Syllabus

POS 4931: American Political Development
Spring 2009

Instructor: Office Hours:
Dan Cicenia
301 Anderson Hall
Email: dcicenia@ufl.edu

Course Description

This course focuses on the evolution and transformation of political institutions at various points in American political history. We will begin with the Jeffersonian era, working our way up through the Reagan era. A particular focus will be placed on the Presidency, the Party system and Policy change. We will also examine the role Social Movements play in fostering political change over time. The syllabus assumes you have taken at least POS 2041 and Junior or Senior standing in the Political Science major.

Books Required for Purchase. A coursepack is also required, and is available at Orange and Blue Textbooks, at 309 NW 13th Street.
Richard Hofstadter, The Age of Reform (Vintage/Knopf/Random House: 1955)
Doug McAdam, Political Process and Black Insurgency (University of Chicago: 1985)
James Morone, The Democratic Wish (Yale, 1998)
Stephen Skowronek, Politics Presidents Make (Belknap/Harvard: 1997)
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (Brookings: 1983)

Grades/Assignments

All grading is on a 0-100 scale. The cutoffs for final course grades are as follows: A=90, B+=87, B=80, C+=77, C=70, D=60, F<60. Course averages just below each cutoff might be given the higher grade if there is significant progress over the semester. Borderline grades will also be discounted by attendance.

Your grade will be based on the following:

Quizzes 10%
Midterm #1 25%
Midterm #2 25%
Final exam 30%
Participation 10%

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

Students are bound by the University of Florida's Student Code of Conduct. Anyone who commits an act of academic dishonesty, such as cheating on exams or committing plagiarism on written assignments, will suffer appropriate sanctions and be referred to university authorities for further action.

Any student with a special need should notify me (and coordinate with Student Services at 202 Peabody Hall) as soon as possible at the beginning of the semester. Every effort will be made to accommodate your situation within the guidelines set forth by the university.





INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW


WHAT IS AMERICAN POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT?
Karen Orren and Stephen Skowronek, The Search for American Political Development (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004), pp. 120-32. (coursepack)

POLITICAL CULTURE AND INSTITUTIONS

Harry Eckstein, “A Culturalist Theory of Political Change,” American Political Science Review, 82(3) (September 1988): 789-804.
Samuel Huntington, American Politics: The Promise of Disharmony (Harvard: 1981), Ch. 3, pp. 31-60 (coursepack)
Louis Hartz, The Liberal Tradition in America (1955, 1991), chap. 1 "The Concept of a Liberal Society," pp. 3-32. (coursepack)

POLITICAL CULTURE RECONSIDERED

Sven Steinmo, "American Exceptionalism Reconsidered", in L. Dodd and C. Jillson, eds., The Dynamics of American Politics (Westview: 1994), Ch. 5, pp. 106-131 (coursepack)
Rogers M. Smith, "Beyond Tocqueville, Myrdal, and Hartz: The Multiple Traditions in America," American Political Science Review 87 (3) (September 1993): 549-66. (course pack)

RELIGION AND CYCLICAL CHANGE

· James A. Morone, Hellfire Nation: The Politics of Sin in American History, pp 1-33. (coursepack)
· William Strauss and Neil Howe, Generations, (William Morrow: 1991), pp 1-40., 58-96 (coursepack).

PARTY REALIGNMENT THEORY

Walter Dean Burnham, Critical Elections (Norton: 1970), Ch. 1, pp. 1-10 (coursepack)
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), chs 1, pp. 1-10

PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP

Stephen Skowronek, The Politics Presidents Make (required textbook), chs. 2-3
· James Morone, The Democratic Wish (required textbook), p. 1-15

SOCIAL MOVEMENT THEORY

Ann Costain and Andrew McFarland, Social Movements and American Political Institutions (coursepack), Ch 1.
Douglas McAdam, Political Process and Black Insurgency (required text, Chs 1-3).


PRESIDENTS JEFFERSON AND JACKSON

James Morone, The Democratic Wish (required textbook), pp. 74-96
Stephen Skowronek, The Politics Presidents Make (required textbook), chapters on Presidents Jefferson and Jackson
In-class film

CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION

Stephen Skowronek, Politics Presidents Make (required textbook), chapter on President Lincoln
Seth Steiner, ed., Reconstruction: A Tragic Era? (Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1968), pp. 1-8, 13-17, 29-36 (coursepack)
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), chs 4-5.
In class film

AMERICAN INDUSTRIALIZATION AND THE RISE OF POPULISM
Richard Franklin Bensel, The Political Economy of American Industrialization, pp.1-54 (coursepack).
Richard Hoftstadter, Age of Reform (required textbook), chs. 2 and 3
In-class film

PROGRESSIVISM I:

Richard Hofstadter, Age of Reform (required textbook), Chs. 4-5.
James Morone, The Democratic Wish (required textbook), pp. 97-128
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), chs 1
In class film

PROGRESSIVISM II:

Eileen L. McDonagh, "The 'Welfare Rights State' and the 'Civil Rights State': Policy Paradox and
State Building in the Progressive Era," Studies in American Political Development, 7 (2) (Fall 1993): 225-274. (coursepack)
James Morone, Hellfire Nation, Chs 10, 11. (coursepack)
Stephen Skowronek, The Politics Presidents Make, (required textbook) Chapter on Theodore Roosevelt.

THE NEW DEAL

Ann Orloff in Theda Skocpol, ed., The Politics of Social Policy (Princeton, 1988), pp. 65-79 (coursepack)
Stephen Skowronek, Politics Presidents Make (required textbook), chapter on Franklin D. Roosevelt
Jill Quadagno in Skocpol, ed., The Politics of Social Policy (Princeton, 1988), pp. 237-247 (coursepack)
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), ch 10.
In class film

THE GREAT SOCIETY

Ira Katznelson Rise and Fall of the New Deal Order (Princetion: 1989), Ch 7., (coursepack)
Brendon O’Connor A Political History of the American Welfare System (Rowman and Littlefield: 2003), Ch 2, (coursepack)
Stephen Skowronek, Politics Presidents Make (required textbook), chapter on Lyndon B. Johnson
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), ch 10



THE RISE OF CONSERVATISM

Jonathan Schoenwald, A Time For Choosing (coursepack), Chs. 2, 5.
Stephen Skowronek, Politics Presidents Make (required text), chapter on Reagan
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), ch 18
Daniel M. Cook and Andrew J. Polsky, "Political Time Reconsidered: Unbuilding and Rebuilding the State under the Reagan Administration," American Politics Research 33 (4) (July 2005): 577-605. (coursepack)
In-class film

THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

Douglas McAdam, Political Process and Black Insurgency (required text), chs. 5-8
James Sundquist, Dynamics of the Party System (required textbook), ch 17
In-class film

CONTEMPORARY SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

Ann Costain and Andrew McFarland, Social Movements and American Political Institutions (coursepack), Ch 4.
Jane Mansbridge, Why We Lost the ERA (University of Chicago, 1986), Chs 1, 10. (coursepack)
James Morone, Hellfire Nation, Chs 15. (coursepack)

POLITICAL REFORM

James Morone, The Democratic Wish (required textbook), pp. 322-338
James Sundquist Constitutional Reform and Effective Government (Brookings, 1992) Chs 1, 9. (coursepack)


Important Dates:

CLASS CANCELLED JANUARY 9: CONFERENCE

NO CLASS JANUARY 19: MLK HOLIDAY

EXAM 1 – (FEBRUARY 6, 9)

EXAM 2: (MARCH 20, 23)

CLASS CANCELLED APRIL 1 – 3: CONFERENCE

FINAL EXAM (Tuesday, April 28 at 12:30)