Throughout the course, students will critically examine sources and literature on some of the crucial issues that marked the gender history of Eastern Europe in the 20th century. We will observe gender history from a transnational perspective, analyzing it through its intersections with race and religion. We will bring together different regions and explore topics such as interwar feminist movements, the Second World War and its impacts, communist revolutions and gender policies, queer cultures, the collapse of socialism, and post-socialist gender policies. The focus will be on the movement of ideas and people, asking questions about how gender informed broader policies and social interventions, and how understandings of gender and sexuality changed during the 20th century. By investigating these far-reaching questions, we will aim to uncover the lives of ordinary people, discussing their agency and the shared gendered experiences across the region.
Requirements and Grading
Undergraduate Students
A. Class Participation and discussion questions: 20%
B. Presentation: 10%
C. Book Review: 20% (due TBA)
D. Final Paper (2000 words +-10%, due TBA): 50%
Graduate Students
A. Class Participation and discussion questions: 20%
B. Presentation: 10%
C. Book Review: 20% (due TBA)
D. Final Paper (3000 words +-10%, due TBA): 50%
A. Participation is evaluated on the following criteria:
1. providing meaningful discussion questions;
2. contribution to the weekly seminar discussions.
All students have to send 3-5 discussion questions based on the readings 2 hours before every class. These questions are also considered as part of participation.
B. Presentation: each student is required to have a class presentation for one of the weekly seminars of their choice. The presentation is maximum 10 minutes long.
C. Book Review: each student will write one book review.
The selected book must be approved by the instructor. The length of the review is 650-750 words.
D. Final paper: The final paper discusses one question, provided by the instructor or chosen by a student in consultation with the instructor. It is based on primary sources (most likely in translation) or secondary sources (in this case, you are expected to engage the historiography of the issue).
The length of the paper is 2000 words for undergraduate and 3000 words for graduate students.
The final paper should be seen as a research project, discussing a question/problem in an original way.
The question and the primary and secondary sources must be analysed critically, focusing on your arguments. Please feel free to consult the instructor during the entire process.
- Teacher: Ivan Simic