DeVane Lectures - Power and Politics in Today's World

Introduction

• Course serves dual purpose: Yale credit course & public lecture
• Focus on past 30 years since 1989
• Tumultuous period marked by significant change compared to the stability of the previous 40 years
• Advanced capitalist democracies saw stability post-WWII
  • Period of prosperity and rebuilding, e.g., Marshall Plan
  • Cold War era brought international stability
  • Conflicts like Vietnam War had limited direct impact on Western democracies

Berlin Wall and the End of the Cold War

• 1989 marked by the fall of the Berlin Wall
  • Symbolized end of East-West division
  • Resulted in the reunification of Germany
• Soviet Union lost grip on Eastern Europe, leading to democratization in many countries
  • Notable exception: China with Tiananmen Square incident
• Wave of democratization spread globally in the early 1990s
• Enthusiasm for change; Francis Fukuyama's "End of History" thesis

Rise of Populism and Far-right Movements

• Fast forward to recent years: rise of populist and far-right movements
• Germany's Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) gains ground
• SPD resists grand coalition, Angela Merkel struggles to form a coalition
• SPD eventually rejoins the coalition fearing better results for AfD in new elections
• Merkel announces she won't run for re-election in 2021 after poor performance in regional elections
• Trend of shrinking establishment parties and rising fringe parties seen across Europe
  • Examples: Brexit, Donald Trump's election, Austrian elections, Belgian and Italian elections

Course Approach

• Use of history and political science theories to analyze the past 30 years
  • Testing theories with new data post-1989
  • Examples: modernization theory, relationship between democracy & market economy
• Normative questions and political theories applied in practical contexts
  • Evaluation of possible paths not taken: NATO expansion, Global War on Terror, response to financial crisis

Structure of the Course

1. Collapse of communism and aftermath

• Eastern Europe, Russia, China, and Vietnam
• Rise of a unipolar world post-Cold War
• Politics of neoliberalism and Washington Consensus

2. New global order

• Transition to a mostly democratic world
• New international institutions and doctrines

3. End of the "End of History" concept

• Post-9/11 global politics and resurgence of state capitalism

4. New Politics of Insecurity

• Effects of the financial crisis and government responses

5. What is to be done?

• Diagnosing voter sentiment and economic insecurity
• Recommendations for future policies

Logistics

• Course to be videotaped; lectures and interactions will be recorded
• Teaching fellows introduced; office hours for students and community members
• No laptops or screens policy during lectures
• Readings available on Canvas and in the New Haven Public Library
• Exams: official and alternate dates
• Office hours: both for students and community members, details provided
• Questions and discussion encouraged; mics available from next session