The course will focus on the most important political dynamics at work in Central and Eastern Europe since the end of the Cold War. Particular emphasis will be placed on democratization, nationalism, ethnic conflicts and Russian foreign policy.
Introduction: Political History of the Region from 1945 to the Re-unification of Germany:
Berend I. (2009), Central and Eastern Europe 1944-1993. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
As an alternative: Judt T. (2005), Postwar. A History of Europe since 1945. London, Vintage Books: pages: 27-40; 129-148; 165-225; 250-254; 309-323; 422-447; 559-643.
Topic 1 - Transition to Democracy:
Kitschelt K., Z. Mansfeldova, R. Markowski and G. Toka (1999), Post-Communist Party Systems. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press: chapters 1, 2.
Darden K. and A. Grzymala-Busse (2006), "The Great Divide: Literacy, Nationalism and the Communist Collapse" World Politics 59(1): 83-115.
Topic 2 - Ethno-nationalist Conflicts: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Caucasus, Ukraine:
Posen B. (1993), "The Security Dilemma and Ethnic Conflict" Survival 35(5): 27-57;
Petersen R. (2002), Understanding Ethnic Violence. Fear, Hatred, and Resentment in Twentieth-Century Eastern Europe. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press: chapters 2, 3, 4, 10;
Katchanovski I. (2016), “The Separatist War in Donbas: A Violent Breakup of Ukraine?” European Politics and Society 17(4): 473-489.
Aliyev H. (2019), “The Logic of Ethnic Responsibility and Progovernment Mobilization in East Ukraine Conflict” Comparative Political Studies 52(8): 1200-1231.
Costalli S. and F. Moro (2012), "Ethnicity and Strategy in the Bosnian Civil War: Explanations for the Severity of Violence in Bosnian Municipalities" Journal of Peace Research 49(6): 801-815;
Duffy Toft M. and Y. Zhukov (2015), "Islamists and Nationalists: Rebel Motivation and Counterinsurgency in Russia's North Caucasus" American Political Science Review 109(2). 222-238;
Souleimanov E. and D. Siroky (2016), "Random or Redistributive? Indiscriminate Violence in the Chechen Wars" World Politics 68(4): 677-712;
Glaurdic J. and V. Vukovic (2016), "Voting after War: Legacy of Conflict and the Economy as Determinants of Electoral Support in Croatia” Electoral Studies 42(1): 135-145.
Hadzic D., Carlson D., Tavits M. (2020) “How Exposure to Violence Affect Ethnic Voting” British Journal of Political Science 50(1): 345-362.
Topic 3 - Russian Foreign Policy:
Mandelbaum M. (1995) "Preserving the New Peace: The Case against NATO Expansion". Foreign Affairs 74(3): 9-13;
Tsygankov A. (2016), Russia's Foreign Policy. Change and Continuity in National Identity. Lanham, Rowman and Littlefield: chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6;
Wohlforth, W. and V. Zubok (2017), "An Abiding Antagonism: Realism, Idealism and the Mirage of Western-Russian Partnership after the Cold War" International Politics 54(4): 405-419.
Topic 4 - Central and Eastern European Populisms:
Kriesi H. (2014) "The Populist Challenge" West European Politics 37(2): 361-378;
Hanley S. and Sikk A. (2016) “Economy, Corruption or Floating Voters? Explaining the Breakthroughs of Anti-Establishment Reform Parties in Eastern Europe” Party Politics 22(4): 522-533.
Csehi R. and Zgut E. (2020) “We won’t Let Brussels Dictate Us: Eurosceptic populism in Hungary and Poland” European Politics and Society https://doi.org/10.1080/23745118.2020.1717064
Hiers W., T. Soehl and A. Wimmer (2017), "National Trauma and the Fear of Foreigners: How Past Geopolitical Threat Heightens Anti-Immigration Sentiment Today" Social Forces 96(1):1-28.
Obiettivi Formativi
Knowledge: Advanced understanding of the founding political dynamics of the area.
Abilities acquired at the end of the course: High degree of confidence in dealing with advanced empirical research in comparative politics and international relations; Critical evaluation of scholarly literature.
Capacity to apply the knowledge acquired: conduct basic research and produce working papers; Present pieces of research with appropriate technical and oral skills.
Prerequisiti
Basic knowledge of XX century European history, comparative politics and international relations.
Metodi Didattici
The course will take the form of seminars. Following an introduction structured as a lecture, students are expected to discuss the topic of the day and give presentations. Reading class material in advance is thus essential to participate successfully in the course.
Altre Informazioni
Students have to register on the EMoodle
platform (http://e-l.unifi.it/ ask professor for the password) and
download the material that the teacher will be posting on it.
Special attention will be devoted to specific important needs (such as students with disabilities that are unable to attend the course).
Modalità di verifica apprendimento
Students can choose between two methods of assessment:
1) In class presentation: 25% of the grade; Short online test (for all students) at the end of the course: 25% of the grade;
Final research paper on a topic that you decide (Max 5000 words, including references): 50% of the grade.
2) A written exam on all readings (2 hours) with multiple-choice questions and open questions.
Programma del corso
The course is structured in four parts. After an introduction to the main historical events of the region during the Cold War, the first part of the course will focus on the processes of democratization that took place in the Central and Eastern European countries in the 1990s and on the role of nationalism in this framework. The second part of the course will be devoted to studying the causes, dynamics and consequences of ethno-nationalist conflicts that occurred in the area. The third part of the course will take into account the evolution of the Russian foreign policy after the end of the Cold War, while the last part of the course will present some recent studies on the spread of populist movements in the region.