International History since 1945 - Detailseite

This seminar offers students a global perspective on international relations from the end of the Second World War until the present. The syllabus will address the changing nature of the international order and will trace the evolution of international politics from the era of bi-polar super power confrontation to the emergence of the multi-polar and unstable contemporary world. The syllabus will explore not only matters of high politics and violent conflict but it will also seek to incorporate the simultaneous processes of globalization, decolonization, state creation, modernisation and environmental issues into a complex narrative that goes beyond the boundaries of traditional diplomatic history. From a methodological point of view, the course will also focus on historiographical and theoretical problems that have questioned some of the basic assumptions of writing the history of international relations since 1945.