070273 VO Further approaches (Human Rights in History) (2018S)

The idea of universal human rights is frequently taken for granted today, but how did this happen? This module explores the fascinating history of human rights since the late eighteenth century, with a particular focus on the era of ‘human rights revolutions’ in the twentieth century. Until recently, the study of human rights was dominated by legal scholars, philosophers or political scientists, but recently historians have joined the debate, and the history of human rights is becoming an established field of historical enquiry. This module explores the history of human rights with a focus on social and political struggles over the meaning of ‘universal’ rights in specific historical contexts, including the founding of the United Nations, the legacy of the Holocaust and genocide, the reconstruction of post-war Europe, the Cold War, decolonization, and transnational civil society. Challenging celebratory historical narratives that present human rights as the outcome of a European Enlightenment tradition, this module will explore the much darker social, political, and international history of the global rights revolutions in the latter part of the twentieth century.