Cultural Cold War: 1945-1990

The course addresses an often neglected side of cold war relations: the conflict unfolding and mutual impacts exerted between the two socio-political systems ("capitalism" and "socialism") in the cultural and scientific domains. We are going to discuss the politics of arts where stylistic tendencies and artistic credos (like "modernism", "avant-garde"or "socialist realism") became politicized and adopted as "official norms"; the politics of academic endeavor where the "socialist camp" vandalized several important research fields (like genetics) by sanctioning dubious "principles" (such as that of "Soviet" or "Proletarian Science"). Efforts and attempts by East and West to affect and influence the other's perceptions, their cultural and public life will be given a great deal of attention. As we will show, even during the era of fiercest confrontation (during the late 1940s and the 1950s), a steady flow of interaction: influences, transfers, and learning took place across the East-West divide.

The aim of the course is to give an introduction to the cultural and scientific history during the Cold War.

One essay to be presented in class; attendance to the seminar. The course will be delivered in the form of a three day seminar towards the end of the term.