Welcome to Origins

In each monthly issue of Origins, an academic expert will analyze a particular current issue –political, cultural, or social –in a larger, deeper context.  In addition to the analysis provided by each month’s feature, Origins will also include images, maps, graphs and other material to complement the essay. 

We hope that Origins will help you understand the world more fully, and that it will prompt you to think, debate, and learn.  The final goal of Origins is to make us all more informed, engaged citizens.  As the American philosopher John Dewey wrote, “History which is not brought down close to the actual scene of events leaves a gap.”  We hope Origins will help fill that gap, and we hope you enjoy what you find.

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Last Month: Playing Politics: Olympic Controversies Past and Present

The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games have already generated a great deal of political controversy around the world. Protesters have used the Olympic torch relay as a stage from which to protest China’s human rights record, and in response Chinese activists have denounced the protests. This month, historian Al Senn of the University of Wisconsin -- the foremost American historian of the Olympics – reminds us that the Olympics are no stranger to politics and he puts these current controversies in historical context.

July: What's in a Name?: The Meaning of 'Muslim Fundamentalist'

Ernest Hemingway and George Orwell both described the way politics and war involve the struggle over the control of language. They remind us that language shapes in powerful and subtle ways the way we understand and respond to politics and military crises. In the spirit of these writers, David Watt examines the term 'muslim fundamentalist' to ask whether it is useful in describing the current political and cultural landscape or whether it obscures as much as it clarifies.

June: Taiwan's 2008 Elections: A New Direction for the 'Other China'?

The recent Presidential elections in Taiwan brought to office Nationalist Party leader and Harvard-educated lawyer Ma Ying-jeou, who promises to set Taiwan on a path of much closer economic and political ties with mainland China. As Taiwan strives to bolster its democracy, enhance its economic competitiveness, negotiate coexistence with the mainland, and confront local nationalist unrest, Christopher A. Reed explores the historical trends in Taiwanese politics that have brought the tiny island nation to this turning point.

May: (Fore)Closing on the American Dream

In light of the current mortgage crisis, the American Dream of homeownership for some people has become an unreachable goal, and for others, a nightmare. Ph.D. candidate at Ohio State University, Lawrence Bowdish, will illustrate the history of the mortgage market and its problems, and why the consequences of that history makes so many homeowners vulnerable today.

April: Beyond “Tribes”: Violence and Politics in Kenya

The violence and turmoil that overtook Kenya in the wake of the disputed December 2007 Presidential elections came as a surprise to many in the world, as Kenya has long been viewed as a source of stability on the African continent. Claire Robertson, a historian of Kenya and an active fund raiser for Kenyan development projects, explores the historical roots of the contemporary strife and the problem of using 'tribes' to explain the conflict.

March: After Putin? Russia's Presidential Elections

Under the leadership of Vladimir Putin since 2000, Russia has become ever richer, ever stronger on the world stage, and increasingly restrictive at home. Now that Putin's term as President is up, Marlene Laruelle offers insight into the upcoming March Presidential elections and what the future holds for Russia at home and around the world.

February: The Second Amendment Goes to Court

Few issues divide Americans as thoroughly and angrily as gun control and the Second Amendment. With the Supreme Court agreeing to hear a Second Amendment case for the first time in almost seventy years, Saul Cornell takes a look at the issues at stake and the history of American interpretations of this Amendment, and offers some thoughts on the outcomes.

January: The Politics of International Adoption

While the phenomenon of adoption has existed for thousands of years, international adoption is relatively new. The Census Bureau has described in great statistical detail how the shape of the American family has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. This month, Peter Conn, Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania discusses the history and controversy of international adoption.

December: Conflict Termination: How to End—and Not to End—Insurgencies

A vast majority of Americans, according to recent polling, want an end to the Iraq war. The question, however, is how to end it. In this issue Professor Joe Guilmartin examines the 'endgame' of several 20th century conflicts to see what lessons we might learn.

November: Tradition vs Charisma: The Sunni-Shi'i Divide in the Muslim World

During the course of the war in Iraq, most Americans have become familiar with the terms 'Sunni' and 'Shia.' Few, however, have much sense of the historical origins of these two Islamic groups. In our second issue Professor Stephen Dale provides us with a primer.

October: Populism and Anti-Americanism in Modern Latin America

Scholars and policymakers alike have been concerned with a new trend in Latin American politics as of late: the anti-American populist. Most emblematic is Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who receives the bulk of media attention, but the phenomenon is not constrained solely to Venezuela.