Norway

This course introduces students to security policy and strategic thinking and to gives a thorough familiarity with the key concepts within this field. It combines theory and case studies and also covers the main actors and institutions in security governance (NATO, UN, US). The course opens with a theoretical focus on the scope of security studies and on approaches to its study. The scope then narrows to military security issues (security and defense proper), discussing the two types of conflicts, conventional and asymmetric. It seeks to streamline a theoretically focused approach to the empirical material, revisiting theory towards the end of the course. It also has a case on African conflicts and one on Norwegian security policy.

Game theory may be defined as the use of formal models in the study of strategic interaction. This course offers an introduction to game theory and its potential applications to the study of war. Game theory suggests at least three main sources of war. First, war may result from asymmetric information. Because countries may have incentives to misrepresent their military strength, they may be unable to settle a dispute peacefully. Second, commitment problems might result in war. If two countries want to settle a dispute peacefully but suspects that the other side is unlikely to abide with the terms of that settlement, they may resort to warfare. Finally, war could result when the main source of the dispute involves an indivisible good, so that a compromise is difficult or even impossible. The course places particular emphasis on explaining puzzles related to war in general and World War I in particular. Specifically, the course provides a primer in core issues concerning war, including (but not limited to): information problems; commitment problems; indivisibilities; arms races; coalition building; war termination; and differences between international and civil wars. The course recommends students have completed a course in international politics as a prerequisite.

The course provides an overview of Greek and Roman culture in the classical period. The emphasis is on history, literature, and mythology. The syllabus consists of both texts from antiquity in translation and modern literature on the subject. The course provides a professional basis for further study of antiquity, and at the same time addresses issues and problems around recent use of classical culture in Europe. The course discusses topics including important events, people, and developments in Greek and Roman history; recent interpretations and reuse of ancient culture; ancient literary genres and texts, and how these have been preserved; literary works through the reading of primary texts; important Greek and Roman myths and mythological figures; and antiquity as a historical period and its relevance in recent times.