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History Courses
HIS 110. AMERICAN SOCIETY AND CULTURE: 1607-1876 (3) (GEN. ED. #4 AND #10) Significant cultural, political, and social themes during the first two and a half centuries of the American past. Autobiographies and visual materials as well as traditional sources used to develop central themes and issues in American history.
Fall and spring semesters. Baker. Hale.
HIS 111. AMERICAN SOCIETY AND CULTURE: 1865 TO THE PRESENT (3) (GEN ED. #4 AND #10) A continuation of HIS 110, which may be taken independently. Emphasis on social and cultural aspects of late 19th- and 20th-century history using fiction, family histories, and traditional sources.
Fall semester. Jeffrey.
HIS 113. PREMODERN ASIA: 1500-1850 (3) (GEN. ED. #4 AND #10) Survey of social, cultural, political, and economic trends and themes in Asian history in the early modern period.
Fall semester. Bagchi.
HIS 116. EUROPEAN HISTORY SURVEY: ANCIENT TO 1715 (3) (GEN. ED. #4 AND #10) Survey of European history from ancient Greece and Rome to the rise of early modern nationstates. Includes classical culture and society, the emergence of Christianity, the European Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Reformation, early modern Colonial empires, and European absolutism.
Fall semester. Gruber, Beachy.
HIS 117. MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY EUROPE: 1715 TO THE PRESENT (3) (GEN. ED. #4 AND #10) A continuation of HIS 116, which may be taken independently. Emphasis on major social, cultural, and political developments from the Enlightenment to the present. Includes the Enlightenment and the French Revolution, industrialization, nationalism, socialism, European colonialism and imperialism, fascism, the world wars, and the Cold War.
Spring semester. Gruber, Beachy.
HIS 120. MIDDLE EASTERN SOCIETY AND CULTURE FROM THE SEVENTH TO THE 18TH CENTURY (3) (GEN. ED. #4 AND #10) Examines social, political, and cultural history of the Middle East from the rise of Islam to the age of colonialism. Considers the impact of religion, slavery, imperialism, and colonialism in shaping Middle Eastern society, politics, and culture under Arab, Ottoman, and Persian rule and colonial domination.
Kirmani. Variable semesters.
HIS 130. LIVING HISTORY THEATER (1.5) (THE 130) This performance workshop course introduces students to the processes and techniques for developing effective living history. Through individual and group projects, students develop historical characters and events for public presentation. May be taken twice for credit. Prerequisite: THE 120 and/or one 100-level history course.
Department. Variable semesters.
HIS 201. WORLD HISTORY II (3) Themes and trends in world history from 1500 to the present. Examines the emergence of the modern world and the response to modernity in different parts of the globe. Prerequisite: Frontiers or sophomore standing. Spring semester.
Spring semester. Bagchi. Offered 2008-09 and alternate years.
HIS 213. HISTORY OF JEWS AND CHRISTIANS IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE (3) (JS 213, RLG 213) The diverse world of Roman-occupied Israel eventually gave rise to two new religions that would shape the lives of millions for centuries: Rabbinic Judaism and Christianity. This course studies that historical process; the complex interactions among Jews, Christians, and the broader Greco- Roman world; and the social and political consequences of the new religions. Includes careful reading and discussion of primary sources having highly contested meanings. Prerequisite: sophomore standing.
Variable semesters Gruber.
HIS 215. SOCIAL HISTORY OF EUROPE: 1750-2000 (3) Evolution of industrial and urban society out of peasant world. Rise of the middle class; conditions of the working class; labor movements; social ideologies. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course or sophomore standing.
HIS 219. FRENCH REVOLUTION AND THE NAPOLEONIC WAR (3) This course surveys the history of France from the advent of the French Revolution through Napoleon’s fall from power. Topics include: the origins and catalysts of the French Revolution; legislative reform; the meaning of revolutionary violence and the terror; popular counterrevolution; concepts of social regeneration and human rights; Napoleon’s rise to power; French Revolutionary and Napoleonic military campaigns; and the international repercussions of French political upheaval. Prerequisite: HIS 117 or sophomore standing.
Spring 2009 and alternate years. Hale.
HIS 220. RUSSIA FROM PETER THE GREAT TO THE REVOLUTION (3) Readings and seminar discussion based upon textbook, literary, and primary historical sources, and recent academic writing. The course concentrates on the major political developments of the era and the elements of Russian life that determined its essential character and trajectory— the monarchy, nobility, peasants, and intelligentsia. Emphasis on active class participation. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course (HIS 117 recommended) or sophomore standing.
Fall semester. Boughton, Gruber.
HIS 221. OTTOMAN EMPIRE (3) This course surveys Ottoman history from the conquest of Istanbul (Constantinople) under Mehmed II in 1453 to the founding of the modern Turkish Republic under Ataturk. The course will cover political, social, and cultural developments throughout this period. Specific topics include the transformation of a border emirate, the political roles played by women within the harem institution, Ottoman imperial policies and cultural exchanges with neighbors, the integration of the Ottoman Empire into a European diplomatic system in the 19th century, and the introduction of a secular Republic of Turkey following World War I. Prerequisites: one 100-level history course or sophomore standing.
Beachy. Variable semesters.
HIS 222. RUSSIA AND THE SOVIET UNION IN THE 20TH CENTURY (3) Same approach as HIS 220. The course will examine the Soviet Union under the revolutionary leaderships of Lenin, Stalin, and Khrushchev to its stagnation in the 1970s, its disintegration under Gorbachev, and its difficult post-communism adjustment. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course (HIS 117 recommended) or sophomore standing.
Variable semesters. Boughton, Gruber.
HIS 224. EUROPE: 1914-1945 (3) The dislocations of World War I; life at home and at the front. Versailles and the political economy of the 1920s. The Great Depression, fascism, and socialism. International relations and the road to World War II; the experience of World War II. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course (HIS 117 recommended) or sophomore standing.
Variable semesters. Boughton.
HIS 227. CULTURES OF CONTEMPORARY EUROPE (3) (ANT 238) Overview of major themes and current fieldwork of European cultural anthropology. Themes include: immigration and nationhood, political ritual and collective memory, family and kinship, religion and politics, gender, and social class. Includes survey of post-1945 era (economic recovery, decolonization, the collapse of communism, European unification). Prerequisites: SOC 106, ANT 107, one 100-level history course (HIS 117 recommended), or permission of the instructor. May be taken with FR 295 (one credit).
Fall semester. Ingram. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 229. LITERATURE, HISTORY, AND FILM ON THE HOLOCAUST (3) (GER 260/JS 246) (GEN. ED #9) Beginning with the historical factors that led to the Holocaust, this course further focuses on the analysis of literary works (memoirs, diaries, poems, fiction, etc.) and films (documentaries and features) on the Holocaust within the historical context of World War II. Readings and discussions in English (films with English subtitles).
Spring semester. Larkey.
HIS 230. THE SUPREME COURT AMERICAN HISTORY (3) (PSC 230) Examination of the evolution of the Supreme Court and its role in American society from its inception in 1789 as the “least dangerous branch” through its resolution of the 2000 election controversy. Topics include slavery, the New Deal, desegregation, and reproductive rights.
Variable semesters. Klepper.
HIS 231. THE RISE AND FALL OF THE EUROPEAN LEFT, 1789-2000 (3) An examination of the development of working-class and left-wing politics in Europe since the French Revolution, analyzing the successive phases of left-wing politics from Radicalism, Social Democracy, and Marxism to the Third Way politics of the present. Prerequisite HIS 117 or some evidence of familiarity with modern European history.
Variable semesters. Boughton.
HIS 233. MODERN GERMAN HISTORY: FROM UNIFICATION TO UNIFICATION (3) (GER 233) (GEN. ED. #4) German reunification (1990) has transformed a range of recent and continuing debates on recent German history, including the character of the Wilhelmine Empire, the outbreak of World War I, fascism, the Holocaust, and the post-1945 German states. The course develops a framework for understanding the controversies relating to issues of national identity and collective memory that shape the writing of this history. Readings and discussions in English. Prerequisite: HIS 117 recommended.
Variable semesters. Beachy.
HIS 234. ENGLAND AND COLONIAL AMERICA: 1600-1763 (3) Transatlantic perspective on pre-industrial society and culture of 17th- and 18th-century England and America. Topics include social structure, demographic trends, labor systems, family life, religion, and political culture. Prerequisite: HIS 110 or 116 or sophomore standing.
Fall semester. Jeffrey. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 235. AMERICAN REVOLUTION (3) This course surveys the major developments in American society from the end of the Seven Years’ War to the inauguration of American constitutional government. Topics to be discussed include: internal disputes over the meaning of liberty and equality; the nature and consequences of the military conflict; the impact of the American Revolution on slaves and Native Americans; the significance of the American rebellion within the Atlantic world; and the struggle over and ratification of the Constitution. Prerequisite: any 100-level history course, sophomore standing.
Fall semester. Hale.
HIS 236. CULTURE AND CHANGE: INDIA (3) (ANT 236) Indian society today is shaped by its recent history, including the colonial period, and by the ongoing phenomenon of globalization. The new has not entirely replaced the old, and neither has the global replaced the local. Rather, all these elements exist side by side. This course will attempt to make sense of this confusion. Prerequisite: HIS 113 or sophomore standing.
Fall semester. Bagchi. 2008-09 and alternate years.
HIS 237. ORAL HISTORIES OF THE HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS (3) (GER 259, JS 259) (GEN. ED. #4 and #10) A community-based learning experience in which students interview Holocaust survivors and retell their stories to help these stories live on. Training in interviewing techniques and storytelling will be provided. Students will be expected to interview survivors, videotape sessions, and present oral histories inside and outside of class. Examines the methodology of oral history. Prerequisites: GER 260/HIS 229/JS 246 or JS 245.
Fall semester. Larkey.
HIS 238. COMPARATIVE HISTORY OF COLONIALISM IN ASIA (3) A comparative history of Japanese colonialism in East Asia and European colonialism in South Asia in the 19th and 20th centuries. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course or sophomore standing.
Spring semester. Bagchi. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 241. AMERICA AND THE VIETNAM WAR: A FATEFUL ENCOUNTER (3) (PSC 241) An examination of the reasons for American involvement in Vietnam, with emphasis on the decisions and policies of several U.S. administrations. Also explores the war from a transnational cultural perspective, with special emphasis on the Vietnamese understanding of the conflict. Prerequisite: PSC 101 or sophomore standing.
Variable. Jeffrey, Honick.
HIS 242. FROM PURITAN DIARIES TO OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB: READERS AND WRITERS IN AMERICAN HISTORY (3) (ENG 242, AMS 242) Using insights gleaned from various disciplines, this course examines the history of reading and writing in America. In particular, we will study how written texts are produced, disseminated, and consumed. Topics include: Indians and the discovery of print; the sentimental novel; slave narratives; religious readers; the making of an American literary canon; comic books in modern America; and, of course, Oprah’s book club. Prerequisites HIS 110 or 111 or sophomore standing.
Spring semester. Hale. 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 243. EARLY AMERICAN REPUBLIC 1789-1815 (3) This course examines the history of the United States from the beginning of Constitutional government in 1789 to the end of the War of 1812. Topics include: the rise of political parties; the character and role of major political figures like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams; the impact of the French Revolution and Napoleon; the plight of Indians and African Americans; the early ACADEMIC INFORMATION 123 American seduction novel; and changing economic and familial practices. Prerequisites: HIS 110 or sophomore standing.
Spring 2007 and alternate years. Hale.
HIS 244. COLLECTING AND HISTORY OF THE MUSEUM (3) (ART 244) Examines premodern patterns of European arts patronage, collecting, and display that influenced the organization and form of the modern museum. Based on the innovations of early modern collectors, states organized national museums or sponsored the institutionalization of prominent private collections, which we examine through a number of case studies supported by visits to area museums. (This course cannot be used to fulfill a 200-level art history requirement for the art major).
Fall semester Beachy.
HIS 252. THE JEWS IN MEDIEVAL AND MODERN TIMES (3) (JS 252)
This course begins with a study of the structure of Jewish society and the relationships of the Jews to Christain society and the Islamic world during the Middle Ages. Topics include: the church and Jews, the state authorities and the Jews, the autonomous Jewish community, and the Messianic Movements. The second half of the course traces the breakdown of the medieval structure
of Jewish life in the modern period. Topics include the impact of enlightenmenet and emancipation, religious reform, modern anti-semitism, Zionism, the Holocaust, and the rise of the state of Israel. Prerequisites: one course in religion or philosophy or sophomore standing.
Fall. Gruber.
HIS 254. THE JEWS OF RUSSIA UNDER TSARS, SOVIETS, AND IN THE POST-SOVIET ERA (3) (JS 257) A study of the development of the Jewish community in Russia from the time of Catherine the Great (1772) to the present day. Emphasis will be placed on the political history of the Jewish community and its reaction to the changing policies of Tsarist, Soviet, and post-Soviet governments. Special attention will be placed on the role of Jews in Russia’s revolutionary movements, Soviet Jewry as a factor in Soviet-American relations, the Soviet-Jewish emigration movement, and the position of the Jews in the successor states of the Soviet Union following the Russian parliamentary elections of December 1995. Prerequisite: sophomore standing.
Spring semester. Department.
HIS 255. ARCHITECTURAL SPACE AND THE AMERICAN FAMILY EXPERIENCE (3) The nature of family experience of different household members; the relationship between space, function, and family life from the 17th to the 20th century. Visual materials heavily emphasized in addition to primary and secondary sources. Field trips. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course (HIS 110 or 111 recommended) or sophomore standing.
Jeffrey. Variable semesters.
HIS 257. GANDHI (3) (PCE 257) (GEN. ED. #4) This course studies Gandhi’s life, actions, and ideas in the hope that they will provide some tools to make the next century better than the one which has just ended—for the society and the people around us, and for the physical and moral environment in which we live. The course will also examine the ideas of figures such as Henry David Thoreau, Martin Luther King Jr., and the Dalai Lama in relation to Gandhi. Prerequisite: Frontiers.
Variable semesters. Bagchi.
HIS 259. AFRICA: PAST AND PRESENT (3) (PSC 259) An examination of African politics and societies since 1800. Exploration of the influences of Islam and Christianity, the colonization of the continent by imperial European powers, and the liberation movement that brought about the demise of colonization. Consideration of contemporary issues and trends. Prerequisites: PSC 101 or HIS 201; sophomore standing.
Fall semester. Roth. 2008-09 and alternate years.
HIS 260. CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION: 1850-1876 (3) Conflict and change in 19th-century America, with attention to slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. Prerequisite: HIS 110 or 111 or sophomore standing. Hale. Offered 2008-09 and alternate years.
HIS 262. INDIANS IN THE UNITED STATES (3) (PCE 262) (SOC 262) (GEN. ED. #4) Using comparative analysis of indigenous and non indigenous societies, this course will examine indigenous forms of government and social structure pre-1492 to the present. Prerequisite: one course in history, peace studies, or sociology, and sophomore standing.
Spring semester. Department.
HIS 264. AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY (3) This course surveys the major developments in African-American history from the arrival of Africans in North America through the Civil Rights Movement. Topics include: the slave trade and the “Middle Passage”; the origins of slave society; regional variations; free blacks in the antebellum North; the impact of the American Revolution and the Civil War on slavery; the labor and recreational activities of slaves; the development of voluntary societies after the Civil War; the participation of African Americans in various wars; the first and second “great migrations”; and the development, nature, and consequences of the Civil Rights movement. Prerequisite: HIS 110 and HIS 111 or sophomore standing.
Variable semesters. Hale.
HIS 271. BALTIMORE AS TOWN AND CITY (3) Investigation of Baltimore history through field trips and primary sources with special attention to the colonial, Civil War, and modern periods. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course (HIS 110 or 111 recommended) or sophomore standing.
Spring semester. Baker. 2008-09 and alternate years
HIS 272G. INTENSIVE COURSE ABROAD (3) (GEN. ED. #3) Three week intensive course abroad.
TWENTIETH-CENTURY PRAGUE: HISTORY, POLITICS, LITERATURE This three-week trip is based in Prague though some excursions will be made to local towns and places of interest. The course will comprise a program of seminars led by local academics on a range of topics pertaining to Czech culture and history as well as some aspects of its contempory politics. We will also visit many of the major sites associated with its history and experience some of its rich contemporary cultural life. Students will be required to undertake a research assignment of their choosing while in Prague which will be written up on their return. Prequisites: Students will normally have taken the preparatory course, HIS 294. If not, they will be required to submit a research paper prior to departure programming.
Boughton.
HIS 272Y. INTENSIVE COURSE ABROAD (GEN. ED #3) Course includes a three-week intensive course abroad in the winter or summer accompanied by seven-week pre-departure, post-departure preparation/discussion, or both in the fall and spring.
THE ARTS AND CULTURE IN WEST AFRICA (6) (DAN 272Y, THE 272Y) The course encompasses a pre-program course, an international field experience, and a postprogram course on arts, culture, and history in West Africa. The pre-departure program will examine the social, economic, political, and cultural issues of Ghana, Togo, and Benin—three African countries with rich cultural heritage and successful, vibrant contemporary societies. The international field experience in these countries will include workshops, lectures, stays with host families, and field trips. Upon return the students will complete a research paper and servicelearning component in the form of a lecture-demonstration for area elementary schools, presented during Black History Month, using skills and experiences acquired in West Africa. Second seven-week pre-departure course in Fall 2006 (1.5 credits), three-week intensive course in January 2007 (three credits), first seven-week post-departure course in Spring 2007 (1.5 credits).
Bagchi, Thom Woodson. Offered January intersession 2009 and alternate years.
HIS 278. EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN ARCHITECTURE: 1750-1850 (3) (ART 278) (GEN.ED.#4 AND 9) Introduction to architectural theory and practice in Europe and North America from the middle of the 18th through the middle of the 19th centuries. Neoclassicism, 19th-century revival and eclectic styles, new metal technologies. A brief overview of colonial American architecture before 1750. Prerequisite: ART 100 or ART 101 or permission of the instructor.
Fall semester. Husch. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 282. WOMEN IN THE MIDDLE EAST (3) (WS 282) (GEN.ED.#9 AND 10) This course examines the role of women in the greater Middle East region from the pre-Islamic period through the present. Using primary sources, memoirs, and visual material, the course compares and examines the impact of religion (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), empire, slavery, colonialism, and nationalism on women in Arab, Iranian, Israeli, and Turkish civil society and history. Prerequisite: WS 150, a 100-level history course or sophomore standing.
Fall semester. François. Offered 2008-09 and alternate years.
HIS 286. TWENTIETH-CENTURY ASIA (3) Examination of the main themes of 20th-century Asian history: the end of colonialism, gender issues in changing societies, development, environmental issues, and the Third World/First World relationship. Prerequisite: sophomore standing.
Variable semesters. Bagchi.
HIS 288. HISTORY OF CROSS-CULTURAL TRADE IN ASIA (3) This course focuses on trade, and the cultural and social exchanges stemming from it, as a unifying theme in Asian history. In particular, it examines trade patterns established in Asia prior to the arrival of Europeans, the changes resulting from the European presence after 1500, and finally, modern East Asian hubs of cross-cultural trade.
Fall semester. Bagchi.
HIS 290. PRACTICUM IN HISTORY (3-4) Students placed in agencies, libraries and archives for practical experience. Prerequisite: HIS 110 or 111 or sophomore standing. May be taken for letter grade or pass/no pass. Department.
HIS 294. TWENTIETH-CENTURY PRAGUE: HISTORY AND CULTURE (3)
Prague is a city that uniquely embodies the principal currents of the 20th-century political experience: nationalism, fascism, communism, and liberal capitalism. This cross-disciplinary course will introduce students to a wide range of readings—academic, political, philosophical, and literary—which show how Prague’s thinkers and writers have both experienced and sought to shape its turbulent cultural history. Provides historical and literary grounding to those students participating in the study-abroad program to Prague. Prerequisite: one 100-level history course or sophomore standing. HIS 117 recommended. Spring semester.
Spring semester. Boughton. Offered 2008-09 and alternate years.
HIS 295. LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY I: AN INTRODUCTION (3) (LAM 295) Examines the social, political, and economic events and people from pre-Columbian times to the independence movements of the 19th century in major Spanish, Portuguese, and Caribbean colonies and former colonies. Social classes and ethnic groups examined from the population of the Western Hemisphere approximately 12,000 years ago through the major indigenous civilizations and the migration of European and African peoples. Students with advanced Spanish language skills are encouraged to take SP 296 along with this course.
Variable semesters. Samuels.
HIS 297. LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY II (3) Examines the social, political, and economic events and people of the independence movements of the 19th century to the present in Spanish, Portuguese, and Caribbean colonies and independent states. Social classes and ethnic groups examined from the upheavals of the 19th century through the attempts at modernization, industrialization, social engineering, populism, and political expansion of the 20th and 21st centuries. Students with advanced Spanish language skills are encouraged to take SP 296 along with this course.
Spring semester. Samuels. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 299. INDEPENDENT WORK IN HISTORY (1.5-4) Independent research on a historical problem, leading to a substantial research paper or directed readings with a strong writing component.
Department.
HIS 305. THE PERSONAL NARRATIVE IN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE (4) Personal narratives, which include autobiographies, diaries, letters and recollections, offer vivid insights into American life and culture. This course explores a variety of personal narratives, from captivity tales of the 17th century and slave narratives of the 19th century to The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Prerequisites: two 200-level courses in American or European history or American studies or permission of the instructor.
Fall semester. Jeffrey. Offered every two or three years.
HIS 320. SPECIAL TOPICS IN HISTORY Subject and prerequisites are announced before registration.
Department.
HIS 321. ATLANTIC REVOLUTIONS (3) (LAM 321) In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, a series of revolutionary movements in North America, Europe, South America, and the Caribbean jolted the Atlantic world. This course explores the connections, similarities, and differences between these movements. Prerequisite: two 200-level European and American history courses.
Fall 2008 and alternate years. Hale.
HIS 333. SPECIAL TOPICS: SEMINAR IN EAST EUROPEAN HISTORY. (3) Readings and discussion on a selected period of East European history. Each student will also choose one country (e.g.: Poland, Hungary, Ukraine) to study in more detail. Explication of the unique status and "psychology" or self-perception of these countries in European and world history. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing and one 200-level in history or permission of the instructor. Course is NOT repeatable.
Variable semesters. Gruber.
HIS 338. SEMINAR IN MODERN EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN HISTORY (4) Directed readings and independent research on some aspect of modern European and/or American history resulting in a seminar paper. Prerequisites: HIS 110 or 111, HIS 116 or 117, or two of the following: HIS 215, 224, 260, 265; and one other 200 level course in American and European history or permission of the instructor.
Spring semester. Baker.
HIS 359. SEMINAR IN AFRICAN POLITICS (3) (PCE 359) Examination of the internal and external dynamics that affect the domestic and foreign policies of subsaharan African states. Seminar participants are expected to develop a research topic and present their findings. Prerequisite: PSC 259 or permission of the instructor.
Fall semester. Department. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 387. SEMINAR IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY ASIA (4) Independent research and directed reading on 20th-century Asia, culminating in reports. Prerequisite: HIS 286.
Spring semester. Bagchi. Offered 2007-08 and alternate years.
HIS 400. INDEPENDENT WORK IN HISTORY DEPARTMENT (1.5-4)
Department.