Special Topics: International Relations

This subject is not offered in 2014.

120 hours

Politics and International Studies at Undergraduate level

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

2014 Topics

Semester 1: Grand Strategy for Small Counties, Case Studies in Transforming Weakness into Power

All states have a grand strategy. If they don’t, they will have one imposed; whether by ally or enemy is immaterial, because a strategy imposed is, by definition, hostile to a state’s interests. Grand strategy is the level at which the conventional forms of power are combined, along with intelligence and deception, to determine outcomes in a world of states of all sizes and resources, each with its own grand strategy. This subject is an introduction to the practical ways in which force, fraud and subversion are combined by strategists, such politicians, generals, resource oligarchs or warlords. Naturally, the study takes as much account of the lessons of misjudgement and defeat as of anticipation and victory. The subject is being offered by the only Australian ever to have served at the highest policymaking levels of Australian, US, and Greek governments; to have served as a policy advisor to the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka; and to have worked for the past twenty-five years in Russia. This is the reservoir of operational experience from which the subject approach has been devised. It aims, as an Australian subject, at being quite different from the grand strategy subjects currently offered by US and UK universities.

March: Indonesia Rising?

Geography, population, and religion have always made Indonesia and its preceding social formations a critical part of Asia, but for some the country’s economic growth and exit from military rule lead to the emergence of the “Indonesian tiger”, “the repositioning of Asia’s third giant”, and the birth of Indonesia “as a normal country”. Yet endemic corruption, predatory power structures, dysfunctional elements in government, the repression of profound historical trauma within living memory, rising religious intolerance, and persisting elements of military autonomy press the scales in the other direction. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation in its economic, financial, ecological, and cultural dimensions. A key concern will be the implications of these issues for Indonesia-Australia relations. The seminar will also address the effects of the interaction of internal and external elements, locating Indonesia as an agent within, as well as a consequence of, historical and contemporary global dynamics. In addition to guest lecturers from Australia and Indonesia, the subject will also feature presentations by practitioners from politics, the military, and business.

Semester 2: India and the World

India and the World seeks to describe, understand and analyse contemporary India's foreign policy. The subject will map the historical roots of India's foreign policy, as well as seek to understand the main intellectual and policy debates regarding India's engagement with the outside world since its independence in 1947.

August: Constructing Democracy: Challenges and Opportunity

From the late 1970s to the mid-1990s, a “Third Wave” of democratization expanded the number of countries with liberal democracies: regularly scheduled free and fair elections and constitutional restraints on executive authority. In more recent years, democratic expansion stalled. A number of countries developed “illiberal,” “populist” and “competitive authoritarian” regimes, most of them combining elections with autocratic governance. More recently, uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East seemed to signal a new wave of democratic openings, but there have been undertows back toward authoritarianism. This subject will look at the political, economic and international factors that may explain the failure to achieve or sustain liberal democracy in cases in Southeast Asia, Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, and sub-Saharan Africa, persistent tensions between capitalism and democracy, and the challenges democracies face in providing meaningful representation to marginalized groups, including women, the indigenous and the poor. It will conclude by looking at what can be learned from the “Third Wave” transitions that may be relevant to the nations that may be undergoing, or about to enter, transitions from authoritarian rule.

On completion of this subject students should:

• be able to demonstrate a specialist understanding of the subject being studied;
• show a good capacity to communicate research in written form;
• have developed the analytical skills to evaluate the core issue of the subject;
• have an awareness of the contemporary theoretical debates in the subject;
• be able to demonstrate an ability to undertake critical independent research.

Semester 1: An interview with a strategist of choice, with a briefing paper to follow of 2,000 words (25%), a role and game-playing scenario covering strategic options from the case study materials (25%) and a researched case study essay of 3000 words (50%) due during the examination period.

Hurdle Requirement: Students are required to attend a minimum of 75% of classes in order to qualify to have their written work assessed. Regular participation in class is required.

Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 10% per working day. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

March:

A 1000 word essay (20%), due early-semester, a 2000 word essay (40%) due mid-late semester, and an essay on a set topic of 2000 words (40%) due during the examination period.

Hurdle Requirement: As this is an Intensively-taught subject, attendance at all seminars for this subject is compulsory. Regular participation in class is required.

Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 10% per working day. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

Semester 2:

A 1,000 word essay (20%) due mid-semester, and a 4,000 word research essay (80%) due during the examination period.

Hurdle Requirement: Students are required to attend a minimum of 75% of classes in order to qualify to have their written work assessed. Regular participation in class is required.

Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 10% per working day. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

August: Assessment totalling 5000 words.

Hurdle Requirement: As this is an intensively taught subject, attendance at all seminars is compulsory. Regular participation in class is required.

Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 10% per working day. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

Reading materials will be available either online or at the University bookshop

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On competion of this subject students should:

• develop effective oral and written communication skills;
• display aptitude for theoretical analysis;
• ability to apply research skills to a specific area of inquiry.