POLT 236 - Rebellion and Revolution

HC SSCI

2 credits
On January 6, 2021, the US Capitol was breached for the first time since the War of 1812, when it was burned by the British in retaliation for an attack on the Canadian capital of York (now Toronto) by American troops. January 6 was different in a crucial way: The Capitol was ransacked not by foreign troops but by American citizens. Whether we call it an attempted coup, a thwarted rebellion or-as the article of indictment against President Trump called it, an “insurrection”-it was an attack on the constitutionally legitimate government to be led by President Biden. What are the natures, causes and purposes of rebellion and revolution? In this short course we will explore that question by reading closely the work of John Locke, Karl Marx, Hannah Arendt, Frantz Fanon and Albert Camus. We will also examine several declarations of rebellion/revolution in light of what we learn from those authors.