The first assignment will be a classic 50-minute blue-book essay exam. You will be asked to write one longer essay (worth 60 points) in response to one of two prompt options I will give you and four short "identification essays" (worth 40 points). It is not an open-note exam. If you have special accommodations, please let me know in advance so we can set things up.
How to study. Make as many connections as you can among the key terms and between the key terms and the big themes. Also, see my nifty In-Class Essay Guide for more tips.
The test will ask you to write ONE essay from among the two prompts on the exam. 60 Points.
The epistemic crisis: it's causes and consequences.
The American Constitutional government, including the Congress, the presidency, local government, and federalism and how it differs from parliamentary systems. Consider the degree to which it allows the people to govern themselves/solve problems.
Ways the epistemic environment and the constitutional system may play a role in causing polarization.
The causes of inequality and policies to mitigate it.
Discipline of verification
Objectivity
Public forum (function of press, aka village square)
Tom Cotton op-ed
Moral Clarity
Nichole Hemmer (Book1, 10-14)
Social media algorithms
Ideological clustering
Eastern sensibility* (this is refers to the culture of the coastal elites)
Internet publishing
Cognitive dissonance
News deserts
Late-night comedy
Sneering condescension*
Verbal cruelty*
Motivated reasoning
Identity-protective cognition
Naive Realism
Science literacy paradox*
Polarizing effects of knowledge
Values diversity
Scientific reasoning skills
Jonathan Haidt
Moral Foundations Theory (68)
Partisans
Political hobbyism
Cosmopolitican wing (of the Democratic Party) (part of the eastern sensibility)*
Yard signs*
Wire services (EG, AP)*
Federalist Papers
James Madison
Supremacy clause (Article VI)
Federalism
Judicial review
Madison v. Marbury
Coalition governments
Proportional representation
Multiparty system
Parliamentary governments
Snap elections
Lame duckery
Gilens and Page
"Miracle at Philadelphia"
Senate
Filibuster
Cloture vote
Tea Party
Liberty Amendments
Majoritarians
Super-majority
Cooling saucer
Recess appointments
Single-member districts
Gerrymandering
Amendment procedure
Article II
Enumerated powers
Commander in chief
Unitary executive theory
Torture memos
Electoral College
Interregnum
Corrupt pardons
Runaway presidency
John Tyler
Shadow Cabinet
Signing statements
Lawfare
Merrick Garland
Both sidesism aka whataboutism*
Forbearance
Tolerance
Norm erosion
Ben Sasse
Power delegation
Sheldon Whitehouse
Partisan excursions
Federalist Society
Federalism
Wire services
Advertising (in newspapers)
News Deserts
*won't be on test
Charles Murray
Civil Culture
Fishtown
SuperZips
Single parenthood
Industriousness
Cultural separation
Unintended consequences
Social engineering
Nonjudgementalism
Gini Index (or coefficient)
Robert Putnam
Bowling Alone
Deindustrialization*
Privatization of risk
Grade-grubbing (Wendy)
Commonweal/civic obligation
Steve Fraser
Plutocrats
Neoliberalism
Technological determinism
Financial capitalism
(American political imagination vs privatized dissent*)
Stepan and Linz
Veto players
Meritocracy
College admissions scandal
(Varsity Blues scandal)
Aspiration critique
Principled critique
Daniel Markovits
Snowball inequality
Human capital
Compressed meritocracy
Second Bill of Rights
Necessitous men
(The test will take place in the Grainger auditorium in the Science Building.)
Do not leave the room. Use the bathroom before the test. If you leave the room during the test block, your test is over.
No electronic devices in your possession. Before the test begins give me your phone, smart watch and any other electronic device.
Sit in the blue seats.
Finish in the allotted time. It's a 50-minute exam. Keep track of the time. There will be a clock at the front of the room.