GO 258

Jennifer Yoder, Associate Professor of Government,
Director International Studies Program

Office Hours Tuesday 1:00-2:30, Thursday 9:00-11:00
Miller 242, x5317, jayoder

GO258 East European Politics
Monday-Wednesday 1:00-2:15
Room TBA

Government

This course is an introduction to one of the most exciting areas of study in the last decade and a half: the politics and societies of East Europe. Until the fall of the "Iron Curtain" in 1989, East Europe was a mystery to most American students of comparative politics and international relations. Many social scientists viewed the region as a monolith and the politics and societies of Soviet satellites as static. To the contrary, as this course demonstrates, there was a range of patterns of political and cultural adaptation to communism in East Europe. Since 1989, there have been notable differences among these countries in the strategies and outcomes of democratic transition.

To understand the nature of these differences, we will begin with an examination of interwar politics followed by the communist takeover of East Europe after 1945. We will then trace the development of communism in the region, emphasizing important events such as the Hungarian uprising of 1956 and the Prague Spring of 1968 and exploring the rise of opposition movements in the 1980s. Our analysis then turns to the causes, meanings, and effects of one of the most memorable events of the twentieth century the "velvet revolutions" of 1989 that brought an end to four decades of communism in East Europe.

The second half of the course investigates a number of important themes relevant to the on-going processes of political, economic, and social change in East Europe. In the final weeks of the course, we will consider where these changes may be leading, with special attention to old "ghosts," new forces in politics, and the integration of East Europe into NATO and the European Union.

Course Requirements

These required books are available in paperback the Colby Bookstore;

Reinventing Politics, Vladimir Tismaneanu

The Magic Lantern, Timothy Garton Ash

The Haunted Land: Facing Europe's Ghosts after Communism, Tina Rosenberg

Developments in Central and East European Politics 3, S. White, J. Batt & P. Lewis

Café Europa: Life after Communism, Slavenka Drakulic

Additional articles may be assigned and put on library reserve. There will be several short papers for this course. Details about the assignments will be provided in class.

Mid-term and final exams will be given on the dates indicated below. In-class, short answer, identification, and essay format.

Regular participation in classis essential. This means coming to class prepared, having read all assignments, and contributing to class discussions

Grading Formula

Participation and attendance                10%
Midterm exam                                     20%
Papers (3x15%)                                   45%
Final exam                                           25%

	Topics and readings:
9/8	White, Batt & Lewis, Ch.1
9/13	The Communization of East Europe Tismaneanu, Reinventing Politics, Preface and Ch. 1
9/15	Stalinism and Totalitarian Rule in East Europe Tismaneanu Ch. 2, Czeslaw Milosz, "Ketman" from The Captive Mind- on reserve
9/20	The Decay of Communism and the Prelude to Revolution Tismaneanu Ch. 3
9/22	Discussion: East European Communist Regimes in Comparative Perspective. First short papers due in class
9/27	The Rise of Civil Society in Eastern Europe Tismaneanu Chs. 4&5
9/29	The Revolutions of 1989 Tismaneanu, Ch.6 (175-205) and Garton Ash, The Magic Lantern, pp.11-60
10/4	Tismaneanu, Ch.6 (205-239) and Garton Ash, pp.61-end
10/6	Discussion: Revolutionary Actors and Factors. Second short papers due in class
10/11	Tismaneanu Ch. 7, Epilogue, and Afterword
10/13	Midterm exam in class
10/18	No Class Fall Break
10/20	Justice after Communism: Approaches to Dealing with the Un-democratic Past Rosenberg, The Haunted Land, Introduction and Part I
10/25	Rosenberg, rest of book
10/27	Patterns of Post-communist Government White, Batt & Lewis (WBL), Developments in Central and East European Politics, Chs. 2&4
11/1	WBL, Chs. 3&5
11/3	Executive Leadership WBL, Ch.7; additional article to be handed out
11/8	Parliaments WBL, Ch.8
11/10	Political Parties WBL, Ch.9
11/15	Elections WBL, Ch.10
11/17	Constitutions; Minorities WBL, Ch.11 and additional reading
11/22	Economic Transitions. Third short papers due in class WBL, Ch.12 (start reading Café Europa)
11/24	No Class Thanksgiving Break
11/29	The Social and Cultural Aspects of the Transition from Communism WBL, Ch. 13; Slavenka Drakulic, Café Europa, 1-78
12/1	Drakulic, rest of book
12/6	East Central Europe and the European Union WBL, Ch. 14, Lykke Friis, "When the Going Gets Tough: The EU's Enlargement Negotiations with Poland" www.dupi.dk/webtxt/wp9905.html
12/8	Conclusions WBL, Ch.15

Useful links:

http://www.law.nyu.edu/eecr/ East European Constitutional Review

http://www.freedomhouse.org/ Freedom House (measures democracy in countries)

http://www.transparency.org/ Transparency International (measures corruption in countries)

http://www.parties-and-elections.de/indexe.html Parties and Elections in Europe

http://europa.eu.int/ European Union homepage

http://www.europeonline.com/ Europeonline has information on the EU and East European countries

http://culture.tol.cz/look/CER/home.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=14&NrIssue=44 Transitions On-line Central Europe has news from the region

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/sipa/REGIONAL/ECE/ Columbia University's SIPA has excellent country profiles

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/ Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has regional news