Instructor: Ambassador Edward J. Perkins
Office: Whitehand Hall, Room # 400
Class Hours: Tuesdays, 3:30 - 6:10
Office Phone: 325-1396
Class Room: Whitehand Hall, Rm. 400
Office Hours: Thursdays, 9:00-10:00 a.m.
 

COURSE DESCRIPTION

The Making of American Foreign Policy requires students to read primary sources, (and additional supplementary materials), trace specific themes in American foreign policy, analyze the making of American foreign policy, and draw conclusions about the critical decisions made and policies followed. The focus is on the period from the end of World War II. Primary sources to be read include memoirs and biographies of Presidents, Secretaries of State, and National Security Council Advisors and a limited number of selections from other foreign policy theorists. Students are expected to make judgments about how each United States administration has managed foreign policy and what major actions and programs were taken in such areas as the Cold War and rivalry with the Soviet Union, relations with OECD nations, China, policies toward the Third World, economic and trade policy made (including APEC, WTO and NAFTA), human rights, and democracy. Special attention will be given to the post-Cold War era and emerging policies related thereto. Papers will be written and class discussion emphasized. Full class participation is essential.
 
 

REQUIRED TEXTS

1. Kissinger, Henry, Diplomacy, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994.
2. Baker, James A. III, The Politics of Diplomacy: Revolution, War and Peace, 1989-1992. New York: George G. Putnam & Sons, 1995.
3. Shultz, George, Turmoil and Triumph (My Years as Secretary of State), New York: Charles Scribner & Sons, 1993.
4. Melanson, Richard A., Reconstructing Consensus: American Foreign Policy since the Vietnam War, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1991.
5. Rostow, Eugene V., Toward Managed Peace: The National Security Interests of the United States, 1979 to Present, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1993.
6. Hoepli, Nancy, ed. Great Decisions 1995, Foreign Policy Association, Inc., 1996.

Supplemental Reading List (recommended but not required)

1. Powell, Colin, My American Journey, Part Three.
2. Tzu, Sun, The Art of War, Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 1988, pp. 41-100.
3. Isaacson, Walter and Thomas, Evan, The Wise Men, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1986, pp. 253-559 and pp. 589-714.
4. McCollough, Colleen, The First Man in Rome, New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1990, pp. 243-346.

Students will read other books and articles for the preparation of papers, class presentations, and class discussion.
 

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Students should read Melanson, Kissinger, Shultz, Baker and Rostow as rapidly as possible at the beginning of the course. They should be of value in writing papers and for class discussion. Topics in the Great Decisions book should be read prior to the class sessions at which they will be discussed, as indicated in this syllabus.

Read all of the Melanson book carefully since the author traces the emergence of U.S. foreign policy following the failed Vietnam policy. The Rostow book should also be read in its entirety, although the last two chapters (15 and 16) and the Epilogue can be scanned quickly. They were written too soon after the end of the Cold War. Kissinger's book merits reading by all serious students of international relations. For this course, however, you should focus on chapters 1, 2 and 17 through 31. Part IV, Chapters 22, 23, 24, 26, 36 of Part V and Part VII, in the Shultz book, and chapters 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, 23, 24, 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, 34 in the Baker book will suffice, although other parts of both books will provide valuable background material.

The final examination will be based primarily on these three texts.
 

WRITTEN WORK AND PREPARATION

Each student will prepare two major papers:

1) a paper describing the style and policy of specified presidents' administrations in the post-World War II period;

2) a paper describing the evolution of United States policy on a particular subject, or on the evolution of organization in the conduct of foreign policy, in the post-World War II period; and for the period following the collapse of the Soviet Union include two of the following foreign policy evolutions: Yugoslavia, Cambodia and the new Russia.

The selection of administrations and policy/organization topics will be made by students and the instructor. Students are expected to use memoirs and secondary sources in their preparation of these papers. Each should be up to twenty double-space typed pages, plus source notes, bibliography and a critique of major sources used. Pages should be numbered and have a one and one-quarter inch (1 1/4") right margin. Students are encouraged to use the University of Chicago Style Manual on style and format.

Students will also prepare, for the instructor's review and critique, outlines of their major papers. The outlines should be annotated, contain a bibliography, and comment on the principal sources that will be drawn upon in preparing your papers.

Each student will deliver a presentation based upon his/her paper topic during the appropriate class session. The presentation will consist of a 10-15 minute summation, including the paper's major themes and conclusions, followed by a 10-minute discussion on the topic, lead by the presenter.
 

EXAMINATION AND GRADES

The course is designed to facilitate student learning, principally through research and preparation of assigned papers, student presentations, and class discussion as well as discussion amongst students themselves. There also will be lectures and selected videos. There will be a final examination.
 

The course grade will be based on performance in completing the following tasks:
 

	Percentage of course grade
Paper on presidential administration(s)	25
Presentation of paper	5
Annotated outline of paper	5
Paper on foreign policy theme/organization	25
Presentation of paper	5
Annotated outline of paper	5
Class participation and reading assignments	10
Final examination	20
	100%

 

CLASS ATTENDANCE

The instructor's lectures and students' presentations will constitute major elements of the course's substance. Class attendance will be necessary to successfully complete the course. Absence from two classes (the equivalent of six absences in a course taught for one hour three times a week) without a written explanation from a doctor will be penalized by lowering your final grade by one letter.

Students should not bring recorders to class, unless approved by the instructor. Such approval will be based on a physical need. Otherwise approval will not be given.

Any student in this course who has a disability that may prevent him or her from fully demonstrating his or her abilities should contact the professor personally as soon as possible so that accommodations necessary to ensure full participation and facilitation of the student's educational opportunities can be discussed.
 

COURSE OUTLINE

(This outline is subject to revision during the course.)
 
 

Session Date	Class Activities
08/29/96	Introduction to and organization of the course.  Video: America and the World, 1945-52.
09/05/96	Lectures: The Search for a New Paradigm; Contending Themes in American Foreign Policy.  Selection of paper topics.  Video: America and the World, 1953-60.
09/12/96	Lecture: Models of Policy Making.  Video: America and the World, 1961-75.  Discussion: "Topic 3, Mexico," from Great Decisions, pp. 23-32. - Role-Playing: The Iraqi Crisis.
09/19/96	Lecture: The Domestic Context of American Foreign Policy.  Presentation of assigned readings.  Video: America and the World, 1976-85.  Discussion: "Topic 2, The Intelligence Community" from Great Decisions, pp. 13-22.  Hand in Annotated Outline on Presidential Administrations.
09/26/96	Lecture: The President, the Congress and the Constitution.  Video: The Modern Presidency.  Discussion of "Topic 1, Foreign Policy and the United States Political System," from Great Decisions, pp. 3-12.
10/03/96	Student presentation and discussion: The Truman Administration (40 min.).  Lecture: The Foreign Policy Bureaucratic Actors.  Student presentation and discussion: The Eisenhower Administration (40 min.).
10/10/96	Student presentation and discussion: The Kennedy and Johnson Administrations (40 min.).  Video: Most Recent Report of Former Secretaries of Defense.  Video: The UN at 50 Years.  Student presentation and discussion: The Nixon and Ford Administrations (40 min.).
10/17/96	Student presentation and discussion: The Carter Administration (40 min.).  Lecture: The Foreign Policy Tools.  Student presentation and discussion: The Reagan and Bush Administrations (40 min.).  Hand in Annotated Outlines on Second Paper Topics.
10/24/96	Student presentation and discussion: Nuclear Non-Proliferation (40 min.).  Video: Twelfth Annual Report of Former Secretaries of State.  Student presentation and discussion: Presidential Style, Organization, and Relations with Congress (40 min.).  Papers on Presidential Administrations Due.
10/31/96	Student presentation and discussion: Third World Economic Development (40 min.)  Discussion: "Topic 4, Economic Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific," from Great Decisions, pp. 33-41.  Student presentation and discussion: Russia and Great Power Politics (40 min.)  Video: 1996 Great Decisions, Part I.
11/7/96	Student presentation and discussion: Trade, Investment and Debt (40 min.).  Video: Profiles in Diplomacy  Student presentation and discussion: Human Rights and Democracy (40 min.).
11/14/96	Guest lecturer.  Discussion: "Topic 7, Africa: Should the U.S. Care?" from Great Decisions, pp. 62-72.  Video: 1996 Great Decisions, Part II.
11/21/96	Student presentation and discussion: Third World Conflicts (40 min.)  Student presentation and discussion: International Narcotics Control (40 min.)  Discussion: "Topic 8: What Future Role for NATO?" From Great Decisions, pp. 73-86  Second Research Paper is Due for all Students
12/5/96	Review  Any unfinished discussions.
12/12/96	FINAL EXAMINATION