American Power: Soft, Hard, or Smart

The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Libya intervention and the conflicts in Syria have raised important questions about how the United States chooses to use its power on behalf of its interests. In this course we will survey historical, institutional, and theoretical factors as a prelude to consideration of how the United States has used its power since World War II. Based on selected case studies, we will examine pro and con arguments for different approaches to the use of power (soft, hard, smart) with extensive class debate and discussion. (International Relations and Foreign Policy)/