PSC 154 A-Z - Special Topics in Comparative Politics

Semester Hours: 1-4

Current Special Topics:

PSC 154I - (IS) European Politics Then and Now: A Political Science and Literary Approach

This interdisciplinary course constitutes a political history of Europe as well as its current political dilemmas by means of literary analysis. This historical and political approach will be based mainly on the reading of the novel Tell me Who I Am (2010) by the Spanish author Julia Navarro. The novel, which will be read in English, tells the story of a journalist who tries to write the biography of his great grandmother, Amelia Garayoa. The journalist is forced to travel both in time, from the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), through WWII (1939-1944), to the Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989), and geographically, from Madrid to Paris, Barcelona, the Basque Country, Moscow, Berlin, Rome, Warsaw, and Athens to recreate the life of Amelia. The historical events that Amelia witnessed will allow students an opportunity to learn about the politics across Europe during the time the novel takes place and how that time period has shaped the politics of today. The dynamism of this interdisciplinary course will stem from students learning about similar concepts and events, but from very different disciplines. The literature faculty member will provide a literary critical analysis of the descriptions of historical events in the novel and will demonstrate the profound ideological impact literary elements of a political and historical narrative can have upon the reader. Simultaneously, the political science professor will utilize political theory to provide a complimentary perspective on what shaped these critical events that defined 20th century Europe and continues to shape the 21st century.

The course can count towards the LT or IS Distribution Requirement, the major in Spanish, and the major and minor in Political Science and the minor in European Studies.

Crosslisted as SPLT 050Q  

Prerequisite(s)/Course Notes:
As individual subjects are selected, each is assigned a letter (A-Z) which is affixed to the course number. The course involves substantial reading, discussion and writing. Includes regular seminar sessions and individual conferences with instructor. Specific titles and course descriptions for special topics courses are available in the online class schedule. (Formerly PSC 154: Seminar: Comparative Politics.)

View Course Offering(s):

Fall 2025

January 2026

Spring 2026