POLITICAL SCIENCE DEPARTMENT

POLI 321 (SPRING 2015)

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY:STRATEGIC THOUGHT AS POLITICAL THEORY

Professor Andrew Latham Location: CAR 208Office: Carnegie 203E Time: T-Th 1:20-2:50Telephone: x6549 Office Hours: TBD

I. SEMINAR DESCRIPTION

This is a course about strategic thought – that is, about theway in which people down through the ages have theorized the relationship between military means and political ends. Put slightly differently, it is about the history of philosophical speculation regarding how political collectivities should best to use their resources (military, economic, diplomatic, etc.) to shape their political destinies. To the extent that this is true, this course is also therefore necessarily about political theory, which I will define here expansively as philosophical speculation about questions of rule and governance. The connection, while perhaps not obvious, is relatively straight forward: to think about politics is necessarily to think about the ways in which the shared political goals of a community can be both advanced and threatened by military force.

The course begins with an exploration of the nature of strategy and strategic thought, asking foundational questions such as:

What is “strategy”?

Why study strategy? and How should we study strategy?

It then proceeds to trace the history of strategic thought from Ancient to early modern times, covering the strategic/political thought of Thucydides, Sun Tzu and Machiavelli. Next, the course looks at strategic thoughtin the high modern era, principally through the eyes of anumber of classic strategic thinkers: Jomini, Clauswitz, Mahan, Corbett, Douhet, Brodie and Schelling. The coursethen looks at “grand strategy” as a distinctive form of strategic (and thus political) thought. In this section we look at some historical cases of grand strategy (Rome,Britain), then pivot to a discussion of US grand strategytoday. The course concludes with some focused speculation on the question of whether there are any enduring principles of strategy that might be distilled from such a reading of the classics.

One way of thinking about strategic and political thoughtis to view each theoretical claim as an intervention in an historically specific conversation about the relationship between military means and political ends. On this approach, understanding any given strategic text requires placing it in its appropriate conversational context – that is, specifying its material (military-technological and socio-political) and intellectual contexts, identifying the idiom in which it is expressed or the genre to which it belongs, and even (in some casesat least) sketching the biographical milieu out of which it emerged.

Our first goal, then, will be to interpret the great texts of strategic thought by reading them as historical artifacts – that is, as products of their historical context. We will also have a second goal, however: to discern the extent (if any) to which the great strategic theorists continue to speak to us today. This will require a different kind of reading – not one of

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historicization, but one that asks of a text if it contains any strategic/political wisdom that transcends the historical context out of which it emerged.

As an advanced-level offering, this course is designed primarily for Political Science majors and non-majors in cognate fields who have some experience in the discipline. The course has no pre-requisites, however, and is therefore suitable to all students seeking to satisfy an interest in strategic thought and/or politicaltheory.

II. ASSIGNMENTS

There are several written assignments:

One reading response per module; A mid-term (take home) exam; and A final (take-home) exam.

III. GRADING

Point-Based Grading: Grading in this course is on a points system. Your final grade is out of 100 points distributed as follows:

Reading Responses: 30 points (6 responses each worth 5 points)Mid-term exam: 15 pointsFinal exam: 30 pointsParticipation: 25 points

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The following point-based grade scheme will be used to calculate your final grade in this course:

95-100 points A 80-84 points B 65-69 points C90-94 points A- 75-79 points B- 60-64 points C- 85-89 points B+ 70-74 points C+ 50-59 points D0-49 points NC

Appeals: Only well-argued written appeals (no more than one page in length) will be accepted.

IV. COURSE TEXTS

Thomas M. Kane, Strategy: Key Thinkers (Malden, MN: Polity Press, 2013)

V. SCHEDULE OF CLASSES

MODULE 1 INTRODUCTION TO STRATEGIC THOUGHT

Thursday, January 22 What is Strategy? Why Does it Matter? How Should we Study it?

Readings:

Strategy: Key Thinkers, “Bringing Strategy to Life”

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 1 (“Why Strategy Matters”)

Discussion Questions:

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What is “strategy”? What is the relationship between strategic theory and

political theory? Why study strategy? How should we study strategy?

Tuesday, January 27 The Theory and Practice of Strategy

Readings:

Columba Peoples, “Strategic Studies and its Critics” inStrategy In The Contemporary World: An Introduction To Strategic Studies

Hedley Bull, “Strategic Studies and its Critics” (http://www.jstor.org/stable/2009685)

Johnson and Gray, “The Practice of Strategy” in Strategy In The Contemporary World: An Introduction To Strategic Studies

“Why Strategy is Difficult” (http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/jfq/1434.pdf)

Discussion Questions

What forces have shaped the historical evolution of strategic studies as a field of scholarly inquiry?

What are the key structural constraints that strategists confront?

MODULE 2 STRATEGIC THOUGHT FROM ANCIENT TO EARLY MODERN TIMES

Thursday, January 29 Thucydides in Historical Context

Readings:

Kane, Strategy: Key Thinkers, “Honour, Interest and Fear”

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Thucydides, “The Melian Dialogue” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNzHOqjMHwY

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 2 (“Thucydides on Strategy”)

Discussion Questions:

What “caused” the Peloponnesian War? Why did the Athenians lose? Spartan strategy or

Athenian mistakes? What lessons can be drawn from Thucydides?

Tuesday, February 3 The Enduring Relevance of Thucydides

Readings:

Strauss, “Thucydides: the Meaning of Political History.” https://ia700303.us.archive.org/34/items/LeoStraussOnThucydidesGreekHistoriansPoliticalHistory/Strauss-ThucydidesAndPoliticalHistory.pdf

Laurie Bagby, “The Use and Abuse of Thucydides,” International Organization 48, no. 1(Winter 1994), 131-53 (JSTOR).

David A. Welch, “Why International Relations theorists should stop reading Thucydides” (http://ic.ucsc.edu/~rlipsch/Pol272/Welch.Thucydides.pdf)

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In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 3 (“Thucydides as a Possession for all Time”)

Discussion Questions

Did the failure of the Sicilian expedition result from a poor strategy or a sound one poorly executed?

If yes, what strategic precept did it violate? Does placing Thucydides, or any other strategic

classic, in historical context increase or decrease ourability to draw enduring lessons from it?

Thursday, February 5 Sun Tzu: The Historical Context

Readings:

Henry Kissinger, On China, “Chinese Realpolitik and Sun Tzu’s Art of War,” pp. 22-32.

Strategy: Key Thinkers, “Hearing the Thunder” Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, excerpts.

(http://www.sonshi.com/learn.html)

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 4 (“Sun Tzu’s The Art of War”)

Discussion Questions

Can The Art of War best be read as a cultural artifact of a particular time and place OR as a compendium of timeless strategic truths?

If the latter, what timeless strategic truths does it illuminate?

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Tuesday, February 10 The Enduring Relevance of Sun Tzu

Readings:

Warner, Michael. “The Divine Skein: Sun Tzu on Intelligence.” Intelligence and National Security 21, no. 4 (Aug. 2006): 483-492.

The Art of War – Chapter 13: Using Spies (http://www.sonshi.com/sun13.html)

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 5 (“Sun Tzu Through Time”)

Discussion Questions

In what ways are Thucydides and Sun Tzu similar? Different?

To what extent does Bagby’s or Welch’s arguments regarding Thucydides apply to Sun Tzu?

To what extent can both Sun Tzu and Thucydides help us navigate today’s strategic environment?

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Thursday, February 12 Machiavelli – Strategic Thought in the Discourses on Livy

Readings:

Strategy: Key Thinkers, “Conquering Fortune” John M. Najemy, “Society, Class and State in

Machiavelli’s Discourses on Livy” (http://www.princeton.edu/politics/about/file-repository/public/The-Cambridge-Companion-to-Machiavelli-Chapter-6-.pdf)

Machiavelli’s Discourses on Livy, excerpts.

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 7 (“Machiavelli’s Discourses on Livy”)

Discussion Questions

What are Machiavelli’s principal contributions to strategic thought?

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MODULE 3 MODERN STRATEGIC THOUGHT – LAND Tuesday, February 17 The Napoleonic RMA – the Emergence ofModern War

Readings:

Strachan, “The Reality of War”, in Strachan, On War: A Biography

Paret, “Napoleon and the Revolution in War”, in Paret, Makers of Strategy

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 8 (“The Napoleonic Revolution in War”)

Discussion Questions

In what ways was the character of war transformed as a result of the French Revolution and Napoleon?

What were Napoleon’s greatest strategic insights and innovations?

Thursday, February 19 Jomini

Readings:

Azar Gat, “Chapter 5: The Napoleonic Age” in Gat, A History of Military Thought

John Shy, “Jomini” in Paret, Makers of Modern Strategy

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 9 (“Baron Jomini as a Strategist”)

Discussion Questions

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In what ways is Jomini similar to Sun Tzu and Machiavelli? In what ways is he different?

What historical, cultural or social forces shaped Jomini’s strategic thought? To what extent is he a product of his times?

Tuesday, February 24 Clausewitz

Readings:

Strachan, “The Writing of On War”, in Strachan, On War: A Biography

Azar Gat, “Chapter 8: Clausewitz” in Gat, A History of Military Thought

Bassford, “The Primacy of Policy and the ‘Trinity’ in Clausewitz’s Mature Thought” in Strachan and Herberg-Rothe (eds.), Clausewitz in the Twenty-First Century

Clausewitz, “Concepts” in Freedman, War.

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 10 (“Clausewitz’s On War”)

Discussion Questions

To what extent is Clausewitz a theorist of 19th centurywar? To what extent do his views reflect his particular (military and national) culture?

If you had to specify three key Clausewitzian concepts,what would they be?

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Thursday, February 26 The Enduring Relevance of Jomini and Clausewitz

Readings:

Echevarria, “Clausewitz and the Nature of the War on Terror” in Strachan and Herberg-Rothe (eds.), Clausewitz in the Twenty-First Century

Herberg-Rothe, “Clausewitz and a New Containment”, in Strachan and Herberg-Rothe (eds.), Clausewitz in the Twenty-First Century

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 11 (“Jomini and Clausewitz Through the Ages”)

Discussion Questions

Who is a better guide to strategy: Clausewitz or Jomini?

MID-TERM EXAM

MODULE 4 MODERN STRATEGIC THOUGHT – SEA

Tuesday, March 3 The Sea Power Revolution

Readings:

Strategy: Key Thinkers, ch. 5

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 12 (“From Sail to Steam”)

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Discussion Questions

What were the key strategic implications of the transition from sail to steam?

What three strategic maxims would you argue derived from this transformation?

Thursday, March 6 Mahan

Readings:

Sprout, “Mahan: Evangelist of Sea Power” Crowl, “Alfred Thayer Mahan: The Naval Historian” in

Paret, Makers of Modern Strategy Mahan, excerpts.

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 13 (“Alfred Thayer Mahan”)

Discussion Questions

What forces shaped Mahan’s strategic thought? Does Mahan’s thought derive in any way from the

thinking of Thucydides, Sun Tzu, Machiavelli or Clausewitz or is his maritime strategic theory something entirely new?

Did the Russo-Japanese war validate Mahan’s theories? Is Mahan relevant to contemporary strategic thinkers?

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Tuesday, March 10 Corbett

Readings:

Julian Corbett, Command of the Sea, in Freedman, War, ch.64.

TBD

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 14 (“Sir Julian Corbett”)

Discussion Questions

Was Corbett a Clausewitzian? In what ways did his views differ from Mahan’s? To what extent was Corbett a product of his times? Does he have anything to say to us about contemporary

strategic challenges/realities?

Thursday, March 12 The Enduring Relevance of Mahan and Corbett

Readings:

James, “American and Japanese Strategies in the PacificWar”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P4sOH5JBXE

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 11 (“Mahan, Corbett and the Pacific War”)

Discussion Questions

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How would Mahan and Corbett critique Japanese and American strategy in the Pacific War?

How are Mahan and Corbett relevant to contemporary American debates regarding the “pivot” to the Pacific?

MODULE 5 MODERN STRATEGIC THOUGHT – AIRPOWER AND NUCLEARSTRATEGY

Tuesday, March 24 The Classical Air Power Theorists

Readings:

MacIsaac, “Voices from the Central Blue: The Air Power Theorists” in Paret, Makers of Strategy.

Giulio Douhet, “Command of the Air” in Freedman, War.

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 16 (“Air Power in Theory and Practice”)

Discussion Questions:

What are the basic assumptions and principles of classical airpower theory?

Did this theory evolve out of older strategic traditions or was it a radical departure from those traditions?

Were these assumptions and principles validated or invalidated during WWII?

Thursday, March 26 The Sources of Air Power Theory

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Readings:

Gat, A History of Military Thought, pp. 521-530 and 561-597.

Discussion Questions:

Was classical airpower theory a rational response to objective military-strategic conditions/challenges or an artifact of powerful cultural forces?

Tuesday, March 31 The Enduring Relevance of Classical Air Power Theory

Readings:

Lofgren, 21st Century Air Power Theorists, (file:///Users/Latham/Downloads/ADA442423.pdf)

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 17 (“Rolling Thunder to Instant Thunder”)

Discussion Questions:

How, if at all, are classical airpower theories relevant to the contemporary (early twenty-first century) military-strategic environment?

Enumerate what you consider to be three enduring principles of airpower theory.

Thursday, April 2 No Class Today

Tuesday, April 7 Classical Nuclear Strategy

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Readings:

Strategy: Key Thinkers, “The Once and Future Atom” Brodie, “The Absolute Weapon” in Mahnken and Maiolo,

Strategic Studies: A Reader Schelling, “The Threat That Leaves Something to

Chance” in Freedman, War: A Reader. Sokolovsky, “Soviet Strategy” in Freedman, War: A

Reader.

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 18 (“Nuclear Strategy”)

Discussion Questions:

To what extent are classical theories of nuclear strategy products of a specific cultural milieu?

To what extent do they represent a logical evolution ofclassical airpower theory?

Do classical theories of nuclear strategy remain relevant today?

MODULE 6 MODERN STRATEGIC THOUGHT – COUNTER/INSURGENCY AND COUNTER/TERRORISM

Thursday, April 9 Insurgency

Readings:

Strategy: Key Thinkers, “The Weak Against the Strong.” Heuser, “From Partisan War to People’s War” in Heuser, The

Evolution of Strategy

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Mao, “Problems of Strategy in China’s Civil War” in Mahnken and Maiolo, Strategic Studies: A Reader

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 19 (“Mao in Theory and Practice”)

Discussion Questions

Was Mao a Clausewitzian? What, if any, are the enduring principles of Maoist

strategic thought?

Tuesday, April 14 Counter-Insurgency

Readings:

Heuser, “Counterinsurgency” in Heuser, The Evolution of Strategy Kilcullen, “Counterinsurgency Redux”

(http://www.boekje-pienter.nl/images/coin-davidkilcullen-counterinsurgencyredux.pdf)

Gray, “Concept Failure?” (http://cco.dodlive.mil/files/2014/02/prism17-32_gray.pdf)

The Battle of Algiers (film) available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeMWdueGTZ4

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 20 (“Classics of Counterinsurgency”)

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Discussion Questions

What are the key principles of classical counterinsurgency strategy?

What are the key principles of counter-insurgency? Whose strategic thought is more relevant to counter-

insurgency: Sun Tzu’s or Clausewitz’s?

Thursday, April 16 Terrorism

Readings:

Neumann and Smith, “Strategic Terrorism: The Framework and its Fallacies” in Mahnken and Maiolo, Strategic Studies:A Reader

“Terrorism and Strategic Theory,” in Neumann and Smith,The Strategy of Terrorism: How it Works, and Why it Fails

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 22 (“Terrorism as a Strategy”)

Discussion Questions

What are the assumptions underpinning classical terrorist strategy?

To what extent is contemporary Jihadist (AQ, ISIS, etc.) violence reflective of classical terrorist strategic theory?

Tuesday, April 21 Counter-Terrorism

Readings:

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Echevarria, “Clausewitz and the Nature of the War on Terror” in Strachan (ed.), Clausewitz in the Twenty-First Century.

Cronin, “US Grand Strategy and Counterterrorism” (http://spgia.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/PDFs/Audrey_Kurth_Cronin/Grand_Strategy_and_CT_Orbis_Cronin.pdf)

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 23 (“Strategies of Counterterrorism”)

Discussion Questions

What are the key elements of counterterrorism strategy? How might these be employed against contemporary forms

of terrorism?

MODULE 7 STRATEGIC THOUGHT IN THE TWENTY FIRST CENTURY

Thursday, April 23 The Prospects for Strategic Thought in the 21st Century

Readings:

Strachan, “The Lost Meaning of Strategy” in Mahnken andMaiolo, Strategic Studies: A Reader.

Freedman, “Does Strategic Studies Have a Future?”, in Baylis, et. al., Strategy in the Contemporary World

In-Class Video:

Masters of War, Lecture 24 (“Strategic Adaptation”)

Discussion Questions

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Does strategic thought remain relevant in the early 21st century?

Tuesday, April 28 Strategic Principles for the Twenty-First Century

Discussion Questions:

What are the 10 timeless principles of strategic thought?

Thursday, April 30 US Grand Strategy in the Early Twenty-First Century

Readings:

Hal Brands, The Promise and Pitfalls of Grand Strategy

http://strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?pubID=1121

Kennedy, “American Grand Strategy Today and Tomorrow” in Kennedy, Grand Strategies in War and Peace.

In-Class Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKFHe0Y6c_0

Discussion Questions:

Based on the 10 principles developed above, what shouldUS grand strategy look like in the early 21st century?

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FINAL EXAM

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