Globalities in historical context

The course is a stand-alone core course at advanced level.

The course is included in the following programs: 1) Master's Program in Global Studies (S2GST)

A Bachelor's degree with a minimum of 30 credits within the Social Sciences or Humanities.

Applicants must prove their knowledge of English: English 6 from Swedish upper secondary school, or the equivalent level of an internationally recognized test, for example TOEFL or IELTS.

This course looks at the historical context and trajectories of political, societal, economic, and environmental developments, globally as well as locally. It broadens history from the history of nation states to a focus on transboundary effects of global practices. The course develops and historicizes topics relevant to the field of Global Studies and is organized around three transhistorical and transboundary themes: Economy/ecology, society, and world order.

The Economy/ecology theme focus on the material foundations and economic development of human economies, on natural limits and ways of (trying to) transcend them, on the ‘social metabolism’ of societies, on technologies and their global diffusion, on different methods of organizing production and consumption, and on transitions and development. The Society theme take a deep historical view on the social, cultural, and political ways of organizing societies from the local scale to nation-states; on hierarchies, freedom, norms, mobility. The World Order theme traces the history of transnational governance, international settlements, systems of circulation and enclosure such as colonialism and imperialism, and globalizations.

The themes are analysed and illustrated through theories and historical examples, contextualized in a generical rather than a linear historiography. As part of the ongoing trajectories of history unfolding, students learn to understand how they are integral parts of these histories, and learn how to make an impact shaping future pathways of development. A history of science perspective, according to which the historicity of research and knowledge paradigms is closely linked to how the world is enacted and politically ordered, is further brought up.

After successful completion of the course students shall be able to:

Knowledge and understanding 

• Account for different perspectives on historical trajectories of transboundary political, societal, economic, and environmental arrangements

Skills and abilities 

• Utilize different theoretical perspectives to develop academic arguments. 
• Summarize and present the historical significance of claims relevant to global studies
• Work in groups to collaboratively research an issue using specific literatures and presenting the results in an accessible way

Judgement and approach 

• Critically engage with the knowledge production within historical debates relevant to global studies
• Evaluate how historical trajectories relevant to global studies can have an impact on shaping future pathways.

The pedagogy of the course will put the course literature, largely consisting of books, in the centre, while providing supporting infrastructure for drawing the most out of the reading. Lectures will provide historical context to the reading, discern its significance and point to methodological and theoretical assumptions in it. The literature is further discussed in literature seminars. 

Teaching language: English 

The course literature will be discussed in mandatory seminars, which contribute to a group presentation on a selected research theme that will be structured according to the course’s thematical foci economy/ecology, society, and world order. Seminar participation and presentations are graded with pass or fail. Absence will be compensated by an additional written or oral assignment. The final examination consists of an individually written essay that synthesizes key parts of the course content.

If a student who has been failed twice for the same examination element wishes to change examiner before the next examination session, such a request is to be granted unless there are specific reasons to the contrary (Chapter 6 Section 22 HF).

If a student has received a certificate of disability study support from the University of Gothenburg with a recommendation of adapted examination and/or adapted forms of assessment, an examiner may decide, if this is consistent with the course’s intended learning outcomes and provided that no unreasonable resources would be needed, to grant the student adapted examination and/or adapted forms of assessment.

If a course has been discontinued or undergone major changes, the student must be offered at least two examination sessions in addition to ordinary examination sessions. These sessions are to be spread over a period of at least one year but no more than two years after the course has been discontinued/changed. The same applies to placement and internship (VFU) except that this is restricted to only one further examination session.

If a student has been notified that they fulfil the requirements for being a student at Riksidrottsuniversitetet (RIU student), to combine elite sports activities with studies, the examiner is entitled to decide on adaptation of examinations if this is done in accordance with the Local rules regarding RIU students at the University of Gothenburg.

The grading scale comprises: Pass with Distinction (VG), Pass (G) and Fail (U). To be awarded a Pass grade for the course requires active participation in all seminars and oral presentation, as well as the grade Pass for the final examination. To be awarded Pass with Distinction for the course requires fulfilment of the criteria for Pass, and the grade Pass with distinction the final examination.

The course coordinator is responsible for systematically and regularly collecting the students' views of the course, and for making sure that the results of the evaluations in different forms are taken into consideration when developing the course.

The results of and possible changes to the course will be shared with students who participated in the evaluation and students who are starting the course.