Unit information: Aftermath: The Wake of War, 1945-1949 in 2020/21

Unit name	Aftermath: The Wake of War, 1945-1949
Unit code	HIST30106
Credit points	20
Level of study	H/6
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12)
Unit director	Dr. Grace Huxford
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	There are no prerequisites for this course
Co-requisites	n/a
School/department	Department of History (Historical Studies)
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

Historians have paid a great deal of attention to the Second World War, its origins, its campaigns and its deadly consequences. But what happened afterwards?

1945-1949 was a particularly fraught period in modern world history, with mass population movement, economic strife, political uncertainty and personal distress; but it was also a period where many post-war ideals were constructed and debated – liberal democracy, welfare states and individual freedom. This unit, global in its scope, analyses the social history of this period in detail to understand more about the troubled yet hopeful post-war world, using a variety of sources, from films and novels to newspaper reportage.

Through the eyes of grieving families, displaced children, returning service women and men, and occupied nations, Aftermath students will use of a range of written, oral and visual sources to analyse the immediate impact of the Second World War on a range of post-war societies, including Britain, Germany, Japan and transnational settings.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a sound knowledge and understanding of the social and global history of the immediate post-war period;
2. Reflect critically and sensitively upon the impacts of the second world war on post-war societies
3. Critically assess and interpret primary sources and select pertinent evidence in order to illustrate specific and more general historical points
4. Present their research and judgements in written forms and styles appropriate to the discipline and to level H/6

Teaching Information

Classes will involve a combination of class discussion, investigative activities, and practical activities. Students will be expected to engage with readings and participate on a weekly basis. This will be further supported with drop-in sessions and self-directed exercises with tutor and peer feedback.

Assessment Information

1 x 3500-word Essay (50%) [ILOs 1-4]; 1 x Timed Assessment (50%) [ILOs 1-4]

Reading and References

Tara Zahra, The Lost Children: Reconstructing Europe’s Families after World War II (Harvard, 2015).

Jordanna Bailkin, Unsettled: Refugee Camps and the Making of Multicultural Britain (Oxford, 2018)

Allan Allport, Demobbed: Coming Home After the Second World War. (London and New Haven, 2009).

Adam Seipp, Strangers in the Wild Place: Refugees, Americans and a German Town, 1945-1952 (Bloomington, 2013).

Donna Alvah, Unofficial Ambassadors: American Military Families and the Cold 'War, 1946-1965 (New York, 2007).

Tony Judt, Post War: A History of Europe since 1945 (Oxford 2005).