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Governing the World: A History of Internationalism from WW1 to the Present: Sources

Module description

Since the 19th century individuals and states sought to promote national interests in various international fora and to find ways to ‘govern the world’ for the greater good of mankind. This module will introduce students to the rich and complex history of internationalism and the evolution of iconic organisations such as the United Nations from diverse perspectives. The module aims to introduce students to the sources documenting the various visions for ‘governing the world’, exploring the voluminous documentation generated by different international organisations and individual transnational actors, some of which is now available in digitised or published form. No knowledge of a foreign language is required.

Module aims - intentions of the module

Together with its co-requisite, the module will introduce students to the multiple and multi-layered histories of internationalism, international institutions and global governance, focussing on internationalism’s dynamic relationship with nationalism and the dialectic between ideals and power politics that had defined visions of global cooperation throughout the 20th century. Through working with extensive source collections, students will develop skills in researching, interpreting, and analysing both primary and secondary material related to the history of internationalism and international institutions.

Drawing on archival, published and translated sources, as well as on a growing number of online digital archives, the module will use official institutional sources, as well as oral histories, letters, post-war memoirs, photographs and video material. While students with reading knowledge of a foreign language can engage with digitised sources in a variety of European languages, the volume of source material available in English for this module is such that students without foreign languages will not be disadvantaged.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Have a detailed knowledge of the different sources available for the study of the history of internationalism and international institutions together with a very close specialist knowledge of those sources which the students focus upon in their seminar presentations and written work
• 2. Analyse the complex diversity of the sources studied relating to the history of internationalism

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Analyse closely original sources and to assess their reliability as historical evidence. Ability to focus on and comprehend complex texts
• 4. Understand and deploy relevant historical terminology in a comprehensible manner.
• 5. Follow debates surrounding the changing nature of global governance and international organisations in this period

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 6. Conduct independent and autonomous study and group work, including presentation of material for group discussion, developed through the mode of learning
• 7. Digest, select and organise material to produce, to a deadline, a coherent and cogent argument, developed through the mode of assessment
• 8. Present complex arguments orally

Syllabus plan

Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that it will cover some or all of the following topics:

The module will span the history of internationalism from WW1 to the present day with focus on:

• the emergence and evolution of interwar internationalism(s) – of the liberal, anti-colonial, fascist and the communist variety
• continuities and discontinuities between the League of Nations and the United Nations
• the emergence and role of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)
• war, decolonisation and the history of peacekeeping
• the human rights revolution
• development and technocratic internationalism
• the rise of neoliberal internationalism
• internationalism and its discontents

The seminars will focus on sources drawn from published and digitised resources, as well as archival sources provided by the tutor, allowing students to develop their knowledge of the subject in conjunction with the close analysis of historiography provided in the co-requisite module. Some of the sources will be presented by individual students, others will be presented by students working in groups; and on other occasions there will be open discussion; students may also be expected to present and discuss specific sources they have found themselves from the module resources. Students will be expected to prepare for seminars by reading and evaluating the relevant sources in advance, and will discuss the issues raised by them in the seminars.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

The re-assessment consists of a 4,000 word portfolio of source work, as in the original assessment, but replaces the individual presentation with a written script that could be delivered in such a presentation and which is the equivalent of 25 minutes of speech (2,500 words).

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Selected primary sources:

• “The World We Mean to Make”: a report of the World Youth Congress held at Geneva August 31st-September 6th 1936 (London: British Youth Peace Assembly, 1936).
•  “Youth and the importance of the World Youth Congress Movement”, World Youth Congress Bulletin No.3 (January-February 1937).
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948.
• UNEF peacekeeping mission, selected primary material, UN Archive, New York, 1956.
• Treaty Establishing the European Economic Community (summary), 1957.
• “Belgrade Declaration of Non-Aligned Countries, 1961, Adopted at the First Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, Belgrade, 6 September 1961.”
• Charter of the Organization of African Unity, 1963.
• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), 1966.
• Charter of Algiers, 1967.
• Julius K. Nyerere, Man and Development (Oxford University Press, 1974).
• Many Voices, One World:Towards a New, More Just, and More Efficient World Information and Communication Order (UNESCO, 1980).
• Declaration on the Right to Development,1986.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE:
• United Nations Digital Library: https://digitallibrary.un.org/
• Non-Aligned Movement Database: http://cns.miis.edu/nam/#&panel1-1
• World Bank Group Archives’ Oral History Program: https://oralhistory.worldbank.org/
• The Group of 77 at the United Nations (Major Documents): http://www.g77.org/doc/docs.html
• Open Society Archives Digital Repository: http://catalog.osaarchivum.org/?f%5Brecord_origin_facet%5D%5B%5D=Digital+Repository
• Wilson Centre Digital Archive (International History Declassified): https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/
• British Pathé Film Archive: https://www.britishpathe.com/
• Posters of the Spanish Civil War (Digital Sources from U of California, San Diego, Southworth Collection): https://library.ucsd.edu/speccoll/visfront/vizindex.html
• Trabajadores: The Spanish Civil War through the eyes of organised labour (Warwick Digital Collections): https://warwick.ac.uk/services/library/mrc/explorefurther/digital/scw/

Indicative learning resources - Other resources

• Exeter Electronic Library resources include:
• Financial Times Historical Archive, New York Times, Guardian and Observer Archive, The Times, Foreign Broadcast Information Service Reports (1941-1996)
• Key journals and monographs for the module are available via JSTOR, Project Muse, Taylor & Francis, Cambridge Core, Cambridge Journals Online, Oxford Journals.

Key words search

Internationalism, United Nations, non-alignment.