Meet the Europeans: Politics and Society in The European Union

Who are the Europeans and how did they create the European Union, a unique partnership of 27 states and an ever more important international actor? This course covers the main political, social and economic developments in Europe since the middle of the 20^th century until the present day. We will study promises and achievements of European integration, including peace, democracy, economic prosperity and protection of human rights. Gender, migration and environment will be important cross-cutting themes. Our journey will start in 1945, when the post-WW2 destruction recasted debates about independence and interdependence of states and people. We will discuss how East and West Europeans, separated until 1989 by an almost impermeable Iron Curtain, created supranational institutions, of which those that emerged in the West proved more viable. The 1989 opened a new chapter in European politics. Demise of authoritarian structures in the East paved way towards deeper integration with the West and brought fascinating debates about catching up, belonging (identity) and possible futures. Our journey will take us through post-socialist transformations all the way to the themes shaping the most recent decade, including presence of women in public life, environmental degradation and new questions opened by refugee crises.  

The course covers current events in European politics and EU’s role in the world and offers analytical lenses for thinking about them in historical perspective. Current affairs sections pay particular attention to gender, migration, climate change, as well as changing patterns of work and economic inequalities. Course reader consists of interdisciplinary literature in European Studies, including IR, Political Theory, Economics, History and Anthropology. After taking the course students should have an advanced understanding of key ideas and interests shaping European integration and the many ways in which Europeans and their neighbors negotiate their belonging and identity.  Classes are interactive, students are expected to be familiar with required reading and encouraged to critically engaged with the studied material.

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