Fall 2001 Program-The New Europe: London and Beyond

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS:

Explore British and European politics from one of Europe’s great capital
Experience British culture through its theatre, art, and architectuRE
Get a taste of Europe and more in London’s restaurants and market
Visit museums and historic sites throughout Britain
Earn Bucknell credit while studying abroad, and at Bucknell tuition and dorm rates

The 2001 London Semester program expands its horizons beyond London to its larger environment, the "new Europe" created by the end of the Cold War and by accelerating integration. Our base will be London, but our theme will be the great changes--poltiical, social, economic, and cultural--that are transforming Europe. London is a great place to begin exploring these many forces: Like its neighbors Britain has become very diverse, and London today is strongly influenced by its many immigrant communities as well as by its interaction with the rest of Europe. Also, as one of the more skeptical members of the European Union, its relationship with the EU highlights all of the stresses and benefits of European integration. In addition, Britain retains its traditional role as a key actor in European and global affairs, while London has always been one of Europe’s great centers of cultural and artistic activity.

As a participant in the Program, you will learn from London by living in it: by reading the papers and watching the tellie, exploring museums and galleries, attending the theater, participating in small classes, and even by such everyday acts as using public transport and shopping. Up to twenty Bucknell students will be able to explore and experience London this way next fall.

BUCKNELL FACULTY:

Prof. Andrea Stevenson Sanjian (Department of Political Science)
265 Coleman Hall; 73514; asanjian@bucknell.edu
Prof. Stevenson Sanjian teaches European Politics, Russian Politics, Comparative Politics, and a capstone seminar, Comparing Public Policies, that compares public policies in the U.S. and other industrial democracies, especially those in Western Europe. She has conducted research and participated in seminars throughout Western and Eastern Europe and has been a member of Bucknell's faculty since 1983.

Prof. Gregory S. Sanjian (Department of Political Science)
263 Coleman Hall; 71300; gsanjian@bucknell.edu
Prof. Sanjian offers courses in International Relations, including American Foreign Policy, American Security Policy, and the North Atlantic Alliance. He has also published research on NATO decision making, and has been a fellow of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute in Sweden. He has taught at Bucknell since 1983.

BRITISH FACULTY:

The London 2001 program includes two British instructors who come very highly recommended by past participants in Bucknell in London. Dr. Patrick Conner, author of five books, teaches the Art and Architecture course, which is designed around visits to significant sites around the city. Dr. Vesna Goldsworthy, who teaches literature and drama at Birbeck College of the University of London, teaches the course on British theater. Her theater reviews are broadcast by the BBC World Service.

CORE COURSES:

Students in the London Semester take four courses

REQUIRED COURSES:

The European City: Medieval to Modern (UNIV 274; 1 credit) Stevenson Sanjian and Sanjian
In this course we will use London as a laboratory for exploring the development of modern urban life, but move beyond it to other cities in Britain and on the continent as well. We will consider, for example, the role of urbanization in democratization and in the rise of the modern welfare state. We will look at cities as repositories of national cultural life, but also at how they have become globalized, both economically and culturally. The best way to explore these and other issues is to explore the cities themselves, so much of the course will take the form of field trips, within London and elsewhere.

British Culture: Art, Architecture and Design (ART 215; 1 credit) Connor
This course is intended to complement The European City with close study of London’s development as a center of national artistic life. It will combine lecture with walking tours and visits to London’s superb museums and galleries and other important buildings.

ELECTIVE COURSES:

Britain and the New Europe (POLS 236.05; 1 credit) Stevenson Sanjian
With this course we will broaden our perspective and look beyond London to its larger European environment. It will have two main sections: The first will center on the nation-states that make up the European Union, the second on the EU itself. In both parts there will be an emphasis on Britain to illustrate various issues in the political life of today’s Europe.

The Atlantic Alliance: Europe and North America (POLS 236.04; 1 credit) Sanjian
The focus of this course is European perspectives on NATO, both during and after the Cold War. Debates over the nature, goals and strategies of the alliance dot NATO’s history, and almost always find the US and its European partners on different sides. As we look at the issues involved, we will take advantage of our setting to try to gain a better understanding of European perspectives on them.

The London Stage (THEA 264; 1 credit) Goldsworthy
This is an introduction to all aspects of the London theater, from its social role to various aspects of production, while also considering the plays as literature. The class will attend performances frequently, and the cost of tickets is included in the program.

FIELD PROJECTS:

Some students may want to pursue a guided research project that included field research in London. This could be done under the supervision of one of the Bucknell faculty in London, or possible under a Bucknell faculty member in Lewisburg. Students interested in this should complete all plans for the project before the end of the Spring semester.

FIELD TRIPS:

In addition to many site visits in London, coursework will include several trips outside of London. These will probably include Edinburgh and Cardiff (home of the two new regional parliaments for Scotland and Wales), Bath, York, Stratford-upon-Avon, and Oxford. We hope to include a visit to Brussels as well, home of the EU, NATO, and a great city in its own right.