2022/23 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

HIST5720M Revolution and Rebirth: Eastern Europe and the USSR, 1985-99

30 creditsClass Size: 10

Module manager: Robert Hornsby
Email: r.hornsby@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2022/23

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

This module explores the collapse of communism and its aftermath in Eastern Europe and the former USSR during the 1980s and 1990s. The first part of the module examines the causes of collapse and the ways in which different revolutions played out during 1989-1991. The second part of the module looks at what came next as capitalist democracy was (almost everywhere) built on the ruins of communist dictatorship. This was a period not just of great change, but also one of high aspirations for the future, clashes of ideas and ideals, as well as a range of important continuities that spanned the ideological divide between the communist and post-communist eras.

Objectives

The purpose of this module is to familiarise students with a crucial period in which Europe and the wider world were dramatically re-shaped as communist regimes declined, collapsed and were then replaced in the likes of Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union. The module explores both causes and consequences of these revolutions, addressing subjects including national and ethnic struggles, political reforms, regime violence and public violence, legacies of communist rule, the creation of democratic institutions and economic and social change across the region.

Learning outcomes
On the completion of this module students will have:

1. Demonstrated deeper understanding of why and how communist regimes suddenly fell across the region, much to the surprise of almost all contemporary experts.

2. Critically evaluated approaches to the shifts from communism and dictatorship to capitalism and democracy and how they played out at both institutional and social levels.

3. Applied different historiographical approaches to the communist past and the fall of communist regimes, as well as different experiences of revolution and post-communism.

4. Analysed a range of primary source materials, including media coverage, video footage, images and regime-generated documents and integrated them into own work.

5. Drawn comparisons and contrasts from the experiences of one country to another, and from communist to post-communist periods across the region.

6. Honed skills in presenting, researching and discussing complex and sensitive issues still ‘live’ today.

7. Demonstrated the ability to apply fundamental standards and practices of historical study for research, discussion, and assessed work.

Syllabus

Topics may include the following: The communist world of the long 1970s; New Soviet thinking: Gorbachev, glasnost’ and perestroika; Peaceful revolutions of 1989: Poland, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia; Revolution in Ceausescu’s Romania; Independence struggles and ethnic conflicts in the USSR; War in the former Yugoslavia; The new democratic politics; Social and cultural history of 1990s post-communism; Living with the communist past: retribution and nostalgia

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Seminar	11	2.00	22.00
Private study hours			278.00
Total Contact hours			22.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			300.00

Private study

Preparatory reading for seminars to include own bibliographical searches to supplement tutor recommendations (55 hours)

Further self-directed reading (22 hours)

Independent research and writing of the essays (100 hours for 3,000-word essay, 70 hours for 1,500-word primary source commentary)

Independent research and preparation of the presentation and related materials (25 hours)

Reflection on feedback (6 hours).

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Students will receive formative feedback both through in-class discussions and through one-to-one discussions in office hours. Students will also receive tailored feedback (both in written form and in-person) on each piece of formal assessment (one presentation and two essays).

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay or Dissertation	Essay x1 (3000 words) due exam week 1	50.00
Literature Review	Primary source commentary x1 (1500 word) due week 7	30.00
Oral Presentation	15-20 minute presentation in class (plus slides/script)	20.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

A resit of the presentation if necessary may consist of a 1500-word essay.

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 12/05/2022 16:39:02

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