BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN GROUP DISCUSSION AND MINI-PRESENTATIONS
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Introduction
"From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic," declared the British prime minister Winston Churchill in 1946, "an iron curtain has descended across the continent." He was referring to the escalating tensions between the Soviet Union and their World War II allies that immediately followed after the end of that war. The term the Cold War has come to be used to describe the entire era from 1945 to 1989 and the way in which global geopolitics was dominated by the intense rivalry between the nuclear armed superpowers of the United States and the U.S.S.R. The Cold War profoundly shaped the history of Europe and since 1989 such still unsettled questions as the meaning of "Europe", the relationship between East and West, and the relationship between both Europe as a whole and individual European countries with both Russia and the United States have rested at the heart of the post-Cold War world.
The Procedure
1) You will have been assigned to one of five different groups, each of which will be studying the history of one particular East European nation during the Cold War. You should complete three file cards as part of this exercise and bring these to class so that you are ready for both small group and full class discussion. If you missed the November 3rd class session, you should pick one of the five groups and still come to class prepared.
a) One card should offer a summary of and commentary upon one article from your nation's history that you found to be interesting. The front of the card should include either a very brief summary of or notes on the article while the back of the card should offer your own thoughts.
b) One card should offer a summary of and commentary upon one video or audio resource from your nation's history that you found to be interesting. The front of the card should include either a very brief summary of or notes on the resource while the back of the card should offer your own thoughts.
c
) The third card should briefly list the different resources you consulted and offer your overall thoughts in regards to this exercise.2) Complete a fourth card that offers a summary of and commentary upon one resources from the Stalin And Historical Memory Discussion Topic.