Course Syllabus HIS301G Evolution of the International ...The course analyses international relations and diplomacy, and the causes of war and crisis. Course prerequisites (if any)

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VESALIUS COLLEGE

Course Syllabus HIS301G

Evolution of the International System, 1914-1989

Contact Details for professor Michel Huysseune

Tel: +32 (0) 2 614 81 90

E-mail: [email protected]

Classes

Monday 13.30-15.00 and Wednesday 10.00-11-30

Room Veco1

Office hours and location

Monday and Wednesday 11.30-12.30 open office space

Course Description

This course introduces students to the principal events, actors and dynamics that shaped

the international system in the 20th

century. The course takes off at the beginning of the

First World War and ends at the falling of the Berlin Wall in 1989, although links to the

period preceding the First World War and more recent events will be made. In order to

understand the balances of power, we shall see how political life was organized in the

world’s greatest nations. The course analyses international relations and diplomacy, and

the causes of war and crisis.

Course prerequisites (if any)

HIS 101P

Learning Objectives

Knowledge (cognitive level)

- Acquire the knowledge and skills required for understanding, analyzing and

assessing core processes, complex dynamics, major actors and key challenges of

contemporary history

- Ability to explain the key events in 20th

century diplomacy

- Understanding relevant historical controversies on contemporary history

- Understanding of the background and evolution of international organizations like

the League of Nations, UN, NATO and EU

- Understanding the relation between historical events and contemporary global

problems and challenges

- Understanding the historical roots of the different characteristics of the

international system as we know it today.

Skills

- To increase the capacity for close reading and critical interpretation of historical

texts

- To acquire an in-depth acquaintance with a specific topic related to the course and

to able to analyze and critically evaluate it on the basis of a broad range of information

sources and academic literature

- The general ability to critically compare, contrast and synthesize the theories and

concepts discussed in the course and to apply them in a creative manner to conceptual

debates and real-life global problems

- To manage to draft autonomously a 5,000 words paper that includes a critical

reading and an independent, theory-grounded analysis of a topic related to the course.

Attitudes

- To acquire a passion for life-long learning, commitment to one’s work and the

ability to be open and critical towards one's own and others' perspectives

- To acquire through the close reading, contextualization and comparison of text an

international mind-set, multicultural openness and a strong capacity for interaction and

networking in a variety of professional and cultural settings (including networking skills).

Course Materials

Textbook:

Anthony Best, Jussi Hanhimäki, Joseph Maiolo, Kirsten Schulze: International

History of the Twentieth Century and Beyond. 2nd

revised edition, Routledge,

2008, 613 p, and further readings indicated in the course schedule.

Course schedule

Week 1: 24 - 28 August

- Introduction

Course and assignment explanation

- The First World War and Versailles (1)

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 1, pp. 5-31.

Guiding questions:

- What are the long-term causes of the First World War?

- What are the immediate origins of the First World War?

Suggestion for further readings: Christopher J. Bartlett, Peace, War and the European

Powers, Basingstoke, 1996; Roger Bulle, The Great Powers and the European State

System, 1815-1914, London, 2004.

Week 2: 31 August - 4 September

First and second lesson:

- The First World War and Versailles (2)

- International diplomacy after Versailles

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 2, pp. 32-57. Michel Huysseune, “Nationalism and Identity

Politics in International Relations”, in: (Jarrod Wiener Ed.), International Relations,

Encyclopedia of Institutional and Infrastructural Resources, Unesco Encyclopedia Of Life

Support Systems (EOLSS), 2002, on the web at http://www.eolss.net/E1-35-toc.aspx. (12

pages) William P. Bottom, “Keynes’ Attack on the Versailles Treaty: A Study of the

Consequences of Bounded Rationality, Framing, and Cognitive Illusions”, 2003, at

http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.203.1462&rep=rep1&type=pdf

(45 pages)

Guiding questions:

- What kind of changes did international diplomacy undergo during and after the

First World War?

- What were the the impact of the Wilson doctrine and of communism on the

International System?

- Why is the Versailles Treaty generqlly evaluated as a failure?

Suggestion for further readings: David Stevenson, The First World War and International

Politics, Oxford, 1991.

Week 3: 7-11 September

First lesson: - The Path to European War in the 1930s

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 7, pp. 155-187; Ian Kershaw, Hitler and the Uniqueness of

Nazism, Journal of Contemporary History, 2004, 39 (1), pp. 239-254.

http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.203.1462&rep=rep1&type=pdf

Guiding questions:

- Can Hitler (his personality, his political ideas) really be considered the main

“cause” of the Second World War?

- Why did other powers hesitate to tackle Hitler?

Suggestion for further readings: Philip Bell, The Origins of the Second World War in

Europe, London, 2007; Gordon Martel (ed.), The Origins of the Second World War

Reconsidered, London, 1992.

Second lesson:

- The Second World War


Guiding questions:

- Why did the Allies win the Second World War?

- What was the impact of the experience of the Second World War on the collective

security system set up after the War?

Suggestion for further readings: M.R.D. Foot, The Oxford Companion to World War II,

Oxford, 1995.


First lesson:

- The beginning of Cold War (1)

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 9, pp. 216-245; Michael Cox, From the Truman Doctrine to

the Second Superpower Detente: The Rise and Fall of the Cold War, Journal of Peace

Research, 1990, vol. 27 (1), pp. 25-41.

Guiding questions:

- Was the Cold War inevitable?

Suggestion for further readings: John L. Gaddis, We Now Know: Rethinking Cold War

History, New York, 1997.

Second lesson:

From Cold War to Détente


Guiding questions:

- Which dynamics contributed to engender “détente”?

- Which dynamics contributed to the failure of “détente”?

Suggestion for further readings: Raymond Garthoff, Détente and Confrontation,

Washington DC, 1994.


First lesson:

- The end of the Cold War (2)


Guiding questions:

- Why did the Soviet Bloc collapse?

Suggestion for further readings: Raymond Garthoff, The Great Transition: American-

Soviet Relations at the End of the Cold War, Washington DC, 1994.

Second lesson:

The rise of a new Europe

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 21, pp. 501-521. Desmond Dinan, Ever Closer Union, Qn

Introduction to European Integration, Boulder, Linne Riener, 2005, Chapter 1, pp. 11-38

Guiding questions:

- How can we explain that European integration became possible after the Second

World War?

Suggestion for further readings: John Gillingham, European Integration 1950-2003,

Cambridge, 2003.

Week 6: 28 September-2 October


- The European colonial empire and decolonialization in Africa

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 4 and 17, pp. 81-106 & 404-428¸ Tejumola Olaniyan,

“Africa: Varied Colonial Legacies”, in: Henry Schwarz and Sangeeta Ray (eds) A

Companion to Postcolonial Studies, Oxford, Blackwell, 2005, pp. 269-281.

Guiding questions:

- Which are the factors (internal and external) that contributed to the rise of anti-

colonial politics?

- Up to which point are the problems African countries face still legacies from

colonialism?

Suggestion for further readings: Robert Holland, European Decolonization 1918-

1981,Basingstoke, 1985. Peter Calvocoressi, Independent Africa and the World, London,

1985.

Week 7: 5-9 October

Mid-term exam

Week 8: 12-16 October


- The Far East Between the Wars and After World War II

Read: Best, et.al, chapters 3 and 10, pp. 58-80 & 247-270; Shogo Suzuki, “The

importance of ‘Othering’ in China’s national identity: Sino-Japanese relations

as a stage of identity conflicts”, The Pacific Review, 2007, Vol. 20 (1), pp. 23–47.

Guiding questions:

- Which were the local and global power dynamics in the Far East Before World

War II?

- How did the Second World War and its outcome determine the post-war political

dynamics in the Far East?

Suggestion for further readings: Akira Iriye, The Origins of the Second World War in

Asia and the Pacific, London, 1987.


First lesson:

The Vietnam War


Guiding questions:

What explanation can be given for the failure of the various foreign interventions in

Vietnam, notwithstanding the economic and military might of the forces that intervened?

Suggestion for further readings: William J. Duiker, Sacred War: Nationalism and

Revolution in a Divided Vietnam, New York, 1978, Stanley Karnow, Vietnam: A History,

New York, 1983.

Second lesson:

Neutralism and the rise of the Third World

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 13, pp. 315-334; Neil Larsen, “Imperialism, colonialism,

postcolonialism”, in: Henry Schwarz and Sangeeta Ray (eds) A Companion to

Postcolonial Studies, Oxford, Blackwell, 2005, pp. 21-52.

Guiding questions:

What are the reasons for the rise and the ultimate political failure of the non-aligned

movement? Did it have a broader ideological and cultural impact?

Suggestion for further readings: Peter Willets, The Non-Aligned Movement: The Origins

of a Third-World Alliance, London, 1978; Louise Fawcett and Yezid Sayigh eds, .The

Third World Beyond the Cold War, Oxford, 1999.


First lesson:

The Developmental States in Asia

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 14, pp. 335-356; Chalmers Johnson, “The Democratization

of South Korea: What Role Does Economic Development Play?”, Copenhagen Papers, 4,

2008, pp. 63-79.

Guiding questions:

- What are the reasons behind the economic successes of the “developmental

states”?

- What are the problematic features of their development model?

Suggestion for further readings: W.G. Beasley, The Rise of Modern Japan, London,

1990¸ A. Buso, The Making of Modern Korea, London, 2002.

Second lesson:

The Peoples’ Republic and North Korea


Guiding questions:

- Up to which point have Chinese politics been determined by ideology?

- Which other factors influenced Chinese foreign politics?

- Why has North Korea evolved in a completely different way from China?

Suggestion for further readings: Jonathan Spence, The Search for Modern China, New

York, 1999.

Fall recess: 2-6 November

Week 11: 9-13 November


The Israeli-Arab conflict and its historical roots (pre-War and post-War period)

Read: Best, et.al, chapters 5 and 18, pp. 107-132 & 428-455, Ilan Pappé, “Shtetl

Colonialism: First and Last Impressions of Indigeneity by Colonised Colonisers”, Settler

Colonial Studies, 2012, Vol. 2 (1), pp. 39-58.

Guiding questions:

- What are the geopolitical and cultural reasons that explain the emergence of this

conflict?

- Why does this conflict have such an intractable nature?

Suggestion for further readings: Mark Tessler, History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict,

Bloomington, IN, 1994; Ilan Pappé, A History of Modern Palestine: One Land, Two

Peoples, Cambridge University Press, 2004.


First and lesson:

The United States and Latin America

Read: Best, et.al, chapter 6 and 16, pp. 133-152 & 379-403. Max Paul Friedman,

“Soft Balancing in the Americas: Latin American Opposition to U.S. Intervention, 1898–

1936”, International Security, 2015, Vol. 40 (1), 120-156.

Guiding questions:

- Which evolutions have US policies towards Latin America and Latin American

reactions to US policies undergone in the 20th

century?

Suggestion for further readings: Peter H. Smith, Talons of the Eagle. Dynamics of US-

Latin American Relations, New York, 2002; Edwin Williamson, The Penguin History of

Latin America. London, 1992.


First:

- Political Islam


Second lesson:

- The War on Terror in a Historical Perspective


Guiding questions for both lessons:

- What are the elements that explain the rise of political Islam in its early years?

- What are the reasons that explain its recent prominence?

Suggestion for further readings: W. Montgomery Watt, Islam Political Thought,

Edinburg, 1968; John Esposito (ed), Political Islam, Boulder, CO, 1997.

Week 14: 30 November – 4 December

- rehearsal lesson and guest lecturer (TBD)

Week 15: 7-11 December

- Final exam

Course Assessment

The students will be evaluated on the basis of their performance as follows:

Midterm examination 30%

Final examination 30%

Term paper 40%

_____

TOTAL 100%

Grading Scale of Vesalius College

Vesalius College grading policy, in line with Flemish Educational norms, is as follows:

Grade Scale of 20 Scale of 100

A 17.0-20.0 85-100

A- 16.1-16.9 81-84

B+ 15.3-16.0 77-80

B 14.5-15.2 73-76

B- 13.7-14.4 69-72

C+ 13.1-13.6 66-68

C 12.3-13.0 62-65

C- 11.5-12.2 58-61

D+ 10.7-11.4 54-57

D 10.0-10.6 50-53

F Below 50 0-49

Further description of assessment activities and Grading Criteria

Term paper

Each student has to write a term paper, topics will be announced in the first week. The

student can suggest the professor another paper topic of his/her choice. However, the

professor has the right to accept or reject this suggestion.

a) Deadline for communicating the paper topic: Wednesday 16 September; deadline

for the paper: Wednesday 28 October 2015.

b) Required length of paper: 5,000 words (including references)

c) Papers need to be submitted through the anti-plagiarism software Turnitin.

d) All papers should have a title page (with your name, the course title, the paper

title, and a word count)

e) Pages should be numbered

f) The paper should include a separate list of references. Note that the paper should

in the first place be based on academic sources! Articles from newspapers and

journals (for example New York Times, Newsweek, …) or from Wikipedia may

not be used as a source, only to illustrate a specific point.

g) Make sure that referencing is uniform throughout the paper. You are free to use

the reference system you prefer, but should make sure that the references include

author, title, year of publication, publisher, place of publication, and page

numbers for articles; for references to websites you need to add the full web

address of the specific article or document you consulted and the date you

accessed the websites.

Grading criteria:

The paper will be evaluated on the following criteria:

a) Capacity to propose a well-reasoned and focused argumentation on an issue

throughout the paper. A well-structured paper includes an introduction stating the

purpose of the paper, and ends with a conclusion that refers back to the purpose

stated in the introduction.

b) Capacity to evaluate and interpret the historical significance of the topic chosen;

c) Capacity to contextualize the topic chosen, and in particular to locate it in its

relevant historical setting

d) Capacity to find and select relevant academic secondary literature on the

argument discussed, and to use this literature adequately in the paper. While the

use of other material than academic literature is not forbidden, it is crucial that the

core reflections of the paper are related to on-going academic debates. A too

exclusive reliance on non-scholarly sources will have a negative influence on the

grade of the paper.

e) A grammatically correct text in a well-structured paper

f) Clear documentation of your sources, with correct references. You are free to

choose your reference system, but you need to be systematic in its use. References

should always respect the principle that they should allow a reader to trace back

the book/article/internet article without problems. Internet sources should be

treated as other sources (author, title, date of publication need to be mentioned, if

not available mention that instead; you also need to include the full web-address

and date of access).

Grading criteria term paper

A- to A (16.1-20) B- to B+ (13.8-16) C- to C+ (11.5-13.7) F to D+ (0 to 11.4) Well-reasoned and focused argumentation, with good introduction and conclusion (graded on 20)

The paper is well-structured, with a clear introduction and conclusion, and is to the point without irrelevant digressions.

The paper is overall well-structured, but with some weaknesses in its internal coherence, or in the clarity of introduction and conclusion

The structure of the paper is not always coherent, and the introduction and conclusion are not well-focused

The structure of the paper is defective, the argument is presented in an incoherent way, no introduction or conclusion

Historical significance (graded on 20)

Demonstrates sophisticated and extensive understanding of the topic’s historical significance.

Demonstrates good understanding of the topic’s historical significance, may miss depth.

The paper displays only a moderate understanding of the topic’s historical significance.

Does not recognize, understand, or misinterprets the topic’s historical significance.

Historical setting (graded on 20)

Relevant historical setting identified and thoroughly analyzed in a sophisticated and well-structured fashion.

Relevant historical setting identified and competently described. No significant irrelevancies.

Relevant historical setting only adequately sketched with relevant information missing and/or including many irrelevant elements.

Relevant historical setting either missing or only sketched out in the most basic form.

Use of relevant academic secondary literature (graded on 20)

Paper is built upon a good selection of relevant, high-quality secondary literature (at least 15), displaying diversity both in opinions and in background, which are well-used in the paper

1

Predominantly relevant, high-quality secondary literature (12 to 14 sources), with enough diversity both in opinions and in background, in general well-used in the paper

Has an adequate number of sources (at least 10), but not all of these sources are relevant, and they do not display enough diversity both in opinions and in background, and are not always well used.

Inadequate (less than 10) number of academic secondary literature, not well chosen and lacking diversity; relies predominantly on non-scholarly sources.

Referencing (graded on 10)

Correct and complete references, in a coherent style

A small number of inconsistencies or of incomplete references

Several inconsistencies or incomplete references

Predominantly incomplete references, no coherence in reference style

Language (graded on 10)

Correct, with a minimal amount of grammar and spelling errors

Some grammar and spelling errors, and/or use of colloquial language

Frequent grammar and spelling errors, and/or use of colloquial language

Paper characterized by systematic grammar and spelling errors, and/or use of colloquial language

Exams:

Both midterm and final exams will consist out of several open questions, in which the

student is expected to give the analysis of a key event in 20th

century history.

The final exam only focuses on post-midterm material.

1 In writing on recent events, the use of non-academic sources is legitimate (e.g. media sources), for general information on a topic the use of Wikipedia is acceptable. These sources, however, will not be included in the count of relevant sources.

Criteria for assessment of exam questions

A (17-20) B-A- (14,5-16.9) C-B- (12,3-

14,5) D-C- (10-12,2) F (0-9,9)

Completeness The answer correctly addresses the question, giving all the key components required.

Some omissions or errors in providing the key components of the answer

The answer sufficiently addresses the question but has substantial errors and/or omissions in of the key components.

The answer is incomplete and fails to address the question. Several key components missing.

The answer is left in blank or altogether fails to address the question.

Formulation of answer

The answer is well-structured, formulated in a clear language, and is to the point without irrelevant digressions.

2

Some flaws in the formulation of the answer and/or unnecessary and irrelevant digressions.

The answer is formulated in an imprecise way and/or several unnecessary and irrelevant digressions.

The answer is formulated in a very incoherent way and is difficult to understand, and/or many unnecessary and irrelevant digressions. .

The answer is formulated in an un-understandable way.

Additional course policies

Students are encouraged to participate in debate during class. Preferable the chapters in

the textbook are read in advance.

All papers and abstracts must handed in through turnitin.

Late papers will not be accepted unless the student has a legitimate reason and has

contacted the professor in advance.

Academic Honesty Statement

Academic dishonesty is NOT tolerated in this course.

Academic honesty is not only an ethical issue but also the foundation of scholarship.

Cheating and plagiarism are therefore serious breaches of academic integrity.

2 Elements that are in relation with the answer and are correctly reproduced, although not necessary, can be included.

Following the College policy, cheating and plagiarism cases will be communicated in

writing to the Associate Dean and submitted to the Student Conduct Committee for

disciplinary action.

If you refer to someone else’s work, appropriate references and citations must be

provided. Grammar, spelling and punctuation count, so use the tools necessary to correct

before handing in assignments.

Course Syllabus HIS301G Evolution of the International ...The course analyses international relations and diplomacy, and the causes of war and crisis. Course prerequisites (if any)

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