32411

U. S. Foreign Relations in the Twentieth-Century History

Jessica Gienow-Hecht

Kommentar

Topic: In the grand scheme of international history, the twentieth century has been turbulent, violent and contradictory. Declared as the “Century of the Child” and alternately labelled “short” (Hobsbawm), “American” (Luce), or “genocidal” (Levene), it has produced tremendous technological progress, mass migration, the shrinking of geographical distances along with great human tragedy, socio-political upheaval, and conflicting cultural trajectories the world over. Two world wars, a “cold” war that set much of Southeast Asia aflame, several arms races, countless peace treaties, and an exploding governmental bureaucracy dedicated to managing U.S. relations with the world beyond its borders turned what was originally a marginal executive occupation – diplomacy – into a key competency. Furthermore, new U.S. actors with individual agendas and a growing appetite for influence appeared in the international arena, including doctors, tourists, scientists, and pop stars. On a broader level, rapid industrialization, bursts of nationalism, the encounter with anticolonialism, the clash between democracy, socialism, and religious fundamentalism, along with economic globalization have profoundly affected the U.S. nation’s experiences abroad and the resulting historical memory. We will evaluate some of the most recent historical writings on the history of U.S. foreign relations in the twentieth century in order to provide a state-of-the-art assessment of where that research stands and develop an in-depth foundation of knowledge for the period, all to examine the legacy of U.S. 20th-century foreign relations for the contemporary world. Course: The seminar seeks to fulfill two objectives: first, we will spend a significant amount of time considering some of the most recent literature dedicated to the history of U.S. foreign relations. Historians have identified peculiar factors informing U.S. foreign relations as well as particular ways and perspectives to examine foreign relations history. These include the role of specific groups in foreign relations, postcolonialism, the Cold War, globalization, civil and human rights. But none of these was generic to the United States. What cocktail, we’ll ask eventually, made the twentieth century a peculiar American experience? Second, we will try to understand the legacy and implications of U.S. foreign relations for today and discuss whether there are particular lessons for the impending future. This introductory course (Seminar) constitutes the first part of Module C. While it is designed as a broad introduction to the period by looking at a general theme, the second part (The US and and China) zooms in on a specific topic, offering students the opportunity to do primary source research and write a paper. Both parts are scheduled back-to-back (Thur., 4-6pm, 6-8pm), and students required to cover the entire module are encouraged to enroll in both courses simultaneously. Students wishing to compose a full research paper (Hausarbeit) at the end of the term are strongly encouraged to do so in the second part (Hauptseminar) of Module C (Tues., 6-8pm). Schließen

11 Termine

Regelmäßige Termine der Lehrveranstaltung

Do, 16:00 - 18:00 11 Termine

Do, 17.04.2025 16:00 - 18:00

Dozenten:
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Jessica Gienow-Hecht