Essential Readings in Comparative Politics is a reader designed to complement Essentials of Comparative Politics, but is sufficiently well-rounded to be used independently or in conjunction with almost any approach to the subject. Following the organization of Essentials of Comparative Politics the chapters are organized thematically around major topics. Each chapter generally begins with a classic or fundamental reading, and subsequent readings in the chapter take up different views and aspects of the topic. Like the corresponding textbook, Essential Readings in Comparative Politics does not seek to teach students specific facts about individual countries. Instead, it encourages a more truly comparative approach by helping students to understand theoretical issues that have implications for any number of actual political systems; past, present, and future. Read Less