Course Catalogue

Humanities and Social Science

This module introduces students to the political, social and cultural history of international communism. Focussing primarily on the era of the Communist International (Comintern) (1919-43), it nevertheless also aims to push the history beyond these years, to examine shifts in international communism after the Second World War, and to examine the legacies of this political, social and cultural force in global history. The Communist International was the world’s first global political party created with no lesser a goal than the promotion of Bolshevik-style revolution world-wide. The Comintern singularly failed to live up to the high ambitions which its creators had envisaged. But why did it fail? What sort of organisation was it? And what attracted thousands of ordinary men and women across the world to join communist parties in the era of the two world wars, and beyond? Students will examine key debates in the history of international communism, such as the origins of the idea of communism and of revolutionary internationalism; the role of Lenin and the Bolsheviks in the Comintern; the influence of Stalin and the Soviet Union and the place of individual communist parties in their national political contexts. The course, however, will go beyond politics to examine communism as a social and cultural experience. Students will examine diaries, autobiographies and related sources to explore who the communists were and how they made sense of their ideological commitment.

Outline Syllabus:
This module will explore the history of international communism in the period from the Russian Revolution to the Cold War. The module will examine the life of Comintern officials in Moscow and their relationship with the Soviet government, but the primary focus will be to explore life in Communist parties outside of Russia. Key themes may include: individual experiences of Communist party membership; the study of communist autobiography and the creation of communist identities; communist leader cults; communism and gender; anti-colonialism and anti-racism; anti-fascism, the Civil War in Spain, and communist resistance movements during the Second World War; communists in western Europe during the Cold War; decolonisation; memory and legacies of communism. 

Module Overview:
The module incorporates the following LJMU Employability Skills:

1. Analysis, problem solving and decision making.
2. Planning and organisation.
3. Creativity and enterprise.
4. Intercultural skills.