History of Russia, 1801 to the Present

Undergraduate

Survey of Russian and Soviet history from the Napoleonic Wars to the present. Focus on long-term patterns and developments across the divide of the 1917 Revolution. Major themes include: (1) political culture and ideology from the Enlightenment and tsarist autocracy to the rise and fall of Soviet Communism and the emergence of the Russian Federation under Yeltsin and Putin; (2) social and economic changes, life under serfdom, development of industrial capitalism, Soviet industrialization, and post-Soviet changes; (3) foreign policy, Russia’s imperial expansion, participation in WWI and WWII, post-Soviet armed conflicts; (4) major artistic and cultural movements. Particular attention paid to individual experience and daily life during various historical periods. Paper assignments focus on close readings of memoir and other personal accounts. The course is designed for students in all majors. No familiarity with Russia is needed or required. HU 0 Course cr HTBA