Political scientists now regard ethnicity, nationalism, and identity
more generally to be critical causes of everything from communal
violence to democratic breakdown to economic stagnation.
Unfortunately, too few of these works incorporate important recent
research that casts serious doubt on common assumptions.  This course
aims to prevent graduate students from finding themselves in such
situations by familiarizing them with the most prominent recent (and
classic) research in the politics of ethnicity, nationalism, and
identity.  Readings will include leading works in a wide variety of
theoretical and empirical traditions, including rational choice,
experimental psychology, comparative political science, comparative
history, “postmodernism,” sociology, and anthropology.  Empirical
material will include cases from virtually every region of the world.