Course director: Olena Palko (University of Basel)
In the last decade, the Ukrainian parliament has issued two laws outlining the legal framework for dealing with the Russian imperial and Soviet past. These laws have sparked numerous scholarly debates on how to address the imperial past, Ukraine’s status as part of the Romanov Empire and the Soviet Union, and what to do with the cultural products created over the centuries.
This course aims to explore the Soviet legacy in present-day Ukraine and provide students with the necessary theoretical and methodological tools for studying, researching, and writing about Soviet history and culture. The implications for modern Ukrainian identity and politics, particularly in the context of the ongoing war with Russia, will be examined.
The course will be divided into three blocks. The first block will examine existing theories and practices in other Soviet republics. The second block will delve into Soviet history and its significance for Ukraine’s identity formation, covering key topics such as the Holodomor, the Second World War, and late socialism. The third block will focus on the cultural heritage from the Soviet era and its place in the Ukrainian national canon.
Confirmed speakers include: Botakoz Kassymbekova (University of Zurich), Timothy Blauvelt (Ilia University, Tbilisi), Kateryna Botanova (Culturescapes, Kyiv/Basel), Fabian Baumann (University of Heidelberg), Daria Mattingly (University of Chichester), and Yuliya Yurchuk (Södertörn University).