B4807 - Global Visions and Political Networks (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course unit students will have acquired an understanding of the concept of entangled history centered around global political networks. Students will also have familiarity with the ways in which global visions have emerged in the twentieth century, and with their critiques. Students will have gained knowledge of the ways that influential ideas and ideologies have shaped historical events and processes on global scale. Students will have identified the relevance of different traditions of global thinking including internationalist, liberal, anti-imperialist and federal approaches. On successful completion of this module, students will be expected to have constructed a solid theoretical framework within which specific research interests could be developed.

Course contents

This course aims to analyze different aspects of global political networks in the context of entangled history. The main focus of this course concerns visions of international order after empire in the twentieth century. The five modules deal with: 1) Framing Global Visions; 2) Colonial and post-colonial networks; 3) Nationalism, self-determination and world-making; 4) International institutions; 5) International and Global Ideologies.

The first part of the course concerns an introduction to the category of the ‘global’ in historical studies in order to provide an analytical framework to ideologies and ideas of world order.

The second module of the course will focus on colonial and post-colonial networks through migration, economics and law.

In the third module, we will discuss nationalist and federalist visions for global order, analysing the relations between nationalist movements and international political spaces.

The topic of the fourth module will be about the idea of international institutions in the twentieth century.

The last week will be dedicated to the connections within and between political ideologies and visions of international and global order.

All attending students are requested to prepare the required readings carefully, in order to be able to participate in class discussions.

Each session, one student (in turn) will be asked to prepare a short oral presentation (no longer than 15 minutes) on one of the required readings.

 

In case the number of attending students exceeds the number of presentations available, then the students can present one of the papers in the list in an online meeting with the professor.

All the readings are uploaded in 'Virtuale' or available via library.

 

Part 1: Framing Global Visions

1) Presentation of the course and definitions (11 Nov)

Henri Lefebvre, La Production de l'espace, Paris: Editions Anthropos, 1974. Henri Lefebvre, The Production of Space(Oxford, Blackwell, 1991]

 

Part 2: Colonial and Post-colonial global Networks

2) Imperial Connections: (15 Nov)

Benton, Lauren. 2010. “Anomalies of Empire” in A Search for Sovereignty: Law and Geography in European Empires, 1400-1900. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Pp. 1-39.

3) Migration and Settlement: (18 Nov)

Caroline Elkins and Susan Pedersen (eds.), Settler Colonialism in Twentieth Century: Projects, Practices, Legacies, Routledge, 2005, Chapter 10.

or

Edward Cavanagh, Lorenzo Veracini, The Routledge Handbook of the History of Settler Colonialism (2017), introduction.

4) Decolonizing Global Historiography: (21 Nov)

Dipesh Chakrabarty, Provincializing Europe: Postcolonial Thought and Historical Difference, Princeton University Press, 2000, Introduction.

5) Neoliberalism and solidarity: (22 Nov)
Tehila Sasson, The Solidarity Economy, Princeton University Press, 2024, introduction.

 

Part 3: Nationalism, self-determination and world-making

6) Nationalism (25 Nov)

Sluga, Glenda. Internationalism in the Age of Nationalism. United States: University of Pennsylvania Press, Incorporated, 2013, introduction.

7) Self-determination and international order (28 Nov)
Adom Getachew, Worldmaking after Empire: The Rise and Fall of Self-Determination, introduction.

8) Human rights (29 Nov)

Iriye, Akira, Goedde, Petra and William Hitchcock (Eds), The human rights revolution: an international history, 2012, introduction.

Part 4: International and regional institutions

9) The League of Nations and the United Nations (2 Dec)
Mark Mazower, No Enchanted Palace: The End of Empire and the Ideological Origins of the United Nations, Princeton University Press, 2013, introduction

10) Regional unions: Eurafrica (5 Dec)
Jane Burbank and Frederick Cooper.  Post-Imperial Possibilities: Eurasia, Eurafrica, Afroasia, 89–152. Princeton University Press, 2023, introduction.

11) International law and tribunals (6 Dec)

Philippe Sands, The Last Colony: A Tale of Exile, Justice and Britain’s Colonial Legacy (W&N, 2022).

Part 5: International and Global Ideologies

12) Global feminist liberation (9 Dec)
Lucy Delap, Feminisms: A Global History (Penguin, 2020), introduction and one chapter.

13) Global visions of race (12 Dec)
“Democracy and Empire: An Introduction to the International Thought of W. E. B. Du Bois.” Other. In W. E. B. Du Bois: International Thought, edited by Adom Getachew and Jennifer Pitts, xv–lvii. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2022.

14) Global spaces and technology (13 Dec)

Denis Cosgrove, "Apollo’s Eye: A Cultural Geography of the Globe", Hettner Lecture, June 2005. http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/geog/downloads/418/45.pdf

15) The Anthropocene (16 Dec)

Bonneuil, Christophe., Fressoz, Jean-Baptiste. The Shock of the Anthropocene: The Earth, History and Us. United Kingdom: Verso, 2016, introduction. 

Readings/Bibliography

Students may use this suggested bibliography to enrich their knowledge on the course themes, in addition to the indicated readings for each session.

Armitage, David. Foundations of Modern International Thought. Cambridge ;New York: Cambridge University Press, 2013.

———. ‘The Fifty Years Rift: Intellectual History and International Relations’. Modern Intellectual History 1, no. 1 (April 2004): 97–109. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1479244303000027.

Bartelson, Jens. Visions of World Community. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.

Bell, Duncan, ed. Political Thought and International Relations: Variations on a Realist Theme. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.

———. The Idea of Greater Britain: Empire and the Future of World Order, 1860-1900. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2007.

Boer, Pim den, Peter Bugge, and Ole Wæver. The History of the Idea of Europe. Edited by Kevin Wilson and W. J. van der Dussen. London: Routledge, 1995.

Bosco, Andrea, ed. The Federal Idea. Vol. 1, The History of Federalism from the Enlightenment to 1945. London: Lothian Foundation Press, 1991.

———, ed. The Federal Idea Vol. 2, The History of Federalism since 1945. London: Lothian Foundation Press, 1992.

Campbell, Courtney J. ‘Space, Place and Scale: Human Geography and Spatial History in Past and Present’. Past & Present. Accessed 2 May 2017. https://doi.org/10.1093/pastj/gtw006.

Eggers, N., Pearson, J. L., & Almada e Santos, A. (2020). The United Nations and Decolonization. United Kingdom: Routledge

Hotta, Eri. Pan-Asianism and Japan’s War 1931-1945. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

Long, David. Towards a New Liberal Internationalism: The International Theory of J.A. Hobson. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.

Macekura Stephen J. and Erez Manela eds. The Development Century: A Global History, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018)

Manela, Erez, The Wilsonian Moment: Self-Determination and the International Origins of Anticolonial Nationalism (Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).

Mazower, Mark. Governing the World: The History of an Idea. London: Allen Lane, 2012.

Pedersen, Susan, The Guardians: The League of Nations and the Crisis of Empire. New York: Oxford University. Press, 2015.

Porter, Bernard. The Absent-Minded Imperialists: Empire, Society, and Culture in Britain. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.

Owens, P. (2022). Women's international thought : towards a new canon. Cambridge University Press.

Owens, P., & Rietzler, K. (2021). Women's international thought. A new history. Cambridge University Press.

Sluga, Glenda, Internationalism in the Age of Nationalism, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2013.

Sluga, Glenda and Patricia Clavin, Internationalisms: A Twentieth Century History, Cambridge Cambridge Univerity Press.

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures, slides, students' presentations, class discussion, analysis of sources.

Assessment methods

Assessment methods

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending

Attending students will be evaluated through the final examination (100%).

The final exam is a paper on a topic of the student’s choice (12 credits). The student can choose to write the paper with Prof Rosenboim or Prof Bonazza, according to their topic of interest and to the professors’ availability. The topic of the paper and the research question must be agreed in advance with the professor. The length of the paper will be up to 6500 words including notes and bibliography. The paper must critically engage with the existing historiography on the chosen topic. The paper must be based on at least 6 academic secondary sources, which may include but not limited to the course’s bibliography. Proper use of the English language, adequate presentation and academic style will be part of the evaluation. The paper must have proper references in footnotes and a bibliography. For the references, Chicago Style is preferred but not mandatory.

Non-attending students are required to write the final paper (following the same guidelines as the attending students) and in addition to do a written exam. The written exam is based on 2 books, and includes 6 questions (3 for each book). The exam lasts 1.5 hours and will be taken in person at the computer lab.

During the academic year 2024/2025 there will be 6 available dates to undertake the exam. The dates will be published on the webpage of Prof. Rosenboim and Prof. Bonazza (each professor holds 3 exam dates).

The required readings for the written exam are:

Erez Manela, The Wilsonian Moment: Self-Determination and the International Origins of Anticolonial Nationalism(Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).

Sanjay Subrahmanyam, Connected history: essays and arguments (London: Verso, 2022)

Please note: The module is part of the integrated course Entangled Histories (12 credits). Students who attend this module, but did not attend Prof Bonazza's module, will have (in addition to the research paper) a short written exam (25% of the final mark) with 3 questions, based on this book:

Sanjay Subrahmanyam, Connected history: essays and arguments (London: Verso, 2022)

Exam sessions for the written exam and for the final paper (separately) are scheduled for the following months of the academic year:

- Jan 2025

- Feb 2025

- March 2025

- May 2025

- July 2025

- Sept 2025

- Nov 2025

* Regarding written exam for non attending students, some sessions will be published on the web page of Dr Rosenboim, and others by Dr Bonazza, from which you can choose freely.

Marking criteria:

Proper language and the ability to critically analyze relevant topics will lead to a good/excellent final grade (27-30L)

Acceptable language and the ability to resume relevant topics will lead to a sufficient/fair grade (22-26)

poor language and a superficial knowledge of relevant topics will lead to the minimum grade to pass the exam (18-21)

Insufficient linguistic proficiency and fragmentary knowledge of relevant topics will lead to a failure in passing the exam

Teaching tools

database research, virtuale, seminars.

Students with disabilities and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who require specific services and adaptations to teaching activities due to a disability or specific learning disorders (SLD), must first contact the appropriate office:

[https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students]

Office hours

See the website of Or Rosenboim