UR Department of History
Sep 20, 2018
Fall 2018 Courses
HIS 115: DOING ANTHROPOLOGY IN ROCHESTER
This hands-on, research-oriented course explores the life and work of Lewis Henry Morgan (1818-1881), an attorney and scholar with close ties to the University of Rochester. Morgan published "The League of the Iroquois" and other major works that established anthropology as a field of inquiry in the U.S. Students will work as a team and conduct original research using the Morgan manuscript archive housed in Rush Rhees Library and Morgan's artifact collection at the Rochester Museum & Science Center. Students will also participate in developing a public website and curating a public exhibit to mark Morgan's bicentennial. The course will involve field trips to cultural institutions such as the Seneca Art and Culture Center and the Local History Division of the Rochester Public Library. Open only to First Years and Sophomores.
HIS 117: HISTORY OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL THOUGHT
The seminar will review the history of archaeology and the forms that the discipline takes today, emphasizing the developments and debates over the past six decades. This class focuses on the historical overview of culture, historical, processual and post-processual approaches in archaeology, and topics that illustrate the differences and similarities in these theoretical approaches.
HIS 118: CITIES & URBANISM IN PRECOLUMBIAN MESOAMERICA AND ANDES
While many of us may or may not live in cities today, their presence as central places for administrative, judicial, and social purposes is undeniable. Both the historical and archaeological record demonstrate the city is not a new phenomenon, but scholars debate over what actually constitutes a city, especially in the prehispanic Americas. To this end, we will read key texts about cities and urbanism that will help us better understand this debate. We will also discuss how recent anthropological approaches to studying cities have helped archaeologists better understand prehispanic urbanism and city-life.
HIS 120: HISTORY OF THE ANCIENT GREEK WORLD
This course will introduce students to key problems in the study of Ancient Greece. The course will begin with the Mycenaean and Minoan civilizations of the late Bronze Age and will end with the Hellenistic kingdoms that emerged after the death of Alexander the Great, and will consider select topics in political, social, and cultural history. Considerable attention will be devoted to questions of method: how do we answer questions about the Greek past? All sources will be read in English translation.
HIS 127: FOUNDATIONS OF MEDIEVAL FRANCE
This course provides an introduction to the study of history through an investigation of "the long twelfth century" in France, using both primary and secondary source materials, discussion, analytic reading and good practice of the writing of history.
HIS 134: RUSSIA NOW
Students will follow current events in Russia through the internet, newspapers, magazines, and other sources (including satellite broadcasts when available). Along with a general attention to current events, each student will follow a particular area of interest (e.g. national identity, the market economy, politics, health issues, crime, culture, foreign policy) throughout the term, do background work on this topic and write it up towards the end of the term. Students who read Russian will be encouraged to use available sources in that language. This course is designed to (1) familiarize students with the most important issues facing Russia today and the historical/political/cultural context in which to place them; (2) to acquaint students with a variety of resources from the US, Russia, and a number of other countries and the different perspectives these sources may give on one and the same issue. Students write two short essays and one longer research paper.
HIS 135: DANTE'S "DIVINE COMEDY": A JOURNEY FROM INFERNO TO PARADISE, PART I. "INFERNO" AND "PURGATORIO"
The first of a sequence of two, the course approaches "The Divine Comedy" both as a poetic masterpiece and as an encyclopedia of medieval culture. Through a close textual analysis of "Inferno," and the first half of "Purgatorio," students learn how to approach Dante’s poetry as a vehicle for thought, an instrument of self-discovery, and a way to understand and affect the historical reality. They also gain a perspective on the Biblical, Christian, and Classical traditions as they intersect with the multiple levels of Dante’s concern, ranging from literature to history, from politics to government, from philosophy to theology. A visual component, including illustrations of the "Comedy" and multiple artworks pertinent to the narrative, complements the course. Class format includes lectures, discussion, and a weekly recitation session. Intensive class participation is encouraged. Dante I can be taken independently from Dante II. No prerequisites. Freshmen are welcome. Part of the Dante Humanities Cluster.
HIS 139: HISTORY OF BRITISH INDIA
An introductory survey of the history of India from ancient times to the present, with a special emphasis on the British colonial era and the making of the Indian nation. Course readings will emphasize India's remarkable religious, cultural, and environmental diversity and the challenges and promises that such diversity presents to national identity in the world's most populous democracy. Course format will be an informal mix of lectures, discussions, student presentations, and films.
HIS 143: MODERN CHINA, 1600 - PRESENT
This class covers the search for modern China in the twentieth century. We will trace how China, between invasion, war, and revolution, transformed from an empire to a republic, from republic to Communist state, and from Communist state to the economic powerhouse that it is today.
HIS 145: MODERN JAPAN
This course covers Japanese history from the 1800s to the present. During these two hundred years, Japan went through a rollercoaster of events: the Meiji Restoration, industrialization, fascism, wars, atomic bombs, an economic miracle, a “lost” decade, and recently a devastating tsunami. The Japanese paradox of Chrysanthemum and Sword still awaits explanation. Come join me in this journey of books, archives, films, and anime in search of modern Japan.
1HIS 148: RELIGION & CHINESE SOCIETY
This course examines the complicated relationship between religion and society in China. It takes a sociological approach, emphasizing that religion should be studied as a social phenomena that closely interacts with the development of society at large. The focus is on contemporary times from the end of the 19th century through present. During this period of time, China experienced tremendous change. This course introduces how such change impacted on and was expressed through religion, religiosity, and religious politics.
HIS 156A: COMMUNIST COUNTRY ON AMERICA'S DOORSTEPS: CUBA FROM COLUMBUS TO THE PRESENT
While the socioeconomic and political situation in Cuba has changed considerably since the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the process of normalizing relations with the United States is in progress, Cuba has been for many decades a communist country just 90 miles away from American shores. This course traces the complex historical developments which gave rise to this situation and discusses the grave repercussions. The course examines the evolution of socioeconomic and political interest groups in colonial Spanish Cuba and the subsequent American entanglement in the internal historical processes in Cuba, with far-reaching unintended consequences, particularly, the ultimate involvement of the Soviet Union, which brought Cuba to the center of the Cold War between the supper powers.
HIS 162: EARLY AMERICA TO 1763
This course examines European expansion into the Americas from Columbus’s first voyage through the end of the American Revolution. Throughout, we will consider the making of a multi-national and multi-ethnic Atlantic world including Africa, Europe, and America as a broader context for situating the development of colonial British America and the infant United States. The course surveys the expansion of different European empires into the Americas, comparatively profiles Anglo-Indian contact, slavery and the emergence of African-American culture, gender, science, religion, and daily life within British America, and conclude by examining the political and ideological crises of the American Revolution and struggles within the new United States to forge a politically and culturally cohesive republic in the 1780s.
HIS 167: POSTINDUSTRIAL AMERICA, 1973-PRESENT
Examines American politics, society, and culture since 1973. Focus is on the deindustrialization of the economy, the revitalization of conservatism, the "culture wars," the end of the Cold War and post-Cold War foreign affairs--including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq--, and the collapse of bipartisan policy-making.
HIS 172: HISTORY OF JAZZ I
This study of Jazz, as an American musical art form, will be structured around the lives and music of jazz musicians, across a range of instrumental, vocal, and ensemble genres. Course focuses on jazz titans, those individuals and musical groups distinguished by their seminal and permanent influences, such as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, or Coleman Hawkins or shorter intense careers, such as Charlie Parker. Blues, ragtime, swing, bebop, cool, progressive, and free jazz are landmark terms. And finally, study of the musical history will be enhanced by considerations from sociological, linguistic, and philosophical perspectives. The instructional format includes lectures, discussion and intense emphasis on listening. This course is designed for students with little or no musical training; simple technical, musical vocabulary and concepts will be provided. Reading, listening assignments, brief written assignments and two exams. No prerequisites. (Fall Only)
HIS 180: HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY
This course surveys the history of technology and its impacts on agriculture, communication, transportation, housing, health, war and society. Technology has been used to build empires and improve human societies, but also to destroy, enslave, and censor. Today we face limits on technology as well as new and seemingly boundless opportunities for the future. The unifying theme of the course is exploring and understanding the impact of technology on individuals.
HIS 189: WIVES, WITCHES, AND WENCHES: WOMEN IN AMERICAN HISTORY
This course surveys American history through the words and work of women. Well-known historical events and developments--including but not limited to the Revolutionary War, the abolition of slavery, the Great Depression, and the protest movements of the 1960s—look different when considered from the perspective of women. The course will further examine how social categories such as race, class, sexuality, and religion have shaped women’s historical experiences. Broad in chronological scope, this course is not intended to be comprehensive. Rather, we will utilize primary and secondary sources to delve into important historical moments and to explore questions about the practice and politics of studying women’s history.
HIS 196: HISTORY OF AMERICAN CAPITALISM
This course examines the trajectory of American capitalism alongside major moments in the nation’s history. We will explore how ideas of capitalism influenced the American Revolution, led to the outbreak of Civil War, and shifted during the Great Depression. We will discuss the political economy of capitalism and why the government advocates for certain products and services while outlawing or labeling others as taboo. We will read works by individuals who believed in the promise of capitalism alongside other writers who felt ignored and abandoned by the system. Over the course of the semester students will become aware that capitalism, in addition to a political and economic system, is a set of ideas and cultural attitudes about wealth, citizenship, identity, gender, and the use of natural resources. Students will walk away from this course with a historical understanding of today’s political debates and the empathy to understand the competing visions for America’s modern capitalist system.
HIS 197: SEX, DREAMS, AND REPRESSION: FREUD IN AMERICA
What is psychoanalysis and is it still relevant today? From the Oedipal Complex to the theory of the death drive, Sigmund Freud’s ideas and influence have come to shape and dominate our beliefs about humanity’s mental workings. Whether we talk about our unconscious urges, our “Freudian slips,” or the meaning of our dreams, how we conceptualize our inner lives is largely based upon the principles of psychoanalysis. Yet, despite Americans’ enthusiasm, interpretations of Freudian theory have often misrepresented his ideas or missed the point entirely. How did this happen? Why were the words of one man so powerful, enduring, and ultimately distorted? In this course we will examine Freudian theory as it developed over time, the social, political, economic, and intellectual climate in which Freud formed his ideas, the transformation of psychoanalytic principles upon reaching American shores, and the continuing legacy of Freud to the present day.
HIS 200: GATEWAY TO HISTORY: LINCOLN'S AMERICA
Amid the celebrations that marked the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War and the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the nation’s 16th President’s role in “freeing the slaves” occupied so much of the scholarly and popular attention that many of his other achievements were overshadowed. This course reviews Lincoln’s contribution to a burgeoning American Nationalism; primarily through his role as leader of the newly formed Republican Party, but also, using his own words and actions, by reassessing his performance as President, and Commander-in-Chief. The course will suggests that Lincoln, in guiding the nation through an increasingly bitter civil war, while attempting to preserve the Union, above all else, was driven by an acute nationalism. A close look at his speeches, actions, and leadership style will permit an examination of the forces underlying the shift in Lincoln’s focus from “saving the Union,” to creating a “new nation.”
HIS 200: GATEWAY TO HISTORY: THE RISE AND FALL OF THE APARTHEID
This seminar is designed to introduce students to the skills and concepts necessary to study college-level history. It will emphasize research, interpretation, argument, and writing by investigating the role of apartheid, or South Africa’s policy of racial segregation, in the economic development in that country: whether apartheid facilitated or impeded the creation of a free market between 1948 and 1994.
HIS 206: DANGEROUS TEXTS
When modern Russian literature began to evolve in the mid-1600s, the printed or written text was immediately seen as a potential danger to the power of Church and State. In this course we will examine dangerous texts' from the 17th century to the present to see what aspects of texts and their authors were seen as threats and how these threats were dealt with. We will also see the ways in which writers did indeed perceive themselves as a second government' and how this changed the way they wrote. The reading list will include works by: Avvakum, Radishchev, Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Babel, Mayakovsky, Mandelstam, Pasternak, Yevtushenko, Solzhenitsyn, Voinovich, Grossman, and Sinyavsky/Tertz. The goal of this course is to arrive at an understanding of the unique role played by literature in Russian history. In English.
HIS 206W: DANGEROUS TEXTS
When modern Russian literature began to evolve in the mid-1600s, the printed or written text was immediately seen as a potential danger to the power of Church and State. In this course we will examine dangerous texts' from the 17th century to the present to see what aspects of texts and their authors were seen as threats and how these threats were dealt with. We will also see the ways in which writers did indeed perceive themselves as a second government' and how this changed the way they wrote. The reading list will include works by: Avvakum, Radishchev, Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Babel, Mayakovsky, Mandelstam, Pasternak, Yevtushenko, Solzhenitsyn, Voinovich, Grossman, and Sinyavsky/Tertz. The goal of this course is to arrive at an understanding of the unique role played by literature in Russian history. In English.
HIS 209: CORRUPTION AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMY IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
This junior seminar offers students the opportunity to research and discuss the operation and consequences of widespread corruption in the global economy and the complex historical processes – economic, social, and political – which help to explain the phenomenon. To make the seminar a well-focused course, discussion will focus on country-case studies (with about three selected individuals in each country) that help to demonstrate the general pattern of causes and effects. A major issue to consider, among other things, is the role of cut-throat competition among global corporations and the effects of their corrupt activities on the quality of governance.
HIS 210: AFRICA WELCOMES CHINA IN A NEW GLOBAL ECONOMY
Part I surveys major areas of interaction between Africans and the Chinese from the end of WWII to the present. Initially, Africans found in China an ally in their struggles for liberation from European colonialism and Western imperialism. Beginning in the late 1980s, the ties broadened to include educational and cultural exchanges, economic aid, and especially trade and investment. Part II places the above connections in historical and global contexts. A global perspective invites students to see that from the perspective of China, the central features of its ties with Africa today are not structurally different from its dealings with other regions of the world. China has, for example, fueled its rapid economic growth with raw materials from every corner of the globe, including coal from the United States. Research also shows that Africans are acutely aware of the historical significance of China’s appearance on the global scene; the rise has given Africans a world of options they had never enjoyed before.
HIS 210W:AFRICA WELCOMES CHINA IN A NEW GLOBAL ECONOMY
Part I surveys major areas of interaction between Africans and the Chinese from the end of WWII to the present. Initially, Africans found in China an ally in their struggles for liberation from European colonialism and Western imperialism. Beginning in the late 1980s, the ties broadened to include educational and cultural exchanges, economic aid, and especially trade and investment. Part II places the above connections in historical and global contexts. A global perspective invites students to see that from the perspective of China, the central features of its ties with Africa today are not structurally different from its dealings with other regions of the world. China has, for example, fueled its rapid economic growth with raw materials from every corner of the globe, including coal from the United States. Research also shows that Africans are acutely aware of the historical significance of China’s appearance on the global scene; the rise has given Africans a world of options they had never enjoyed before.
HIS 214: RESISTANCE LITERATURE ACROSS THE MIDDLE EAST
This course examines a series of literary, philosophical, visual, and cinematic texts in order to investigate the relationship between art, power, and resistance in the context of human rights struggles in the Middle East and North Africa. Larger questions of global peace, human rights, solidarity, and activism in post 9/11 era will be inseparable from our discussions of modernity, nationalism, orientalism, Islam & Sufism, censorship, detention camps, refugee crisis, exile, and incarceration. The goal of this course is thus to offer students of social sciences insights into how literary works represent and negotiate historical and political questions in writing, and inversely, to encourage students of humanities to read and think politically.
HIS 246: DIGITAL HISTORY: EMPIRE ON RAILWAYS
Interested in learning about railways, modern empire building, and digital mapmaking at the same time? In this class we will trace how a national railway system come into being in three countries— Great Britain, the U.S., and China, and how these systems impacted the economic landscapes of Eurasian and American continents. Then we will take one step further, using ArcGIS to translate our book knowledge into creative digital maps. There are no prerequisites required; just bring your curiosity.
HIS 246W: DIGITAL HISTORY: EMPIRE ON RAILWAYS
Interested in learning about railways, modern empire building, and digital mapmaking at the same time? In this class we will trace how a national railway system come into being in three countries— Great Britain, the U.S., and China, and how these systems impacted the economic landscapes of Eurasian and American continents. Then we will take one step further, using ArcGIS to translate our book knowledge into creative digital maps. There are no prerequisites required; just bring your curiosity.
HIS 248: THE SAMURAI
SAMURAI: Swordsman---Servant---Warrior. Popular imagery portrays the samurai and their warrior code (Bushido) as the “soul” of Japan, and the samurai are as heavily romanticized as the knights of medieval Europe. But who were they, and were they really nobler than bloody killers? This course examines the origins of the warrior class in the 10th-11th centuries and its rise to power in the civil wars of medieval Japan. We will read books in Japanese history and literature to trace the peak and the end of the samurai age. We will also explore how the samurai have become a pop culture phenomenon, from the classic films of Akira Kurosawa to cult hits like “Rurouni Kenshin” and “Ghost Dog.” Careful reading and discussion will be crucial in this class to separate the real history from the popular myths.
HIS 248W: THE SAMURAI
SAMURAI: Swordsman---Servant---Warrior. Popular imagery portrays the samurai and their warrior code (Bushido) as the “soul” of Japan, and the samurai are as heavily romanticized as the knights of medieval Europe. But who were they, and were they really nobler than bloody killers? This course examines the origins of the warrior class in the 10th-11th centuries and its rise to power in the civil wars of medieval Japan. We will read books in Japanese history and literature to trace the peak and the end of the samurai age. We will also explore how the samurai have become a pop culture phenomenon, from the classic films of Akira Kurosawa to cult hits like “Rurouni Kenshin” and “Ghost Dog.” Careful reading and discussion will be crucial in this class to separate the real history from the popular myths.
HIS 252: IMMIGRATION AND THE AMERICAS
Although the United States received the largest number of immigrants in the western hemisphere in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the relative impact of immigrants was just as important in other countries such as Argentina and Brazil. This course explores the complex events, trends and personal decisions that impacted migrants' decisions. We will seek to understand their movements as a function of three essential questions: why do people migrate; who migrates; and how do they choose where they migrate? The course will incorporate a variety of materials including interviews, memoirs, monographs and demographic studies. Students will also be involved in a hands-on discovery of Rochester’s own immigrant communities.
HIS 252W: IMMIGRATION AND THE AMERICAS
Although the United States received the largest number of immigrants in the western hemisphere in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the relative impact of immigrants was just as important in other countries such as Argentina and Brazil. This course explores the complex events, trends and personal decisions that impacted migrants' decisions. We will seek to understand their movements as a function of three essential questions: why do people migrate; who migrates; and how do they choose where they migrate? The course will incorporate a variety of materials including interviews, memoirs, monographs and demographic studies. Students will also be involved in a hands-on discovery of Rochester’s own immigrant communities.
HIS 257HISTORY OF MASCULINITY
“Be a man” or “He acted like a real man” – we hear these and similar phrases around us all the time, but what does it mean “to be a real man”? How do we define what masculinity is? Does our definition of masculinity differ from, say, the medieval or Victorian? If so, then how and why? Using primary and secondary sources, as well as film and other media, this seminar explores the historical development of the modern concept of masculinity, the strategies that are used to learn to be “men” (such as sports), and how modern ideas about masculinity affect gender relationships in general as well as men’s mental and physical health.
HIS 263: HISTORY OF FOOD
This seminar examines the shifting relationship between people, food, and the environment that ties them together. It asks how have distance and space between the sites of production and consumption affected the economic and social relations of food? How has geography influenced the types of food people eat? How do views of scarcity and plenty shape approaches to farming? What is the role of governments and markets in agriculture? How does food refract and transform social divisions, cultural attitudes, and daily life? Topics include rural development; subsistence gardening; famine; histories of sugar, corn, pork, fish, whales, ice cream, and anything else that fits on a dinner plate.
HIS 263W: HISTORY OF FOOD
This seminar examines the shifting relationship between people, food, and the environment that ties them together. It asks how have distance and space between the sites of production and consumption affected the economic and social relations of food? How has geography influenced the types of food people eat? How do views of scarcity and plenty shape approaches to farming? What is the role of governments and markets in agriculture? How does food refract and transform social divisions, cultural attitudes, and daily life? Topics include rural development; subsistence gardening; famine; histories of sugar, corn, pork, fish, whales, ice cream, and anything else that fits on a dinner plate.
HIS 267: HISTORY OF WHITE SUPREMACY
The central theme of American history is the problem of race. At the heart of the race problem in America is the white supremacy ideology. Pre-modern concepts of human distinctions typically rested on group membership and coalesced around notable differences such as ethnicity, religion, and color, but without anything resembling a formal ideology. In the United States, the historically constructed ideology of White Supremacy provided an intellectual foundation that supported a system of white wealth, power, and privilege. This course will examine the competing forces that produced a white supremacy ideology that was unique to the United States: conceived in the seventeenth century during the years of early settlement, it was born in the political turmoil of the Civil War and Reconstruction era, and reached adulthood in the Civil Rights struggles of the twentieth century.
HIS 275: ECONOMICS OF DISCRIMINATION
Economic development of African Americans during the twentieth century, with an examination of the economics of discrimination. Same as HIS 253 and AAS 253.
HIS 276: SPORTS IN U.S. HISTORY
Recent acts of protest by high school, collegiate, and professional athletes—from kneeling during the national anthem to refusing invitations to the White House—remind us that sports are not and have never been separate from the world of politics, nor are they isolated from social, cultural, and economic contexts. Rather, sports reflect the society in which they are embedded and at times have spurred change in these realms. This course will explore U.S. history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries through the lens of sports. Among the many questions we will consider are: How might one define a “sport,” and how have popular understandings of “sport” changed over time? What functions have sports served in American life? How have sports reinforced inequities in American society, such as those among racial, socioeconomic, and/or gendered lines? To what degree have sports defied these boundaries, acting as agents of democratization? Above all, we will ask: What does it mean to study sports historically?
HIS 276W: SPORTS IN U.S. HISTORY
Recent acts of protest by high school, collegiate, and professional athletes—from kneeling during the national anthem to refusing invitations to the White House—remind us that sports are not and have never been separate from the world of politics, nor are they isolated from social, cultural, and economic contexts. Rather, sports reflect the society in which they are embedded and at times have spurred change in these realms. This course will explore U.S. history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries through the lens of sports. Among the many questions we will consider are: How might one define a “sport,” and how have popular understandings of “sport” changed over time? What functions have sports served in American life? How have sports reinforced inequities in American society, such as those among racial, socioeconomic, and/or gendered lines? To what degree have sports defied these boundaries, acting as agents of democratization? Above all, we will ask: What does it mean to study sports historically?
HIS 279: THE SEWARD FAMILY IN PEACE AND WAR
A history class in the digital studies curriculum that assumes no background in either one. It is a hands-on introduction to the history of the family, gender, and the antebellum and Civil War eras, to historical editing, and to website design and creation, using the Papers of William Henry Seward (1801-1872), Governor of New York, US Senator, and Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. This semester, we will focus on the family’s correspondence from the 1830s, when Seward was away in Albany much of the time, first as a state senator and then as the governor of New York. Topics include the cholera epidemic of 1832, romantic love, and household economy.
HIS 279W: THE SEWARD FAMILY IN PEACE AND WAR
A history class in the digital studies curriculum that assumes no background in either one. It is a hands-on introduction to the history of the family, gender, and the antebellum and Civil War eras, to historical editing, and to website design and creation, using the Papers of William Henry Seward (1801-1872), Governor of New York, US Senator, and Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. This semester, we will focus on the family’s correspondence from the 1830s, when Seward was away in Albany much of the time, first as a state senator and then as the governor of New York. Topics include the cholera epidemic of 1832, romantic love, and household economy.
HIS 287MUSIC IN NEW WORLDS: GLOBAL ENCOUNTERS IN THE AGE OF DISCOVERIES, 1492-1800
After 1492, Europeans and other peoples around the globe began to discover each other in new ways, and music played a vital role in their encounters. This course equips students to develop a global perspective on music in the early modern era. Through case studies in Latin America, New England, China, and Africa, students will gain insight into the ways people use music as an agent of political and religious power in processes of cultural exchange and conflict. The course examines how missionaries and colonial leaders mixed musical cultures to build new social structures; and how colonial subjects responded creatively, in collaboration or resistance, to shape hybrid identities. We will study musical practices from both sides of the encounters, including Chinese and Native American musics and exported European practices like religious choral music and popular dances. Meets in the Robbins Library or hands-on engagement with rare books and manuscripts. No prior musical knowledge is required.
HIS 288: POLITICS AND CULTURE IN FASCIST ITALY
Interviewed by the Chicago Daily News in 1924, Mussolini said that Fascism was “the greatest experiment in history in making Italians.” Within the historical and political framework of the so-called Ventennio Fascista—from 1922 to 1943—the course examines Mussolini’s cultural politics as a fundamental strategy not only to gain popular consent and propagate the ideology of the regime, but to implement his vision of Italian national identity. Relying on both material culture, and historical documents and analyses, we will study the fascist philosophy and politics of education, the myth of Rome and its imperial legacy, the archeological, architectural, and restoration projects, the graphic arts, fashion, sports, and documentary film.
HIS 290: ANCIENT CHRISTIANITY
The "rise of Christianity" from being a small, persecuted Jewish movement to the dominant religion in the Roman Empire was not smooth; it was fraught with conflict and tension as Christians struggled with one another as well as outsiders as they sought to spread their message and to develop their own self-understanding as a new religious movement. In this course, we will study the social, cultural, and literary developments of ancient Christianity; we will focus on such issues as Christians' relationships with Jews and Romans, internal divisions among Christians (orthodoxy and heresy), the experience of persecution and martyrdom, the struggles over leadership and authority, the position of women in the early Christian movement, the formation of the Christian canon, and the emergence of Christian asceticism.
HIS 291: SLAVERY IN CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY
In this course we will explore Greek and Roman slavery by discussing a series of specific problems: the historical origins of slavery in Ancient Greece and Rome; the ideologies constructed by slaveholders to justify enslavement and control their slaves; the nature of master-slave relationships and the ways in which factors like a slave’s gender and education affected the social and economic realities of these relationships; and the extent to which slaves could realistically hope for manumission. We will also devote considerable time to a basic problem of method: given that much of our evidence reflects of the views of the slaveholding elite, is it possible to reconstruct the experiences of slaves themselves? All sources will be read in English translation.
HIS 293THE BIBLE IN ENGLISH
This course considers the poetics and politics of the English Bible, centering on the seventeenth century: the century of the King James translation, the Thirty Years War, the English Revolution, and the rise of many radical religious groups. Among other topics, we will consider what made Bible translation so politically dangerous (and effective) during this time. We will ask when and why a book counts as “scripture.” We will track the importance of Bible translation for revolutionaries and visionaries like the Levellers, the Quakers, and the Ranters, who scandalized early modern society with new ideas of religious liberty, gender equality, and non-hierarchical spirituality. Finally, we will consider the role of the Bible in current-day conflicts and identities. In addition to excerpts from the Bible, students will read the Sidneys, Milton, Herbert, Donne, Abiezer Coppe, Spinoza, Hutchison, Bunyan, and Swift.
HIS 337W: GEORGE ORWELL AND THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
This course will approach the tortured history of the 20th century by way of the life and writings of George Orwell. Best known for his late dystopian novels 1984 and Animal Farm, Orwell wrote many other memorable books and essays commenting on the signal events of his time. He experienced first hand (among other things): India, the British Empire, the Depression, the Spanish Civil War, the Second World War, post-war austerity and affluence, and the Cold War. And he wrote about them all with unrivaled clarity and force. Students will immerse themselves in Orwell’s life, work, and times and write a substantial research paper on a relevant topic of their own choice and design.
HIS 352W: RACIAL DEMOCRACIES: MEXICO VS. BRAZIL
Mexico and Brazil are countries with complex cultural, racial and ethnic histories. This seminar will explore the process by which these two countries grappled with their diverse populations during the modern era and how policies and attitudes impacted citizens, residents and perceptions. The course will investigate the limitations that arose from Mexico’s pursuit of a “cosmic race” and how the myth of Brazil’s “racial democracy” was created and debunked. We will debate the durability of these constructions and the limitations that arise from cross-country comparisons.
HIS 357W: AMERICA AND THE HOLOCAUST
This seminar considers both the role of the United States as a "bystander" nation during the destruction of European Jewry by the Nazis in World War II and the place of the Holocaust in postwar American culture. Readings and films include The Diary of Anne Frank, Maus, Judgment at Nuremberg, Sophie's Choice, and Schindler's List. Two short papers and one substantial research paper.
HIS 360W: AMERICA AND THE WORLD TO 1865
An introductory course for graduate students planning to take a teaching field in American History. It is about the age of Europe's empires (c.1500-1865) and the rise of their global hegemony. It is about the causes, consequences, and spread of an international market economy as both the impulse (cause) of European political expansion and the partner (sponsor) of imperialism. About 400 pages of reading per week, two essays and a final exam.
HIS 378: URBAN CHANGE AND CITY POLITICS
Through intensive reading and discussion, we examine the politics and history of American cities. While we read scholarship drawing on the experiences of an array of cities--including Chicago, New York, Detroit, Boston, Philadelphia, Phoenix, New Haven, Atlanta, Buffalo, and Charlotte--our emphasis is on commonalities in the urban experience as well as on systematic differences. We analyze the relationship of cities to their hinterlands in the early stages of urban development, the rise of ethnic neighborhoods, suburbanization, industrialization, de-industrialization, housing and jobs, concentrated poverty, and population changes. Race, ethnicity, and class are central to this course, not only in understanding changes in neighborhoods but also in the nature of politics and governmental arrangements.
HIS 378W: URBAN CHANGE AND CITY POLITICS
Through intensive reading and discussion, we examine the politics and history of American cities. While we read scholarship drawing on the experiences of an array of cities--including Chicago, New York, Detroit, Boston, Philadelphia, Phoenix, New Haven, Atlanta, Buffalo, and Charlotte--our emphasis is on commonalities in the urban experience as well as on systematic differences. We analyze the relationship of cities to their hinterlands in the early stages of urban development, the rise of ethnic neighborhoods, suburbanization, industrialization, de-industrialization, housing and jobs, concentrated poverty, and population changes. Race, ethnicity, and class are central to this course, not only in understanding changes in neighborhoods but also in the nature of politics and governmental arrangements.
HIS 382W: APOCALYPSE NOW... AND THEN: A HISTORY OF APOCALYPTIC THOUGHT
This seminar examines the history of beliefs about the end of the world in the western Judeo-Christian tradition. We will examine such topics as the birth of apocalyptic thought, the medieval development of various aspects of traditions about the End (such as the figure of Antichrist and millenarian traditions), millennial influences on the discovery and colonization of the New World, millennial movements of the last two centuries (such as the Millerites and the Mormons), and contemporary apocalyptic scenarios. A major theme of the course will be the flexibility of apocalyptic language, its ability to interpret various historical situations, and its power to move people to acceptance or action.
HIS 437: GEORGE ORWELL AND THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
This course will approach the tortured history of the 20th century by way of the life and writings of George Orwell. Best known for his late dystopian novels 1984 and Animal Farm, Orwell wrote many other memorable books and essays commenting on the signal events of his time. He experienced first hand (among other things): India, the British Empire, the Depression, the Spanish Civil War, the Second World War, post-war austerity and affluence, and the Cold War. And he wrote about them all with unrivaled clarity and force. Students will immerse themselves in Orwell’s life, work, and times and write a substantial research paper on a relevant topic of their own choice and design.
HIS 452: RACIAL DEMOCRACIES: MEXICO VS. BRAZIL
Mexico and Brazil are countries with complex cultural, racial and ethnic histories. This seminar will explore the process by which these two countries grappled with their diverse populations during the modern era and how policies and attitudes impacted citizens, residents and perceptions. The course will investigate the limitations that arose from Mexico’s pursuit of a “cosmic race” and how the myth of Brazil’s “racial democracy” was created and debunked. We will debate the durability of these constructions and the limitations that arise from cross-country comparisons.
HIS 457: AMERICA AND THE HOLOCAUST
This seminar considers both the role of the United States as a "bystander" nation during the destruction of European Jewry by the Nazis in World War II and the place of the Holocaust in postwar American culture. Readings and films include The Diary of Anne Frank, Maus, Judgment at Nuremberg, Sophie's Choice, and Schindler's List. Two short papers and one substantial research paper.
HIS 460: AMERICA AND THE WORLD TO 1865
An introductory course for graduate students planning to take a teaching field in American History. It is about the age of Europe's empires (c.1500-1865) and the rise of their global hegemony. It is about the causes, consequences, and spread of an international market economy as both the impulse (cause) of European political expansion and the partner (sponsor) of imperialism. About 400 pages of reading per week, two essays and a final exam.
HIS 479: THE SEWARD FAMILY IN PEACE AND WAR
A history class in the digital studies curriculum that assumes no background in either one. It is a hands-on introduction to the history of the family, gender, and the antebellum and Civil War eras, to historical editing, and to website design and creation, using the Papers of William Henry Seward (1801-1872), Governor of New York, US Senator, and Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. This semester, we will focus on the family’s correspondence from the 1830s, when Seward was away in Albany much of the time, first as a state senator and then as the governor of New York. Topics include the cholera epidemic of 1832, romantic love, and household economy.
HIS 482: APOCALYPSE NOW... AND THEN: A HISTORY OF APOCALYPTIC THOUGHT
This seminar examines the history of beliefs about the end of the world in the western Judeo-Christian tradition. We will examine such topics as the birth of apocalyptic thought, the medieval development of various aspects of traditions about the End (such as the figure of Antichrist and millenarian traditions), millennial influences on the discovery and colonization of the New World, millennial movements of the last two centuries (such as the Millerites and the Mormons), and contemporary apocalyptic scenarios. A major theme of the course will be the flexibility of apocalyptic language, its ability to interpret various historical situations, and its power to move people to acceptance or action.
HIS 487: WIVES, WITCHES, AND WENCHES: WOMEN IN AMERICAN HISTORY
This course surveys American history through the words and work of women. Well-known historical events and developments--including but not limited to the Revolutionary War, the abolition of slavery, the Great Depression, and the protest movements of the 1960s—look different when considered from the perspective of women. The course will further examine how social categories such as race, class, sexuality, and religion have shaped women’s historical experiences. Broad in chronological scope, this course is not intended to be comprehensive. Rather, we will utilize primary and secondary sources to delve into important historical moments and to explore questions about the practice and politics of studying women’s history.
HIS 500: PROBLEMS IN HISTORICAL ANALYSIS
This course addresses questions of interest to beginning graduate students in history. These may include: the history of the historical profession, styles of historical writing, relations between history and literature, ethno-history, and the functions of history as criticism and as social memory.
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