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This course offers an introduction to the politics of contemporary Lebanon and Syria. It aims to go beyond the historical narration of facts and events and provide a broader overview of social issues and processes that underpin and structure political contestations in both countries. The course starts with a brief critical reflection on studying Middle Eastern politics, discussing the challenges of methodological nationalism and the applicability of standard Western Political Science concepts. The course will address the historical background, focusing mostly on the 20th century history and formation of Syria and Lebanon as distinct arenas of political conflict and particular political cultures. The course zooms in on several periods in the current history of both countries and uses them to discuss the wider issues that structure their politics (authoritarianism, political economy, sectarian power-sharing, non-state actors etc.). The course will conclude with a discussion of both countries from a comparative perspective and a reflection on the momentous changes that both countries are currently undergoing. Poslední úprava: Daniel Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.08.2026)
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Upon the completion of the course, students will have empirical knowledge of the political and social issues pertaining to contemporary Lebanon and Syria. They will be able to situate these issues within larger regional political and social processes and phenomena and will be able to analyze them in conceptual terms. Finally, students will familiarize themselves with some of the key scholarly and political debates on Lebanese and Syrian politics. Poslední úprava: Daniel Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.08.2026)
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Students shall come to the lectures prepared by reading the assigned texts. Please follow the Moodle page of the course, where you will find the core readings and the exercises. Attendance is compulsory, and students may miss up to 3 lectures to pass the course. Students are required to familiarize themselves with the assigned reading(s) before the class as the lectures directly build on the texts and use them for in-class discussions. Certain number of Moodle exercises (see below) based on the core readings for each lesson will be required. Furthermore, students will be required to prepare a brief presentation of a selected academic text, reflect on it, prepare set of questions to stimulate the discussion in the class and moderate it with the help of the lecturer. Finally, students will be required to submit a term paper (2,500 words) discussing one of the selected topics. Poslední úprava: Daniel Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.08.2026)
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Attendance: Attendance is compulsory, please provide a valid reason if you miss a class. Students are expected to actively contribute to the class discussions. Moodle exercises (20 %): For every class, students shall take a brief quiz (published on Moodle) focused on understanding the assigned readings. For each quiz, every student may receive up to 4 percent points. While quizzes will be posted for every class, with the exception of the first one, students need to answer only 5 quizzes to receive the full number of points. Filling in an extra quiz to add for missing points is permitted and only the highest score will be counted. Besides, students are also encouraged to add questions related to the class and readings. This requirement applies even to missed classes. The exercises are to be submitted by Tuesday preceding the class, 8 pm. Presentation (10 %): Each participant must prepare a short (max 10 min.) presentation of an assigned text and situate it into a broader academic and political debate on the given topic. Presenting students should not describe the text. Rather, they are expected to briefly summarize the main points, critically discuss them, and relate them to wider issues discussed within the class. The presentation should be concluded with questions posed to the class based on the text. These should provide a kick-off for the class discussion. Students are encouraged to approach the instructor before the presentation and consult the structure and main topics they want to highlight. Formulation of a research question and a short literature review (10 %): Each participant is required to prepare a short (ca. 300 words) review of the literature (ca. 5 scholarly texts) summarizing the state of the art on a particular issue, and that will lead into a question/argument that will be explored in the final essay. The text will form a basis for the final paper. The literature review should be submitted by the last seminar. Final paper (25 %): Each participant is required to prepare a final essay (ca. 2 500 words including references) related to the topic of the course. It is not possible to pass the course without submitting the final paper. The final paper will be graded according to its argumentation (25 % of the paper’s score), comprehensive and empirically correct grasp of the topic (30 % of the paper’s score), structure (25 % of the paper’s score), style (20 % of the paper’s score). The deadline for your final essay is January 15, 2027. Final exam (35 %): The final exam will take the form of open, essay-like questions covering the broader topics discussed in the course. The exam will be written by hand in class. Poslední úprava: Daniel Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.08.2026)
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Detailed syllabus and the readings can be found in Moodle - https://dl1.cuni.cz/course/view.php?id=10972.
1) Introductory meeting; 7.10.: How will we run the course 2) Formation of Modern Levant; 14.10.: Empires, Sects, Mandates and States 3) Lebanese State – Formation and Road to The Civil War; 21.10. 4) Lebanon – Civil War and Breakdown of the State; 4.11. 5) Syrian authoritarianism; 11.11.: Inner workings of the Baathist regime, transition of 2000s and road to revolution 6) Post-conflict Lebanon 25.11.: – Harirism, Political Cleavages of the Taif Regime, reverberations of Syrian Civil War in Lebanon 7) Syrian Civil War; 2.12.: From uprising to Civil War, Rise of Jihadism, Internationalization of the Conflict and Stalemate 8) Lebanese Crises; 9.12.: Security Crisis, Governance Crisis, Economic Crisis and October Uprising 9) Syrian Crises; 16.12.: Conflict stalemate; Economic Crisis, Cannibalization of the State 10) The New Political Orders; 6.1.: The Ascendance of HTS, The transformation of the Lebanese state Poslední úprava: Daniel Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (07.10.2026)
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