WesMaps - Wesleyan University Catalog 2009-2010       Summer Session       Winter Session       Home       Archive       Search
CS92PROD
Politics of East Asia

GOVT 295
Fall 2009 not offered
Crosslisting: EAST 295
Certificates: International Relations

This course explores politics in East Asia. We will investigate domestic political processes of China, Japan, North and South Korea, and Taiwan. We will compare political institutions, political cultures, and policy consequences in these political systems. Issues related to regional economic cooperation, security, and their implications for foreign policy of the United States will be covered in GOVT326. East Asia consists of a diverse mix of countries. By examining political systems of East Asia alone, we gain a lot of insights about functions of political institutions around the world. We can observe a stable democracy, new democracies, and a total dictatorship. We can observe a parliamentary system as well as presidential systems. We can also trace historical processes of democratization and economic transition. The political leaders of China are not subject to the outright forces of popular electoral competition. Japan is a relatively established and stable democracy, where a single dominant party has been in power for approximately 50 years. South Korea and Taiwan are relatively new democracies that successfully underwent transitions from authoritarian rule, where the partisan control of the executive has begun to alternate. North Korea is a longtime military dictatorship. China has already begun to grow vibrantly, whereas Japan is at the stage of economic maturity. In addition to building up familiarity with politics in East Asia, students are expected to learn methods of comparative and social scientific reasoning.

Essential Capabilities: None
Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: SBS GOVT
Course Format: Lecture / DiscussionGrading Mode: Graded
Level: UGRD Prerequisites: None
Fulfills a Major Requirement for: (CEAS-Polit Econ)(GOVT)(GOVT-Comparativ)(GOVT-Intl.)

Last Updated on MAR-28-2024
Contact wesmaps@wesleyan.edu to submit comments or suggestions. Please include a url, course title, faculty name or other page reference in your email ? Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459