CLASS FIVE: The League of Nations

International Relations in the Twentieth Century

Readings and Exam Questions (2015)

CLASS ONE: Introduction

Readings:

Keylor, William R. The Twentieth-Century World and Beyond: An International History Since 1900. 6^th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011: 1-39 (Prologue: “The Global Context of International Relations at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century”).

Questions:

What were the main global powers at the beginning of the twentieth century? How would you characterize their relations? Did these relations change over time? How did these powers justify their global domination? Was there an interrelationship between domestic politics and international relations? Why? How was it possible for a few countries to dominate by the early twentieth century most of the world? How did international relations influence cultural, political, economic and social developments and vice versa?

CLASS TWO: World War I and the Search for Peace

Readings:

Keylor: 43-95 (ch.:1 “Germany’s Bid for European Dominance (1914-1918)” and ch.2: “The Peace of Paris and the New International Order”).

Questions:

How important were factors of foreign policy and international relations for the outbreak of the First World War? Could the war have been avoided? How? What was the role of the United States and other non-European countries in the war? Who ended the war? Why? How and by whom was peace established? What were the peace aims of the individual powers at the Paris Peace Conference? Who prevailed? Was the Peace Conference a success? Why (not)?

CLASS THREE: The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles

Readings:

The Versailles Treaty (Parts II, VII, VIII and XIV): http://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/versailles_menu.asp

Lentin, Anthony. “Treaty of Versailles: Was Germany Guilty?” History Today. Vol. 62. No.1 (2012): http://www.historytoday.com/antony-lentin/treaty-versailles-was-germany-guilty; originally published as: “Germany: a New Carthage?” History Today. Vol. 62. No.1 (2012). P. 20-27.

Mazower, Mark. “Two Cheers For Versailles.” History Today. Vol. 49. No. 7 (1999). P. 8-14.

Questions:

How do the two historians assess the Treaty of Versailles? Do they consider it a success or a failure? Why? Which of the assessments presented by the authors do you find more convincing? Why? How would you assess the clauses of the Treaty of Versailles? Are they justified? Do you find some of them surprising? Why? Does your own reading of the Treaty support Mazower’s or Lentin’s interpretation?

CLASS FOUR: International Relations in the 1920s

Readings:

Keylor: P. 96-129 (ch.3: “The Western World in the Twenties: The Era of Illusions”).

Questions:

Which political events shaped international relations in the 1920s? Did during the 1920s emerge any new political alliances between the great powers? What impact did economic factors have on international relations during this period? Why does Keylor call the 1920s an “era of illusions”?

CLASS FIVE: The League of Nations

Readings:

The Covenant of the League of Nations (Part I of the Treaty of Versailles): http://avalon.law.yale.edu/imt/parti.asp

Pedersen, Susan. “Back to the League of Nations.” American Historical Review Vol.112. No. 4 (2007): 1091-1117.

Questions:

How well do the articles of the “Covenant of the League of Nations” describe the mission of this institution? Does the Covenant provide a sufficient foundation for the League's functioning as an institution? Was it a good idea to incorporate the Covenant into the Versailles Treaty? What are the main trends in the historiography of the League of Nations discussed by Pedersen? Do you agree with her assessment of these trends? Which historiographical trends do you find most convincing? How do you like Pedersen’s review essay?

Date: 2016-01-03; view: 902