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Root number
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515670 |
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Semester
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FS2026 |
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Type of course
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Seminar |
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Allocation to subject
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History |
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Type of exam
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not defined |
| Title |
Hazardous incident: The Chernobyl reactor accident in April 1986 and its consequences. |
| Description |
On 26 April 1986, an accident occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor in Belarus, parts of the power plant burned, and high levels of radioactivity were released. The Soviet leadership initially reported nothing about the disaster, but only did so after measurements and subsequent inquiries from outside the Soviet Union. Today we know that human error led to the accident and that the political leadership in Moscow was overwhelmed by the disaster. Soldiers and firefighters in cotton suits were initially sent into the burning reactor building to extinguish the fire, manually pouring sand onto the flames. The inhabitants of the area around the nuclear reactor were evacuated over a large radius – but shortly afterwards, the obligatory parade was held on the streets of Kiev on 1 May. While panic broke out in Western Europe, as people knew how badly the radioactive fallout had contaminated food and nature, the population of the Soviet Union was largely left in the dark. The first responders died shortly after the operation due to high doses of radiation, but the Soviet Union was undergoing a process of reform that brought with it new challenges.
Today, not only is there extensive research on Chernobyl and its consequences for nature, the environment and energy production, but the name has also become synonymous with disaster tourism, film series and animated games. The seminar will address the reactor accident by examining its political and social consequences for the Soviet Union. This will also include debates on nuclear energy and shattered visions of the future. The further development of the region around Chernobyl will be examined. With the newer approaches of environmental history and global history, the topic will be expanded by examining international reactions and effects – for example in Switzerland – as well as the relationship between humans and nature. Finally, the significance of Chernobyl as a ‘place of remembrance’ will be discussed.
Einführungsliteratur:
Swetlana Alexijewitsch: Tschernobyl, Eine Chronik der Zukunft. 3. Auflage. Piper, München / Berlin 2015.
Serhii Plokhy: Chernobyl. History of a Tragedy. Basic Books, New York 2018.
Johannes Grotzky: Tschernobyl. Die Katastrophe. Zeitgenössische Berichte, Kommentare, Rückblicke. Norderstedt 2018. |
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ILIAS-Link (Learning resource for course)
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Registrations are transmitted from CTS to ILIAS (no admission in ILIAS possible).
ILIAS
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Link to another web site
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| Lecturers |
PD Dr.
Carmen Scheide, Teaching Staff, Faculty of Humanities ✉
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ECTS
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7 |
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Recognition as optional course possible
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No |
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Grading
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1 to 6 |
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| Dates |
Wednesday 14:15-16:00 Weekly
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Rooms
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| Students please consult the detailed view for complete information on dates, rooms and planned podcasts. |
User:
Öffentlicher Bereich
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