Prospectus

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The Ottoman Empire and Turkey (1908 - 1945)

Course
2014-2015

Admission requirements

Admission to the MA Middle Eastern Studies, specialisation Turkish Studies or to the Research Master Middle Eastern Studies. Proficient reading skills in modern Turkish (level B2 European Common Framework). Students who are interested in taking this course, but who are not admitted to one of the mentioned master programs and/or are not sure whether they meet the language requirement are requested to contact the convener, Prof. Dr. Erik-Jan Zürcher.

Description

Modern Turkey came into existence in the period 1908-1945, in which traumatic and revolutionary developments followed each other in quick succession: the constitutional revolution, eleven years of war, mass migration and mass murder, the end of a 600-year old empire and almost the partition of the remains among the victors in World War I. At the same time it is the period of political experiments, the building of a national economy and the birth of Turkish nationalism. The republic is both heir to all of these developments and a daring experiment in nation building and modernization.

Course objectives

The course aims to use the historical context of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the emergence of a new nation state, the Republic of Turkey, to discuss and analyze four major issues that played a dominant role in the history of this period: the emergence of the modern state, the impact of war, nationalism and nation building, and the role of religion and secularism.

Course schedule and reading materials

The course is divided into four blocks. First three blocks follow a chronological sequence but the last block is designed as a discussion of ideological currents that have been influential in the chronological narrative of the first three blocks. Please be informed that all the reading material listed in Blackboard under the categories of “Secondary Texts” and “Primary Sources” are mandatory to read. In addition to that, students are required to independently read chapters 1-12 of E.J. Zürcher, Turkey. A Modern History by way of preparation for the course. Please remember that student reactions to the texts and lively in-class participation constitute % 20 of your overall grade. Students are expected to read all mandatory materials before they come to the classes. It is not required to read the “Optional Text(s)”, they are included to encourage further discussion.

Timetable

Timetable

Mode of instruction

  • Seminar (werkcollege)

Course Load

280 hs = 40 hours in class, 120 hours reading/preparation, 120 hours research/term paper.

Assessment method

The final grade of this course will be composed of the following elements:

  • In-class participation and preparedness (20%)

  • Presentation on a course related topic in class (20%)

  • Term paper rough-draft (10%)

  • 5000-word essay (term paper) (50%)

All students are required to submit an abstract of their term paper during the semester. They then hand in the draft version of their paper I the third week of January and get feedback from the teacher. The deadline for the final version of the paper is two weeks after the handing in of the draft.

Students who earn a mark lower than 5.50 (=6) owing to insufficient participation, including the presentation, will have to sit a written examination on the subjects discussed during the course. The result will contribute 50% to the final mark.

Students who do not deliver a term paper on time will automatically fail the course.
Attendance: Students are allowed to miss a maximum of two classes, provided they have a valid reason. Students, who miss more than two classes, are required to resit the course.

Blackboard

Blackboard

Reading list

A full set of selected readings can be found in the course description on Blackboard.

Registration

Students are required to register through uSis. To avoid mistakes and problems, students are strongly advised to register in uSis through the activity number which can be found in the timetable in the column under the heading “Act.nbr.”.

Contact information

Prof. Dr. Erik-Jan Zürcher.

Remarks

Students with disabilities

The university is committed to supporting and accommodating students with disabilities as stated in the university protocol (especially pages 3-5). Students should contact Fenestra Disability Centre at least four weeks before the start of their courses to ensure that all necessary academic accomodations can be made in time conform the abovementioned protocol.

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to be familiar with Leiden University policies on plagiarism and academic integrity. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. If you submit any work with your name affixed to it, it is assumed to be your own work with all sources used properly indicated and documented in the text (with quotations and/or citations).