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As the inherent contradictions and weaknesses of democratic governance come under closer scrutiny, scholars and pundits alike question whether democracy is robust enough to manage to complex challenges of 21st century politics. A recent spate of scholarship argues that the Russian and Chinese examples of an authoritarian style of leadership present an increasingly viable alternative to democracy. But, just as with democracy, questions arise as to whether there are one or several paradigms for authoritarian government, and whether Russia and China incarnate new or distinct models for a democratic alternative. This course will explore that the current authoritarian paradigms for governance in Russia and China, paradigms that are neither new, nor multiple. Both nations have adopted authoritarian models that are surprisingly similar in their construction, despite their adaptation to specific local histories. Both models of authoritarianism have provided current leadership with shortcuts to great power status within a rapid timeframe. And both models fall far short of the nationally articulated project for democracy embodied in their constitutions, one that remains at odds with the realities of single-Party governance. This course will examine Russian and Chinese shortcuts to power in the political, economic and military spheres, according to the democratic standards set by their own national texts. While neither country is predisposed to authoritarian government, elite desire for great power status through a coordinated presence in the international arena has led to reoccurring transformations that largely resemble the traditions they claim to transform. In both cases, these shortcuts to great power status are nearly identical, despite historical dissimilarities and cultural distinctiveness.
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