soc194 The Sociology of Spatial Formations

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2009
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
prof. Miloš Havelka, CSc. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. PhDr. Ing. Radim Marada, Ph.D.
Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Ing. Soňa Enenkelová
Timetable
Tue 14:00–15:40 U34
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 35 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/35, only registered: 0/35, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/35
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 10 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The course for undergraduate student follows-up the course Mental Maps of Central Europe (Autum). The transdisciplinary lectures will present selected mentally contructed contexts of the rediscovery of sociology and history of space from the perspectives of cultural sociology, political science and the sociology of knowledge. This analysis is particularly relevant at the time of massive historical and political changes in the world and in Europe that occurred at the end of the last century. These impacted not only administrative borders and geopolitical spheres of influence, or geographic maps, but also historical self-understanding of states and nations, their value systems, ideas of identity, cultural and political orientations. The course will teach basic principles of critical analysis of spatial discourses and deconstruction of hegemonic discourses.
Syllabus
  • (1) The conceptualization of space as a problem: Structuralists, Marxists, Post-modernists; „genius loci“.
  • (2) Historical regions, cultural-economic spaces and social fields.
  • (3) Cultural stereotypes and national characters I.; Approaches, terminology, problems.
  • (4) Cultural stereotypes and national characters II.; Explanations and proposals.
  • (5) Discussion about Central Europe in 1960’s: C. Magris, K. E. Schorske, W. Johnston, K. Kosík.
  • (6) Central-European notion of Central Europe – Polish perspective: Central Europe as „intermarium“ (between the Baltic and the Black sees); O. Halecki, H. Orlowski, P. S. Wandysz, K. Pomian, C. Milosz, L. Żyliňski.
  • (7) Central-European notion of Central Europe: Slovenian-Croatian perspective: nationalistic and anti-Semitic Central Europe.
  • (8) Central-European notion of Central Europe – Hungarian perspective: Central Europe in the Carpathians; I. Bibó, F. Fejtö, J. Szücs, J. Novak, A. Gönz, G. Konrad.
  • (9) East-Western notion of Central Europe – Slovak perspective: M. Hodža.
  • (10) East-Western notion of Central Europe – German perspective: F. Naumann, J. Partsch, C. Frantz.
  • (11) East-Western notion of Central Europe – Czech perspective I.: Central Europe between Russia and Germany; F. Palacký, T. G. Masaryk, J. Kaizl, J, Pekař, K. Krofta, F. Weltsch, H. Ripka, K. Kosík.
  • (12) East-Western notion of Central Europe – Czech perspective II.: discussions in the dissent, M. Kundera and the revival of the topic. (13) Central Europe as a position: “Apolitical politics” as a Central-European position? Gyorgy Konrád a Václav Havel.
Literature
  • SZÜCS, Jenö, Tri historické regióny Europy, Bratislava: Kaligram, 1999.
  • HAVELKA, Miloš, „O středoevropských konstrukcích střední Evropy“, in: Dějiny-teorie-kritika, č.2, 2005, str. 195 – 213.
  • LEMBERG, Hans: Ke vzniku pojmu „východní Evropa“ v 19. století. Od „severní“ k „východní“ Evropě, in: týž, Porozumění. Češi, Němci, Východní Evropa, 1848 – 1948; Praha, Lidové noviny, 1999, str. 249 -300.
  • KOSÍK, Karel, „Co je Střední Evropa“, in: K. KOSÍK, Století Markéty Samsové, Praha: Český spisovatel, 1993, str. 63 – 100.
Assessment methods
The final grade will be based on a test from reading materials and lectures.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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