Why do you think the two actors you picked are comparable, whether based on similarities or differences? What were the conditions on the ground that gave rise to political violence in your two cases? How did both the insurgent and counterinsurgent actors react to them, take advantage of them, and/or assign blame?

Readings: Introducing Comparative Politics: The Essentials by Stephen Orvis and Carol Ann Drogus ISBN 978-1506385693

Assignment: write a short (500 – 1,000 word) essay comparing two of the four armed political actors we have studied in the political violence section of our course. Pick any two of the following:

• (Provisional) Irish Republican Army (IRA) (Northern Ireland)
• Tamil Tigers (LTTE) (Sri Lanka)
• National Liberation Front (FLN) (Algeria)
• Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) (Colombia)

Comparing the two, explain what you see as similarities and differences between them in terms of the causes, tactics, and outcomes of political violence. Consider both the opportunities for violence and the interests of the actors on all sides. What general conclusions can you draw? Some questions you might consider when writing your essay:

• Why do you think the two actors you picked are comparable, whether based on similarities or differences?
• What were the conditions on the ground that gave rise to political violence in your two cases? How did both the insurgent and counterinsurgent actors react to them, take advantage of them, and/or assign blame?
• What were the interests of the insurgent groups? What motivated them to take up arms, what did they hope to accomplish, and why did they succeed or not?
• Finally, what does your comparison of these two cases teach us about political violence?

Format: This is a short essay meant to be analytical. Thus you do not need to structure it as a formal political science paper with a hypothesis and hypothesis test. Be concise and do not waste space; assume your reader has done the same readings and videos that you have, and thus you only need to reference specifics from the readings and videos. Your minimum will be measured by word count, not page count, however you should format the paper normally: double spaced in 12 point font (Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri) with 1 inch margins all around. Write no less than 500 words, and feel free to write more, but no more than 1,200 words.

Grading: You will be graded on your ability to analyze and make comparisons between cases, and draw conclusions. Do not simply restate chronologies of events, or copy explanations of the textbook. Rather, use the framework the textbook provides and apply specific facts and examples about each conflict to show why certain opportunities and interests are present in one or both cases, and explain why and what this means for how we can better understand the causes of political violence.