CORE155 Success story or betrayal of a dream? Czech democracy in a global context

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2024
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
prof. PhDr. Lubomír Kopeček, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Lubomír Kopeček, Ph.D.
Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies
Supplier department: Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Mon 16:00–17:40 P31 Posluchárna A. I. Bláhy
Prerequisites (in Czech)
!TYP_STUDIA(ND) && !PROGRAM(B-SODE)
Předmět není určen pro studenty studijního programu Soudobých dějin s ohledem na fakt, že v průběhu studia budou absolvovat částečně podobně zaměřený kurs.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is offered to students of any study field.
The capacity limit for the course is 120 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 120/120, only registered: 2/120, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/120
Course objectives
The development of Czech democracy after 1989 has been and continues to be the subject of great debate. These discussions often slide into simplistic judgments that often overlook what Czech democracy was born out of, as well as the external geopolitical influences that have affected it and still sometimes affect it today. The course connects both the past and the present, and the story of Czech democracy with the Central European and wider international context. It thus offers a coherent overview of the political (and additionally social and economic) development of the last few decades. The interpretation follows a chronological explanatory line, which facilitates the understanding of the context and allows a good orientation in the topics discussed.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, students should be able to understand and explain the key moments and context of the evolution of the Czech democracy after 1989.
Syllabus
  • 1) Late Czechoslovak communist regime, society and opposition before the Velvet Revolution (in the context of the end of the Cold War, the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc); 2) The Velvet Revolution: from the strategy of external control of power to the occupation of political positions; 3) The era of innocence: the formation of the political spectrum and the role of political leaders; 4) Key themes influencing the post-November reality (especially decommunization and economic transformation) and the context of the surrounding Central European countries; 5) The 1996 elections and the first "bad mood"; 5) Deformation of democracy? The Opposition Agreement of 1998-2002; 6) The barbarisation of Czech politics and the era of unstable governance; 7) The electoral earthquakes of 2010 and 2013 and the impact of global influences (especially the financial and economic crisis); 8) The rise of political entrepreneur parties: what is behind the success of Andrej Babiš and Tomio Okamura; 9) Current Central European comparative framework (collapse of liberal democracy in Hungary, extreme polarization of Polish politics, Fico's Slovakia); 10) Moderated debate with a former politician from the 1990s.
Literature
  • Suk, Jiří: Labyrintem revoluce. Aktéři, zápletky a křižovatky jedné politické krize. Praha: Prostor 2003, respektive 2009 (vybrané stránky).
  • Kopeček, Lubomír: Éra nevinnosti. Česká politika 1989-1997. Brno 2010 (vybrané stránky).
  • Tůma, Oldřich: Husákův domeček z karet, Dějiny a současnost, č. 4, 2004, s. 3-6.
Teaching methods
lectures, class discussions, reading.
Assessment methods
2 short written midterm tests (10 questions each, three closed answers - a, b, c; it is necessary to get at least 60% of the questions correct); final colloquium.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2024/CORE155