Junior Government Tutorial: Uprisings and Revolutions in the Middle East: The Arab Spring in Context
CSS 330
Spring 2025
| Section:
01
02
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The course examines the dynamics of uprisings and revolutions in the Middle East, with a primary focus on the "Arab Spring" and its historical antecedents. Drawing from theories of revolutions, contentious politics, and democratization, the readings examine both general patterns across the region and the political dynamics of individual cases. We will start with a discussion of the nationalist uprisings of the 1950s and the 1979 Iranian Revolution, after which we will examine the deep roots and major explanations of the Arab Spring. We will consider what explains the variation in protests and in government responses, what role different actors played during the uprisings, and what effects historical legacies had on the dynamics of the uprising. We will also attempt to understand what factors led to the militarization of the protests and the descent into civil war in Syria. The course concludes with a discussion of the aftermath, exploring what factors led to the democratic breakdown in Tunisia a decade after the uprising. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS GOVT |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (CSS) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 - 3rd Quarter |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Daweesha, Adid. 2013. THE SECOND ARAB AWAKENING (New York: W.W. Norton & Co. )
Kamrava, Mehran. 2014. BEYOND THE ARAB SPRING: THE EVOLVING RULING BARGAIN IN THE MIDDLE EAST. (New York: Oxford University Press).
All other readings posted on Moodle.
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Examinations and Assignments:
Participation: 8%
Weekly Discussion Questions: 12%
Response Papers (Two 5-page Papers): 40%
Research Proposal: 30%
Presentation of Research Proposal: 10% |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Open to CSS Juniors Only |
| Instructor(s): Matesan,Ioana Emy Times: .....F. 02:00PM-04:00PM; Location: PAC107; |
Permission of Instructor Required
Enrollment capacity: 10 | Permission of instructor will be granted during the drop/add period. Students must submit either a ranked or unranked drop/add request for this course. |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
| SECTION 02 - 4th Quarter |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Same as section 01 above |
Examinations and Assignments:
Same as section 01 above |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Same as section 01 above |
| Instructor(s): Matesan,Ioana Emy Times: .....F. 02:00PM-04:00PM; Location: PAC107; |
Permission of Instructor Required
Enrollment capacity: 10 | Permission of instructor will be granted during the drop/add period. Students must submit either a ranked or unranked drop/add request for this course. |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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