Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Advanced analysis of specific problems in social, intellectual, and political history of modern Russia. Content may vary from offering to offering; see course outline for further information. HIST 419W may be repeated for credit only when a different topic is taught. Writing.

COURSE DETAILS:

What was the so-called Cold War?  For much of the second half of the twentieth century, the world was often thought of as a kind of a geopolitical chessboard. In the late 1940s, following the Second World War, two countries with rival ideologies – the USA and the USSR – emerged as the dominant players, aka superpowers, and much of the rest of world was asked to line up on that chessboard either with one or the other. To be sure, the world was never truly bipolar – and as time went on, more and more countries asserted their agency in different ways.

In this seminar course, we will examine the Cold War – roughly from 1945 to 1989 – and focus on specific episodes as well as major trends, from multiple perspectives. The perspectives of Soviet and US leaders will surely be considered – but theirs will not be the only voices.  Our examination will involve primary sources, films as well as other media. Students will have an opportunity to conduct original research and satisfy the writing intensive requirement.  

Grading

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

REQUIRED READING NOTES: