Last modified: 22 May 2019 17:07
We explore some of the major developments in the history of the modern Middle East, from the late 19th century, through the collapse of the Ottoman Empire to the formation of modern nation states. We will then focus on the latest phase of the history of the Middle Eastern Empires, subsequent changes in political systems during the 20th century, colonialism, struggle for independence, and Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We will follow a chronological structure and aim at strengthening critical thinking skills and interrogating contextual understanding of the role of culture as well as modernisation in the region. Download Course Guide
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Old Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
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The course critically evaluates the transformation of the Middle East in the 19th and 20th centuries until the Islamic Revolution of 1979 and the events of Arab states and Palestine in the 1980s. It evaluates the transition from empires to nation states in the Middle East including Turkey and Iran through processes of modernisation in the political, social and cultural fields. The course is organised chronologically and thematically in order to offer an in-depth evaluation of the principal economic, cultural and social factors which dealt with the development of the Middle East. The first part of the course deals with the historiographical debate on the representation of the Middle East and offers an overview of Ottoman and Qajar Empires, and the influence of the economic, political and cultural influence of Europe. Local responses are scrutinised through a critical evaluation of revolutionary movements, and the rise of new intellectual trends such as Nationalism and Political Islam. The second part of the course focuses on the establishment of a new state system after the First World War, the definition of colonial societies in the interwar period, and the consolidation of Arab, Turkish and Iranian Nationalism in the first half of the 20th century. The later stage of modernisation and state formation is analysed through the study of revolutions in the Arab world and Iran, as well as the development of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the 1950s to the 1980s.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
1st Attempt: 1 three-hour examination (50%), 3,000 word essay (40%) and Seminar Presentation (10%)
Resit: not normally available
There are no assessments for this course.
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