At the University of Groningen I am currently teaching the following courses:
Europe and the Modern State
This seminar looks at the development and dynamics of European politics from the particular angle of the state. Europe is the place from which the modern state as we know it originate, and where this institutional form has undergone some of its most important developments. At the same time, Europe is also where the (nation-)state has faced some major challenges to its political preeminence in recent decades, due to such processes as European integration, ethnic self-determination, and globalization. This seminar will provide students with the analytical tools to make sense of the nature, evolution and current condition of the state in Europe by tackling questions such as: where does the modern state come from, and how do existing states differ from one another? How has the state come to influence virtually all aspects of social life? Are state and nation coterminous phenomena? Does European integration strengthen or weaken the state? If the latter, has the state become an obsolete political construction?
Classics of European Political Science
The objective of this seminar is to familiarize students with some of the key themes and debates of political science by surveying a number of seminal works in this field, focusing primarily on European authors and/or topics. Among the subjects covered in the seminar are: political development and democratization, political participation and parties, regime types, civil society, and the welfare state, while the authors examined range from builders of the discipline such as Giovanni Sartori, Arend Lijphart and Samuel Huntington to more "contemporary classics" like Robert Putnam and Gøsta Esping-Andersen. For all of them, students will learn the main contributions to the study of politics and their significance in the broader context of the discipline, but also reflect critically on their virtues and shortcomings of their work, and the latter's ability to stand the test of time.
Introduction to Italian Politics
This course will present an introduction to and overview of Italy's politics and political system. The course will be structured in a series of seminar-like sessions covering aspects such as the country's post-WWII political development; its current institutional architecture (and problems); its electoral and party system; finally, some of its most pressing political issues and debates. The course is meant to provide students with a good overall understanding of the contours of Italian politics, and a basis for further, more specialized courses.
Europe and the Modern State
This seminar looks at the development and dynamics of European politics from the particular angle of the state. Europe is the place from which the modern state as we know it originate, and where this institutional form has undergone some of its most important developments. At the same time, Europe is also where the (nation-)state has faced some major challenges to its political preeminence in recent decades, due to such processes as European integration, ethnic self-determination, and globalization. This seminar will provide students with the analytical tools to make sense of the nature, evolution and current condition of the state in Europe by tackling questions such as: where does the modern state come from, and how do existing states differ from one another? How has the state come to influence virtually all aspects of social life? Are state and nation coterminous phenomena? Does European integration strengthen or weaken the state? If the latter, has the state become an obsolete political construction?
Classics of European Political Science
The objective of this seminar is to familiarize students with some of the key themes and debates of political science by surveying a number of seminal works in this field, focusing primarily on European authors and/or topics. Among the subjects covered in the seminar are: political development and democratization, political participation and parties, regime types, civil society, and the welfare state, while the authors examined range from builders of the discipline such as Giovanni Sartori, Arend Lijphart and Samuel Huntington to more "contemporary classics" like Robert Putnam and Gøsta Esping-Andersen. For all of them, students will learn the main contributions to the study of politics and their significance in the broader context of the discipline, but also reflect critically on their virtues and shortcomings of their work, and the latter's ability to stand the test of time.
Introduction to Italian Politics
This course will present an introduction to and overview of Italy's politics and political system. The course will be structured in a series of seminar-like sessions covering aspects such as the country's post-WWII political development; its current institutional architecture (and problems); its electoral and party system; finally, some of its most pressing political issues and debates. The course is meant to provide students with a good overall understanding of the contours of Italian politics, and a basis for further, more specialized courses.