British culture

The aim of the lecture is to familiarize students with the basic events and historical processes that have shaped the contemporary British social structure and political system.

The lecture offers an overview of British history from the Middle Ages to the present, and focuses on key historical events and processes that have determined the present political and social system in Britain. The issues discussed during the lecture include the historical beginnings of Britain, the development of British political system, major internal and external conflicts, and a number of social and political problems in modern Britain.

Content distribution:

- foundations of the political system and the structure of government;

- key pre-19th-century conflicts and cultural changes;

- the British Empire and its legacy;

- Victorian England;

- the Two World Wars;

- post-war Britain;

- Britain at the beginning of the 21st century.

Selected readings from:

Bronstein, Jamie L. and Andrew T. Harris. 2012. Empire, State and Society: Britain since 1830. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.

Cannon, John, ed. 1997. The Oxford Companion to British History. Oxford University Press.

History of Britain and Ireland. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 2011.

Oakland, John. 2001. Contemporary Britain: A Survey with Texts. London: Routledge.

Thackeray, Frank W. and John E. Findling (eds.). 2004. Events That Changed Great Britain, from 1066 to 1714. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Ward, Paul. 2004. Britishness since 1870. London: Routledge.

A selection of texts published on Moodle.

-Assessment methods:

- written examination - W1, W2, W3

- activity – W1, U1, U2, K1

Assessment criteria:

- written examination (80%)

- participation in discussions during the lecture and on Moodle (20%)

fail – 0-59 %

satisfactory – 60-69 %

satisfactory plus – 70-75 %

good – 76-85 %

good plus – 86-90 %

very good – 91-100 %

Not applicable