An examination of the American judicial system with special attention to the role of the Supreme Court in American politics, the personnel of the American legal system, the problem of crime and the nature of the criminal justice system, and selected issues in constitutional law, including discrimination, privacy, family life, and freedom of speech, press, assembly and religion.

A discussion and analysis of Supreme Court decisions interpreting the meaning of the First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech, press, assembly and religion.

A discussion and analysis of Supreme Court decisions interpreting the meaning of the phrase "due process of law'' and the various specific provisions protecting the rights of criminal defendants.

A discussion and analysis of Supreme Court decisions interpreting the meaning of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and resolving issues of race and sex discrimination, school segregation, and the status of indigents in American law.

Political thought of the ancient, medieval and early modern period including Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, St. Thomas, and Machiavelli.

Political thought of the modern period including Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Hume, Burke, Mill, and Marx.

An introduction to the enduring political issues confronted by major theorists and political traditions. (Please note that the catalog number for this course was changed from PSC 203 to PSC 233 effective Autumn, 2001.)

Considers different models for the distribution of power including forms of classic and modern elitism and representative and democratic theories. Explores issues of citizenship, community, participation, representation and constitutionalism. The dynamic of inclusion and exclusion within society are addressed as well as theories that point to political, economic, and cultural liberation.

Considers how societies distribute social goods of power, status, wealth, and informal resources and models of just distribution utilized in classic and modern political theory. Shifts in the meaning of social justice over the course of history and the critical contests over this issue are addressed, as well as the emergence of new models focusing on regional and global concerns. The major concepts including capitalism, socialism and meritocracy are considered.

Considers how states achieve validation with their members and maintain that validation through such mechanisms as socialization, education, information flow, civil religion, and war. Theories of social crisis that challenge regime legitimacy are considered as well as issues of revolution, counterrevolution, and regime stabilization.

Variable topics.

This course discusses selected topics in the area of public law.

An examination of the enduring problems of American political thought from colonial time to the present, including puritanism, constitutionalism, Calhoun, populism, socialism, Social Darwinism, and pragmatism.

An intensive seminar discussion of selected political and social thought of contemporary significance drawn from main currents of liberalism, conservatism, socialism, fascism, anarchism, and existentialism.

An analysis of Marxist political and economic thought as represented by the writings of Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Lukacs, Sartre. Primary texts will be examined, and their application to the contemporary setting considered.

An historical survey of important themes in political thinking in Latin America. The readings draw upon literature and the writings of political actors and theorists.

This course deals with the theological, social, and political implications of ecclesiology, or "theories of the church". Students will explore ideas about the origins and purposes of the Church, notions of authority and membership, matters of church and state, and more. The impact of Marxist, feminist, and conservative ideologies on understandings of the church may also be explored. The course will integrate theological, sociological, and political methods of analysis. Cross-listed as CTH 209.

Considers black political thought through a variety of ideological, political, legal and historical perspectives. First explores early efforts by blacks to challenge the racialized limitations of America's core principles of liberty, equality and democracy in the contexts of abolitionism, the women's suffrage movements, Manifest Destiny, and American industrialism. Then concentrates on the evolution of contemporary black political thought, with an emphasis on both conceptual diversity and continuity over time.

An exploration of key themes, thinkers and movements in the Christian tradition's engagement with power, governance, authority, and allegiance. Students explore scriptural and early church sources, important pre-modern theologians like Augustine and Aquinas, Reformation figures including Luther and Calvin, and contemporary philosophers, theologians and topics.

Advanced topics in poitical thought.

The nature, sources, and applications of international law in the international community, including issues of recognition, territory, jurisdiction, settlement of international disputes, diplomatic agents, intervention and the use of force.

An overview of the important features of the American criminal justice system, including the role of police, courts and corrections. The course analyzes conventional and alternative definitions of crime and explanations for criminal behavior. An examination of race and class issues as they relate to criminal justice, and their implications for public policy, is also included.

This course investigates the variety of ways in which women come into relation with the law, focusing on laws and judicial decisions dealing with equal opportunity. Cross-listed as WGS 326.

This course will compare the status of individual rights in Britain, the United States, and Canada, and under the European Convention on Human Rights. Course materials will consist of judicial decisions and other materials on specific areas of civil liberties.

Explores the legal and political struggles of two originally disenfranchised groups-women and African Americans-to gain access to the ballot, and what their struggles reveal about American law, politics and society. This course is also intended to familiarize students with dominant legal theories, as well as introduce them to alternative approaches such as Critical Race Theory and Critical Feminist Theory. The readings include Supreme Court opinions, legal theories of voting rights jurisprudence, political theories of representation, and historical narratives.

Explores the relationship between the U.S. Constitution and the government's responsibility for the protection of national security. The course examines the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers and the respective roles of Congress, the President, and the courts in the conduct of foreign policy and the use of military force. It also examines the relationship between national security and protection of various rights, including freedom of speech, freedom of the press, privacy, and personal liberty.

Examines the various legal categories under the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act that permits persons to be admitted to the United States either temporarily or permanently. It also examines U.S. policies toward illegal immigration and the rights of aliens after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Advanced topics in public law.

A survey of the national political system, including discussions of the political beliefs and behavior of citizens, the constitutional structure, and national political processes.

This course investigates themes in politics through the perspective of major works of literature. The emphasis is on the ways in which writers utilize the imaginative process to represent and investigate the working of society, culture, the individual, the public and private realms, and relationships in order to convey a complex understanding of political values and processes in their eras.