JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY COURSE CODE: "PL 215" COURSE NAME: "Italian Politics and Society" SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2014

SYLLABUS INSTRUCTOR: Federigo Argentieri EMAIL: [email protected] HOURS: MW 6:00 PM 7:15 PM TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45 CREDITS: 3 PREREQUISITES: PL 223 recommended for students majoring in Political Science and International Affairs OFFICE HOURS:

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This class aims at 1) Presenting an overview of the origins of the Italian republic, including reading through its constitution, in comparison to the American constitution 2) Describing how its political system reflected the Cold War confrontation; then from 1969 onwards became seriously challenged by multiple terrorist attacks and yet survived them 3) Explaining why and how it experienced dramatic changes at the beginning of the 1990's  4) Observing and analyzing today's main political competitors on the basis of their behavior, strategies, campaigning and the rest

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT: - The origins of the Republic: anti-fascism, the constitution, political parties, cold war - Thirty-three years of "black" and "red" terrorism (1969-2002): what has been clarified and what is still obscure - The collapse of the old system and the rise (and fall?) of Berlusconi - The government of Enrico Letta and the Five-star movement - Constants and variables, 1994-2014

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Assuming each student's background to be different with respect to acquaintance with and knowledge of Italy and its realities, an initial effort will be made to fill the most evident gaps and find a "language" fully understandable by all. Subsequently, the class will be lead to an ever closer monitoring of Italian events, inclusive of historical background and international setting and their influences on one another, with the aim of providing students with sufficient instruments and skills to be able to identify, analyze and portray the main components, factors and players of the Italian political scene.

TEXTBOOK: Book Title Author Publisher ISBN number Library Call Number Comments Format Local Bookstore Online Purchase The Politics of Italy James L. Newell Cambridge U. Press 978-0521840705           Good Italy, bad Italy Bill Emmott Yale UP 9780300197167

REQUIRED RESERVED READING: NONE RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING: NONE

GRADING POLICY -ASSESSMENT METHODS: Assignment Guidelines Weight Three short papers, two double paced pages each Aimed at assessing the students' understanding of the assigned readings and class discussions 30% A comparative analysis of the Italian and American constitutions On the basis of a reading through both texts and a comprehension of their main differences and similarities, students will analyze their content and draw conclusions on Italy's political system in comparison with the US' 20% Final exam Several short-essay questions on current issues in Italy's politics, economy, society of today 35% Attendance and participation See details below 15% NOTE Grades are not "curved" but calculated in the following way: each assignment counts for the indicated percentage and gets a certain amount of it (e.g. 18/20). After the final exam, everything (including extra credit) is summed up to compose the final score and transformed into a letter grade according to this scale: A = 96-100 C = 66-70 A- = 91-95 C- = 61-65 B+ = 86-90 D+ = 58-60 B = 81-85 D = 55-57 B- = 76-80 D- = 51-54 C+ = 71-76 F = 0-50   -ASSESSMENT CRITERIA: AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the c BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments. CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings. DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail. FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant. -ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS: Regular attendance and active participation in class are essential: this includes punctuality and quick checking of intranet messages. Absences will affect the final grade, unless caused by serious family or medical emergencies. Makeup examinations may be given or late papers accepted only for the same reasons. In order to take full advantage of this class and make it an important learning experience, it is crucial to create a communicative virtuous circle, i.e. an environment where possible misunderstandings are reduced to a minimum or altogether eliminated and potential problems and issues are addressed and solved very quickly. Example: some of you may have a stronger background in Economics , History, or Politics, and some a weaker one or none: there is nothing wrong in acknowledging it and  alerting the professor, so that he can adjust his pace to the audience and work more with single cases if need be. More specifically, you can contribute quite substantially to the creation of a virtuous circle if you consider the following:  1) Some demeanors are invisible in a large infrastructure, yet become disruptive in a smaller one. They include the following (during class): - walking in and especially out of the room, in absence of an emergency or prior permission; - making use of the internet and/or any social network, such as Facebook, Twitter or a mere sms; - reading or studying for a class other than the one being attended. Taking good note of all this and acting accordingly, besides averting inevitable grade-docking, will greatly help and will be much appreciated.  Therefore, you are kindly requested to turn off your Iphones et al. and avoid using a laptop during class. Exceptions can be made only in some specific cases  2) Students should be able to make the difference between occurrences which justify their absences and those which don't, and alert the prof only in the former case.  Examples:    Occurrence                                 Absence Justified?                Communication needed                          i) Sickness                                                       yes                                         yes                        ii) Major emergency                                        yes                                         yes                          (accident, serious family issues,                           permesso)                                  iii)Travel issues of any kind                             no                                           no                           iv) Family/partner/friend(s)                          are in town                                                        no                                           no                        (although  welcome to                           class if interested, in which case please                          notify the prof)                                  v) AoB                                                         to be determined on case-by-case criteria 3) A smaller environment should encourage a more active and direct participation of students and a more effective communication between students and professor. The former are strongly encouraged to intervene in class at any moment if something doesn't sound clear, or in the appropriate discussion time if they wish to raise a specific issue or argue about it (this latter part will be considered for grading purposes, only to the extent it shows interest for the topic and capabilities to support an argument). Opinions can be freely expressed (teacher included) and are never graded as such.  Should a student feel uncomfortable about speaking in public, s/he is welcome to contact or email the professor to discuss privately  4) Finally, and on a more academic note, some concrete tips to start off in the best way possible and obtain satisfactory results:  - This is a textbook-based course. No matter if individually or in a group, students should get hold of a copy anyway, as all their assignments will be based on it. Alternative routes based on the use of popular websites (e.g. Wikipedia) are strongly discouraged and would lead to poor results - Class lectures do not merely repeat or explain (unless specifically required) the content of the readings, but aim at completing them by providing additional information and different visual angles. In order to achieve optimal results, students should work on combining their notes with reading assignments and videos screened (see next point) and raise immediately all issues related to any perceived discrepancy, incoherence or misunderstanding  - Videos shown in class command the same respect and attention as all other instructional materials and should never be considered as avoidable parts of the course program (or the right moment when to disregard point 1 above)  - Whenever possible, students are encouraged to take advantage of extra-credit opportunities (field trips, evening films, Guarini Institute events) even if their score is good, as these could prove ultimately decisive in enhancing their grade.

ACADEMIC HONESTY As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.

STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.

SCHEDULE

Session Session Focus Reading Assignment Other Assignment Meeting Place/Exam Dates Jan. 13-15 Introduction to the course Newell, part one and Argentieri handouts     Jan. 20-22 The unification of Italy and the Church-State divide; antecedents of Fascism same     Jan. 27-29 The Fascist regime and its legacy same     Feb. 3-5 The Resistance, the liberation of Italy and the 1946 elections same Monday Feb. 3 at 7:30 pm, Aula Magna Regina at Guarini Campus, lecture by Ryan Anderson, WFP official and JCU class of 2002   Feb. 10-12 Christian Democrats, Communists, Cold War same Monday at 7:30 pm, room G.1.1, screening of film "1492", by Ridley Scott (1992)   Feb. 17-19 The Italian Constitution, part one http://en.camera.it/application/xmanager/projects/camera_eng/file/costituzione-aggiornata_EN_10_10_12.pdf as well as http://www.senate.gov/civics/constitution_item/constitution.htm Monday Feb. 17 at 7:30 pm, room G.1.1, screening of film "Mission", by Roland Joffe (1986) -- Thursday Feb. 20, 6:00 pm, Aula Magna Regina, lecture by prof. Theda Skocpol, Harvard University, on current US politics   Feb. 24-26 The Italian Constitution, part two As above and Newell, ch. 2     March 3-5 Berlusconi's Italy, 1994-2014, part one Selected parts of Newell, chapters 3-4-6-7 and Emmott, ch. 1     March 10-12 Berlusconi's Italy, 1994-2014, part two Newell as above and Emmott, ch. 2 Monday March 10, 7:30 pm, Aula Magna Regina, roundtable panel on "Women of Power in New Democracies", with female ambassadors posted to Italy and the Vatican Paper on compared constitutions due March 24-26 The 2013 election, the five-star movement and the Letta government Same as above     March 31-April 2 Current issues: Italy, Europe and the world Newell ch. 10, Emmott ch. 3   First review paper due April 4-9 The evolution of Italian political culture Newell ch. 5, Emmott ch. 4-5     April 11-14 International views and assessments of Italy Emmott ch. 6-7-8 Friday April 11 at 11:30 am screening of film "Il Divo" by Paolo Sorrentino, room tba (this is a make up for class not being held on Monday, April 7)   April 16-23 Italian views and assessments of their country review and discussion   Second review paper due (third review paper due on day of final exam)