Two weekly sessions, dealing with the same topic, with the first session mainly in a lecture format and the second in a discussion format. Every second week the TF will organize a review session, mainly intended to help students select topics for and organize their papers. In addition, four discussion sessions on topics from the introductory books have been scheduled throughout the semester. NOTE: 9/29 lecture will be held at 8.45am-10am in Land Lecture Hall, B-400. Video recording of the session will be made available on Canvas Assessment Two short papers of up to 1,500 words each, with each paper dealing with one of the weekly discussion questions. Each will count for 20% of the final grade. First short paper due date: 9/27 at 5pm, please upload paper on Canvas Second short paper due date: 11/8 at 5.00pm, please upload on Canvas One major class paper of up to 5,000 words for students who have presented in class, or 7,000 words for students who have not. The paper should apply lessons from one of the cases discussed in class on the current relationship between the United States and China. The major paper counts for 45% of the final grade. Major paper due date: 12/11 at 5.00pm, please upload on Canvas. Class participation counts for 15% of the final grade. Brief interventions that are to the point, well-informed, and linked to the week’s readings will pay off. Academic Integrity All written work for this course must be appropriately referenced. Students seeking guidance regarding proper citation and academic honesty should refer to the Harvard Kennedy School Academic Code. The School takes academic integrity seriously, and any violations could have serious consequences, such as failing the course and expulsion. If you still have questions as to whether or not you have used citation properly, please speak with the instructors before turning in your written assignment. Class outline 1. What are power shifts? Lecture: 9/1; Seminar: 9/6 Reading: Mann, Michael. The Sources of Social Power. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012, I:1-33 Organski, A. F. K. World Politics, 2. Edition. New York, Knopf, 1968, 338-376 Walt, Stephen M. The End of the American Era. Washington, DC: National Interest, 2011, 116: 6-16. 2. Athens, Sparta, and (possibly) Persia Why did the Peloponnesian War break out? Lecture: 9/8; Review Session: 9/9; Seminar: 9/13; Presentations: A Spartan and an Athenian in 400BC Reading: Thucydides, Robert B. Strassler, and Richard Crawley. The Landmark Thucydides: A Comprehensive Guide to the Peloponnesian War. New York: Free Press, 1996, vol. 1. Hanson, Victor Davis. A War like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War. New York: Random House, 2005, Ch. 1. 3. The Rise and Fall of Rome Why did the Roman Empire collapse? Lecture: 9/15; Book Session: 9/16; Seminar: 9/20; Presentations: Stilicho and Alaric in 400AD Reading: Kagan, Donald. Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Why Did It Collapse? Boston: Heath, 1962, 1-97 4. The Han Empire and the Making of China Why did the concept of China survive the Han? Lecture: 9/22; Review Session: 9/23; Seminar: 9/27 Presentation: Emperor Wen of Sui on his mission (around 600AD)
Sima, Qian, and Burton Watson. Records of the Grand Historian: Han Dynasty I. New York: Columbia University Press, 1993, 51-88 Holcombe, Charles. The Genesis of East Asia, 221 B.C.-A.D. 907. Honolulu: Association for Asian Studies and University of Hawai'i Press, 2001, 8-77 Wright, Arthur F. The Sui Dynasty. New York: Knopf, 1979, 3-20 FIRST SHORT PAPER DUE: 9/27 at 5.00pm, please upload on Canvas. 5. Religion: The Rise of Islam Why did Islam expand as rapidly as it did? Lecture: 9/29; Book Session: 9/30; Seminar: 10/4 NOTE: 9/29 lecture will be held at 8.45am-10am in Land Lecture Hall, B-400 Presentation: Abd al-Malik ibn Marwān on why Islam succeeded (700AD) Reading: Donner, Fred McGraw. Muhammad and the Believers: At the Origins of Islam. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2010, 1-144 Robinson, Chase, The First Islamic Empire, ed. Bang, Peter F., and Walter Scheidel. The Oxford Handbook of the State in the Ancient Near East and Mediterranean. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013. Davison, Derek, “The Caliphate of Abd al-Malik (685-705),” blog-post at https://attwiw.com/2014/01/22/islamic-history-part-16-the-caliphate-of-abd-al-malik-685-705/ 6. Trade: The Portuguese and Dutch What made Portuguese and Dutch expansion different? Lecture: 10/6; Review Session: 10/7; Seminar: 10/11; Presentation: VOC Director General on the aims of his company anno 1650 Reading: Smith, Alan K. Creating a World Economy: Merchant Capital, Colonialism, and World Trade, 1400-1825. Boulder: Westview Press, 1991, 95-108 Bernstein, William J. A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 2008, 214-240 Disney, A. R. A History of Portugal and the Portuguese Empire: From Beginnings to 1807. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009, I: 143-163 Newitt, M. D. D. A History of Portuguese Overseas Expansion, 1400-1668. London: New York, 2005, 252-274 7. The Rise and Fall of the Spanish Empire Why did Spain not remain the predominant global power? Lecture: 10/13; Book Session: 10/14; Seminar: 10/18 Presentation: Philip II: My strategy Reading: Kennedy, Paul M. The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000. New York, NY: Random House, 1987, Ch. 2 Elliott, J. H. Spain and Its World, 1500-1700: Selected Essays. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989, 7-26; 217-240 Parker, Geoffrey. The Grand Strategy of Philip II. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998, 1-10; 281-296 8. Why Britain? Why did Britain become the main imperial power in the 18th and 19th centuries? Lecture: 10/20; Review Session: 10/21; Seminar: 10/25; Presentation: Palmerston on Britain’s interests Reading: Ferguson, Niall. Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power. New York: Basic Books, 2003, ch. 1 Pomeranz, Kenneth. The Great Divergence: China, Europe, and the Making of the Modern World Economy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000, 285-297 Kennedy, Paul M. The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000. New York, NY: Random House, 1987, Ch. 4 Palmerston, Henry John Temple, and George Henry Francis. Opinions and Policy of Viscount Palmerston, as Minister, Diplomatist, and Statesman. London: Colburn and Co., 1852, 246-249 9. World War I and Its Effects What were the main effects of World War I? Lecture: 10/27; Book Session: 10/28; Seminar: 11/1 Presentation: Lenin & Hitler on the significance of World War I Reading: Stevenson, D. Cataclysm: The First World War as Political Tragedy. New York: Basic Books, 2004, 3-35 Ferguson, Niall. The Pity of War. New York, NY: Basic Books, 1999, 433-462 Rosecrance, Richard N., and Steven E. Miller. The next Great War?: The Roots of World War I and the Risk of U.S.-China Conflict. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2014, ix-xxiii 10. The Cold War Did the United States win the Cold War? Lecture: 11/3; Review Session: 11/4; Seminar: 11/8; Presentation: Leonid Brezhnev on the causes of the Cold War Reading: Westad, O. A. Worlds Apart: The Cold War in the 20th Century. New York: Basic Books, 2017 Waltz, Kenneth N. Theory of International Politics. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, 1974, 194-210. SECOND SHORT PAPER DUE: 11/8 at 5.00pm, please upload on Canvas 11. US Power Today Is the American Century Over? Lecture: 11/10; Seminar: 11/15 Presentation: How to exercise US power abroad, by the president-elect Reading: Nye, Joseph. Is the American Century Over? Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, 2015 12. The Rise of China Will China be the next global superpower? Lecture: 11/17; Review Session: 11/18; Seminar: 11/22 Presentation: The capacity and constraint of Chinese power, by Xi Jinping’s successor Reading: Allison, Graham. “The Thucydides Trap: Are the U.S. and China Headed for War?,” The Atlantic, September 24, 2015 Li, Eric X. “China and the World.” Survival Vol. 57, no. 2 (March 4, 2015): 235–40 Friedberg, Aaron L. “The Debate Over US China Strategy.” Survival Vol. 57, no. 3 (May 4, 2015): 89–110 Westad, Odd Arne. Restless Empire: China and the World since 1750. New York: Basic Books, 2015, 439-469 13. Future Shifts How can history best be used to understand the future? Lecture: 11/29; Seminar: 12/1 Reading: Neustadt, Richard and May, E. Thinking in Time. New York: The Free Press, 1988, xi-xxii; 75-90 Gaddis, John Lewis. The Landscape of History: How Historians Map the past. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002, 129-151 Judt, Tony. When the Facts Change. New York: Penguin Press, 2015, Ch. 20 MacMillan, Margaret. The Uses and Abuses of History. Toronto: Viking Canada, 2008, 155-183 Tetlock, Philip E., Richard Ned. Lebow, and Geoffrey Parker. Unmaking the West: "what-if?" Scenarios That Rewrite World History. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2006, 363-392 Directory: syllabus syllabus -> Ap united States History Course Description syllabus -> Syllabus for cjsa 1312 Crime in America Hybrid Course Semester Hours Credit: 3 Course Dates/Times: In Class sessions syllabus -> Complex Systems Safety and Resiliency: Safety Culture, Systems Design & Integration Professor syllabus -> Tbd & by appointment Phone: 617-495-1462 Faculty Assistant syllabus -> Catalog description syllabus -> MA180 and ma418 statistics, Fall 2012 syllabus -> Engineering Design and Sustainability syllabus -> Principles and Algorithms of Computer Vision Download 54.6 Kb. Share with your friends:
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