HISTORY OF CONTEMPORARY CHINA

The course will introduce the students to the study of the history of the People's Republic of China from its founding in 1949 to the end of the 20th century. It will provide them with the critical tools to understand the political, cultural and social evolution of China in the second half of the Twentieth-Century, framing local historical processes in the Cold War global perspective, but also offering insights on the peculiar characteristics of Chinese socialism under Mao and after Mao. At the same time the course will provide students with the conceptual and methodological tools needed for historical research.

Learning outcomes
Through an active participation in the planned learning activities and the individual study of the texts indicated in the bibliography the students are expected to achieve the following learning outcomes:
1. Knowledge and understanding
● To have an accurate knowledge of the political, cultural, and social transformations of China from 1949 to 1999.
2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding
● To be able to select and read critically various typology of historical sources regarding the People's Republic of China.
3. Ability to judge
● To be able to properly frame sources and information about contemporary Chinese political and socio-cultural reality in a historical-informed perspective.
4. Learning skills
● To critically use the related academic literature and understand some of the peculiarities of Chinese contemporary historical writing; to write a short academic essay in history.

A general knowledge of history of China in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Century as well as knowledge of English and modern Chinese are required.

The establishment of the People's Republic of China in a global perspective.
The rural reform and its impact. Changing urban China in the early 1950s.
The impact of industrialization on Chinese society.
Intellectuals and the Party-State.
The Great Leap Forward and its aftermath.
The Cultural Revolution: politics, culture and society
The Death of Mao but not of Maoism: Reform and Opening up.

Mandatory readings:

Felix Wemheuer, A Social History of Maoist China: Conflict and Change, 1949–1978, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019

A complete list of readings (mandatory and suggested) will be published before the beginning of the semester.

Final assessment:
The achievement of the expected learning outcomes will be judged asking the student to submit a written essay of 3000-5000 words (in English or Italian). The short essay will concern one of the topics and sources of the reading list and discussed in class.
Students will be required to hand in an essay plan one month prior to the final due date.
The essay should be submitted no less than two weeks before the final exam, which will be a short oral discussion of the handed in essay.
The evaluation of the essay will take the following aspects into account:
- the student's knowledge and understanding of the reading material assigned on the subject;
- the student's ability to illustrate and reflect on the chosen topic on the basis of the course's general goals;
- the clarity of the writing and argumentation.

The 30-hour course will include lectures and seminars in English.
Each class will include a 45 minute lecture, and 45 minutes for in-class discussion of texts.

Italian

written