The English-speaking Worlds

Partie britannique : Nationalism, Republicanism and (Anti-)Imperialism in Ireland from the late 18th-century to today / Nationalisme, républicanisme et (anti-)impérialisme en Irlande de la fin du 18ème siècle à aujourd’hui

Before the Act of Union of 1800, Ireland had been conquered several times and settled by people from the neighbouring island. Their presence resulted in a formal structure which separated ‘settlers’ from ‘natives’ and privileged the former at the expense of the latter, whose dispossession and political exclusion gave rise to various forms of resistance. 
In the late 18th-century, the American and French revolutions held considerable sway on such Irish political leaders as Wolfe Tone, who laid the foundations of Irish republicanism, by advocating the end of British rule in Ireland. But it was not until more than a century later that the events which are today known as the Irish Revolution would take place. In the meantime, Irish constitutional nationalism thrived, but its inability to have the British meet its grievances served as a catalyst for more separatist movements. The aftermath of the War of Independence (1919-1921) was such that the Irish Revolution would remain ‘unfinished business’ for some republicans, with paramilitary action returning to the fore during the Troubles in Northern Ireland (1968-1998).
This course will address the origins and multifaceted expressions of both Irish republicanism and nationalism, not least their interactions with (anti-)imperial and (anti-)colonial ideologies. A transnational perspective will be adopted to make better sense of the complex and hybrid position that Ireland occupies in both the history of the UK and that of Empire. 

Partie américaine : Understanding hegemony: the rise and decline of US global influence / Qu’est-ce que l’hégémonie ? Essor et déclin de l’influence mondiale des Etats-Unis

En prenant pour cas d'école l'exemple de l'hégémonie américaine depuis un siècle environ, sous ses différents aspects (militaire, économique, géopolitique, culturel, idéologique, technologique), ce cours se propose d'interroger la notion d'influence mondiale dans ses dimensions variées: une échelle de représentations, un mode de vie idéalisé, le pouvoir des médias et de l'industrie culturelle, l'impérialisme de la langue, via tous les relais du capitalisme mondialisé. Le concept flou de "soft power" sera mis en perspective historique -- en comparant la domination américaine aux grands exemples passés d'empires à l'échelle mondiale et en la confrontant aux théories de l'hégémonie (A. Gramsci, F. Jameson, T. Gitlin, P. Kennedy).

Taking American hegemony throughout the last century or so, and its many aspects (military, economic, geopolitical, cultural, ideological, technological), as a case-study, this course will explore the various dimensions of what international influence may signify nowadays: a set of representations, an idealized lifestyle, the power of new media and cultural industries, linguistic imperialism, and the many relays of globalized capitalism. The notion of "soft power" will be questioned in a historical perspective -- comparing US domination with past examples of global empires, and confronting it with cultural theories of hegemony (A. Gramsci, F. Jameson, T. Gitlin, P. Kennedy).

SESSION 1

Partie britannique : Nationalism, Republicanism and (Anti-)Imperialism in Ireland from the late 18th-century to today / Nationalisme, républicanisme et (anti-)impérialisme en Irlande de la fin du 18ème siècle à aujourd’hui

- Contrôle continu : un exposé en cours et un commentaire de document écrit final

Partie américaine : Understanding hegemony: the rise and decline of US global influence / Qu’est-ce que l’hégémonie ? Essor et déclin de l’influence mondiale des Etats-Unis

- Contrôle continu : un exposé en cours et une dissertation ou commentaire de document écrit final

SESSION 2 : 1 devoir écrit de 2h

anglais C1-français B2