Director (1997), ACM Program, Palacky University, Olomouc, Czech Republic
e-mail: dale@stolaf.edu
tel: 507/646-3655
A series of eight lecture/discussions with visual aids which will examine the extent to which the lives of the peoples of Central Europe have change since the collapse of communist party power.
The subjects covered will illustrate the increasing diversity within the region, the concerns of its people and the extent to which they are being addressed.
Wednesday April 1st
1. The Diversity Within Post-Communist Central Europe: Institutions, Ideologies and Cultures
The session will consider the emerging diversity within the countries of Central Europe born of different pre-communist heritages, different experiences of communism and the extent to which post-communist change has occurred. We will consider the extent to which the former East-West division of the region is now being replaced by a North-South one.
Reading: Chapter 1 "Eastern Europe's Defining Fault Lines" and Chapter 3 "The Social Origins of East European Politics" in Gale Stokes, Three Eras of Political Change in Eastern Europe (New York, Oxford University Press, 1997) pp.7-22 and 36-66.
Wednesday April 8th
2. Winners and Losers
The session will examine which social groups have benefitted from the collapse of communist regimes and which have not. Has change affected some groups more than others and has the direction of change been consistent?
Reading: Mark Kramer, "Social Protection Policies and Safety Nets in East Central Europe: Dilemmas of the Postcommunist Transformation" in Ethan B. Kapstein & Michael Mandelbaum (eds.) Sustaining the Transition: The Social Safety Net in Post-Communist Europe (New York, Council on Foreign Relations, 1997) pp. 46-123.
Wednesday April 15th
3. Changing Identities: Nationalism, Ethnicity and the "Freedom to Hate"
Opportunities for self-government are greater, but what experience of self government have some peoples had? How do they perceive themselves today? How do they perceive "others"?
Reading: Chapter 5 "Civil Society or Nation? 'Europe' in the Symbolism of Post-Socialist Politics" in Katherine Verdery, What Was Socialism, and What Comes Next? (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1966) pp.104-129.
Wednesday April 22nd
4. Difficult Choices: The Environmental Legacy of Stalinist Development
How can economic redevelopment and environmental cleanup occur simultaneously? The session looks at some of the difficult choices presented by the energy resources and policy proposals within the region. Particular attention will be given to the Gabcikovo and Nagymaros dams on the Danube.
Reading: Barbara Jancar-Webster, "Environmental Degradation and Regional Instability in Central Europe" in Joan DeBardeleben and John Hannigan (eds.) Environmental Security and Quality After Communism (Boulder: Westview, 1995) pp.43-68.
Wednesday April 29th
5. Vaclav Havel: Moral Beacon of Anti-Communism and Post-Communism
The session looks at the life, courage and moral leadership of the playwright who went from being prisoner to President in less than one year. We will also consider the implications of Havel's message for our own society.
Reading: Vaclav Havel, "The Power of the Powerless" (sections 1-1X only) in Vaclav Havel et al., The Power of the Powerless: Citizens against the state in central-eastern Europe (Armonk, NJ: M.E.Sharpe, 1990) pp.36-63.
Vaclav Havel, "Politics, Morality, and Civility" in Vaclav Havel, Summer Meditations (New York: Vintage Books, 1993) pp.1-20.
Wednesday May 6th
6. How to Maintain Stable Economic Growth: Develop Appropriate Political and Legal Institutions
The session will compare the imperatives for post-communist economic development presented by two alternative schools of thought: the "shock-therapy" of Jeffrey Sachs and the institutionalism of Douglass North. The importance of institutions will be stressed.
Reading: Roman Frydman, Kenneth Murphy, & Andrzej Rapaczynski, "Capitalism with A Comrade's Face" in Transition Vol.2 No.2, 26 January 1996 pp.5-11.
Wednesday May 13th
7. Expanding NATO: A Good Idea?
Was expanding NATO into Central Europe a good idea? The sessions will review the security situation of Central Europe prior to enlargement, the arguments for and against and the Russian response.
Reading: Dale R. Herspring, "After NATO Expansion: The East European Militaries"in Problems of Post-Communism Vol.45, No.1 Jan-Feb 1998 pp.10-20.
Wednesday May 20th
8. Westward Ho? How Far, How Fast and On Whose Terms?
To what extent do the countries of Central Europe want to become Westernized? What do they understand this process to imply. What price are they prepared to pay, and what price are they not prepared or able to pay?
Reading: Charles Gati, "The Mirage of Democracy" in Transition Vol.2 No.6 March 1996, pp.6-12.