Module manager: Prof Shane Doyle
Email: S.D.Doyle@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
This module is not approved as a discovery module
This module introduces you the history of the twentieth century; an era that the historian Eric Hobsbawm dubbed the ‘Age of Extremes’. Examining the changes that characterised a period that started with the First World War and ended with the upheavals of the collapse of the Soviet Union, this module charts the social, political, ideological and cultural forces that shaped the century, and the lives of the people who lived through it, for better and for worse.
This module aims to help you understand:
- some of the major social, economic, political and cultural developments that shaped the history of the twentieth century;
- some of the major turning points in the history of the twentieth century;
- historians’ competing interpretations of the twentieth century;
- the complexity of historical change.
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes relevant to the subject:
1. Analyse some of the major social, economic, political and cultural developments that shaped the history of the twentieth century.
2. Evaluate some of the major turning points in the history of the twentieth century.
3. Recognise different historiographical arguments about the causes and consequences of the changes examined in this module.
4. Appreciate the range, value, and challenges of a selection of primary sources that relate to the history of the twentieth century.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
5. Present a structured and coherent analysis based on appropriate and relevant historical sources in assignments set by tutors.
6. Apply fundamental standards and practices of historical study for research, discussion, and assessed work.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supervision | 2 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Lecture | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminar | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Private study hours | 179.6 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20.4 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
You will be monitored throughout the course on your preparation for and contributions in class. In-class exercises using sources will help you prepare for the first assignment, the source commentary (25%, testing LO 3,4,5,6). Feedback (both written and a one-to-one meeting) will help you build on this feedback towards the essay plan and essay. Using an individual source to explore broader trends will help you think through the evidence base for the secondary reading you will then use for your essay.
The formative one-page essay plan will help you use the feedback from assignment 1 to build towards assignment 2, the essay. Tutors will give individual feedback on the essay plan, providing valuable preparation for the assessed essay, particularly when it comes to understanding the complexities of historiographical debate and being able to grasp the fundamental standards and practices of historical study.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Source commentary | 25 |
| Coursework | Essay | 75 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 29/04/2025
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team