POL 300H1 Topics in Comparative Politics Comparative Civil-Military Relations Department of Political Science, University of Toronto Summer 2012 Instructor: Abouzar Nasirzadeh, PhD Candidate Office hours: By appointment Office: SS3037 Email: abouzar.nasirzadeh@utoronto.ca Overview: The Armed Forces represents one of the most important institutions in the politics of any society. Its presence is more pronounced in some polities while in others, there is a strict military-civilian separation. In the most extreme cases involving coups, the military directly rules the country. Amongst these instances of coups, the military goes back to the barracks in some cases whereas in other states, it continues to hold onto power. This course presents an overview of the political relationships between the military and other social institutions. The first half of the course involves the theories of civil-military relations and we look at the most influential and classic scholars of the field such as Harold Lasswell, Samuel Huntington, and Samuel Finer. In the latter part of the course, we will consider military s role in society and economy. We conclude this course by considering the contemporary trends in the civil-military relations including the implications of the move towards privatization of armed forces as witnessed in the recent war in Iraq and Afghanistan for the future of civil-military relations. It is worth reminding those interested in this class that this course is NOT about military strategy and doctrine. Rather, it is about military as an institution and its involvement in politics. Readings: Readings are available on Blackboard, so be sure to have you UTOR account activated in order to be able to download the readings from the website. Course Evaluation 1. Discussion questions (5%) Each of you will be assigned to write 3 questions related to the assigned readings for one class session. You need to email the questions before the class to the instructor and your questions will be used during the lecture to help advance the discussion. 2. Midterm (35%) - Held during the regular class time in week 6. Includes both short answer and long essay questions. The questions will be broad questions to test the depth of your knowledge about the material covered in readings and lectures. 1
3. Participation (20%) You are not simply graded for attendance. You need to actively participate in class discussions and contribute by critically engaging the topic. 4. Major Research Essay (40%) - Due in the last class Pick any topic that is based on one of the themes on civil-military relations that we have covered in this course. Your topic needs to be analytical and not merely descriptive. The length of the paper should be a maximum of 12 pages (double-spaced, 12 point Times New Roman, 1 inch margins). Grading % Letter Grade Grade Definition 90-100 A+ Excellent Strong evidence of original thinking; good organization; capacity to 85-89 A analyze and synthesize; superior grasp of subject matter with sound critical evaluations; evidence of extensive knowledge base. 80-84 A- 77-79 B+ Good Evidence of grasp of subject matter, some evidence of critical 73-76 B capacity and analytic ability; reasonable understanding of relevant issues; evidence of familiarity with literature 70-72 B- 67-69 C+ Adequate Student who is profiting from the university experience; 63-66 C understanding of the subject matter and ability to develop solutions to simple problems in the material. 60-62 C- 57-59 D+ Marginal Some evidence of familiarity with the subject matter and some 53-56 D evidence that critical and analytic skills have been developed. 50-52 D- 0-49 F Inadequate Little evidence of even superficial understanding of subject matter; weakness in critical and analytic skills; limited or irrelevant use of literature. Grade Appeals: If you are unhappy with a grade on an assignment, you may submit a written appeal, explaining why you feel your grade on an assignment is unjustified. This appeal has to be submitted no later than two weeks after your assignment is returned. Re-grading does not automatically result in higher grades and your grade may stay the same, go up, or go down. 2
Other Rules and Regulations: Please read the following carefully. By registering in this course, you agree to abide by the rules below: 1- All work must be submitted as hard copies and on time in order to avoid penalty. Emailing, faxing, or sliding the assignment under the instructor s door are unacceptable. 2- The late penalty for work turned in after the deadline is 5% per day unless you have been granted an extension. Extensions are only granted for good reasons such as illness in which case you must bring a note. 3- Assignments are to be typed, 12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced, 1 inch margins. 4- Academic Honesty: Ensure that you properly cite other people's ideas when you cite them. Please consult the Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters http://www.utoronto.ca/writing/plagsep.html and feel free to ask me if you have any questions about citation styles. Accessibility Needs: If you need accommodations for a disability please contact Accessibility Services immediately: disability.services@utoronto.ca or visit http://studentlife.utoronto.ca/accessibility Class Schedule July 4- Week 1: Introduction - What is Civil-Military Relations? Lasswell, Harold. 1941. "The Garrison State." The American Journal of Sociology 46: 455-468. Part 1 - Methods and Theories of Civil-Military Relations July 9- Week 2: Comparative Method and the Study of Civil-Military Relations Kopstein, Jeffrey and Mark Lichbach. 2007. Comparative Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Introduction. Feaver, Peter D. 1999. Civil-Military Relations. Annual Review of Political Science 2: 211-241. Desch, Michael. 1999. Civilian Control of the Military, Chapter 1. 3
July 11- Week 3: Civil-Military Relations Theory - The Evolution of the Field of Civil- Military Relations Huntington, Samuel. 1957. The Soldier and the State. Cambridge: Belknap Press: Chapters 4. Janowitz, Morris. 1974. The Professional Soldier: A Social and Political Portrait. New York: The Free Press: Introduction and Chapter 1. Feaver, Peter D. 1996. "The Civil-Military Problematique: Huntington, Janowitz, and the Question of Civilian Control," Armed Forces and Society, 23(2): 149-178. Part 2 - Military in Politics July 16- Week 4: Theorizing Coups d'état - Why do militaries intervene in politics? Huntington, Samuel. 1968. Political Order in Changing Societies. New Haven: Yale University Press: Chapter 4. Nordlinger, Eric. 1977. Soldiers in Politics: Military Coups and Governments. New York: Prentice-Hall: 63-78. Horowitz, Donald. 1980. Coup Theories and Officers Motives: Sri Lanka in Comparative Perspective Princeton: Princeton University Press: 3-15, 217-221. Jul y 18- Week 5: The Armed Forces and Democratization Huntington, Samuel P. 1996. Reforming Civil-Military Relations, in Diamond & Plattner, eds., Civil-Military Relations and Democracy, Chapter 1. Aguero, Felipe. 1995. Soldiers, Civilians and Democracy. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. Chapter 1 and 3. July 23- Week 6: Midterm ***Held during regular class time at the same location 4
Part 3 - Social and Economic Roles of the Military July 25- Week 7: The Military and the Other : Race, Gender, Sexual Orientation and the Military Armor, David J., Race and Gender in the U.S. Military, Armed Forces and Society, 23:1 (Fall 1996), 7-28. Cohn, Carol, Gays in the Military: Texts and Subtexts, Marysia Zalewski and Jane Parpart, editors, The Man Question in International Relations, (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1998), 129-149. July 30- Week 8: Military and the Civilian Economy Eisenhower Farewell Speech on Military-Industrial Complex Siddiqa, Ayesha. 2007. Military Inc.: Inside Pakistan's Military Economy. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Mani, Kristina. 2011. Militares Empresarios: Approaches to Studying the Military as an Economic Actor Bulletin of. Latin American Research 30(2): 183-197. Part 5 - Contemporary Trends in Civil-Military Relations August 1- Week 9: Professionalization of Armed Forces and the growing gap in Civil- Military Relations Feaver, Peter D. and Richard H. Kohn. 2000. The Gap, National Interest 61: 29-37. Cohen, Eliot A. 2000. Why the Gap Matters, National Interest 61: 38-48. Tangredi, Sam J. 2002. Learn to Love the Gap, Proceedings 128(5): 36 39. August 8- Week 10: The Future of Civil-Military Relations in a Globalized World: Terrorism and Privatization of Security and their implications for Civil-Military Relations Avant, Deborah. 2005. Market for Force. The Consequences of Privatizing Security. Washington D.C.: George Washington University Press, Chapter 1. 5
Wilner, Alex S. 2005. An Evolution in Military Affairs: Civil-Military Relations in an Age of Unconventional Warfare & Catastrophic Terror. 8th Annual Graduate Symposium in Security and Defence: National and International Issues, Kingston, ON. August 13- Week 11: Conclusion Canadian Civil-Military Relations in Comparative Perspective Critchley, Harriet, Civilianization and the Canadian Military, Armed Forces and Society, 16:1 (Autumn 1989), 117-136. Sokolsky, Joel. 2001. The Politics of Defence Decisions at Century s End, in Bernd Horn and Stephen J. Harris (Eds.) Generalship and the Art of the Admiral: Perspectives on Canadian Senior Military Leadership. St. Catherines, ON: Vanwell Publishing Limited. 6