Not available in 2020/21
EU476 Half Unit
Politics of Memory: Germany, France, UK and Turkey
This information is for the 2020/21 session.
Teacher responsible
TBD
Availability
This course is available on the MSc in Culture and Conflict in a Global Europe, MSc in Culture and Conflict in a Global Europe (LSE & Sciences Po), MSc in European and International Public Policy, MSc in European and International Public Policy (LSE and Bocconi), MSc in European and International Public Policy (LSE and Sciences Po), MSc in History of International Relations, MSc in Political Economy of Europe, MSc in Political Economy of Europe (LSE and Sciences Po) and MSc in Theory and History of International Relations. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.
Pre-requisites
None
Course content
Political and social actors frequently mobilize memory to make claims about the present. All nations and groups have memories that make them proud and others they have learned lessons from and sometimes others they deny. What kinds of memories show influence bottom up and what kinds of memories are top down? How are some memories commemorated and how are some of them silenced? What is the role of memories in making identities and also resolving conflicts? What is the best way to remember atrocities? To whom do memories and responsibility belong? This course will give an overview of the literature on politics of memory and discuss how politics of imperial, national, post-colonial, and other alternative memories compete with each other with specific references to Germany, France, U.K. and Turkey.
Teaching
10 hours of lectures and 15 hours of classes in the MT.
Students on this course will have a reading week in Week 6, in line with departmental policy.
Formative coursework
- Abstract and outline for essay (no longer than 500 words) in MT
Indicative reading
In addition to weekly readings, the following sources are likely to enhance the benefits derived from the course: Maurice Halbwachs On Collective Memory; Esra Ozyurek Nostalgia for the Modern; Paul Gilroy Postcolonial Melancholia ; Alaide Assman Cultural Memory and Western Civilization; Michael Rothberg Multidirectional Memory; James Young The Texture of Memory.
Assessment
Essay (100%, 5000 words) in the LT.
Students will write an essay on the topic they choose together with the instructor.
Important information in response to COVID-19
Please note that during 2020/21 academic year some variation to teaching and learning activities may be required to respond to changes in public health advice and/or to account for the situation of students in attendance on campus and those studying online during the early part of the academic year. For assessment, this may involve changes to mode of delivery and/or the format or weighting of assessments. Changes will only be made if required and students will be notified about any changes to teaching or assessment plans at the earliest opportunity.
Key facts
Department: European Institute
Total students 2019/20: 12
Average class size 2019/20: 6
Controlled access 2019/20: Yes
Value: Half Unit
Personal development skills
- Self-management
- Problem solving
- Communication
