topics5&6-transformation&tensionandprogr
Topics 5 & 6 - Transformation & Tension and Progress & Uncertainty
Together, these two units comprise the Cold War and I have linked them together because I tend to teach them with both chronological and geographical organization in mind, while the IRP uses a more chronological approach. It is therefore crucial that students keep both organizers in mind. A multi-row and column timeline, showing dates and regions of the world is a useful organizer.
The Cold War very nearly ended life on this planet and today we are still experiencing the reorganization of the world from a largely bipolar antagonistic system to a multipolar and much more complex world. I teach this unit up to the start of the 21st century, though this is a little beyond what the course requires. In addition to the Cold War struggle, we will examine social and political developments within important regions, like the US, Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and South and East Asia.
Handouts & Assignments:
Useful Resources:
Cold War:
Paul Halsall's Internet Modern History Sourcebook; A Bi-Polar World
HistoryWiz - M.A.D. -The Cold War Multimedia Exhibit (contains great background information).
Good quick introductory descriptions of aspects of the Cold War can be found at the History Learning Site; Modern World History; The Cold War
Harry Truman Presidential Library Online Material including audio recordings of important speeches.
"US Grand Strategy and the Cold War" Melvyn Leffler and Bryan Le Beau discuss US strategy in this podcast from the University of Virginia.
Annotated Internet Resources on the Korean War - a great starting point.
Annotated Internet Resources on the Vietnam War - a great starting point.
Soviet Archives Exhibit - Cold War documents
British National Archives Learning Curve; Cold War
Nuclear Files.org has very informative material on nuclear weapons.
Spartacus Educational's Cold War links - a terrific starting point for Cold War research.
The Harvard Project on Cold War Studies - This includes scholarly material, including many recently declassified documents
The Woodrow Wilson Center's Cold War International History Project - quite scholarly.
Yale Law School's Avalon Project - The Cold War; A Documentary History
Mathew White's historical maps site has good Cold War Maps
SchoolHistory.co.uk Superpower Relations 1945-1989 - GCSE study material, including interactive diagrams.
The USA - Domestic:
Ellen Schrecker's The Age of McCarthyism; A Brief History With Documents
PBS - The American Experience; Eyes on the Prize; America's Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1985. Be sure to investigate the video and more segments. Listen to the music; watch the videos.
We Shall Overcome: Historic Places of the Civil Rights Movement
Film clip - Desegregation at Little Rock, Arkansas
Frontline: A Class Divided - A groundbreaking documentary on discrimination from a 1968 lesson.
SchoolHistory.co.uk USA: Divided Union? 1941-1980 - GCSE study material, including interactive diagrams.
"Cold War; The Domestic Front"
"In the Shadow of the Bomb; 1950's Society" An audio webcast by Professor Jennifer Burns of the University of California, Berkely.
"Building a Movement; Civil Rights Part 1" An audio webcast by Professor Jennifer Burns of the University of California, Berkely.
"Building a Movement; Civil Rights Part 2"
"Feminism & Antifeminism" An audio webcast by Professor Jennifer Burns of the University of California, Berkely.
"The Rise and Fall of Richard Nixon" An audio webcast by Professor Jennifer Burns of the University of California, Berkely.
"Conservatism Reborn; From Reagan to W. Bush II" An audio webcast by Professor Jennifer Burns of the University of California, Berkely.
"Concluding Lecture; 9-11 and Beyond" An audio webcast by Professor Jennifer Burns of the University of California, Berkely.
China:
Quotations from Chairman Mao (In English)
The USSR:
CIA's Analysis of the Soviet Union, 1947-1991
Seventeen Moments in Soviet History has excellent material, including multimedia resources.
PBS Commanding Heights video clips on the Soviet Union
Europe:
The End of Colonialism and the Developing World:
The Middle East:
International Organizations:
Lectures:
China Since the Communist Revolution (1)
From the Chinese Revolution to the Korean War
The Indian Sub-Continent Since Independence
Decolonisation; The British and French Empires
Nuclear Weapons and the Nuclear Arms Race
The USA (domestic) from 1945 to the end of the century (This is more than one class)
Eastern Europe & the USSR Since Khrushchev
The Soviet System of Government (After Khrushchev)
The End of White Supremacy in Southern Africa
PowerPoint Resources:
The Cold War by Dino Buenviaji(Turn off the annoying sounds)
Susan Pojer's The Beginning of the Cold War
Susan Pojer's The Early Cold War; 1947-1970
Susan Pojer's The Vietnam War
Sue Daly's Vietnam Under Doi Moi
The End of the Cold War and After - by Dino Buenviaji (With more annoying sounds)
Susan Pojer's 1950's America
Susan Pojer's India Since Independence
Susan Pojer's History of Modern Cuba
Susan Pojer's Modern Iran
Susan Pojer's Modern Iraq
Susan Pojer's The Roots of the Arab Israeli Conflict
Susan Pojer's Arab-Israeli Wars; 1956 - Present
L. Tucker's Lynden Johnson
L. Tucker's The Kennedy Administration
Online Video Material
PBS Commanding Heights video clips on the Soviet Union
Benoy's Directory of Googlevideo & Youtube Cold War Documentaries.
Benoy's Directory of Googlevideo & Youtube documentaries on Korea & China.
Weapons Races; the Race for the Nuclear Bomb
Movie Suggestions:
The Cold War
Doctor Strangelove; Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Stanley Kulbrick's masterpiece, starring Peter Sellers and George C. Scott. A mad general tries to launch World War III. Can anyone stop him? This is dark comedy at its best.
Ice Station Zebra (1968)
Americans and Soviets set out to rescue the crew of an arctic research base. However, there is much more at work than it first appears as Cold War intrigue mixes with genuine hope that anagonisms can be overcome.
On the Beach (1959)
Nuclear war obliterates the northern hemisphere in 1964. An American submarine surfaces in Australia -- but the respite cannot last as radiation spreads. This is one of the first post-apocalyptic nuclear films and remains one of the best.
Fail Safe (1964)
Get over the black and white film. This is an outstanding rendering of the terrors of the Cold War. Henry Fonda stars as the American president who faces accidental nuclear war and must find a way to stop it. Brilliant.
Thirteen Days (2000)
A riveting movie about the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. The film nicely depicts how the crisis very nearly spun out of control.
The Day After (1983 TV)
Though a bit tv cheesy and very 80's to look at, this film was actually quite influential as it incorporated recent knowledge of the effects of nuclear blast -- including the effect of electromagnetic pulse. See the outcome of thermonuclear war.
The Hunt for Red October (1990)
The cat and mouse game played by Soviet and American submariners throughout the Cold War is portrayed in this film.
Red Dawn (1986)
Teens fight a guerilla war against an occupation army of Soviet and Cuban troops in one of the most improbable scenarios ever filmed. This is not parody. The movie does give an inkling of some American' paranoia at the time, reflecting the time of Ronald Reagan's presidency, when American television ads actually warned of a the domino effect a Sandinista victory in Nicaragua might have -- leading to communists reaching the Texas border.
War Games (1983)
The plot line involving young people is completely fictitious, but the film is actually based on a real historical event that ncould have triggered World War III. In June, 1980, a technician loaded a training tape in NORAD's mainframe computer but did not switch the system to "test," resulting in false radar warnings of Soviet attacks. Oops!
The End of Empires and the Third World
Do watch the James Bond films -- too many to outline here.
Earth (1998)
This is a fabulous film by Indian Canadian director and writer Deepa Mehta. Set in India at the time of partition, we see a society torn apart by political and ethnic divisions that previously did not exist. This and Gandhi are must-see films to understand the Indian experience in the first half of the 20th century.
The Battle of Algiers (1966, re-released in 2005)
France's departure from Algeria was probably its most divisive and painful experience of the post-war years. Shot in a documentary style, it featured actual actors in the evemts. The film was originally banned in France and served as a manual on tactics for many radical revolutionary groups. This is an excellent treatment of the crisis.
Exodus (1960)
Film version of Leon Uris' novel of the same name. The story begins with the Holocaust and traces the lives of Jewish illegal immigrants to Israel and their experiences during the war following Israeli independence. The popularity of this film undoubtedly influenced American public opinion in support of the state of Israel.
The Jewel in the Crown (Mini-series, 1984)
Terrific series examining life in India at the end of the period of British rule.
Cry the Beloved Country (1995)
James Earl Jones stars as a Black South African preacher who sets off to find his criminal son. Black and white come to understand eachother better in apartheid South Africa.
Cry Freedom (1987)
Richard Attenborough's treatment of the friendship of white journalist Donald Woods and Black activist Steven Biko and of events leading to Biko's death at the hands of South Africa's white supremacist government. This film probably helped to influence political change in South Africa by helping to sway public opinion in the West.
Blackhawk Down (2000)
Set during the period of US intervension in Somalia, in 1993, this film deals with events surrounding the downing of a US military helicopter in Mogadishu. The US pulled out shortly after, seeing no hope of successfuly restoring order in the country.
Lomumba (2000)
The story of Patrice Lomumba, fighter for Congolese independence from Belgium, his rise to power, and his assassination in the chaotic post-independence period.
The Last King of Scotland (2006)
Idi Amin's rule sometimes appeared comical to the outside world as he dubbed himself "Conqueror of the British Empire" and strangely offered himself to be "King of Scotland." In reality, he was no buffoon. With no restraints on his power, he became increasingly brutal, killing opponents and potential opponents at will. His victims likely numbered between 80,000 and 500,000. In 1972 he brought economic ruin by expelling Uganda's "Indian" population. The film centers on a fictional Scottish doctor who is in Amin's inner circle. Do not watch this film expecting historical authenticity. However, Forest Whitaker does a marvelous job of showing how the charismatic army officer became a tyrant. This is what makes the film well worth watching.
Hotel Rwanda (2004)
A hotel manager lives by his wits and tries to save as many Tutsi refugees as possible during the nightmarish days of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994. Despite the ghoulish subject matter, this is a tremendous film that one need not be a history student to appreciate.
The Killing Fields (1984)
One of the most terrifying historical films ever made. Dith Pran, Cambodian associate of New York Times reporter Sydney Schanberg, is rounded up, along with most of his countrymen and sent out to be worked to death in the countryside by the murderous Khmer Rouge after they seize power. Somehow Pran survives and is reunited with his American friend. Compare Pran's experiences with those of Holocaust survivors and those who lived through the Rwandan genocide.
The Official Story (La Historia Officia, 1985)
Set during the "dirty war" of Argentina's military rulers against the country's leftists, this film deals with a woman's search for her "missing" daughter. This is a superb film.
Evita (1996)
Stars Madonna, who is a surprisingly good actress. This is the story of Argentine figure Eva Peron, who rose from poverty to become the wife of populist President Juan Peron.
Missing (1982)
An account of events during the American-backed military overthrow of the Chilean government of Salvadore Allende. Jack Lemon stars as an American father who goes to Chile to help is daughter-in-law find his son, a victim of the coup. Very good.
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Francis Ford Coppola took the old Joseph Conrad novel Heart of Darkness and moved the story from colonial Africa to Vietnam during the war. Marlon Brando plays the repulsive Kurtz and Martin Sheen plays the troubled Captain Willard, who is sent to kill him. Surreal war footage emphasizes the futility of the war and the horrific effect that a war like this has on those who fight it.
Platoon (1986)
Oliver Stone's depiction of the hellish life of a young recruit in Vietnam. The soldier's struggle is as much within himself as it is with the enemy as he finds that his cause is not as moral is he first thought.
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
Stanley Kulbrick's tale of the American experience in Vietnam from basic training to the Tet Offensive. The film is visually stunning.
The Odd Angry Shot (1979)
Australians also served in Vietnam. This film follows Aussie recruits from basic training at Canungra to combat in Vietnam in a war that is increasingly unsupported back home. Listen to Redgum's song A Walk in the Light Green for further Australian commentary on the war.
Doctor Bethune (1993)
Donald Sutherland stars in this biopic of the life of a Canadian doctor who became a hero of China's communist revolution.
The Beast (1988)
During the Soviet war in Afghanistan, a mixed Russian/Afghani tank crew finds itself separated from the rest of its unit and hunted by the Mujehaddin. This is a riveting treatment of the "Soviet's Vietnam."
Kandehar (Safar e Ghandahar, 2001)
A woman who fled Afghanistan as a child returns and makes a dangerous journey to find her long-lost sister who remained behind. She learns of life under the fundamentalists who ruled Afghanistan after the fall of the pro-Soviet regime.
Xiu Xiu, the Sent Down Girl (1998)
In Communist China in the early 1970's a young girl is "sent down", forced into manual labour and exploitation in the remote countryside.
Kundun (1997)
Biographical movie about the life of the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan political and religious leader who lives in exile in India and who inspires Buddhists around the world.
Not Without My Daughter (1991)
An American woman marries an Iranian man and returns to Iran with him, only to find that she cannot fit in with his family. She struggles to escape Iran -- with her daughter. The film helped create a very negative view of Iran and Islam in general for many Americans.
Lord of War (2005)
This film examines the ethics of the international arms trade. Stars Nicholas Cage.
The Constant Gardner (2005)
One of 2005's best films, starring Ralph Fiennes. This is another film looking at the ethics of first world businesses operating in the Third World -- this time the pharmaceutical industry. This is a tremendous movie.
The Year of Living Dangerously (1982)
Perhaps Peter Wier's best film, this is the story. President Sukarno of Indonesia is making waves internationally and the US and Indonesian military do not like the path he is choosing. Indonesia's communists also appear set to strike for power. A journalist who thought he was off on a boring assignment, finds himself caught up in Suharto's military coup. With the help of his photographer, he works one of the most dangerous assignments in the world. Stars Mel Gibson, Linda Hunt (in a male role) & Sigourney Weaver.
Post-War America
Malcolm X (1992)
Biographical account of the life of a controversial Black Muslim leader. His assassination made him a martyr.
Mississippi Burning (1982)
Fictionalized account of an FBI murder investigation of civil rights workers in the US South.
Forest Gump (1994)
Stars Tom Hanks. A simple young man witnesses and participates in major events in recent US history. Real and altered real footage is cunningly woven into the narrative.
Nixon (1995)
The rise and fall of an American president.
JFK (1991)
Everyone likes a good conspiracy theory, and tha is exactly what Oliver Stone delivers in his account of District Attorney Jim Garrison's investigation of the Kennedy assassination. Most historians would not agree with this account, but it is a very good film.
Post-War Britain
49 Up (2005)
OK, I'm breaking the no documentary rule once again, but this film is really special. This is a long term study of children who were first selected and filmed as 7 year olds and who are filmed again every 7 years. They come from all classes of British society and this is probably the best picture of British people ever produced. I've gone to the cinemas to watch this for decades. Now all of the films are available on video. Each film recaps the history of each character, so you don't have to watch the whole series -- just the most recent film.
Scandal (1989)
An account of the Profumo affair that rocked the British government in 1963. Call girls and politics should not mix.
Brassed Off (1996)
Set in a northern coal mining town at the time of Margaret Thatcher's reforms and her hard line battle with the unions, which resulted in the closing of most British coal mines. Class differences affect a local brass band caught up in the politics of the times.
In the Name of the Father (1993)
Irish men falsely accused of a London pub bombing are finally proved innocent. Based on a true story.
A Private Function (1984)
Rationing continues in Britain well into the 1950's. This comedy satirizes the time as an illegal pig is being raised to feed a banquet, only to be pignapped
Bloody Sunday (2002)
An account of "the troubles" in Northern Ireland that centers on the killing of protesters by British troops.
Bend it Like Beckam (2002)
Riotously funny film about contemporary Britain. Football culture crosses all racial boundaries, but how can a young Indo-British girl reconcile her love of the sport with the more traditional expectations of her family? This is a classic and the additional features on the DVD are well worth watching.
Post-War Western Europe
Munich (2006)
The gripping account of the 1972 hostage taking of Israeli athletes, the bloody rescue attempt, and the hunting down of those responsible for the hostage taking by Mossad, the Israeli secret security force.
Z (1969)
The story of the assassination of a left-wing Greek politician and its subsequent cover-up.
The Third Man (1949)
Stars Orson Welles. An American writer arrives in Vienna only to find that his friend and host is dead. He tries to get to the bottom of things in a city divided between occupying powers, where Cold War intrigue mixes with commonplace criminality.
Post-War USSR and Eastern Europe
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)
This film is rather more racy than I should be suggesting here. Be forewarned. Daniel Day Lewis and Juliette Binoche star in this telling of the Milan Kundera novel of the same name about life in Czechoslovakia during the Prague Spring and the Warsaw Pact invasion. This is a film version of the Milan Kundera novel.
Goodbye Lenin (2003)
A party activist in East Germany fell into a coma before the collapse and German reunification. Her son tries to protect her from knowledge of what happened after she revives.