Learning outcomes: after completing the course, students will have attained the following learning outcomes:
- knowledge of a relevant historical case study pertaining to the specialised topic;
- knowledge and understanding of the historical context of the specialised topic;
- knowledge of the theoretical discourse around the course topic;
- knowledge of methods relevant to the study of the course topic;
- knowledge of the latest scholarship: current historiographical issues;
- enhanced skills to conduct independent research on a historical topic on the basis of a research question formulated on their own and using historical sources;
- skills in the application of theories to historical material;
- skills in data analysis and use of requisite tools in a historical context;
- a skills set enabling them to think, act and communicate at an academic level and in line with academic standards of conduct ('academic integrity').
Learning objectives and skills: after completing the course, students will be able to:
- find and assess relevant scholarly articles and historical sources;
- independently define their own research topic that fits within the course topic;
- independently formulate a clear research question;
- conduct research based on primary and other sources and anchored in the historiography;
- independently plan and conduct research;
- critically analyse primary sources and literature in relation to the research question;
- draw scientifically valid conclusions and formulate well-founded viewpoints on the basis of secondary and primary literature;
- present the results of this research in writing at an academic level;
- assess research results in the light of the latest scholarship;
- give and receive feedback (peer review) on parts of research papers.
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This is the fourth course of Specialisation 2: Political Conflict in Modern Europe
(English track International Relations/History).
The twentieth century was the century of democracy. Democracy had defeated and discredited all its ideological rivals : fascism, Nazism and communism. However, this sentiment of democratic optimism has of late made place for doubts and concerns about fate and future of democracy. Journalists and scholars tell us that we are stuck in a ‘democratic crisis’, marked by the rise of populist movements, fractured parliaments, a growing gap between political elites and the people, and the demise of political parties.
However, this feeling of a democratic crisis is nothing new. Ever since the establishment of mass democracy in the aftermath of the First World War, democracy has appeared to be in constant crisis. In order to understand this paradox, this course investigates the history of twentieth-century democracy. Students learn about the threat that fascism, Nazism and communism posed to democracy in the Interwar period; the anti-system critique of social movements in the 1960s and 1970s; and the rise of populist parties in recent years. They conclude the course with an independent research paper, based on primary source material, of a key historical or current development, event, ideology, party or individual in the history of democracy since 1918. Examples of potential source materials include political pamphlets, propaganda materials from election campaigns and parliamentary debates or even newspaper articles and other contributions to public debate.
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