610 EDMP
Culture and World Politics
Executive Doctor of Management
Weatherhead School of Management
Case Western Reserve University
Spring 2009
Introduction
This course explores the complex relationships among culture, politics and globalization. While cultural factors have long influenced the pattern of international relations, many people believe that religious, ethnic and other cultural factors have become increasingly important in the post Cold War era. These "identity" issues raise new questions about national sovereignty and the prospects for democracy throughout the world, and international relations. Globalization refers to a variety of political, economic, cultural, and social changes currently transforming our world. Countries are increasingly interconnected by flows of information, trade, money, immigrants, technology, and culture. Transnational corporations and political organizations (e.g., the UN) have grown in size and influence, as have the social movements opposing them. One of our goals for this semester is to clarify what globalization is and how it is affecting societies around the world. And, how do those effects differ depending upon whether you live in the U.S., India, or South Africa?
Learning Outcomes:
Course Requirements
Reading Summary
This course requires intensive reading, critical thinking, and active participation. For each residency (submitted at the beginning of each residency), you will be required to prepare a reading summary (see attached guidelines) of several articles (marked with an asterisk for each session) and come prepared to lead/participate in a seminar discussion (see attached reading summary guidelines). Please bring extra copies of the reading summaries to share with your colleague
Policy Brief
You will write (due May 8) a policy brief that will address a problem related to globalization and sustainability. In this policy brief (15-20 pages, double-spaced, 12pt), you will read and write in an area related to globalization and sustainability, and recommend relevant policy changes (see guidelines below).
Residency I (Wednesday, January 21, 1:15-5:30, Friday, January 23, 8:00-12:00)
Introduction to Culture and Globalization: The Debate and its Terms
We will focus on arguments about the nature and consequences of global political systems. We will start this residency with a discussion of a key ideas and concepts in the discussion of cultural and global processes.
Required Readings:
Globalization, http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/globalization/
*Giddens, A. (2002). "Globalization." (Chapter 1). In, Runaway World. New York: Routledge.
Bourdieu, P. (1998). "The Myth of 'Globalization' and the European Welfare State." In Acts of Resistance: Against the New Myths of Our Time. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Cooper, F. (2001). "What is the Concept of Globalization Good For?" African Affairs. 100, 189-213.
*Ho, K. (2005). Situating Global Capitalisms: A View from Wall Street Investment Banks. Cultural Anthropology, 20, 1: 68-96.
*Tsing, A. (2000). The Global Situation. Cultural Anthropology, 15, 3: 327-360.
Recommended Websites
Globalization Website, maintained by Frank Lechner (Emory University).
http://www.sociology.emory.edu/globalization/index.html
Global Transformation Website, http://www.polity.co.uk/global/
Recommended Readings:
Gray, J. (2006). The Global Delusion. The New York Review of Books. 53, 7.
Jameson, F. Notes on Globalization as a Philosophical Issue. In, The Cultures of Globalization.
Residency II (February 13, 1:15-5:30)
After the Cold War
The first article for this residency, written by Frances Fukuyama in 1989, before the collapse of the Soviet Union, became a touchstone for the neoconservative movement and philosophy. Consider the soundness of his argument. Are they in need of modest refinement, or contradicted by subsequent events?
In the second article, “The Clash of Civilizations,” Samuel Huntington (1993) offers a response to Fukuyama. His argument has been labeled prescient by some, particularly in the wake of September 11. The Fukuyama and Huntington articles have generated intense reactions both in the United States and internationally. The late Edward Said offers a critique. What do you think?
Required Readings:
*Fukuyama, F. 1989. “The End of History?” The National Interest, 3-18.
*Huntington, S.P. (1992). “Clash of Civilizations?” in Foreign Affairs, Summer 1992, 22-49)
Mishra, P. (2007). Impasse in India. New York Review of Books. 54, 11.
*Said, E. “Adrift in Similarity,” Al-Ahram Weekly Online. http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2001/555/op2.htm
Ryan, A. (2008). What Happened to Empire? New York Review of Books, 55, 6.
Residency III (March 6, 1:15-5:30)
Globalization: Identity, Culture, Conflict
During this residency, we will look at how national identities are imagined, formed, and contested, in the era of globalization. For example, are they (i.e., national identity formation and global) conflicting or complementary. Are there new forms of nationalism (supra)? How do global migration patterns affect national identity? How has globalization affected national culture? What is meant by pan-Nationalism? As you read the selections, ask yourself what is a “nation”? Do nations spark nationalism -- or do nationalist appeals serve to coalesce nations and national identities? There is a rich literature on the origins and dynamics of nationalism and we will look at how the national and global dynamically relate.
Required Readings:
Nations and Nationalism: Warwick Debate, Anthony D. Smith & Ernest Gellnerhttp://www.tamilnation.org/selfdetermination/nation/warwick.htm
*Kearney, M. (1995). The Local and the Global: The Anthropology of Globalization and Transnationalism. Annual Review of Anthropology, 24, 1, 547.
*Bowen, J.R. (1996).“The Myth of Global Ethnic Conflict.” Journal of Democracy, 7, 4:3-14.
*Hironaka, A. (2005). Ethnic Conflict in Weak States (Chapter 4). In, Neverending Wars. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Recommended Readings:
Gille, Z. and O’ Riain, S. (2002). Global Ethnography. Annual Review of Sociology, 28: 271-95.
Residency IV (March 27, 1:15-5:30)
“Orientalism,” “Islam,” and “The West”
In these two March residences we will focus on self-images as well as images of others. We start with common representations of “Islam” and “The Middle East.” As you read, challenge yourself to identify mainstream assumptions or arguments, which might be oversimplifications, misrepresentations or stereotyping.
Required Reading:
*Berger, P. The Desecularization of the World: A Global Overview. In The Desecularization of the World: Resurgent Religion and World Politics. Edited by Peter L. Berger. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co: Grand Rapids, MI. pp. 1- 19.
Bacevich, A. & Prodromou, E. “God is Not Neutral: Religion and U.S. Foreign Policy after 9/11.” Orbis, Winter 2004, 43-54.
*Orientalism” http://www.english.emory.edu/Bahri/Orientalism.html
*Said. E.W. (1997). Covering Islam (New York: Random House, 1997), pp. xi-xvi, xlix- liii, 3-35.
Shaheen, J.G. (2001). Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People (New York: Olive Branch Press, 2001), pp. 1-37.
Residency V (April 17, 1:15-5:30)
America in the Global Imagination
After focusing on Islam, we turn our attention to the United States to examine national self-image as well as global perceptions of the U.S. Matarese looks at national identity (i.e., the identity of the dominant culture in the United States). What makes us feel “American”? Her analysis focuses on several cultural/historical influences and “national peculiarities” that have shaped the U.S. national identity (and by extension, U.S. foreign policy): utopian and millennial expectations about the New World; the nature of the American class system and the absence of a feudal tradition, and; geographical remoteness. As you read this article, think about the ways in which these factors have contributed to the development of a unique U.S. political culture, and the implications of this uniqueness on U.S. relations with others. Crockatt and Judt consider anti-Americanism.
Required Readings:
*Susan M. Matarese, “Sources of the American National Image” American Foreign Policy and the Utopian Imagination. Chapter 4, pp. 61-84: Boston: University of Massachusetts Press, 2001.
*Crockatt, R. (2003). “How the World Sees America,” America Embattled: September 11, Anti-Americanism and the Global Order. New York: Routledge, pp. 39-71.
*Tony Judt. (2005). “A New Master Narrative? Reflections on Contemporary Anti- Americanism.” In, with US or Against US. Studies in Global Anti- Americanism.” Eds. Tony Judt and Denis Lacorne. Palgrave Macmillan.
Strongly Recommended Reading: (Try to read as many of these as possible. They are brief, very brief, and easily accessible through the web)
Khanna, P. (2008). “Waving Goodbye to Hegemony” The New York Times, Jan 27, 2008.
Hoffmann,S. (2001). “Why Don’t They Like Us?“ Prospect. 12:20, Nov. 19.
Joffe, J. (2006). “The Perils of Soft Power. ” The New York Times 6/2006.
Drabble, M. (2003). “My I loathe America, and what it has done to the rest of the world.” Telegraph, June 8.
Cohen. N. (2002). “Why it is right to be anti-American” The New Statesman Jan. 14.
Editorial. (2007). “Looking at America” The New York Times. Dec 31.
Boyer, Paul S. (2003). John Darby Meets Saddam Hussein: When U.S. Foreign Policy Meets Bible Prophecy. in: The Chronicle of Higher Education. February 14.
Harold Pinter “Nobel Prize Speech” “God Bless America.”
Residency VI (Friday, May 8)
Social Movements and Civil Society
During this residency, we examine the difficult problem of achieving social change. We will discuss the ways in which civil society, particularly nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), contribute to the resolution of social problems – as well as potential obstacles to their success. In reading these articles, consider possible policy implications for development, humanitarian, environmental or other nongovernmental organizations that are interested in fostering social change. What kinds of things might an organization do to increase the possibility that its activities and linkages with other groups have a positive social impact?
Guest Speaker:
Required Readings:
*Edelman, M. (2001) Social Movements: Changing Paradigms and Forms of Politics. Annual Review of Anthropology 30:1, 285-
Murphy, D.F. & Bendell J. (2002). “New Partnerships for Sustainable Development,” in The Greening of Business in Developing Countries: Rhetoric, Reality and Prospects, Peter Utting, ed. (New York, Zed Books).
Policy Brief: Guidelines
The policy brief should offer a rationale for choosing a particular policy alternative or course of action related to a problem you identify related to sustainability and globalization. You must imagine your audience: an NGO, national governmental agency, an international organization, the World Bank, IMF. Keep in mind that a decision-maker or organization will use the brief to advocate for the position. You have two alternatives. You may provide a detailed discussion of current alternatives without arguing for a particular one. Or you may offer an argument for the adoption of a particular alternative. Make a clear and convincing choice. The purpose of the brief is to convince a target audience of the urgency of the problem and the need to adopt the preferred alternative or course of action outlined and to serve as an impetus for action.
In writing the brief, you must speak clearly to your identified audience. The most common audience is the decision-maker. However, it is not unusual to use the document to support broader advocacy initiatives targeting a wide but knowledgeable audience (e.g. administrators, decision makers, journalists, diplomats, researchers). Policy briefs directly reflect the different roles of the policy analyst (e.g., researcher, advocate). For this course I am expecting an action-and advocacy-oriented brief.
The policy brief should:
Recommended Format
1. Title of the paper
2. Executive summary
3. Context and importance of the problem
4. Critique of policy option(s)
5. Policy recommendations
6. Appendices
7. Sources
Reading Summary Guidelines
Here are some suggestions for writing the Synopses. You will find that from reading to reading that you will apply these in different ways. Some articles present different kinds of data, for example (e.g., historical, case study, ethnographic, quantitative, etc.). Other articles are based strictly on the development of an argument (theoretical or conceptual arguments). You’ll need to read through these guidelines to make a determination about how best to discuss each article. In addressing these questions, always consider: epistemology, ontology, theory and methodology.
- relationship between events and conditions?