IREb2030 Political and social transformation of East Central Europe (1989-)

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2023
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
András Schweitzer, Ph.D. (lecturer), doc. Vratislav Havlík, Ph.D. (deputy)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Martin Chovančík, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Olga Cídlová, DiS.
Supplier department: Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Mon 6. 11. 14:00–17:40 U42, Tue 7. 11. 14:00–15:40 P21a, 16:00–17:40 P24a, Wed 8. 11. 16:00–19:40 P51 Posluchárna V. Čermáka, Thu 9. 11. 16:00–19:40 U43, Fri 10. 11. 10:00–13:40 P21a
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 35 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 20/35, only registered: 0/35
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 39 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
In 1989 Hungary was a forerunner in East Central Europe in establishing a liberal democracy with market economy and Western oriented foreign policy. However, by now the country’s political system has slid back to a hybrid regime, headed by an ex-radical-liberal politician who frequently mocks principles of open society, and is trying to orchestrate a local and international fight against Western liberalism. Hungary, of course, is not unique in moving toward an “illiberal” state in the past decade. However, it is still a peculiar and significant case in the European Union that deserves a closer examination. The course will go beyond the internationally identified factors (e.g. populism, identity politics, the effect of social media, post-truth, etc.) in analysing the possible causes for the direction of the changes. To highlight further aspects, political, social, economic developments in Hungary will be compared with other East-Central European cases, especially with those of other Visegrad countries. A wide array of circumstances of the transformation, including the new constitutional structure, the methods of privatisation and the introduction of economic liberalism, political-cultural dispositions and heritage, party system and electoral behaviour will be analysed in a comparative way.
Learning outcomes
By analyzing historical sources, analytical and theoretical interpretations, students should become acquainted 1) with different historical, political, mental-geographical ideas of the region often called East-Central Europe (and at times: Eastern Europe, Central Europe, Zwischen Europa, etc); 2) with different notions about its distinctive features, and 3) with the social and economic transformations.
Syllabus
  • 1/1989, the Annus Mirabilis: Gradual vs sudden change 2/Dimensions of transformation: What really changed? 3/Dimensions of interpretations: Conflicting evaluations of the past 33 years 4/Political agency: Lech Walesa, Vaclav Havel, Victor Orbán… 5/Changing the constitutional set-up: the legal foundations of democracy 6/Marketization of the economy: privatization, deregulation, liberalization 7/The international arena: What happened to the “third wave”? 8/The hacking of democracy: political polarization, populism, social media… 9/The universal decline of liberalism: traditionalism, nationalism, anti-elitism 10/Path dependency? The cultural heritage of the longue durée past
Teaching methods
Students are required to prepare for classes by reading the relevant assigned texts, and to attend classes and are kindly asked to actively participate in the debates to make the classes more lively and fruitful.
Assessment methods
Grades will be based on a written exam at the end of the course. The exam will consist of five short answer questions about the subjects discussed during classes (and related to the obligatory texts). To each question an answer of a few sentences is required for a maximum of 2 points. Altogether 10 point can be earned.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
This block course will be taught NOVEMBER 6-10, 2023 (10 classes á 100 minutes!)
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2022, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2023, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2023/IREb2030