History | Courses

 

 

Course Descriptions

Noncredit option. This week-long summer program introduces participants to the key causes and consequences of the war by exploring its remnants and remembrances in the Washington, D.C. area. The intensive program combines morning presentations and discussions with afternoon field trips. Sites include Harper's Ferry, Antietam, Arlington National Cemetery, Sherman and Grant Memorials, Howard University, Fort Stevens, Frederick Douglass Home, Ford's Theater, and a full-day trip to Richmond. Meets with HIST-382/682. Usually offered every summer.

Noncredit option. Summer study trip to Japan in conjunction with the Nuclear Studies Institute. Focuses on Japanese wartime aggression, the human devastation wrought by the atomic bombings, current Japanese and international efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons, and the building of closer ties between the people of the United States and Japan. Participants hear first-hand accounts of atomic bomb survivors and Asian victims of Japanese atrocities, visit sites of historical and cultural significance, and attend commemorative events. Meets with HIST-384/684. Usually offered every summer.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

Explores the theory and practice of the study of the past. Focuses on the ways in which our thinking is affected by our beliefs about the past; we reconstruct, explain, and evaluate past events; we organize knowledge about the past; and we analyze and evaluate the "lessons of the past." Usually offered every spring.

The political, economic, and cultural emergence of Europe into world leadership during the period 1400-1815, stressing the problems of building or rebuilding political and social order, including the attempts to spread European civilization to other parts of the world. Usually offered every term.

In key historical contexts such as the industrial revolution, the development of New World plantations, and the transformation of farming, this course explores the changing relations between work and community. When have people found the opportunity to exert autonomy and creativity at work? How have evolving work relations influenced household composition, family roles, and cultural traditions? Usually offered every fall.

This course traces the history of modern imperialism and resistance to it. It includes the nature of colonial rule, the rise of modern nationalism and post colonial states, and the political, social, religious, cultural, demographic, environmental, economic, and intellectual revolutions that produced and were produced by the rise of modern empires. Usually offered every term.

This course studies the history and present day reality of the United States, exploring American society, politics, culture, economics, and foreign policy. It takes an interdisciplinary approach to discovering the essence of America and features guest lectures by professors from diverse fields of study. Usually offered every fall. Required course for the Abroad at AU certificate program.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

From Minoan Crete through Alexander the Great. Literary and artistic masterpieces in their historical settings. Emphasis on ancient sources. Usually offered every fall.

From the Etruscans through Constantine. The interplay of constitution and empire, and the changing views of ethical conduct. Emphasis on ancient sources. Usually offered every spring.

Exploration of the medieval world-view and consideration of the organization of economic and political institutions, the relationship of secular and ecclesiastical authority, and the creation of new social and religious ideals during the millennium that bridges antiquity and modernity. Usually offered alternate springs.

The history of the United States to 1865: the expansion and transplantation of European civilization; the Native American response; the sectional contest over slavery; the birth of the American feminist movement; and the beginnings of the industrial revolution. Usually offered every term. Prerequisite for General Education credit: LIT-125 or HIST-100 or HIST-110 or WGST-150.

American history from the end of the Civil War to the end of World War II. Modernization of America and resulting problems. Growth of U.S. power in international affairs. Roots and development of social and political change in America. Usually offered every term.

Introductory course on the last half century of U.S. history. Growing cultural diversity of the American people and interrelatedness of international and domestic affairs. Impact of the Cold War and challenges to traditional ideologies and political solutions. Usually offered every term.

Beginning with a review of literature citing pre-Columbian contacts between Africa and the Western hemisphere, this course covers the Atlantic slave trade, the African presence in Colonial America, the American Revolution, nineteenth-century American slavery, the Underground Railroad, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. The course utilizes historical eyewitness accounts, maps, popular culture, and museum exhibitions to explore the arrival and historical journey of Africans from the Colonial and Revolutionary eras through the Civil War and Reconstruction. Usually offered every fall.

Beginning with a brief review of the Civil War and Reconstruction, this survey chronicles the history of African-Americans to the present time. The course uses historical and literary texts and makes use of cultural resources such as films, recordings, art works, and museum exhibitions to explore the richness of this legacy and its impact on the development of American culture and history. Usually offered every spring.

Explores how ethnicity has shaped American institutions and behavior patterns from 1607 to the present. Largely a nation of immigrants, this country reflects the racial, religious, and national characteristics of those who migrated here, whether voluntarily or as slaves. Includes ethnicity's influence on family, politics, civil rights, and foreign policy. Usually offered every spring. Prerequisite for General Education credit: ANTH-150 or PSYC-105 or SOCY-100 or WGST-125.

This course explores the history of Native Americans in North America from pre-Columbian times to the present. Using interdisciplinary methods of ethnohistory, the course analyses Native Americans' efforts to maintain their culture and autonomy while adapting to the vast changes wrought by European settlement. The course also examines Native American influences on Colonial society, American identity, and the evolution of U. S. government policy. Usually offered alternate falls.

The history of race, class, and gender in the United States from the war for independence to the present. The focus is on how these forces existed and continue to exist as intersecting material realities and contributors to the social attitudes held by residents of the United States. Usually offered every term. Prerequisite for General Education credit: LIT-125 or HIST-100 or HIST-110 or WGST-150.

Incorporating a multidisciplinary perspective; both primary and secondary readings, this course examines change and continuity in the experience of American women from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. Focuses on social and political movements of special concern to women, including suffrage, birth control, women's liberation, and contemporary antifeminism. Usually offered every spring. Prerequisite for General Education credit: ANTH-150 or PSYC-105 or SOCY-100 or WGST-125.

Political, social, and cultural development in Britain to 1689. Parliament, common law, civil war, plague, rebellion, concepts of kingship, and the conflict of church and state. Usually offered every fall.

Britain has been regarded as a model for political, economic, and social development. This course examines phenomena that have defined Britain's place in the world, such as the ascension of parliament, the industrial revolution, and the growth of empire, to understand what is unique about Britain and which elements of the British historical experience are more broadly shared. Usually offered every spring.

This courses provides an overview and introduction to the history of empires, nations, and states in the Eurasian plain, from the origins of Rus' over a thousand years ago to the present day, as well as the various ethnic, national, and religious groups of the region. In an incredibly inhospitable environment Russians, Ukrainians, Poles, Tatars, Georgians, Jews, Germans, and others built a flourishing civilization and one of the world's greatest and most enduring empires. While the course centers on the Russians, the largest group in the region, Russia's history was and continuers to be deeply entwined with he histories of other peoples of the great Eurasian plain. Usually offered every spring. Prerequisite for General Education credit: ECON-110 or GOVT-130 or HIST-120 or SIS-105 or SIS-110.

The first state, Kiev Rus, the impact of the Tatar Yoke, and the emergence of Muscovite Russia. Includes the growth of Tsarist autocracy, the enserfment of the peasantry, the role of the Russian Orthodox church, and Russia's relations with the West. Usually offered alternate years.

Survey of Imperial Russian history with emphasis on the Romanov Tsars, peasantry, growth of industry, cultural developments, emergence of the revolutionary movements, expansion of the state, and foreign policy. Usually offered alternate years.

The Tsarist heritage, Russian Marxism, the revolutions of 1917, the civil war, the New Economic Policy, rise of Stalin, the industrialization and collectivization of the 1930s, the Second Patriotic War, death of Stalin, the Khrushchev era, the Brezhnev regime, the end of the USSR, and Soviet culture. Usually offered every fall.

The West has experienced world wars, the Great Depression, America's New Deal, and communist and Nazi revolutions and dictatorships. How crises and wars emerged from a conflicted Western heritage, and how communism, fascism, and the New Deal were responses to problems of modernity and progress emanating from different national histories. Usually offered every fall. Prerequisite for General Education credit: GOVT-105 or HIST-115 or JLS-110 or PHIL-105 or RELG-105.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include national histories, nineteenth-century Europe, and Europe and colonialism.

Conquest and change in Indian civilization; imperial politics; race and class; Indian labor and the Black legend; imperial economic relations; imperial reform and revolution. Usually offered every fall.

Problems in creating nations; militarism, dictatorship, and democracy; sources of underdevelopment; reform and revolution in the twentieth century. Usually offered every spring.

Surveys Jewish responses to the challenges of modernity. Examines the creation of new Jewish communities in America and Israel, shifts in Jewish political status, and innovations in Jewish religious and intellectual history such as Zionism and Hasidism. Usually offered every spring.

The Middle East escapes any single definition; it has no readily-defined geographic, ethnic, religious, or political boundaries. This course surveys the historical experiences, institutions, and events that have connected the region's diverse peoples from the rise of Islam to the present. Usually offered every fall.

Compares the great civilizations of China, India, and Japan; their interaction with the West; and their transformation from the nineteenth century. Analyzes modernization and why Asian societies changed so differently; why revolutions wracked China and communism triumphed; Japan's emergence as a premier industrial state; and how India balances tradition, modernity, and democracy. Usually offered every spring. Prerequisite for General Education credit: ANTH-110 or LIT-150 or RELG-185 or SIS-140 or SOCY-110.

Director Oliver Stone's influence on popular views of recent U.S. history has raised important questions about artistic license, the nature and uses of historical evidence, and the shaping of popular historical consciousness. This course addresses these issues while assessing both scholarly opinion and popular beliefs about the Kennedy assassination, the Vietnam War and antiwar movement, the 1960s counterculture, Watergate, U.S. policy in Central America, and the 1980s capitalistic culture. Usually offered every fall.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics in ancient Greek and Roman history. Meets with HIST-600.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include interpretations of the new world, ideas of science and faith, exchange of goods and scientific knowledge, diasporas, and comparative slavery. Some background in European and U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-611.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include women and gender, European thought and ideologies, nineteenth-century revolutions, development of the social sciences, Eastern and Central Europe of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, society and culture in modern France, modern Germany, the Republic of Letters, the European Enlightenment, the French Revolution, and media and mass culture. Some background in European history is recommended. Meets with HIST-612.

The political, social, and economic conditions that made it possible for Hitler to take power. The nature of Nazi rule. Emphasis on World War II and the Holocaust. Meets with HIST-618. Usually offered every spring.

Traces the history of anti-Semitism and the development of racism that led to the Holocaust. Examines the historical development of the Final Solution. Considers the variety of responses to Jewish persecution by the Nazi perpetrators, the Jews, and the nations of the world. Meets with HIST-619. Usually offered every fall.

Describes and interprets Napoleonic wars and diplomacy; the Congress of Vienna; the Concert of Europe; the revolutions of 1820, 1830, and 1848; the Crimean War; the conflicts of Italian and German nationalism; Bismarck's diplomatic system; imperialism; the partition of Africa; rivalries in Asia; Balkan conflicts; and the roots of World War I. Meets with HIST-620.

The two world wars and their backgrounds of revolution and depression are focal points for explaining the origins of wars and the failure of peace in modern civilizations. Includes imperialism and world politics, World War I, peace-making at Versailles, the Great Depression, the rise of the Nazis, fascists, and communist Russia and their foreign policies, the German blitzkrieg in World War II and subsequent allied victories, and attempts to create a "brave new world." Meets with HIST-621.

Offered as part of the AU Abroad London program, this course examines the key political, social, and cultural developments of Great Britain over the past two hundred years, from war with France and world-wide imperial expansion to the present with Britain as a medium-sized state torn between allegiance to its former colonies, America, and the expanding European Union.

This interdisciplinary course is designed to acquaint the student with the fundamental aspects of the history, politics, and culture of the Czechlands through lectures, readings, screenings, and field trips. Examines three key areas of challenge to the new democracy: legal, economic, and human. Emphasizing the fundamental changes that need to be made so that the Czech Republic can pass from a half-century of totalitarian regimes to a true democracy. Offered only in Prague. Usually offered every fall.

Developments in the politics, economies, cultures, and societies of Central European states during the past century. Includes the age of imperialism; the end of the monarchies in Central Europe; politics and culture in the Weimar Republic; the rise of dictatorships and fascism; the Third Reich; World War II and its consequences; the rebuilding of democracy; and the German division. Offered in Prague. Usually offered every term.

In this century Europe has experienced two major wars, a wave of communist revolution, a violent reaction in the form of fascism, and the horror of mass extermination. Yet Europe today is quite prosperous, and there are better links between the Western countries and their communist counterparts than could be imagined two decades ago. There is something in Europe's past that gives it a certain resilience. Meets with HIST-627. Usually offered alternate years.

The theory, patterns, and practice of twentieth century revolutions, and the revolutionary tradition stemming from the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, and Marxism. Detailed treatment of the Russian, Nazi, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Cuban revolutions, and consideration of the effects of revolutions and the revolutionary potential of modern industrial societies. Meets with HIST-631. Usually offered alternate years.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics including death in history, madness in history, history of sexuality, and women in European history. Meets with HIST-632. Usually offered every term.

Examines the many threats to traditional beliefs and social patterns that emerged in the nineteenth century. Subjects include the effect of Darwinism on religion, the emergence of working-class politics, the campaign for female suffrage, discontent in Ireland, and the growth of empire. Meets with HIST-634.

Survey of Irish history from the Gaelic invasions to the present, focusing on the development of Irish cultural and national identity. Meets with HIST-636.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics including Hanoverian England, Edwardian England, the British working-class, and popular culture in modern Britain. Meets with HIST-637.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics including the diplomatic history of Latin America, Latin American intellectual history, and Latin American feminisms. Meets with HIST-640.

Emphasis on the independence movement, nineteenth century wars with neighboring countries, growth of the mining and agricultural industries, and the creation of one of Latin America's largest middle classes. Examines the social mores and attitudes of the Chilean people and the roles of the Church, the family, and social institutions. Offered only in Santiago. Usually offered every spring.

Traces the development of modern political Zionism in nineteenth-century Europe; the historical background leading to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948; and the history of Israel since then, including patterns of Jewish immigration and its relationship to the Arab world.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics in Jewish history exploring one theme, or period, or geographical region of the Jewish past, including the history of women in Jewish tradition, East European Jewry, the world of the shtetl, American Jewish women, and anti-Semitism. Meets with HIST-644.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics including Russian social history, Russian revolutionary tradition, Russian dissidents and dictators, Russia and the West, twentieth century Russian diplomacy, and Russian literature and society. Meets with HIST-645.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Topical courses in Asian history including China from the Manchus to Mao, history of Japan, and India and the West. Meets with HIST-647.

Examines the evolution of American culture in the nuclear age, with particular emphasis on the ways in which the threat of nuclear war and annihilation have shaped American thought and behavior. Central to this study is an exploration of the history of the nuclear arms race in the context of the politics, culture, and diplomacy of the Cold War. Meets with HIST-648. Usually offered alternate falls.

The founding and development of England's North American colonies, emphasizing the original impulses and methods of colonization; Indian peoples and conflict; non-English immigration; the genesis and African background of the slave trade and slavery; and the creation of a dominant English culture in an ethnically and racially diverse society. Meets with HIST-650. Usually offered alternate years.

The political and social history of the American Revolution, emphasizing the genesis of the revolutionary conflict, the revolution as a "republican revolution," the revolution's ideological and social results and their effect abroad, and the formation of the Constitution. Meets with HIST-651. Usually offered alternate years.

The new republic's political consolidation during its first critical decades; its physical, economic, and political transformation by continental expansion; the transportation and industrial revolutions and the creation of a mass democracy; and the first confrontations over slavery in 1832-33 and 1848-50. Meets with HIST-652. Usually offered alternate years.

Chronological coverage from the Compromise of 1850 to the final withdrawal of federal troops from the South in 1877. Includes antebellum reform, sectional conflict, black slavery, secession, and postwar racial and political problems. Political and social issues are emphasized, rather than a narrative of battles and skirmishes. Meets with HIST-653. Usually offered alternate years.

The theme is the South's struggle with the issues of integration, separation, and self-definition since the Civil War. Reconstruction and redemption, race relations, violence, the rise and fall of the "Solid South," and the "New South" of Jimmy Carter. Meets with HIST-654. Usually offered alternate years.

The course considers themes in the modernization of America: the rise of corporations and cities, the influx of immigrants from southern and eastern Europe, and the advent of the new diplomacy and imperialism. Also studies populism and progressivism. Meets with HIST-655. Usually offered alternate years.

Life in the twentieth century is different from all other periods of our past. To understand why requires an examination of the explosion of science and technology, the growth of government, America's increasing involvement in the world, the multiplication of protest and liberation movements, the new politics, and neo-Keynesian economics. Meets with HIST-656.

Following a decade of stability and prosperity, the dislocations caused by the Great Depression disrupted the lives and shook the institutions of the American people, leading to unprecedented political and cultural experimentation. Emphasizing both the contrasts and continuities between the 1920s and 1930s, the course investigates the patterns of political, social, cultural, economic, and intellectual life during the interwar period, with special emphasis on the tensions between radical and conservative tendencies. Meets with HIST-657.

Traces the history of women in America from the sixteenth through the mid-nineteenth century, concentrating on the lived experiences of women as well as on the changing definitions, perceptions, and uses of gender. Particular attention is paid to race, ethnicity, and class, as well as to regional cultures. Additional themes include family, work, and religion. Meets with HIST-658. Usually offered alternate falls.

Traces the history of women in America from the mid-nineteenth through the late twentieth century, emphasizing women's radically different experiences as well as common perceptions and uses of gender. Particular attention is paid to race, ethnicity, and class, with the premise that gender is a historically-specific cultural construct. Meets with HIST-659. Usually offered alternate falls.

The history of United States diplomacy (and other forms of international relations) from the Revolution to the eve of World War I. Focus on policymaking and makers; on such long-term issues such as unilateralism, imperialism, and neutrality; and on economics and ideology. Meets with HIST-660. Usually offered alternate falls.

The history of United States diplomacy (and other forms of international relations) since the onset of World War I. Focus on policymaking and makers; on such long-term issues as isolationism, go-it-alone unilateralism, and interventionism; on ideology, economics, and related domestic politics; and on growing U.S. attention to military and national security matters. Meets with HIST-661. Usually offered every spring.

Focusing on the years 1945-1989, this course explores the international and domestic origins of the Cold War, its impact on American politics and culture, the rise of the national security state, and crises such as the Korean war, the Cuban missile crisis, and Vietnam. Meets with HIST-662. Usually offered every spring. Note: HIST-207 and other U.S. history survey courses recommended.

This course reinterprets U.S. history from the perspective of the nation's quadrennial contests for national leadership. It shows how presidential elections both reflect and influence major trends and episodes of the American past. The course combines narrative history with political and economic models to present a comprehensive theory of American presidential elections. A portion of the course focuses on the current election cycle, with guest speakers contributing information and adding to analysis. Meets with HIST-664. Usually offered alternate falls.

Beginning with the breakup of the post-World War II order, this course explores the politics of the 1980s and 1990s, post-war military and foreign policies, the impact of new information technologies, changing demographics and the debate over multi-culturalism, the "new" economy, globalization, cultural changes, and the emergence of postmodernism in American thought. Meets with HIST-665. Usually offered every spring.

This course presents the theory, practice, legal and ethical issues, and uses of oral history. Through field work, students gain interviewing, transcription, and analysis skills and studies the advantages and limitations of oral history as source material. Reading and case histories are drawn from modern U.S. history. Meets with HIST-667. Usually offered every fall.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include history and public policy, media and history, regional and local histories, and historic sites. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-668.

Health, disease, and medicine's role in American society and culture with a special focus on health dangers posed by industrialization, urbanization, and immigration. Disease and its social construction have been an important dimension of American culture and definitions of health and disease are important barometers of who we are as a people. Epidemics (including AIDS), the hospital, ethnicity, race, urban health care, controversies in medical ethics, and medical discoveries. Meets with HIST-669. Usually offered alternate springs.

This course combines two interdisciplinary and often overlapping areas of study for examination by students of history: material and visual cultural studies. The course introduces students to historiography and cultural theory in both fields and examines methodologies for using visual and material sources to study American cultural and social history. Meets with HIST-670. Usually offered alternate springs.

How have American political leaders justified their objectives? How have popular beliefs and attitudes been reflected in the American political system? This course, concentrating on the twentieth century, explores the relationship between American political life on the one hand and ideas and popular persuasions on the other. Meets with HIST-671.

Today American Jewry constitutes the preeminent Diaspora Jewish community. This course traces its historical development by examining the waves of Jewish immigration to the United States and the institutions that American Jews created to sustain their community. Meets with HIST-673. Usually offered alternate springs.

Focuses on the ideas, politics, and social structures that have influenced Americans in their relationship with their natural environment. Includes how Americans have viewed and valued wilderness, their treatment of land, and their use of natural resources in the context of U.S. expansion and industrial development. Meets with HIST-676.

This course explores the impact of new information technologies on historical practices, focusing on research, teaching, presentations of historical materials, and changes in professional organization and discourse. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-677. Usually offered every spring.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Examines the component parts of societies and the varying ways in which historians analyze social and political changes over time. Designed to prepare history majors for HIST-480/481, this seminar emphasizes the development of research, writing, and analytical skills. Usually offered every spring.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include American slavery, African American women, the civil rights movement, and race relations in the United States. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-679.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include labor and workers, espionage and national security, radical tradition, political movements, science and technologies, film and history, and families and childhood. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-680.

This week-long summer program introduces participants to the key causes and consequences of the war by exploring its remnants and remembrances in the Washington, D.C. area. The intensive program combines morning presentations and discussions with afternoon field trips. Sites include Harper's Ferry, Antietam, Arlington National Cemetery, Sherman and Grant Memorials, Howard University, Fort Stevens, Frederick Douglass Home, Ford's Theater, and a full-day trip to Richmond. Meets with HIST-682. Usually offered every summer.

Summer study trip to Japan in conjunction with the Nuclear Studies Institute. Focuses on Japanese wartime aggression, the human devastation wrought by the atomic bombings, current Japanese and international efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons, and the building of closer ties between the people of the United States and Japan. Participants hear first-hand accounts of atomic bomb survivors and Asian victims of Japanese atrocities, visit sites of historical and cultural significance, and attend commemorative events. Meets with HIST-684. Usually offered every summer.

Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department chair.

Prerequisite: permission of department chair and Cooperative Education office.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

Methods and materials of historical research and writing, with emphasis on resources in the Washington area. Students design and outline research subjects based in part on the use of primary sources. Required of all history majors. Normally followed by HIST-481. Usually offered every fall. Prerequisite: senior or second-semester junior standing.

Completion of a substantial research paper based in part on the use of primary source materials. Required of all history majors. Usually offered every spring. Prerequisite: HIST-480 and senior standing.

Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department chair.

Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department chair.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics in nineteenth and twentieth century European studies, Russian and Soviet studies, American political, social, and cultural studies, and American diplomatic and military studies. Usually offered every term.

Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department chair.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Topical courses in ancient Greek and Roman history. Meets with HIST-300.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include interpretations of the new world, ideas of science and faith, exchange of goods and scientific knowledge, diasporas, and comparative slavery. Some background in European and U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-311.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include women and gender, European thought and ideologies, nineteenth-century revolutions, development of the social sciences, Eastern and Central Europe of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, society and culture in modern France, modern Germany, the Republic of Letters, the European Enlightenment, the French Revolution, and media and mass culture. Some background in European history is recommended. Meets with HIST-312.

The political, social, and economic conditions that made it possible for Hitler to take power. The nature of Nazi rule. Emphasis on World War II and the Holocaust. Meets with HIST-318. Usually offered every spring.

Traces the history of anti-Semitism and the development of racism that led to the Holocaust. Examines the historical development of the Final Solution. Considers the variety of responses to Jewish persecution by the Nazi perpetrators, the Jews, and the nations of the world. Meets with HIST-319. Usually offered every fall.

Describes and interprets Napoleonic wars and diplomacy; the Congress of Vienna; the Concert of Europe; the revolutions of 1820, 1830, and 1848; the Crimean War; the conflicts of Italian and German nationalism; Bismarck's diplomatic system; imperialism; the partition of Africa; rivalries in Asia; Balkan conflicts; and the roots of World War I. Meets with HIST-320.

The two world wars and their backgrounds of revolution and depression are focal points for explaining the origins of wars and the failure of peace in modern civilizations. Includes imperialism and world politics, World War I, peace-making at Versailles, the Great Depression, the rise of the Nazis, fascists, and communist Russia and their foreign policies, the German blitzkrieg in World War II and subsequent allied victories, and attempts to create a "brave new world." Meets with HIST-321.

There is something in Europe's past that gives it a certain resilience: in this century Europe has experienced two major wars, a wave of communist revolution, a violent reaction in the form of fascism, and the horror of mass extermination. Yet Europe today is quite prosperous, and there are better links between the Western countries and their communist counterparts than could be imagined two decades ago. Meets with HIST-327. Usually offered alternate years.

The theory, patterns, and practice of twentieth century revolutions, and the revolutionary tradition stemming from the Enlightenment, French Revolution, and Marxism. Detailed treatment of the Russian, Nazi, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Cuban revolutions, and consideration of the effects of revolutions and the revolutionary potential of modern industrial societies. Meets with HIST-331. Usually offered alternate years.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics including death in history, madness in history, history of sexuality, and women in European history. Meets with HIST-332.

Examines the many threats to traditional beliefs and social patterns that emerged in the nineteenth century. Subjects include the effect of Darwinism on religion, the emergence of working-class politics, the campaign for female suffrage, discontent in Ireland, and the growth of empire. Meets with HIST-334.

Survey of Irish history from the Gaelic invasions to the present, focusing on the development of Irish cultural and national identity. Meets with HIST-336.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics, including Hanoverian England, Edwardian England, the British working-class experience, and popular culture in modern Britain. Meets with HIST-337.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics, including the diplomatic history of Latin America, Latin American intellectual history, and Latin American feminisms. Meets with HIST-340.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics in Jewish history exploring one theme, or period, or geographical region of the Jewish past. May include the history of women in Jewish tradition, East European Jewry, the world of the shtetl, American Jewish women, and anti-Semitism. Meets with HIST-344.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics, including Russian social history, Russian revolutionary tradition, Russian dissidents and dictators, Russia and the West, twentieth century Russian diplomacy, and Russian literature and society. Meets with HIST-345.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Topical courses in Asian history including China from the Manchus to Mao, history of Japan, and India and the West. Meets with HIST-347.

Examines the evolution of American culture in the nuclear age, with particular emphasis on the ways in which the threat of nuclear war and annihilation have shaped American thought and behavior. Central to this study is an exploration of the history of the nuclear arms race in the context of the politics, culture, and diplomacy of the Cold War. Meets with HIST-348. Usually offered alternate falls.

1492 to 1763. The founding and development of England's North American colonies, emphasizing the original impulses and methods of colonization; Indian peoples and conflict; non-English immigration; the genesis and African background of the slave trade and slavery; and the creation of a dominant English culture in an ethnically and racially diverse society. Meets with HIST-350. Usually offered alternate years.

The political and social history of the American Revolution, emphasizing the genesis of the revolutionary conflict, the revolution as a "republican revolution," the revolution's ideological and social results and their effect abroad, and the formation of the Constitution. Meets with HIST-351. Usually offered alternate years.

The new republic's political consolidation during its first critical decades; its physical, economic, and political transformation by continental expansion; the transportation and industrial revolutions and the creation of a mass democracy; and the first confrontations over slavery in 1832-1833 and 1848-1850. Meets with HIST-352. Usually offered alternate years.

Chronological coverage from the Compromise of 1850 to the final withdrawal of federal troops from the South in 1877. Includes antebellum reform, sectional conflict, black slavery, secession, and postwar racial and political problems. Political and social issues are emphasized, rather than a narrative of battles and skirmishes. Meets with HIST-353. Usually offered alternate years.

The theme is the South's struggle with the issues of integration, separation, and self-definition since the Civil War. Reconstruction and redemption, race relations, violence, the rise and fall of the "Solid South," and the "New South" of Jimmy Carter. Meets with HIST-354. Usually offered alternate years.

The course considers themes in the modernization of America: the rise of corporations and cities, the influx of immigrants from southern and eastern Europe, and the advent of the new diplomacy and imperialism. Populism and progressivism. Meets with HIST-355. Usually offered alternate years.

Life in the twentieth century is different from all other periods of our past. To understand why requires an examination of the explosion of science and technology, the growth of government, America's increasing involvement in the world, the multiplication of protest and liberation movements, the new politics, and neo-Keynesian economics. Meets with HIST-356.

Following a decade of stability and prosperity, the dislocations caused by the Great Depression disrupted the lives and shook the institutions of the American people, leading to unprecedented political and cultural experimentation. Emphasizing both the contrasts and continuities between the 1920s and 1930s, the course investigates the patterns of political, social, cultural, economic, and intellectual life during the interwar period, with special emphasis on the tensions between radical and conservative tendencies. Meets with HIST-357.

Traces the history of women in America from the sixteenth through the mid-nineteenth century, concentrating on the lived experiences of women as well as on the changing definitions, perceptions, and uses of gender. Particular attention is paid to race, ethnicity, and class, as well as to regional cultures. Additional themes include family, work, and religion. Meets with HIST-358. Usually offered alternate falls.

Traces the history of women in America from the mid-nineteenth through the late twentieth century, emphasizing women's radically different experiences as well as common perceptions and uses of gender. Particular attention is paid to race, ethnicity, and class, with the premise that gender is a historically-specific cultural construct. Meets with HIST-359. Usually offered alternate falls.

The history of United States diplomacy (and other forms of international relations) from the Revolution to the eve of World War I. Focus on policymaking and makers; on such long-term issues such as unilateralism, imperialism, and neutrality; and on economics and ideology. Meets with HIST-360. Usually offered alternate falls.

The history of United States diplomacy (and other forms of international relations) since the onset of World War I. Focus on policymaking and makers; on such long-term issues as isolationism, go-it-alone unilateralism, and interventionism; on ideology, economics, and related domestic politics; and on growing U.S. attention to military and national security matters. Meets with HIST-361. Usually offered every spring.

Focusing on the years 1945-1989, this course explores the international and domestic origins of the Cold War, its impact on American politics and culture, the rise of the national security state, and crises such as the Korean war, the Cuban missile crisis, and Vietnam. Meets with HIST-362. Usually offered every spring.

This course reinterprets U.S. history from the perspective of the nation's quadrennial contests for national leadership. It shows how presidential elections both reflect and influence major trends and episodes of the American past. The course combines narrative history with political and economic models to present a comprehensive theory of American presidential elections. A portion of the course focuses on the current election cycle, with guest speakers contributing information and adding to analysis. Meets with HIST-364. Usually offered alternate falls.

Beginning with the breakup of the post-World War II order, this course explores the politics of the 1980s and 1990s, post-war military and foreign policies, the impact of new information technologies, changing demographics and the debate over multi-culturalism, the "new" economy, globalization, cultural changes, and the emergence of postmodernism in American thought. Meets with HIST-365. Usually offered every spring.

This course presents the theory, practice, legal and ethical issues, and uses of oral history. Through field work, students gain interviewing, transcription, and analysis skills and studies the advantages and limitations of oral history as source material. Reading and case histories are drawn from modern U.S. history. Meets with HIST-367. Usually offered every fall.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include history and public policy, media and history, regional and local histories, and historic sites. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-368.

Health, disease, and medicine's role in American society and culture with a special focus on health dangers posed by industrialization, urbanization, and immigration. Disease and its social construction has been an important dimension of American culture and definitions of health and disease are important barometers of who we are as a people. Epidemics (including AIDS), the hospital, ethnicity, race, urban health care, controversies in medical ethics, and medical discoveries. Meets with HIST-369. Usually offered alternate springs.

This course combines two interdisciplinary and often overlapping areas of study for examination by students of history: material and visual cultural studies. The course introduces students to historiography and cultural theory in both fields and examines methodologies for using visual and material sources to study American cultural and social history. Meets with HIST-370. Usually offered alternate springs.

How have American political leaders justified their objectives? How have popular beliefs and attitudes been reflected in the American political system? This course, concentrating on the twentieth century, explores the relationship between American political life on the one hand and ideas and popular persuasions on the other. Meets with HIST-371.

Today American Jewry constitutes the preeminent Diaspora Jewish community. This course traces its historical development by examining the waves of Jewish immigration to the United States and the institutions that American Jews created to sustain their community. Meets with HIST-373. Usually offered alternate springs.

Focuses on the ideas, politics, and social structures that have influenced Americans in their relationship with their natural environment. Includes how Americans have viewed and valued wilderness, their treatment of land, and their use of natural resources in the context of U.S. expansion and industrial development. Meets with HIST-376.

This course explores the impact of new information technologies on historical practices, focusing on research, teaching, presentations of historical materials, and changes in professional organization and discourse. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-377. Usually offered every spring.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include American slavery, African American women, the civil rights movement, and race relations in the United States. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-379.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic. Rotating topics include labor and workers, espionage and national security, radical tradition, political movements, science and technologies, film and history, and families and childhood. Some background in U.S. history is recommended. Meets with HIST-380.

This week-long summer program introduces participants to the key causes and consequences of the war by exploring its remnants and remembrances in the Washington, D.C. area. The intensive program combines morning presentations and discussions with afternoon field trips. Sites include Harper's Ferry, Antietam, Arlington National Cemetery, Sherman and Grant Memorials, Howard University, Fort Stevens, Frederick Douglass Home, Ford's Theater, and a full-day trip to Richmond. Meets with HIST-382. Usually offered every summer.

Summer study trip to Japan in conjunction with the Nuclear Studies Institute. Focuses on Japanese wartime aggression, the human devastation wrought by the atomic bombings, current Japanese and international efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons, and the building of closer ties between the people of the United States and Japan. Participants hear first-hand accounts of atomic bomb survivors and Asian victims of Japanese atrocities, visit sites of historical and cultural significance, and attend commemorative events. Meets with HIST-384. Usually offered every summer.

Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department chair.

Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department chair.

Prerequisite: permission of department chair and Cooperative Education office.

Topics vary by section, may be repeated for credit with different topic.

Covers major issues in European history from 1789 to 1900. Integrates political, social, cultural, intellectual, diplomatic, and military subjects and their historiography. The colloquium assumes basic knowledge of events. Usually offered alternate falls.

Covers major issues in European history since 1900. Integrates political, social, cultural, intellectual, diplomatic, and military subjects and their historiography. The colloquium assumes basic knowledge of events. Usually offered alternate falls.

The course assumes the student's familiarity with factual data and concentrates on analyzing important historiographic disputes and developments in U.S. history to the end of the Civil War. Usually offered every fall.

The course assumes the student's familiarity with factual data and concentrates on analyzing important historiographic disputes and developments in U.S. history from 1865 to the present. Usually offered every spring.

With HIST-730, this course is part of a two course sequence introducing students to ideas, debates, and best practices in the field of public history. The course introduces students to the historical origins of public history, the historiography and major paradigms in the field, and to debates about the public role of historians. Usually offered every fall.

With HIST-729, this course is part of a two course sequence introducing students to ideas, debates, and best practices in the field of public history. The course introduces students to the best practices in both the interpretation of history in public venues and the management of heritage sites. Includes governance, ethics, interpretation, evaluation, exhibition development, and education. Usually offered every fall.

Focuses on historical theory, historical methodology, and differences in the various branches of history. Brings together graduate students with various specialties and interests and creates a common base of knowledge and experience. Usually offered every fall.

Identification and development of research subjects; sources and their evaluation; research techniques and problems; and writing and argumentation. Students research and write substantial papers based largely on primary sources. Usually offered every spring.

Identification and development of research subjects; sources and their evaluation; research techniques and problems; and writing and argumentation. Students research and write substantial papers based largely on primary sources. Usually offered every spring.

Usually offered every term.

Usually offered every term.