Prerequisits

There are no specific prerequisites for participating in this course and completing its requirements. However, prior knowledge of basic theories of history and sociology is recommended, as it will facilitate understanding of the topics discussed and enable active participation in discussions and practical tasks. Students should be prepared to analyse complex texts and engage in research activities.

Content (Syllabus outline)

The lectures, excursions, visits to museums and other types of thematisation of the topic will give the students an opportunity to understand the violence triggered by the 20th world wars. The world wars are the reason why the 20th century is often referred to as the Century of Wars, wars being the most visible marker despite the great discoveries and innovations. The world wars of the 20th century, along the many “local” wars, established violence, predominantly against civilians, as one of the basic postulates of war. The violence shifted from the sphere of the battle into civilian sphere, making civilians the prime opponents. Mass violence against civilians first emerged during the Great War, increased during the Second World War and has not subsided since. Although humanity had lived through the Hundred Years’ War and that the beginning of the 17th century was marked by the Thirty Years’ War that devastated much of Central Europe, the war violence brought about during the world wars is unprecedented.

In the introduction, other forms of violence will be discussed, primarily the violence related to the European colonial past – colonisation of Australia, African and the Americas. We will focus on questions of collective violence exerted by one group against another, and try to understand violence as constitutive part of social dynamics. In certain cases we will focus on questions of responsibility, i.e. individual violence, e.g. commanders and totalitarian leaders of the 20th century.

The main focus, however, will be on the Great War as the corollary of the Balkan Wars and the reason for the Second World War.

Readings

• Chickering Roger and Förster Stig (ed.). 2007. The shadows of total war: Europe, East Asia, and the United States, 1919 – 1939. Washington: German historical institute ; Cambridge: Cambridge university press.
• Fussell, Paul. 2013. Velika vojna in moderni spomin. Ljubljana: Studia humanitatis.
• Higonnet Margaret Randolph (ur.). 1987 . Behind the Lines: Gender and the two World Wars. New Haven, London: Yale University Press.
• Hobsbawm, Eric. 2004. Age of extremes: the short twentieth century: 1914-1991. London: Abacus.
• Hobsbawm, Eric. 2009. Nations and nationalism since 1780: programme, myth, reality. Cambridge [etc.]: Cambridge University Press.
• Hobsbawm, Eric. 2004. Zanimivi časi: moje doživetje 20. stoletja. Ljubljana: Sophia.
• Horn, John, Kramer Allan. German atrocities, 1914: a history of denial. 2001. New Haven; London: Yale University Press.
• Mazower, Mark. 2002. Temna celina: dvajseto stoletje v Evropi. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga.
• Smith Helmut Walser, Booth William James./ edited by… [et al. ]The Holocaust and other genocides: history, representation, ethics. 2002. Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press.
• Svoljšak, Petra. 2003. Soča, sveta reka: italijanska zasedba slovenskega ozemlja (1915-1917). Ljubljana: Nova revija, 2003
• Winter Jay. 1998. The Experience of World War I. London: Macmillan.

Objectives and competences

The objective of this course is to develop an understanding of different definitions of war, military law, and systematic breaches thereof, and to analyse the systems of occupational policies that enabled systematic violence against civilians on both individual and collective levels. Students will explore the role of stereotypes as a fundamental phenomenon of collective memory, implemented in narratives, rituals, and art, and the mechanisms of the violent relationship between the military/soldiers and opponents, primarily civilians. They will focus on the shift of violence from the battlefield to the civilian sphere, which characterises the wars of the 20th century.

Intended learning outcomes

Students will use the knowledge acquired in the course to produce a scientific contribution that can serve as a draft of a dissertation chapter or a research article. In doing so, they will develop the ability to critically analyse and interpret war violence and enhance their academic writing skills, contributing to their scientific and professional development.

Learning and teaching methods

Types of learning/teaching:

• Frontal teaching,
• Independent students work,
• e-learning.

Teaching methods:

• Explanation,
• Conversation/discussion/debate,
• Work with text.

Assessment

• Short written assignments (50 %),
• Final examination (written/oral) (50 %).