THE SOUTHERN SHORE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN: A DEEP INSIGHT

This course deals with the historical, political, economic and social processes in the Southern Shore of the Mediterranean. It is intended to provide an analysis of the regional politics of the MENA region, and of their interaction with problems of international security, regional polarity and great power politics. Some fundamental themes will be the Sunni-Shia rift; the birth of modern states in the MENA and the rise of political Islam in the region; the interplay of domestic politics, regional conflicts and international rivalries; the new Middle Eastern Cold War and the foreign policies of major players in the region; the growing presence of China and the reconfiguration of the regional polarity following the so-called Arab Spring uprisings.

The objective of this course is to give students a more nuanced and complete understanding of the MENA region, its states, and its peoples. Specifically, the course provides the basic tools for the knowledge of the history of the Middle Eastern and North African states, with particular reference to the study of the regional security and political issues. At the end of the course, students will have acquired the analytical tools and knowledge necessary to understand the main features of the political, social, and cultural history of the modern MENA. In addition, students will have the opportunity to develop their own professional thinking in this field. Students will acquire a top-down and a bottom-up perspective on the major historical processes and developments in the modern MENA; to evaluate and compare between events and processes across the time; and begin to offer a critical view of the academic literature.

Different profiles will be considered by teacher in accordance with the criteria followed for MIM admissions.

Part I Roots

- an introduction to the roots of the Sunni-Shia rift (fitna);
- the age of the Empires;
- the sectarianization process and the identity politics.

Part II Developments

- The mandates and the birth of the modern MENA;
- Nasser, pan-arabism and the Arab Cold War;
- the awaking of political Islam;
- the enlargement of regional borders.

Part III Current scenarios

- The MENA multipolarity;
- The players: KSA, Turkey, Iran, and Egypt;
- The external actors: US, China and Russia;
- The main crisis: Libya, East-Med, and the Red Sea.

REQUIRED TEXT:

- Peter Mansfield, A History of the Middle East (4th Edition), London: Penguin Books, 2013.
- Federico Donelli, Le due sponde del Mar Rosso. La politica estera degli stati mediorientali nel Corno d’Africa, Milano: Mondadori Università, 2019. [Only Ch. 2, 4, 5].

To choose one of the following texts as Reading:

-Carlo Degli Abbati, Il radicalismo nel mome dell'Islam. Una responsabilità condivisa?, Roma: Aracne Editrice, 2015.
- Nader Hashemi, Danny Postel (eds.), Sectarianization: Mapping the New Politics of the Middle East, Oxford: OUP, 2017.
- Raymond Hinnebusch, Adham Saouli (eds.), The War for Syria: Regional and International Dimensions of the Syrian Uprising, London: Routledge, 2019.
- Mark Lynch, The New Arab Wars: Uprisings and Anarchy in the Middle East, Washington, Public Affairs, 2017.
- Federico Donelli, Sovranismo islamico. Erdogan e il ritorno della grande Turchia, Roma: Luiss University Press, 2019.
- Fred Halliday, The Middle East in International Relations: Power, Politics and Ideology, Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Reading materials might be provided on the class website.
The use of the historical maps is highly recommended.

Student grades will be calculated using the following criteria:

Attendance and Class Performance 10%
Mid-term exam 40%
Final essay 50%
Total 100%

Midterm exam: Students will answer to multiple choice questions about the topics covered during classes.
Final examination: Essay (research paper)

Frontal lessons. Frequent interactions between teacher and students

English

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "International cooperation" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development