POSC 323	Mr. Grow
Spring 2001	Office Hours

Few societies generate as much fear and fascination in the West as does Russia--and the old Soviet Union. It was not that long ago that the Soviet Union was seen as one of the world's great menaces, and western nations spent vast amounts of energy and treasure building defenses against the ideological and military threat that country seemed to represent. Today, the threat seems just as great--although now the problem is viewed as one of collapse of a pivotal economy and political system.

One political scientist describes Russia's fascination for the West as based on the "failure of transitions." At least three times this century the Russian system has gone through cataclysmic change: At the turn of the century, as the old Czarist monarchy began to give way under the force of modernization; at the end of World War I, as revolutionary changes spread across Russia and the surrounding republics; and in the late 1980's, as new forces came to the fore in an attempt to bring Russia back in line with a rapidly changing world. Ultimately, all of these transitions seemed to fail. In the aftermath of these failures, Russia and the world were thrown into immensely difficult periods of introspection and reaction.

Why the great failures of this century? What forces are at work in Russian society that seem to generate this seemingly unending series of upheavals? What political cleavages exist that make the Russian polity so conflictual? What institutions need to be developed and refined before Russian society can make these transitions without such great upheaval?

This seminar will examine modern Russia by focusing on social patterns, government institutions, and political activity. The course will examine the politics of modern Russia, study the institutions that shape these politics, examine the historical trends from which they emerged, evaluate the interrelationship of economic and political activity, and look at Russia's changing role in the world.

Requirements:

• Four 3-4 page essays;
• Based on these four essays, a 15-20 page final paper (due Saturday June 2)
• Active participation in class discussions and completion of the assigned readings before class;

Grading:

• Participation, attendance, exercises: 20%
• Four short essays: 40%
• Final Paper (including drafts): 40%

Texts:

Robert Service, A History of 20th Century Russia

Ronald Suny, The Soviet Experiment: Russia, the USSR and the Successor States

John Lowenhardt, The Reincarnation of Russia: Struggling With the Legacy of Communism, 1990-1994

John Dunlop, The Rise of Russia and the Fall of the Soviet Empire

David Remnick, Lenin's Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire

Due Dates:

Essays:

Essay #1 Friday April 6

Essay #2 Wednesday April 18

Essay #3 Friday May 4

Essay #4 Friday May 18

Final Paper:

Draft of Part I Wednesday April 25

Draft of Part II Friday May 25

Complete paper Saturday June 2

MON Mar 26 Introduction: Russia and the Soviet Union in the 20th Century

WED Mar 28 The Challenge of Change

Lowenhardt, The Reincarnation of Russia, Introduction, and Ch. 1

O'Donnell and Schmitter, "Concluding with a Metaphor" in Transition From Authoritarian Rule, Ch. 7 (handout)

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 3-9

FRI Mar 30 Emerging Civil Society

Diamond, "Toward Democratic Consolidation" in The Global Resurgence of Democracy (handout)

Lowenhardt, The Reincarnation of Russia, Ch. 2 (pp. 47-56)

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 1

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 1 (pp. 3-19)

MON Apr 2 Crisis of the Old Regime

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 2-3

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 1 (pp. 19-34)

WED Apr 4 Revolution

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 4

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 2

FRI Apr 6 Building a New Socialist Society

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 5-8

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 3-4

Essay #1 due

MON Apr 9 Stalinism: (1) Consolidating the New State

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 9-12

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 9-12

WED Apr 11 Stalinism: (2) War and the Return of Old Problems

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 13-14

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 13-14

FRI Apr 13 Stalinism: (3) The Post-War Years

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 15-16

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 10-51

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 15-16

MON Apr 16 Khrushchev and the Attempt at Limited Reform

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 17-18

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 52-100

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 17-18

WED Apr 18 Brezhnev's "Stalinist Restoration" and the Inter-Regnum

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 19-21

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 101-140

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 19

Essay #2 due

FRI Apr 20 The Second Reform

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 22

Dunlop, The Rise of Russia, Ch. 1

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 141-197

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 20

MON Apr 23 Glasnost and Perestroika

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 23

Dunlop, The Rise of Russia, Ch. 2

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 198-276

WED Apr 25 Forces for Change: The Democrats

Dunlop, The Rise of Russia, Ch. 3

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 277-340

Hand in draft of Final Paper (Part I)

FRI Apr 27 Forces for Change: The Statists

Dunlop, The Rise of Russia, Ch. 4

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. pp. 341-429

MON Apr 30 Mid-Term Break

WED May 2

FRI May 4 No Class

Essay #3 due

MON May 7 Implosion

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 25

Dunlop, The Rise of Russia, Ch. 5

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 433-90

Suny, The Soviet Experiment, Ch. 21

WED May 9 The End of the Union

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 26

Dunlop, The Rise of Russia, Ch. 6

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 494-530

FRI May 11 The Continuing Crisis

Service, History of 20th Century Russia, Ch. 27

Remnick, Lenin's Tomb, pp. 534-44

MON May 14 Soviet State/Russian Government

Lowenhardt, The Reincarnation of Russia, Ch. 1, 2

WED May 16 The Struggle for Civil Society

Lowenhardt, The Reincarnation of Russia, Ch. 3

FRI May 18 The Russian Transition

Lowenhardt, The Reincarnation of Russia, Ch. 4, 5

Essay #4 due

MON May 21 The New Elites and Their Political Institutions

Shevtsova, "Yeltsin and the Evolution of Electoral Monarch in Russia," in Current History, (October, 2000) (handout)

Remington, "The Evolution of Executive-Legislative Relations in Russia since 1993" in Slavic Review, (Fall, 2000) (handout)

Hashim, "KPRF ideology and its implications for democratization in Russia" in Communist and Post-Communist Studies, (1999) (handout)

McFail, "Putin in Power" in Current History, Oct. 2000 (Handout)

WED May 23 Emerging Economic Institutions

Aslund, "Russia's Collapse" in Foreign Affairs (Sept/Oct 1999) (handout)

Lane, "What Kind of Capitalism for Russia? A Comparative Analysis" in Communist and Post-Communist Studies, (2000) (handout)

Millar, "Can Putin Jump-Start Russia's Stalled Economy?" in Current History (October, 2000) (handout)

FRI May 25 The Role of Strong and Weak Social Groups

Wolosky, "Putin's Plutocrat Problem," in Foreign Affairs, (March/April, 2000) (handout)

Marsh, "Social capital and democracy in Russia" in Communist and Post-Communist Studies, (2000) (handout)

Ahl, "Society and Transition in post-Soviet Russia" in Communist and Post-Communist Studies, (1999) (handout)

Hand in draft of Final Paper (Part II)

MON May 28 The Ongoing Tension with Nationalities, Borderlands, and Foreign Powers

Menom and Fuller, "Russia's Ruinous Chechan War," in Foreign Affairs, (March/April 2000) (handout)

Lievan, "Through a Distorted Lens: Chechnya and the Western Media" in Current History, (Oct. 2000) (handout)

WED May 30 Whither Russia?

SAT June 2 Final Paper Due