SDEb1001 Introduction to Contemporary History

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2024
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Tomáš Dvořák, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Tomáš Dvořák, Ph.D.
Department of History – Faculty of Arts
Supplier department: Department of History – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Thu 26. 9. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 3. 10. 14:00–15:40 P21a, Thu 10. 10. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 17. 10. 14:00–15:40 P21a, Thu 24. 10. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 31. 10. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 7. 11. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 21. 11. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 28. 11. 14:00–15:40 P21a, Thu 5. 12. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 12. 12. 14:00–15:40 Aula, Thu 19. 12. 14:00–15:40 Aula
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course will provide a definition of the content and purpose of history as a discipline. It introduces students to the theoretical, methodological and heuristic fundaments and specifics of contemporary history. Students will learn about the position of contemporary history research in historical science and among the other social disciplines. Special attention will be paid to the periodization of contemporary history, the circumstances of the emergence of contemporary history in the Czech context as well as its institutional framework. The basic problems and challenges of Czech/Czechoslovak contemporary history will be discussed, as well as the basic theoretical concepts applied in their study. A separate and more practical part of the course will focus on proseminar education in archival and other sources.
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course, students will be able to: - orient themselves in the basics of contemporary-historical research and follow up with a more in-depth study of the methods and factual background of the program. - conduct research of literature and historical sources as a prerequisite for their own research. - to comment systematically on important research topics in Czech post-war history. - Explain the differences between the study of contemporary history and earlier periods. - describe and explain the basic procedures of the historian's work. - describe the basic categories of sources and scholarly handbooks. - apply knowledge gained of archives and other institutions that care for contemporary history sources.
Syllabus
  • 1. Official opening of the Contemporary History program. Organizational information for the course and assignment of individual work. 2. Terminology (modern history, contemporary history, long and short centuries, world and European history). Geographical frames of contemporary history, changes in the division of Europe, West and East, bipolar world, Central Europe. Problems of defining and periodization. German Zeitgeschichte as a model example. The emergence and development of contemporary history in Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic after 1989. Institutionalization of contemporary history research in the Czech Republic and other selected countries. 3. From documenting crimes and filling in "white spaces" to revision and new questions. The main topics and trends in research on Czech contemporary history. 4. Contemporary history and politics. The role of historical research in contemporary historical culture. 5. Professional historical (foreign and domestic) journals. Basic handbooks. Bibliographies. 6. Sources for contemporary history I.: Specifics of sources for contemporary history. Typology. Preservation and accessibility of sources. New types of sources. Totalitarian past and the question of the "credibility" of sources. Sources and memory. 7. Sources for contemporary history I.: Archival network of the Czech Republic. Territorial development of public administration. The archival legacy of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia and the State security (StB). Archival law. 8. Sources for Contemporary History II.: Edited historical records. Digital source databases. 9. Contemporary history and its relation to other disciplines (political science, sociology, philosophy, geography, art history). 10. Terms and concepts I.: modernization, industrialization, urbanization, globalization, centralization, revolution, dictatorship, totalitarianism. 11. Terms and concepts II: everyday life, social discipline, welfare state, social experiment. 12. Excursions to the selected scholar institutions
Literature
Teaching methods
Learning methods: lecture/seminar, educational excursion
Assessment methods
Assesment methods: seminar work – survey of the historical records, research of the scholar periodica (40 %), participation on seminar, seminar reading (20 %), written test (40 %)
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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