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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2019/2020

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of History, Classics and Archaeology : History

Undergraduate Course: The Third Reich 1933-1945 (HIST10359)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of History, Classics and Archaeology CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThe course provides an overview of some of the most important aspects of The Third Reich, covering political, cultural, social and military history. The course covers most of the important takes and many of the important concepts and theories, which are important to interpret the Third Reich.
Course description The class will provide insights into one of the darkest, most disturbing and most formative eras of European history in the 20th century. The place of the Third Reich in German and European history, as well as reflections on continuity, modernity and radical change, will be discussed in detail. The seminars will pay particular attention to conflicting interpretations of how the Third Reich came into being, the reasons for its 'success', and how a complete breakdown of a civilization was possible. The seminars aim to develop students' capacity to distinguish between fundamental knowledge and historical interpretations. Different methodological approaches to key questions will be presented and discussed next to different political interpretations of the Third Reich. The critical use of different theoretical models will be presented and encouraged throughout the module.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Students MUST NOT also be taking The Holocaust (HIST10164)
Students MUST NOT also be taking Establishing the Iron Curtain: Totalitarianism in Eastern Europe, 1945-1968 (HIST10431)
Other requirements A pass or passes in 40 credits of first level historical courses or equivalent and a pass or passes in 40 credits of second level historical courses or equivalent.
Before enrolling students on this course, Personal Tutors are asked to contact the History Honours Admissions Administrator to ensure that a place is available (Tel: 503780).
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesVisiting Students should usually have at least 3 History courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this) for entry to this course. We will only consider University/College level courses.
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2019/20, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  46
Course Start Semester 1
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Seminar/Tutorial Hours 22, Summative Assessment Hours 2, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 172 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 50 %, Coursework 50 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) The assessment on this course will have two components:

a) There will be one essay of around 3,000 words. The word count needs to be between 2,700 and 3,300 words, including footnotes/endnotes but excluding the bibliography or any appendices.

b) There will be one two-hour examination paper during the examination period at the end of the semester, consisting of eight questions. Students will be required to answer two questions out of these eight.

The overall grade for the class will be calculated as follows: The examination paper will account for 50%, and the essay for 50%.
Feedback Students will receive written feedback on their coursework, and will have the opportunity to discuss that feedback further with the Course Organiser during their published office hours or by appointment.
Exam Information
Exam Diet Paper Name Hours & Minutes
Main Exam Diet S1 (December)2:00
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, an ability to analyse and evaluate conflicting historical interpretations on a given topic
  2. demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, have acquired basic knowledge in some of the most important fields of research on the Third Reich, acquiring a better understanding of 'the age of extremes' and some of the most important concepts and methodological approaches to study it (Totalitarianism, Fascism, Modernity and Dictatorship, interpretations of the Holocaust, the role of mass media and modern Propaganda, intellectual takes and differences of political, social, and cultural history)
  3. demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, an ability to synthesize secondary literature
  4. demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, an ability to approach and interpret primary sources by using scholarly literature
  5. demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, an ability to demonstrate the ability to use these critical skills to advance clear, well-reasoned and independent arguments in both written and oral forms.
Reading List
Klemperer, Victor: I Will Bear Witness 1933-1941: A Diary of the Nazi Years Modern Library Inc., 1999.
Kershaw, Ian, Hitler, 2 vols. (London, 2001).
Kershaw, Ian: The Nazi Dictatorship: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation, Bloomsbury Academic, 4th edition, 2000.
Evans, Richard: The Coming of the Third Reich / The Third Reich in Power / The Third Reich at War (2004-2009).
Overy, Richard: The Third Reich: A Chronicle, Quercus 2011.
Bartov, Omer, Hitler's Army. Soldiers, Nazis and War in the Third Reich, 1992
Paxton, Richard: The Anatomy of Fascism, 2004.
Winkler, Heinrich August, Germany: The Long Road West vol. 2: 1933-1990. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2007.
Herzog, Dagmar, Sexuality and German fascism / edited by Dagmar Herzog. New York ; Oxford : Berghahn Books, 2005.
Peukert, Detlev, Inside Nazi Germany: Conformity, Opposition and Racism in Everyday Life (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1989, c1982).
Gellately, Robert, Backing Hitler : consent and coercion in Nazi Germany / Robert Gellately. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2001.
Nazism 1919-1945: A Documentary Reader, 3 vols., edited by J. Noakes and G. Pridham, Exeter: University of Exeter Press, 1998.
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Independent gathering of evidence; critical analysis of images/film material, discussion in groups, oral presentations, critical consideration of learning materials; oral argument and debate; management of timetable and workload; and the production of work to deadlines
KeywordsThird Reich
Contacts
Course organiserMr Fraser Raeburn
Tel:
Email: jraebur3@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMiss Annabel Stobie
Tel: (0131 6)50 3783
Email: Annabel.Stobie@ed.ac.uk
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