Assoc. Prof. Dr Kornelia Slavova and Daniela Naydeva
Lectures: 30
ECTS credits: 3
The course aims to introduce students to the changes and trends in the culture of the United States influenced by the Cold War as well as draw comparisons to similar or simultaneous processes in Western Europe and the Soviet block. The lectures will follow the developments both chronologically (from the late 1940s to the late 1980s, as well as post-Cold War influences) and thematically (material culture, culture of everyday life, religion, popular culture, intelligence/spy culture, paranoia, etc.). The approach is student-oriented and involves autonomous reading and discussion of key texts in the field as well as getting acquainted with exemplary specimens of cultural production from the period. Students will be required to do autonomous reading and film watching, and conduct their own research on a topic of their choice. Evaluation involves a mid-term test and a term paper. To do this course, students should have some knowledge of contemporary American culture and international history. The course is conducted in English.