HST3307 - Decolonising History: Empires, Colonialism and Power

HST3307: Decolonising History: Empires, Colonialism and Power

20 credits (semester 1)

Module Leader: TBC (2024-25)

Module Summary

This module examines the rise and fall of empires as processes that shape our contemporary world. It considers the growth and governance of empires, decolonisation struggles, and the telling of imperial history from the perspective of colonised and coloniser. In approaching this history from multiple vantage points, this module asks: who held power, particularly over knowledge production, both during empire and after empire’s end? Drawing upon diverse historiographical traditions, and examining a wide range of time periods and places, we will question the centrality of empires in the telling of global history. In doing so, we will bring the past to bear on contemporary debates about race, globalisation, migration, and decolonisation. This module is, above all, about what it means to decolonise history, society and the academy. 

Aims

This module aims to:

• Introduce students to the study of colonisation and decolonisation across a wide range of geographies and chronologies;

• Develop students’ understanding of methods of studying imperial and global history, and encourage engagement with a diverse range of historiographical traditions;

• Build students’ skills in analysing a range of scholarly writings and connecting them both across times and spaces and in relation to contemporary contexts; 

• Develop students’ abilities to critique and evaluate the writing of others, and to then express their opinions of that writing clearly and with respect;

• Develop students’ abilities to debate and discuss the histories of colonisation and decolonisation, and to express their conclusions fluently both orally and in writing.

Teaching and Assessment

The module is taught through a combination of lectures and seminars. The lectures introduce the themes covered in the course and provide the necessary background and framework for exploring the subject. The 90-minute seminars provide opportunities for students to reflect in detail and to discuss ides and themes arising from the lectures, and from secondary readings.

Please see this page for further information about assessment. 

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of the unit, a candidate will be able to demonstrate the ability to:

• Interpret and engage with key themes in the history and historiography relating to colonisation and decolonisation.

• Formulate coherent and well-grounded historical arguments, both in oral discussion within the seminar and in on paper in written coursework.

• Write informed and cogent essays in clear, well-structured and grammatical prose.

• Think critically about the problems, challenges and opportunities of studying a topic across a significant period of time and within a comparative framework.