CZS01 Transformations of Political Enviroment in Central Europe after 1989

Pan-university studies
Spring 2017
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 8 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Ing. Mgr. Richard Turcsányi, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Šárka Hakalisto, M.A.
Pan-university studies
Contact Person: Šárka Hakalisto, M.A.
Supplier department: Pan-university studies
Timetable
Mon 6. 3. to Fri 19. 5. Wed 17:00–18:30 KOM S117
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 25 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/25, only registered: 0/25
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 12 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The course is conceived to give students a complex insight into trends and events that have influenced recent political and social developments in Central Europe and have significantly contributed to the present character of political life in this specific region of Europe. Throughout the course we will primarily focus on the four Visegrad countries (Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia) which will be regarded as the core of the Central European region, although at various occasions we will include discussion of other countries or their parts, such as Austria, Germany, Russia and others. The course will consist of two parts. The first one (shorter) will give a contextual and historical introduction into the Central Europe. While a number of letures will be devoted to specific historical periods, the general approach is to point out their impact on the present situation in the region. After the first part of the course, the students will be expected to be familiar with basic historical facts and especially the ways how they are (or are not) remembered in the countries of the region. The second part of the course will look at some specific issues which emerged in the region after the 1989 and changes of political systems. The objective is that students will at the end of the course understand the most recent development in the region within the scope of each of the covered topics in the post-1989 period and they will be able to critically assess the present situation.
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction to the course and the concept of Central Europe
  • 2. Medieval history and historical images of Central Europe
  • 3. National awakening and the long 19th century in Central Europe
  • 4. The rise and fall of Central Europe: The Region in the interwar period
  • 5. Material and imaginative realities: Central Europe as part of the political East
  • 6. Revolutions of 1989 and openings towards democracy
  • 7. Mid-term exam
  • 8. Political transformation in the Central Europe: Progressing democratization (1990-2004)
  • 9. Parties, presidents and elections: Who is in charge?
  • 10. Building civil society from scratch
  • 11. Security situation in Central Europe after 1989
  • 12. Europeanization and globalization
  • 13. Political economy of Central European post-1989 development
  • 14. Concluding remarks and open discussion
Literature
    recommended literature
  • INNES, Abby. Czechoslovakia :the short goodbye. New Haven: Yale university press, 2001, xii, 334 s. ISBN 0-300-09063-3. info
  • WANDYCZ, Piotr S. The price of freedom : a history of East Central Europe from the Middle Ages to the present. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, 2001, xvii, 335. ISBN 0415254914. URL info
  • Return to diversity : a political history of East Centrale Europe since World War II. Edited by Joseph Rothschild - Nancy M. Wingfield. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000, xii, 338. ISBN 0195119924. info
  • FIALA, Petr, Miroslav MAREŠ and Pavel PŠEJA. The development of political parties and the party system. In VEČERNÍK, Jiří and Petr MATĚJŮ. Ten years of rebuilding capitalism: Czech society after 1989. Praha: Academia, 1999, p. 273-294. ISBN 80-200-0774-1. info
Assessment methods
1. Mid-term exam: 28 %
• Consists of about 10 open questions requiring short answer. Goal is to check whether students acquired basic factual knowledge in the first part of the course. Literature and lecture content will be both included.
2. Four position papers and activity in the class: 32 % (each position paper is for maximum of eight points – four points for the paper and four points for the active presence in the class).
• Students will choose four topics according to their interest from the second part of the course (after the mid-term exam) and write position paper. If a student submits more than four position papers, only four with the best scores will be counted to the final assessment. Each position paper is about four standard pages long and consists of a short summary of the assigned literature, its critical analyses and subsequent discussion of the topic in the Central European context.
3. Final exam: 40 %
• Final exam will consist of four open questions which will require longer answers. Students will be asked to prove that they acquired knowledge about the topics covered throughout the course and can critically discuss the dynamics in the region.
Marking: A: 100 – 90 % B: 89 – 80 % C: 79 – 70 % D: 69 – 65 % E: 64 – 60 % F: 59 – 0 %
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught each semester.
Teacher's information
http://cic.muni.cz/cs/left-incoming-mobility/incoming-student/incoming-student-exchange/incoming-student-exchange-cesp
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2003, Autumn 2003, Spring 2004, Autumn 2004, Autumn 2005, Autumn 2006, Spring 2007, Autumn 2007, Spring 2008, Autumn 2008, Spring 2009, Autumn 2009, Spring 2010, Autumn 2010, Spring 2011, Autumn 2011, Spring 2012, Autumn 2012, Spring 2013, Autumn 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2018.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2017, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/cus/spring2017/CZS01