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Rise and Demise of Communism in Global Perspective

Module description

The rise and fall of world communism formed one of the greatest dramas of the twentieth century. Born in revolutions and wars, communism became an inseparable part of the last century’s key developments, such as decolonisation, globalisation, and the formation of a new international system. This module explores various types of communism in countries like the USSR, Eastern Europe, China and postcolonial states in the Global South. Was their experience an achievement or tragedy? How did the price paid in human sufferings and oppression weigh against the achievements in state-building, industrialisation, welfare policies and scientific progress? How did the Cold War impact the trajectory of communist endeavours? The module will also help you understand how the lessons and legacies of communism continue to influence political discourses and movements worldwide.

No prior knowledge, skills or experience are required. The module is suitable for specialist and non-specialist students. This module can be recommended for interdisciplinary pathways.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The module aims to introduce you to key theoretical aspects in the history of communist ideology and the formative experiences of various countries across the globe. The module will equip you with knowledge and skills to critically engage a variety of relevant historiographical approaches to communism at the intersections with the histories of imperialism, nationalism, globalisation, development, gender, human rights, and violence. The module will help to develop skills in researching, interpreting and analysing both primary sources and secondary material and will give you an opportunity to work individually and in teams on group presentations. It will facilitate the development of effective oral and written communication skills, which are essential for other modules and in your future career.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

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

• 1. Demonstrate an understanding of the key developments in the history of communism in the twentieth century.
• 2. Critically evaluate the key political, economic, social, and cultural aspects of communist systems and ideology.
• 3. Summarise and assess different historiographical approaches to the studies of historical experiences of various communist states and understand how their lessons and legacies inform political development worldwide.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

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

• 4. Analyse the key developments in a complex historical environment.
• 5. Demonstrate an ability to handle profoundly different approaches to history in contested areas.
• 6. Demonstrate an ability to understand and deploy complex historical terminology in a comprehensible manner

ILO: Personal and key skills

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

• 7. Select, organise and analyse material for written work and oral presentations of different prescribed lengths and formats
• 8. Present complex arguments orally in the discussion
• 9. Present an argument in a written form in a clear and organised manner, with appropriate use of correct English
• 10. Through essay development process, demonstrate ability to reflect critically on your own work, to respond constructively to feedback, and to implement suggestions and improve work on this basis

Syllabus plan

Whilst content may vary, the syllabus aims to cover the following topics:

• Communist ideology and critique of capitalism in Marxism.
• Building socialist state: experience of the USSR and beyond
• Communism and Nationalism. 
• Communism and Wars.  
• Communism, imperialism, and decolonisation
• Communism and Development
• Communism and Space
• Communism and Violence
• Communism and Internationalism
• Communism and Human rights
• Memory of Communism

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 3000-word written assignment, as in the original assessment, but replaces participation in the group presentation with an individual presentation equivalent to an individual’s contribution, to be recorded and submitted with all supporting materials as for the original assessment; failing this, students should submit a written script that could be delivered in such a presentation (750 words) along with all supporting materials as for the original assessment

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

• Breslauer, George W. (2021) The Rise and Demise of World Communism. New York: Oxford University Press.
• Duncan Peter J. S. and Elisabeth Schimpfossl (eds) (2019) Socialism, capitalism and alternatives: area studies and global theories. London: UCL Press
• Fitzpatrick Sheila and Yuri Slezkine. (200) In the Shadow of Revolution. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press
• Kochetkova Elen. (2024) The Green Power of Socialism: Wood, Forest, and the Making of Soviet Industrially Embedded Ecology. Cambridge MA: MIT Press.
• Kornai, János. (1992) The Socialist System. The Political Economy of Communism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
• Kotkin Stephen. (1995) Magnetic Mountain: Stalinism as a Civilisation. Berkeley: University of California Press.
• Kirschenbaum, Lisa A.  (2015) International Communism and the Spanish Civil War Solidarity and Suspicion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Mark, James and Paul Betts. (2022), Socialism Goes Global. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• McAdams, A. James. (2017) Vanguard of the Revolution: The Global Idea of the Communist Party. Princeton University Press.
• Naimark, Norman, Silvio Pons, Sophie Quinn-Judge. (2017) The Socialist Camp and World Power 1941–1960s. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
• Pons S, Smith SA, eds. (2017) The Cambridge History of Communism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Rendle, Matthew. (2020) The State versus the People. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Schlögel, Karl. (2018) The Soviet Century: Archaeology of a Lost World Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press.
• Vronskaya, Alla. (2022) Architecture of Life: Soviet Modernism and the Human Sciences. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
• Young, Glennys (2011), The Communist Experience in the Twentieth Century A Global History through Sources. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Key words search

Communism, internationalism, modern history, development, Soviet Union, China