History

The course focuses on the long-term economic development of Western societies, exploring the factors leading to the pre-eminence that they acquired over other world areas. Concepts and theories from the social sciences are used as a starting point for understanding the development of real economies in their complex social, political, and cultural contexts. Although the course focuses on the West (Europe and northern America), the developments which took place elsewhere are also considered. The introductory part of the course focuses on the preindustrial period, and introduces the theoretical framework of the "Great Divergence" (leading to the pre-eminence of the West over the East) and "Little Divergence" (leading to the pre-eminence of northern over southern Europe) to understand the emergence of key economic and political hierarchies between different world areas. The Industrial Revolution which took place in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries constitutes the core of the course. The paths to industrialization and modernization followed by other world areas are also explored. The final part of the course covers the period going from the so-called "first Globalization" (1870-1914) until today. The course discusses fundamental knowledge about the long-term economic and social developments that gave origin to the contemporary globalized and highly-interconnected (but also highly unequal) world.

This course provides a basic overview of the role of sport in the Czech Republic from historical, sociological, and political perspectives. Students are acquainted with current trends in the society and their influence on the development and practice of outdoor activities. The main topics include the concept of Czech physical culture and the outdoor concept of “turistika,” a nation-specific type of hiking. The course also examines some contemporary sports-related issues from an inter-disciplinary perspective, including violence, cheating, doping, and technologies in sport.

Alternating introductory lectures with seminar discussions and presentations by students, this course explores the time when Christians and Muslims fought for control over the Mediterranean continent, all the way to the wave of immigrants entering southern Italy today. One key component of the course consists in a number of fieldtrips to places such as Amalfi and Naples where students experience on site what they study in readings and in the lectures. The fieldtrips are organized in temporal sequence, and so are the readings and seminar discussion, in order to arrange the course roughly in historical progression from the early Middle Ages (ca. 800AD) to the present. The course focuses intensively on certain periods and themes, oscillating from the micro and local to the macro and the Mediterranean at large. Generally speaking, lectures present the outlines of Mediterranean life, culture, and politics in a certain historical period, and seminars focus more specifically on local history in that period.

This course explores the relations between Latin America and Spain in the post-colonial period. It begins with the insurrection in the Indies (El Grito de Dolores) and the criollo war against Napoleonic Spain in 1810 and ends with the present-day migratory movement from Spain to Latin America due to the economic crisis. It critically examines the cultural practices, literary productions, political concerns and economic relations of the newly formed Spanish American nations and Spain from the beginning of the independence in order to provide an understanding of the historical relations between “de-colonized” Latin American nations and “non-imperial” Spain, as well as of contemporary political and cultural relations. The course discusses “the Black and White legends” of Imperial Spain and subsequent sessions focus on the post-colonial period. Drawing examples from a variety of political issues, economic relations, cultural practices and literary texts, it looks at the dynamics of these “Hispanic Transatlantic” relationships characterized by a continuous fluctuation of both a merger of and antagonism between the cultures of the modern Spanish American nations and that of Spain. Special attention is given to issues of cultural displacement as well as to the role of linguistic, religious, and cultural affinities that bring these nations together.

This course on French gastronomy provides an overview of how the food and wine culture became such a distinctive feature of life in France. It addresses both the subjects of food and wine, with a view to giving as informative a perspective as possible. The course covers the evolution of French food culture as well as regional cuisines. It also gives special attention to wine areas as well as the rituals around food and wine. The course thus relies on historical facts, sociological data, and economic figures but is also be an opportunity to get as close as possible to French gastronomy with field trips, dinners, and tastings. The perspective is both French and foreign as it welcomes students’ experience and ideas about French gastronomy.