POLS 3322 Professor Ernesto Calvo

M-W 1:00-2:30 Office Hours: Friday 11-12

Spring 2009 PGH 447 C – ecalvo@uh.edu

Room: AH 16 Final Exam: May 8, 2 PM

Copy of the Syllabus (click here)

Introduction to Latin American Politics

Authoritarian Legacies and Democratic Politics in Latin America

In this course we will focus on the processes of democratization and democratic governance in Latin America. The political landscape of the region has changed dramatically in the last twenty years, as most authoritarian regimes in Latin America gave way to democratic ones. Simultaneously, the region has experienced increasing economic turmoil, providing new challenges to the political sustainability of these emerging democracies. In this course we will explore issues of democratic representation and democratic governance and learn about the challenges that authoritarian legacies present to democratic Latin America.

The first part of the course will be dedicated to explore Latin America’s cycles of authoritarian and democratic rule. We will also analyze the expansion of political rights and the development of party systems. In the second part of the course we will focus on specific problems that are critical to understand Latin America’s process of democratic consolidation.

Course meetings will combine the format of lectures and discussion sessions. Students are expected to attend all lectures, do all the assigned readings for the week, and participate in class discussion. Every student will be required to select a country of Latin America to do specific readings and research. Grading will result from a midterm exam, a final exam and a short paper with a review of one of four possible books. Please familiarize yourself with the academic honesty policy of the University of Houston. Plagiarism in the paper will result in an F in the class and a note in your academic record (http://www.uh.edu/dos/hdbk/acad/achonpol.html). Collaborative papers require a joint 10 minute presentation on the last week of classes (only groups of two students will be allowed). The exams presuppose knowledge of the assigned readings, lectures, and class discussions.

Registering in Turnitin.com

An e-class has been created in www.turnitin.com in order for you to deposit the class papers or any other assignment. It will also provide me with an email to contact everyone in case of an emergency or to make class changes. In order to register go to:

www.turnitin.com and follow the registration instructions.

The information needed to register for this class is:

class ID: 2581327

enrollment password: la3322

Required Books:

Thomas E. Skidmore, Peter H. Smith; Modern Latin America, New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.

One book to choose from:

1. Mario Vargas Llosa. The Feast of the Goat, New York : Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2001.

2. Mario Vargas Llosa. Captain Pantoja and the Special Service. ISBN: 0374522367.

3. Gabriel Garcia Marquez. One Hundred Years of Solitude.

4. Mariano Azuela. Underdogs. ISBN: 0451526252.

All other readings will be available electronically or on reserve at the library.

Week 1

Introduction

MLA Prologue and Chapter 1.

Week 2

Brazil

MLA. Chapter on Brazil.

Baker, Ames, and Renno. 2006. "Context and Campaign Volatility in New Democracies: Networks and Neighborhoods in Brazil's 2002 Elections", AJPS, 50(2):382-399.

Recommended movie: Central Station.

Week 3

Mexico

MLA. Chapter on Mexico.

Hiskey, J. and Bowler, S. 2005. Local Context and Democratization in Mexico.

Gibson, Edward. 1998. The Populist Road to Market Reform. World Politics.

Recommended movie: Herod’s Law.