Interactive Syllabus

This  course examines the diplomatic tensions that have emerged in recent years in Central and Eastern Europe surrounding the interpretation of the history of the twentieth century.  The theoretical lens for this course derives primarily-though not entirely-- from constructivist approaches to international politics, and more specifically from the literature on ontological security.  We then use these theoretical arguments to examine such issues as the tensions that have emerged  between Western European and Central European governments about the respective significance of the Holocaust and the Gulag in shaping a common European memory, the conflicts between Central European governments and Russia regarding interpretations of World War II, and finally the internal and external struggles surrounding memory in Ukraine.