Comment from Professor:

Comparative Politics is a field of study that systematically understands the political
systems of countries around the world by capturing their differences and similarities.
Comparative Politics 1 (Spring Semester) deals with democratic systems, where free
competition and participation are possible, but the majority of the world’s countries are
still non-democratic. Therefore, Comparative Politics 2 (Fall Semester) takes up various
authoritarian regimes such as military regimes, one-party rule, personal rule, religious
rule, and traditional monarchies. It explains their structures and mechanisms and
considers under what conditions democratization occurs or, conversely, authoritarianism
is maintained and strengthened. Furthermore, in this course, based on this knowledge,
students aim to gather information on countries and regimes they are interested in and
analyze their trends.

Class Interview

In this course, we classify non-democratic countries, which are distinct from democratic
countries like the G7, from multiple perspectives and compare different examples. Nondemocratic
countries currently make up about half of the world's nations. Even many
democracies have experienced this, but this reality is often overlooked. We aim to
understand the true nature of these countries, why they emerge, and the problems they
each face.
I am particularly interested in issues concerning immigrants and refugees, so I took this
course to gain deeper insight into the non-democratic countries from which they often
come. By attending this class, I realized that there are various types of non-democratic
states, each with different burdens and pressures on their citizens, and the need for casespecific
responses.
Political science classes are often perceived as conceptual and rigid, but through
examining footage of different countries, feeling the atmosphere of rule and the people,
and comparing various cases, complex historical flows become organized, and the unique
identities and characteristics of each country become clear. With each class, my
knowledge deepened, and my curiosity was piqued, which is the charm of this class.
What I have learned in this course helps me in defining my research topics. Additionally,
by comparing the differences among countries without being trapped by one perspective,
and accurately understanding and analyzing the issues faced by the international
community prove valuable when studying international politics or working in
international fields. This is a beneficial viewpoint that I aim to utilize in the future.
(Natsumi Matsunaga, Second-year student, Faculty of Global Studies)

While Comparative Politics 1 focuses on democratic systems, Comparative Politics 2
focuses on non-democratic systems. In our classes so far, we have learned about various
types of non-democratic regimes, using specific examples to examine their establishment
conditions, structures, and the possibilities of democratization.
In my freshman year, I took Professor Kishikawa's class on “Globalization and Political
Science” where I learned about the permeation of nation-states and waves of democracy.
That sparked my interest in the establishment processes of non-democratic regimes and
how they function as states, leading me to enroll in this course.
One of the attractions of this class for me is that I can reconsider my areas of interest
from a comparative political perspective by handling real examples from various
countries. Also attractive is the aspect that prompts us to think about the fundamental
character and political structures behind the decision-making in non-democratic regimes
in different countries.
(Second-year student, Faculty of Global Studies)

In this course, we will learn in detail about non-democratic regimes, such as
authoritarian states, which are currently on the rise in the international community. We
will classify and analyze the conditions under which these regimes are established and
maintained, and whether there is a possibility of democratization based on the “ideal
types”.
In the spring semester course “Globalization and Political Science”, I became interested
in non-democratic states and was most concerned with failed states. I took this course to
resolve my question on how to analyze these states within international politics where
being a sovereign state is a given assumption.
In this course, we are prompted to revisit our values towards democracy and think deeply
about what constitutes the most appropriate governance. Unlike other courses focusing
on Asia or the Middle East and Africa, we can learn about the political systems of wideranging
regions such as Latin America and Central Asia. Through comparative political
science, you can realize that seemingly different political systems have commonalities
and understand the diversity of international politics, which is the appeal of this class.
(Third-year student, Faculty of Global Studies)