HST117: The Making of the Twentieth Century
20 credits (semester 2)
Module Leader: Professor Bob Moore (2012-13). (TBC 2013-14)
| Module Summary |
This course looks back at key developments in the political, social and cultural history of the twentieth century. Its aim is to broaden students´ views of twentieth-century history by highlighting the ways in which barbarism and civilising forces went hand in hand in forging twentieth-century history. Rather than proceeding purely chronologically, this module focuses on a series of key themes that have shaped twentieth-century history, such as, for example, globalisation and fragmentation; revolutions; the political, social and cultural history of war; and democracy and mass politics. Each topic is introduced by a series of four lectures given by a subject specialist. An accompanying seminar programme allows for the in-depth discussion of specific issues and case studies.
| Teaching |
The course will be taught through twice-weekly lectures and compulsory weekly seminars.
| Assessment |
Two assessed essays. The word limit is 1,500 to 2,000 words, including footnotes, but excluding the bibliography. The marks for the essays will constitute 33% of the overall mark. A further 17% of your mark will be determined by your oral performance in seminars, for which attendance is compulsory; your tutor will explain the marking criteria. The remaining 50% of your overall mark will be derived from a two-hour unseen examination to be taken during the examination period 23rd May - 10th June 2011. You should note that you must pass both the coursework (essays plus oral assessment) and unseen examination components in order to pass overall. All assessment is subject to moderation by internal examiners.
| Selected Reading |
There is no single textbook for this course that deals with all the issues discussed. Eric Hobsbawm, Age of Extremes: The Short Twentieth Century, 1914-1991 (London, Abacus, 2000) is probably the best one-volume introduction.
Two paperback volumes are recommended as introductory and reference works for the module:
- Richard W. Bulliet, Columbia History of the Twentieth Century (New York: Columbia University Press, 1998) (recommended)
- Michael Howard and William Roger Louis ed., The Oxford History of the Twentieth Century (Oxford, 2000) (recommended)
Other texts which might be of some use in studying the period include:
- Mark Mazower, Dark Continent (London, 1999)
- David Reynolds, One World Divisible: A Global History since 1945 (London, 2000)
- J. M. Roberts, A History of the Twentieth Century (London, 2000)
- Bernard Wasserstein, Barbarism and Civilization. A History of Europe in Our Time (Oxford, 2007)
