2018/2019

2018/2019

DM270

SPS/06 (HISTORY OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS)

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

WORLD POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

PERCORSO COMUNE

1°

1st semester (01/10/2018 - 14/12/2018)

12

80 lesson hours

English

ORAL TEST

POGGIOLINI ILARIA (titolare) - 3 ECTS
BERKOFSKY AXEL - 3 ECTS
ZACCARIA MASSIMO - 3 ECTS
ZAHORIK JAN - 3 ECTS

Access as stated in the requirements of the WPIR
Degree

This course is focused on the history of East/West relations from the late 1960s to the present day. Within this framework of analysis the main objective of the course is to familiarise students with the understanding of and discussion on transatlantic relations throughout the second and third phases of the Cold War and up to the present day. Achieving deep, critical knowledge of transatlantic relations in an historical perspective is the main objective of this module. Such knowledge will contribute significantly to the students' understanding of contemporary international relations whether they choose as profession: academia, diplomacy or the private sector with an international/global projection.

The first module of 20 hours will analyse transatlantic Relations from the 1970s to the Post Cold War era, building on concepts and methods for the study of international history and aiming at deepening the students' knowledge of trends, perceptions, fundamental issues and threats in transatlantic relations from détente to the present day. The course will deal with the following 3 main themes and identify selected case studies within them:
1) Post WW II Americanism and Anti-Americanism (this introductory part of the course is focused on the evolution of transatlantic relations from the post war era to the 1970s)
2) The transatlantic economic and security relationship (this section analyses the shift in transatlantic perceptions of international relations and 'burden sharing' on the two sides of the Atlantic, from the 1970s to the 1980s.
3) The transatlantic alliance in a post cold War global world (the final part of the course deals with the impact on European/American relations of both the globalisations of threats and the regionalisation of conflicts since the 1990s)
The second module of the course will analyse international relations and politics in Northeast and East Asia from the late 1950s to the present. Among others the following topics and areas will be analysed and covered: Sino-Chinese relations and the making and breaking of the China-Soviet Union alliance, the Korean War and its impact on Cold War politics, Chinese international policies and politics under Mao Zedong, the US role in Asian security /the US-Japan/US-South Korea security alliance, US- Soviet ideological confrontation in East Asia.

The course is based on a mixed system including lectures and assignments in view of class participation, focused on core subjects and facilitated by reading lists assigned to single students or groups of students.

M. P. Leffler and O. A. Westad, The Cambridge History of the Cold War , CUP 2010, Volume I, II and III
J Hanhimaki, B Schoenborn, B Zanchetta, Trasnsatlantic Relations since 1945, Rutledge, London & NY,
2012

Evaluation will be based on class participation and the quality of a final paper to be discussed when taking final exams. Students will be provided with reading materials related to each class in order to take part in class discussion. Their final papers will be supervised by one of the three teachers of this course and discussed with all of them at the final, oral exam. Assessing both class participation and contents and structure of the final paper, aims at encouraging students to develop oral and writing skills by participating in class discussion and doing their background reading and research creatively, with the support of a tutor.

The main focus of the course's first module is on the evolution/
transformation of transatlantic relations from the 1960s to the post cold war era, focusing on the causes and impact on international relations of Americanism and Anti-Americanism.