Intermediate

Prior to enrolling in courses at this language level, students must have completed or tested out of a minimum of two semesters (or three quarters) of college-level Spanish at their home university in the U.S.

Europe in the World

Language requirement: The student must be registered for Spanish II or have an equivalent level of Spanish.

DESCRIPTION AND GOALS

The course aims at giving a general view of the current role of Europe in the world. It will first provide a presentation of the European Union from the point of view of political integration as the main European actor in the international scenario. The institutional apparatus of the EU as one of the main recent experiments of social organization will later be addressed. Finally, after the review of its limits and external relations, the course will focus on the analysis of the role of Europe in cultural globalization phenomenon and world trade, i.e. the “European social and economical model”.

CONTENTS
1. What is the European Union?
2. How does the European Union work?
3. Geographical and cultural limits of Europe: enlargements
4. External relations
5. European economical and social model
6. Europe and socio-cultural globalization
7. EU Development policy
8. The EU in the world trade: between protectionism and liberalism
9. Conclusions: European Union: economic giant and political dwarf?

METHODOLOGY
This course will be based on the instructor’s theoretical explanations together with comment and discussion of texts by the students. Therefore, students will need to read and prepare the texts to be commented in class beforehand at home.

Students are expected to actively participate in the classes, and to prepare several assignments (written or oral) throughout the course. All this, together with the final exam, will determine the students’ final grade.

ASSESSMENT
The final grade will be calculated according to the following percentages:

Assignments and final project: 30%
Attendance and participation: 30%
Final exam: 40%

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Amin, Samir, El capitalismo en la era de la globalización, Paidós, Madrid, 1999.
Anisi, David, Creadores de escasez: del bienestar al miedo, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 1995.
Bhagwati, Jagdish, En defensa de la globalización, Arena Abierta, Barcelona, 2005.
Comisión Europea, El funcionamiento de la Unión Europea.
Guía del ciudadano sobre las instituciones de la Unión Europea, OPOCE, Bruselas, 2005
- Una potencia mundial. Las relaciones exteriores de la Unión Europea, OPOCE, Bruselas, 2004.
Dehesa (de la), Guillermo, Comprender la globalización, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2000.
- Quo Vadis Europa; Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2004.
Estefanía, Joaquín, ”El fenómeno de la globalización”, en: 10 palabras claves sobre la globalización, Editorial Verbo Divino, Navarra, 2002.
Fujii, Gerardo; Ruesga, Santos (Coords), El trabajo en un mundo globalizado, Pirámide, Madrid, 2004.
Gray, John, Falso amanecer: los engaños del capitalismo global, Paidós, Barcelona, 2000.
Hix, Simon, The Political System of the European Union, 2nd edition, Palgrave, New York, 2005.
McCormick, John, Understanding the European Union. A concise introduction, 3rd edition, Palgrave, New York, 2005.
Nugent, Neil, The government and politics of the European Union, 6th edition, Duke University Press, 2006.
Phinnemore, David; McGowan, Lee, A dictionary of the European Union, Europa, London, 2004.
Rifkin, Jeremy, El fin del trabajo, Paidós Estado y Sociedad, Barcelona, 1996.
Sebastián, Luis (de), ”Neoliberalismo”, en: 10 palabras claves sobre globalización, Editorial Verbo Divino, Navarra, 2002.
Stiglitz, Joseph, El malestar en la globalización, Taurus, Madrid, 2002.
Wallerstein, Immanuel, ¿Mundialización o época de transición? una visión a largo plazo del sistema-mundo, en: La globalización y sus crisis, La Catarata, Madrid, 2002.