POLITICAL SCIENCE 153: INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND LAW
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
Spring 2015
Mondays and Wednesdays 10am
College Hall 314
Office Hours: Wednesdays 1-3pm or by appointment
TEACHING ASSISTANT
Jeremy Springman
Professor Jessica Stanton
Office: Stiteler Hall 214
Phone: (215) 898-7646
Email: jstan@sas.upenn.edu
jspr@sas.upenn.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is an undergraduate lecture course, examining the role that international law and institutions play in international relations. The course begins by exploring broad theoretical questions – questions about why states create international law and international institutions; how states design institutions; the impact that institutional design may have on the effectiveness of international institutions; and the conditions under which states are likely to comply with the rules set out by international institutions and the dictates of international law. The remainder of the course is organized topically, looking at how international institutions and law function in various arenas of international affairs. Topics include collective security institutions such as the League of
Nations, the United Nations, and NATO; human rights law; the laws of war; humanitarian intervention; international justice and the International Criminal Court; environmental law; international trade law and the World Trade Organization; economic development and the role of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Participation in Discussion Sections
15%
You are expected not only to attend discussion section each week, but also to do all of the assigned readings in advance and to come to section prepared to participate actively in discussion.
Midterm Exam
25%
There will be one in-class, closed-book midterm exam. The exam will take place in class on Monday,
March 2.
Paper
25%
There will be one 5-7 page paper assignment, due at the beginning of class on Wednesday, April 15.
The paper assignment will be distributed one week in advance, in class on Wednesday, April 8. The paper assignment will also be posted on Canvas after class on April 8.
Final Exam
35%
The final exam is an in-class, closed-book exam, which will take place on the date scheduled by the registrar: Wednesday, May 6, noon-2pm.
All exams must be taken in class on the date they are scheduled. Exceptions will be granted only for documented family or medical emergencies.
COURSE MATERIALS
The following books are required for the course and are available for purchase at the University of
Pennsylvania bookstore:
Michael Barnett, Eyewitness to a Genocide: the United Nations and Rwanda (Ithaca: Cornell University
Press, 2002).
Beth A. Simmons, Mobilizing for Human Rights: International Law in Domestic Politics (Cambridge
University Press, 2009).
All other required readings for the course are articles or book chapters, which can be downloaded and printed from the Canvas site for the course. These articles and book chapters have also been compiled into a course pack, which will be available for purchase at the Campus Copy Center at
3907 Walnut Street.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Plagiarism, use of another person’s work, misconduct during an examination, prior possession of an examination, and submission of work used in another course are examples of violations of the
University of Pennsylvania’s Code of Academic Integrity. For further information on the Code of
Academic Integrity, please see the following websites: http://www.upenn.edu/academicintegrity/ http://www.upenn.edu/academicintegrity/ai_codeofacademicintegrity.html
Any student who violates the Code of Academic Integrity will receive a failing grade for the assignment in question and will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct for further action.
