This course introduces students to the theory and practice of 20th century east European Communism. A little over three decades since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration of the east European communist regimes, scholars across the disciplines continue interpreting communism’s multifaceted legacy. Consensus on what exactly constituted state socialism and how to remember it, however, is difficult to achieve. With emphasis on recent historiography, this course highlights the complexities of the communist past. Focusing on a range of issues — such as nostalgia, consumer culture, sexuality, gender, nationalism, dissidence, political violence, and attempts at transitional justice — this course will reveal that, when considered as a lived-experience, it is impossible to represent socialism in a straightforward and unambiguous narrative. Instead, we will explore the various, sometimes conflicting, ways in which people lived in and through the communist regimes and the ways in which they have come to interpret their legacy. This course will combine discussion of scholarly studies with screenings of documentary and fiction films. For their writing assignments students will produce a historiographical survey, a comparative essay on visual and written sources, and a research paper based on both secondary and relevant primary sources. Students will also deliver an in-class presentation and lead discussion.