History: Holocaust and Genocide Studies

The word genocide immediately evokes images of the mass murder of Jews during World War II. But there are more 20th-century examples of genocide: during World War I, Armenians were systematically persecuted and murdered, and more recently during the civil war in Rwanda Tutsis and moderate Hutus were also the victims of genocide. Is this kind of devastation a typical phenomenon resulting from twentieth-century genocidal ideology? The programme Holocaust and Genocide Studies attempts to explore this question.
The curriculum of this programme is interdisciplinary and comparative in character, based on a flexible interpretation of the notion of genocide. Both the ideology behind a genocide (or mass atrocity) and the context of war or martial law will be discussed. Typical 20th-century aspects are examined, such as mass mobilisation, the role of bureaucracy, the function of media and the prosecution of those responsible for genocide. In addition, attention will be paid to research into how later generations have interpreted different genocidal processes.
Holocaust and Genocide Studies is an accredited degree programme of History.