Greece: from Ottoman to the European Union Professor: Tassos Anastassiadis Fall 2012, MW 8:35-9:55, RPHYS 114
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HIST349: Greece: From Ottoman to the European Union Professor: Tassos Anastassiadis Fall 2012, MW 8:35-9:55, RPHYS 114 The first flag of the Kolokotronis band during the Greek war of Independence, 1820s, Benaki Museum, Athens. Office Hours (Leacock 827): Monday & Wednesday 10:15-11:45, or by appointment E-mail: [email protected] Office phone: 514-398-4400 x-094283 1 Course description: Why has a tiny 10 million people state been capturing the world’s headlines during the last two years within the context of one of the most severe economic crisis of our times? Trying to tackle this question, this course has a two-fold objective. First of all, it examines the main aspects and events in political, economic, social and cultural history, which shaped the formation of Modern Greece and Greeks. Adopting a longue durée perspective, it will kick off during the 18th c. We will explore life in the Ottoman Empire and the subsequent emergence and development of a new national state from the status of a component of a multiethnic, albeit Islamic empire, to its present position of a full-fledged member of the world’s wealthiest association of states, i.e. the European Union. Topics to be addressed include: the position of non-Muslims under Ottoman rule; the role of language and religion in the formation of ethnic and national identities; the usage of the past and culture in the debates about the identity of the Greeks; the War of Independence and the role of foreign Powers; anthropological readings of violence and corruption; political, social, cultural and economic developments during the 19th-20th c.; emigration and the Greek diaspora; the impact of the Balkan wars and WWI on state formation; the interwar period and the impact of refugees on food, music and culture in general; Questions of Gender and Women’s history; WWII: occupation, resistance and the subsequent Civil War; Greece and the Balkans during the Cold War and after. Finally, the relationship between Greece, the world economic crisis and the debate about European federalism. The course will alternate macro and micro approaches of the subjects dealt with. Moreover, this course will serve as an introduction to an epistemology of History and its relationship to the Social sciences. Each week, the lecture will address a certain number of concepts, theories, authors and/or scientific debates, which have structured the way history is practiced as a scientific discipline, using our object (Greece) as a case study. Concept Map Individuals Societies Modern States 2 Learning outcomes Skills: -Reading challenging academic texts and identifying their key elements -Assessing critically a historical document according to the established methodology -Compiling a selective and commented bibliography presented in an organized manner -Mastering the methodology of an oral history/fieldwork project -Writing a research/policy essay Knowledge: -Identifying the key stages, figures and factors of modern Greek state formation -Remembering the key factors having contributed to the transformation of the Greek state in regards with its Ottoman past, its Balkan, Mediterranean and European environment from the 18th c. onwards -Being at ease with the concepts figuring in the concept map and their interaction -Critically assessing the socio-political impact of internal vis-à-vis external elements in state formation (cultural traditions, religions, geography, demographics vs international relations) Course textbooks, readings, audiovisual material and Mycourses: Richard CLOGG, A Concise History of Greece, Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2nd ed., 2002. (Henceforth RC) Mark MAZOWER, Salonica: City of Ghosts, Christians, Muslims and Jews 1430-1950, London: Harper, 2004. (Henceforth MM) NB: There are supplementary reading assignments and audio-visual material for every week. All these readings are indicated with an asterisk in the course’s calendar. They are provided in pdf form in Mycourses. You are responsible for checking Mycourses and obtaining the course material. Guiding study questions: I provide a series of questions to guide you through each week’s readings. These questions are posted on Mycourses one week ahead of time. NB: These questions also show up during the evaluation process (see section Coursework and Grading). Readings: Unless otherwise indicated in the course calendar each week’s readings are supposed to be done for the first lecture of the corresponding week. That is when we tackle the guiding questions. A supplementary selective bibliography (useful for your oral/history fieldwork project) will also be posted on Mycourses. All these books have been put on 3hr-Reserve in the Library. Course evaluation: Participation: 10% Quizzes (4/ one every 2 weeks) 20% Midterm Exam 20% Collaborative Oral history /fieldwork project (presentation + written outline) 20% Take-home final exam (essay + document analysis) 30% 3 Specific policies regarding Coursework and Grading in HIST349 As a member of this class, you are responsible for understanding and complying with these policies. - Class Participation & Punctuality: Each class meeting contributes to your participation grade. Adequate participation also means being on time for class, having your class materials with you, having completed the readings, and any other assignments for that day. More specifically your participation grade is calculated according to the three following ways: -Every class starts with the analysis of the session’s readings on the basis of the guiding relevant study questions. You talk and I listen. Then vice versa. Finding correct answers and asking challenging questions counts. -Some people are less talkative than others. Therefore, participating should also take the form of writing at least 2 short (200-300 word maximum) blog entries on Mycourses. They can be either: a) a report of one of the many events that we’ll be having (guest lectures, movie screenings etc.); b) a critical appreciation of a recent newspaper/digital media article about the Greek crisis (the hyperlink to the original article should be included). -As you gain progressively more and more knowledge and insight about the subject we are dealing with, we will start experimenting some “role-game” type of situations and questions in class (“What if you were… how would you act and why?”). These short collaborative role-game situations will usually take place on Wednesdays. - Lectures – slides. The slides for each lecture (but without the notes) are posted on Mycourses before the lecture. Students can download the slides in order to write their notes on them. - Quizzes: There will be 4 quizzes scheduled during the term (see calendar). Each one of them covers approximately two weeks of material (i.e. 4-5 lectures). Each 15-minute quiz will evaluate your acquisition of concepts/notions/events and your comprehension of the debates seen during the lectures. Each quiz has two components (definitions and short questions). The questions component draws entirely from the pool of Guiding study questions of the material covered by the quiz. The quizzes are returned to the students at the end of the following lecture. NB: If you are late for class or absent and miss a quiz you will not be able to make it up. - Attendance: There is a two (2) absences leniency for everyone whatever the reason (and I don’t want to know it, though it is considered courteous to excuse yourself in advance if you know that you will be absent). Use this right wisely (as a matter of fact, don’t use it before the day you really need it!), because… from then on, every absence = a drop of one percentage point from your participation grade. There are of course some serious cases in which a student may be forced to miss two or more lectures in a row. These cases (and only these cases) will be considered on an individual basis upon presentation of proper documentation. 4 Mid-term exam The mid-term exam has two components. The first one has the same structure as a quiz but covers all the material seen till then (half of the questions have already appeared in a quiz and half haven’t). Review your graded quizzes! The second one is a list of historical documents seen in class or from the textbooks. You will be supposed to make a short examination of these documents according to the historical methodology (external/internal; i.e. conditions of production and meaning/significance). The mid-term is returned after 1 week. Collaborative Oral history /fieldwork project This is teamwork. By the end of the second week, you will be grouped in teams of 3. Montreal has a vibrant Greek-Canadian community. You will contribute to a research project on the history of Greek immigration in Montreal. You can identify one of the three following entries to the topic: -interview a community leader, ( i.e. an association officer, an elected official etc.); -interview shopowners or professionals in the Greek neighborhoods of the city; -identify an original document (newspaper or other media reference about the Greek immigration to Montreal, archival document). Analyze critically your document according to historical methodology. To help you with your project, you’ll view the 1969 Canadian National Film documentary The (bus) 80 goes to Sparta http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDmM3EyCpD4 NB: You are encouraged to use digital technologies for your project (video etc.) However in this case, please ensure yourself that you are not infringing any copyright, image or personal data protection law. If you have doubts about these laws/regulations conduct me. This project will be conducted according to the following timetable. October 3: Title, one-paragraph long proposition and a short annotated bibliography; November 7: One page outlined description of the project (in the case of an interview, you will have to present an organized and hierarchized list of questions). December 5: Oral presentation of your project in class.