Europe on the Move.

Patterns of Mobility in the 19th Century

3/6/8/9 ECTS
Seminar: BA/MA, BA Kulturgeschichte-Vertiefung // MEK Mittel- und Osteuropa als kultureller Raum // KGMOE Raume - Grenzen - Metropolen // MICS Culture, History and Societies in Central and Eastern Europe + Migration, Ethnicity, Ethnocentrism // MASS Migration, Ethnicity, Ethnocentrism
Montag, 9.15 - 10.45 Uhr, Ort: AM 202, Veranstaltungsbeginn: 14.10.2013

The long nineteenth century was a time of radical changes in all spheres of society. Numerous innovations ushered in an irrevocable acceleration of globalization. The changes in transport and communication – which started with improved mail services, the construction of a modern road network, the steam ship and the telegraph – would eventually cumulate in the development of a European railroad system. Railroads proved to be important carriers of globalization, contributing to a dramatic boost of worldwide economic exchange. An international exchange of ideas, technical and cultural innovation, workforce and tourists followed the rising mobility of ever-larger population groups as part of a “fundamental experience of modernity” (W. Kaschuba).
This course deals with the impact of the mobility revolution on social and cultural changes in East Central Europe before the First World War – focusing on Prussia/the German Reich, and the Russian Empire. After a brief introduction into the concept of mobility history and the Prussian and Russian societies of the long 19th century we will discuss mobility opportunities before the railroad. Thereafter we will focus on the emergence of railroad nets in Prussia and Russia. A focus will be on the role of mobility in literature/arts and for changing urban and rural landscapes. In a last step the students will work on the international aspects of railroad travel, especially tourism.

Literatur: Philip S. Bagwell: The Transport Revolution from 1770, London 1974;
Stephen Kern: The Culture of Time and Space 1880-1918, London 1983;
Russia in Motion. Cultures of Human Mobility since 1850, ed. by John Randolph and Eugene M. Avrutin, Urbana et. al. 2012
Teilnahmevoraussetzungen: Ability to read English
Leistungsnachweis: Referat, Essays, Hausarbeit
Sprache: English