Attention: This schedule is subject to change. Before registering for classes, check the on-line schedule of classes to confirm course numbers, times, and availability.
History Department Course List Main Page
Hist 110: The Ancient World
MW 11-11:50 & Discussion Holum
Interpretation of select literature and art of the ancient Mediterranean world with a view to illuminating the antecedents of modern culture: religion and myth in the ancient Near East; Greek philosophical, artistic, scientific, and literary invention; and the Roman tradition in politics and administration.
CORE Humanities (HO) Course.
Hist 111: The Medieval World
TuTh 1-1:50 & Discussion Rutenburg
The development of Europe in the Middle Ages; the role of religious values in shaping new social, economic, and political institutions; medieval views of history and history-writing; medieval literature; the development of the "medieval synthesis" of Classical, Christian, and Barbarian cultures; the ideals and realities of medieval leaders. This course introduces students to historical methodology including interdisciplinary approaches, analysis of primary sources, and historical writing.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course.
Hist 111H: The Medieval World – HONORS
TuTh 1-1:50 & discussion Rutenburg
This is a special honors section taught by the instructor, J. Rutenburg. This section will have a small enrollment--limited to 12-15 students. Basic course requirements are the same as History 111 regular sections. But the overall study and discussion of required readings will be more intensive, with a more sophisticated level of discussion and analysis than the regular sections of the course offer. Honors Humanities students are encouraged to enroll, along with students in the History Honors Program, and outstanding students in general, who may enroll with the consent of the instructor.
CORE Distributive Studies, Social or Political History
Hist 112: The Rise of the West: 1500-1789
TuTh 9:30-10:45 Sutherland
The principal themes of the course are starvation, poverty and death; the transition from a religion of gestures to one of conscience and its relation to the Reformation; the European contact with indigenous peoples, trade, and subjugation; warfare and its relation to structures of states; Enlightenment, the scientific revolution and the stirrings of liberty.
CORE Humanities (HO) Course.
Hist 123: Sub-Saharan Africa since 1800
MW 1-1:50 & Discussion P. Landau
Surveys the social and political history of Sub-Saharan Africa over the past two centuries. Topics include the military and social re-organization of African societies, the effects of the slave trade in Africa, colonial conquest and resistance, systems of rule, racism and colonial ideology, anticolonial warfare, the image of Africa, the use and misuse of African bodies, and the postcolonial state.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 156: History of the United States to 1865
MW 1-1:50 & Discussion McNeilly
HIST 156 is a survey course of the history of the United States, beginning with the early fifteenth century and ending with the Civil War in the mid-nineteenth century. It focuses on the English founding of the colonies, the African diaspara, the conflict with the native Americans, the maturing of the colonies into dynamic and prosperous societies, their struggle for and achievement of independence, their early struggles to forge a viable nation/republic, their expansion over much of the North American continent, their spectacular economic and technological achievements, their slow and steady polarization into two hostile sections, and finally their descent into American history’s bloodiest conflict—the Civil War.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course
Hist 156: History of the United States to 1865
TuTh 10-10:50 & Discussion Bradbury
The United States from colonial times to the end of the Civil War. Establishment and development of American institutions.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course
Hist 157: History of the United States since 1865
MW 12-12:50 & Discussion Smead
This course surveys the history of America from the end of the Civil War through the 1970s and beyond. We explore the forces that shaped modern-day America, including the role of industrialization, technology, the impact of race and ethnicity, and the changing role of the federal government in the lives of American citizens. The goal is to figure out why we are the way we are.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course
Hist 157: History of the United States since 1865
TuTh 12-12:50 & Discussion Sicilia
This course surveys United States history from the end of the Civil War to the present. Since we cannot cover this broad subject comprehensively in a single term, we will focus on several key events and themes in the evolution of American institutions, culture, economy, politics, and values since 1865. These will include: cultural pluralism and the definition of American identity; the organization of American society into hierarchical institutions; urbanization and rural-urban conflict; the rise and decline of the United States as a global economic and political power; and the development of major political and social reform movements such as Progressivism, the New Deal, Civil Rights, environmentalism, and neo-conservatism. This course is designed to help students: 1) gain a basic factual knowledge of this historical period; 2) develop the ability to assess and think critically about historical issues and about how people interpret those issues; and 3) develop some skills in analyzing historical data and reaching informed conclusions about those data.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course
Hist 174: Introduction to the History of Science
TuTh 10-10:50 & Discussion Thomas
Tracks the development of modern science, setting discoveries and theories in the context of shifting ideas about appropriate objects of scientific inquiry, what constitutes scientific method, and the place of scientific knowledge in society.
Social or Political History (SH) Course
Hist 208J: Historical Research and Methods Seminar: Raj: The British Empire in India, 1750-1850
M 12-2 OR F 10-12 Soracoe
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This course will focus on the sustained colonial and imperial encounters between Britons and Indians during a period lasting from the early 18th century to the arrival of Indian independence after World War II. We will explore major historical questions such as how the British conquest of India was possible, the economic effects of empire, the social and cultural tensions between very different peoples, and the growing importance of Indian resistance to British rule. Although the subject of the course is Empire, the readings will aim to explore the ongoing interaction between Britons and Indians from the perspective of both colonized and colonizer. The goal for students will be to see how the British Empire was never dictated to Indians from a position of absolute strength, but always negotiated through bargaining and contesting with local interests. Each student will then undertake an independent research project designed to culminate in a paper of 12-15 pages in length.
Hist 208K: Historical Research and Methods Seminar: U.S. Urban History, 1800-1980
M 2-4 OR W 1-3 Murphy
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This seminar will introduce students to the historical literature on U.S. urban history from the early nineteenth to the late twentieth centuries while teaching skills in crafting a research paper based on primary and secondary materials. Students will learn about the range of topics in U.S. urban history, such as city development, municipal politics, interactions between urban residents, and urban social reform. Students will also develop their library and research skills. Each student will select a city, movement, or community to study, conduct research on this topic, and write (and re-write) a polished paper approximately 15 pages in length that has a clear argument, integrates primary and secondary materials, and utilizes proper citations.
Hist 208M: Historical Research and Methods Seminar: The Early Civil Rights Movement, 1890-1950
Tu 9-11 OR W 9-11 Doster
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This course will equip students with the basic tools of historical research while introducing them to the historical literature of the civil rights movement in the United States in the period extending from the last decade of the 19th century to the years immediately following the end of WWII. Students will engage in original research; possible topics include anti-lynching campaigns, education, voting rights, and access to public accommodations. In order to complete this research, students should be prepared to venture beyond the University of Maryland and access primary sources available at various archival repositories within the Washington, DC metropolitan area.
Hist 208N: Historical Research and Methods Seminar: Science, Technology, Environment, and Medicine in 20th Century Europe
Tu 2-4 OR Th 10-12 Kravetz
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This course will introduce students to some of the major historiographical issues around science, technology, environment and medicine in twentieth century European history. Special attention will be placed on Western Europe and Russia. Topics of discussion during the early weeks of the course will include: science under totalitarianism; nationalism and science; cultural responses to scientific issues; ethical issues in science, technology, environment, and medicine; science, technology, and genocide; and the role of gender, race, and class in science, technology, environment, and medicine. The remainder of the course will be focused on designing and writing an original historical research paper through a close reading of primary sources, some of which can be found in the Maryland libraries, but many of which are housed off campus in the Washington metro area.
Hist 208P: Historical Research and Methods Seminar: Intellectuals and Cultural Life Under Totalitarianism
Th 11-1 OR Th 2-4 Schlosser
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This course examines cultural and artistic life in Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia. Students will be familiarized with the major historical literature on this topic and be instructed in researching a project that addresses the critical themes and questions of the course. These include the reaction of artists and intellectuals to the development of dictatorships in their society, the role culture has played in promoting acceptance of totalitarian regimes, and the use of art and culture to criticize dictatorial governments. While the focus of seminar discussions will be on the literature concerning the Soviet Union (particularly Stalinist Russia) and National Socialist Germany, research topics on cultural life in other dictatorships in European history and topics considering cultural relations between the United States and totalitarian societies will be welcomed.
Hist 211: Women in America since 1880
TuTh 8-8:50 & Discussion Hussey
Cross-listed as WMST 211.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 213: History of Sexuality in America
MW 10-10:50 & Discussion Lyons
This is an introductory survey course on the history of sexuality in the United States. The course explores the social construction of sexualities from the first colonial settlement to the modern era. It focuses on the historical meanings given to sexuality and the political uses of sexuality in the past. The course will focus on the United States, but will begin with the history of sexuality in early modern Europe to facilitate our understanding of sexuality in colonial north America. Then we will proceed through the chronological development of the history of sexuality in the north American territory that becomes the United States. We will explore the dominant and alternative constructions of sexuality; trace the changing and contested meanings of sexuality; and explore the implications of these understandings of sexuality for power relations in U.S. history.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 216: Introduction to the Study of World Religions
MW 2-3:15 Antoci
This course gives students the opportunity to examine a variety of religious traditions (including Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Taoism, Confucianism), in historical, cultural, and social perspective. Specific focus on some of the scholarly approaches to religion (including psychological, sociological, feminist, and phenomenological interpretations) provide students with intellectual structures for understanding religion in cross-cultural perspective. This course is required for students pursuing the Citation in Comparative Religious Studies, but it is open to all interested undergraduates.
CORE Humanities (HO) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 219B: Special Topics: The Formation of the Western Humanist Tradition: Transforming Religion, Individuals, and Society
MW 2-3:15 Rutenburg
Can words and ideas change society? Can they change individuals? Most of our beliefs about human nature, the state, and society originated in the humanist culture of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance and Reformation. In History 219 B we study the formation and historical development of these beliefs--ideas that shaped individuals, society, and institutions from their foundations in Ancient Classical and Early Christian humanism through Medieval and Renaissance humanism and beyond. How did humanism shape individuals’ perceptions of self, God, and society? How did humanism enable people to comprehend and adapt to changing historical conditions? How did it inspire the urge for reform and change for the better? These are questions we will explore in this course through humanists’ great works and ideas.
We begin with the Classics and the Bible: the core sources of humanism and humanistic education—the liberal arts education which humanists believed would prepare individuals for fulfillment as individuals, as citizens and political leaders, and as social beings engaged with fellow humans. The formation and transformation of humanist traditions we study were based on texts, on the example of individual humanists, and on ideas and values that appear again and again in humanist writings. Humanist traditions and the words and personal examples of outstanding humanists from Sophocles and Cicero to St. Augustine, from Dante to Machiavelli and Erasmus provided versatile guidance for coping with change in the present and future. They created a comforting sense of kinship with the past and its influential figures whose words and experiences were adapted to guide later generations and help transform their societies.
Hist 219M: Special Topics: Asian American History
MW 9-9:50 & Discussion Mar
Cross-listed as AAST 201. This course introduces the history of Asian Americans in the United States and the Americas and the field of Asian American Studies from an interdisciplinary perspective. Topics include theories of race and ethnicity; Asian migration and diaspora to the Americas; Asian American work and labor issues; gender, family, and communities; nationalism and nativism, and anti-Asian movements; Asian Americans, World War II, the Cold War, and the issues in the civil rights & post-civil rights era. We will focus on the personal voices of Asian Americans as means of understanding how individuals made choices and interpreted their situations. Through personal stories, we will explore the meanings of Asian American experiences, mapping their influence within main currents in American and global history.
Because we will spend much time examining Asian Americans' stories, we will often have discussion in class. The course has a lecture and discussion section format so come prepared to read, think, write and debate. No history background is required for this course.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 219W: Special Topics: Middle East and North Africa in the 20th Century
MW 9-9:50 & Discussion Wien
The course offers an introduction to the social and political dynamics of change in the Middle East and North Africa in the 20th century. The main focus will be on the Arab lands. Next to political and socio-economic trends, we will look at the transformation of elite structures and of national and religious identities.
Hist 225: Modern Military History, 1815-Present
TuTh 9-9:50 & Discussion Sumida
The military history of Europe through an examination of the economic, financial, strategic, tactical, and technological aspects of the development of military institutions and warfare from the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to the present.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course.
Hist 236: History of Britain, 1688-Present
MW 1-2:15 Taddeo
British history from the Glorious Revolution of 1688 to the present, with an emphaisis on cultural and social history. The revolution of 1688; the structure of 18th-century society and politics; economic and social change in the industrial revolution; 19th and 20th-century political and social reform; imperialism; the impact of the First and Second World Wars on British society; life in the welfare state.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course.
Hist 240: Europe in the 20th Century
TuTh 11-11:50 & Discussion Lampe
This course examines Europe's twentieth century with particular attention to the connection between domestic and international politics and ideas, economic developments, cultural and social currents. Topics include the collapse and then revival of liberal democracies and market economies; the causes, nature and consequences of the two World Wars and the Cold War; radicalization of European politics and the rise of totalitarian ideologies, movements and regimes; the Russian Revolution and the Soviet Union in the eras Lenin and Stalin; responses to economic and cultural modernization; the Great Depression and its consequences; Nazi Germany, World War II and the Holocaust; justice, memory and myth in Western and Eastern Europe after World War II; the Soviet bloc and the Western Alliance during the Cold War; Western economic recovery and political consensus; movements of reform and dissent East and West; 1989, the collapse of Communism and German unification; the Balkan Wars of the 1990s; economic and political challenges and prospects for the European Union; Europe's differing lessons of the twentieth century in the age of terrorism.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course.
Hist 251: Latin American History II
MW 10-10:50 & Discussion Sartorius
HIST 251 is an introductory survey of the history of Latin America from the era of independence (c. 1800-1825) through the early 1980s. The course explores the historical evolution of the political economy and the political culture of Spanish and Portuguese America, paying close attention to selected historical figures, trends, concepts, and events that help shape our understanding of modern Latin America. Recurrent themes to be discussed include colonialism and independence, nation- and state-building, liberalism, citizenship, economic development and modernization, social organization and stratification, race and ethnicity, gender relations, identity politics, reform and revolution, authoritarianism and democratization, and inter-American relations.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 275: Law and Constitutionalism in American History
TuTh 12:30-1:45 Henretta
This course explores both the "history" and the "law" of the United States in the 20th century. It probes the reciprocal relationships between legal matters and political, economic, and social institutions. It also addresses the issue of how history is written and interpreted, and requires students to attempt various types of historical analysis. From a substantive point of view, the course focuses on three broad topics: Race, federalism and civil rights (weeks 1-3), Gender: women and the law (weeks 11-13), Legal Doctrine: private and public law in the courts of New York State (weeks 4-10, 14-15)
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course.
Hist 283: History of the Jewish People II
MW 2-2:50 & Discussion Rozenblit
Cross-listed as JWST 235. Jewish history from the late Middle Ages to the present. Focus on the nature of the traditional Jewish community and its relationship to the state and society in Europe and on the forces which led to the emancipation, assimilation, and integration of the Jews into European society in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. Attention to social, cultural, and religious changes in modernity, and to the creation of new movements like Zionism.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 283: History of the Jewish People II - HONORS
MW 2-2:50 & W 3-3:50 Rozenblit
Cross-listed as JWST 235.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 285: East Asian Civilization II
TuTh 1-1:50 & Discussion Gao
A survey of the historical development of modern Asia since 1800. Primarily focuses on East Asian responses to sustained internal crises, the equally sustained quests for resolution, and the divergent paths along which their quests carried them. A secondary focus is the nineteenth-century convergence of Asian crises and Western "intrusion" and how the convergence complicated Asians' search for solutions.
CORE Social or Political History (SH) Course. USP Distributive Studies Area A: Cultural and Historical Course.
Hist 299: Directed Research
By arrangement.
By permission of department. Repeatable to 6 credits.
Hist 306: History of Religion in America
TuTh 12:30-1:45 Bradbury
Prerequisite: Hist 156, 157, 210, 211, 213, 216, 254, or 255; or permission of instructor.
A history of religion, religious movements, and churches in America from the early colonial period to the present, with special attention to the relation of church and society.
Hist 307: The Holocaust of European Jewry
MW 11-11:50 & Discussion Rozenblit
Cross-listed as JWST 345. Roots of Nazi Jewish policy in the 1930s and during World War II: the process of destruction and the implementation of the "final solution of the Jewish problem" in Europe, and the responses made by the Jews to their concentration and annihilation.
Hist 319C: Special Topics: Race and Sexuality in the American South, 1820-1920
TuTh 11-12:15 E. Landau
Hist 321: Biblical History and Culture
TuTh 11-12:15 Cohen
Cross-listed as JWST 324. Study of the political, social and religious development of the Jewish nation from its inception to its return from exile in Babylonia around 536 BCE. Focus on biblical texts, archaeological finds, and source materials from neighboring cultures to reconstruct political history and the development of religious concepts.
Hist 327: The Roman Empire
MW 1-2:15 Holum
The Roman state and empire from Augustus to Constantine, 44 B.C.-A.D. 337. This course concentrates on the imperial court and government; the diversity of culture in provinces and cities; the progress of Romanization; and the Roman army and defense of the frontiers.
Hist 331: Europe in the High Middle Ages, 1000-1250
TuTh 9:30-10:45 Wasilewski
Between the years 1000 and 1500, Europe transformed itself from a crowd of struggling and mutually hostile lordships into a group of coherent nations on the brink of world empire. We will identify the reasons for these changes, with particular attention to Europe’s evolving perceptions of itself. How did ideas such as monarchy, family, faith, and wealth develop in the consciousness of medieval Europeans? How were the geographical and cultural borders of Europe defined, and with what consequences?
Hist 333: Europe During the Renaissance and Reformation II
MW 12-1:15 Soergel
The era of Renaissance and Reformation covers centuries of extraordinary barbarism and fruitfulness of thought. The discovery of the world and of the self coincided with the terrors of the Inquisition and the brutality of the occupation of the Western Hemisphere. The Reformation defended the principle of liberating the ordinary person from the tyranny of authority even as it imposed new, and equally tyrannical, forms of control.
Hist 340: Nationalism and Communism in Eastern Europe
MW 2-3:15 K. David-Fox
This course is an advanced survey of East European history from World War I
to the post-communist era. It will emphasize the competing ideologies that
shaped the region's history in the twentieth century, as well as the
responses to those ideologies. It will explore the effects of the two World
Wars; the challenges posed by nationality conflict in the interwar period;
the rise of right-wing and communist movements; the political culture of the
communist regimes and the growth of civil societies and dissident movements;
gender and Communism; the demise of the communist regimes in 1989; and the
resurgence of nationalism in the Yugoslav War. The course will focus on
Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria, their
constituent nationalities, and their successor states. Students will read
primary as well as secondary texts, and will become acquainted with aspects
of East European culture through literature and film.
Hist 344: Revolutionary Russia
TuTh 11-12:15 M. David-Fox
This course provides an in-depth exploration of the roots, dynamics and consequences of the Russian Revolution. It examines the period from the late 19th century to the consolidation of a new Soviet order in the early 1920s. The course begins with a consideration of the nature of modern revolutions -- from the most recent definitions of comparative historical sociology to the insights of the Russian symbolist poet Blok. The course continues by examining Russia in the age of industrialization and modernization, war and civil war, revolutions and mass movements. Emphasis is placed on such topics as the history of socialism and the labor movement; the consequences of total warfare after 1914; non-Russian national movements and regions in the collapse of the multinational tsarist empire; and the mentalities of revolutionary actors. Finally, the course will critically examine traditional explanations of 1917, and ends with reflections on Leninism and Stalinism from the long-term perspectives of the entire revolutionary period.
Hist 355: Civil War and the Rise of Industrialization, 1860-1900
MW 2-3:15 McNeilly
Prerequisite: Hist 156, 157, 210, 213, 222, 254, 255, or 275; or permission of instructor.
HIST 355 is a detailed examination of American history from 1860 to 1900. It covers the Civil War and Reconstruction, the emergence of the “New South,” the final conquest of the native Americans and the “true” story of the Wild West of American lore and myth, the industrialization of the American economy and its spectacular transformation of American society, the politics of the “Gilded Age,” and America’s emergence as an imperial power. Readings are extensive in both primary and secondary sources. An in-depth research paper is required.
Hist 357: Recent America, 1945-Present
MW 2-3:15 Smead
Prerequisite: Hist 157, 211, 213, 222, 255, 265, or 275; or permission of instructor
This course examines the major trends and events that have shaped America since World War II. Focus is on the consequences of the Cold War on domestic America and the causes and implications of the cultural and political upheavals that characterized and followed the Sixties Era. Specific attention will be paid to Civil Rights, certain presidencies, liberalism, conservatism, and the Vietnam War.
Hist 373: Jews in Early Modern Times, 1450-1750
MWF 10-10:50 Cooperman
Cross-listed as JWST 333. The 15th century saw the flowering of the European Renaissance and the gradual expulsion of the Jews from almost every country in the West. We will follow the rebuilding of Jewish communal and cultural life in northern Italy, in Poland and in the Ottoman Empire. The strain of these dislocations leads to social and religious upheavals: new forms of community, new forms of mystical thought, and radical messianic movements characterize the period. By the mid-18th century, the old forms of Jewish life are no longer capable of containing the pressures, and traditional Judaism is forced to confront calls for westernization on the one hand and the pietistic revivalism of Hasidism on the other.
Recommended: Hist 282/Jwst 234
Hist 376: History of Zionism and the State of Israel
MW 2-3:15 Spiegel
This survey course will investigate the history of Zionism and the State of Israel, exploring social, political, cultural, and intellectual developments. Topics will include the analysis of Zionist ideologies and the development of the Zionist movement; political, cultural and social developments before and after 1948; the Arab-Israeli conflict; the social framework of Israeli society.
Cross-listed as JWST 342.
Hist 386: Experiential Learning
By arrangement.
Offers advanced undergraduates opportunities to pursue their historical interests in real-world educational activities. Prerequisite: learning proposal approved by the history department internship coordinator, faculty mentor, and student's site supervisor. Must have at least 60 semester hours. Non-repeatable, but may take up to 6 credits in one semester.
Prerequisite: permission of department, junior standing.
Hist 396: Honors Colloquium II
W 3:30-6 Soergel
Prerequisite: Hist 395 or permission of department. HIST majors only.
Hist 398: Honors Thesis
M 1-3 Eckstein
Prerequisite: Permission of department.
Hist 404: History of Modern Biology
Time TBA; Note: Shady Grove campus Parascandola
This course deals with the development of biology in the 19th and 20th centuries. The course focuses on three themes: evolution; genetics; and molecular biology and biomedical science. Social and cultural issues related to these scientific fields (e.g., creationism versus evolution, eugenics, genetic engineering) will also be discussed. Readings include both primary and secondary historical sources, including Peter Bowler's "Evolution: The History of an Idea," excerpts from Darwin's "Voyage of the Beagle" and "Origin of Species," and James Watson's "The Double Helix." This course is appropriate for history majors with an interest in the history of science, biology and related science majors, science journalists, and biology teachers. The 400 level is especially appropriate to satisfy the CORE Advanced Studies requirement for science majors.
Hist 405: Environmental History
TuTh 11-12:15 Friedel
This course introduces one of the most exciting and active fields in history, exploring the interactions between humans and their natural environment. Beginning with a look at the biological and geophysical conditions of human existence and development, the course will quickly survey some of the writings on the environmental impact of early cultures, both Western and non-Western. The focus will then shift to the Western experience, with most of the emphasis in the latter part of the course on the United States. Issues will include the interaction between technology and the environmental effects of agriculture, industry, and urbanization; the development of environmental ethics; and the shifting elements of the public debate over environmental rights and responsibilities.
Hist 408K: Senior Seminar: Early American History
Tu 2-4 Bradbury
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
The course examines the literature of Early American History, 1600-1800, through class discussion and independent reading. On the basis of that examination, students will be expected to prepare a 15-20 page research paper on some aspect of Early American History. Much of the research for the paper will be done in primary sources. Attendance in class is an important part of the work of the course.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408L: Senior Seminar: Medieval Heresies
Tu 1-3 Wasilewski
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
As the Christian Church became increasingly powerful in the later medieval West, its enemies seemed to become stronger too. The twelfth and thirteenth centuries saw an epidemic of heresies, to which both ecclesiastic and secular rulers responded with fear and violence. In this seminar, we will address the questions of why so many heretics emerged at this moment in history, how the Church attempted to deal with them through preaching and inquisition, and what effect their persecution had on Europe both then and later. We will also pay special attention to groups that stood on the fine line between heresy and orthodox religion, such as the Franciscan and Dominican religious orders, and Jewish converts in later medieval Spain.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408N: Senior Seminar: War and Society in Eastern Europe
W 10-12 K. David-Fox
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This course will be a seminar for advanced history majors focusing on war and its effects on East European societies in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Students will consider primarily how historians have treated and debated the major questions surrounding East European civilian populations during and in the aftermath of wars. The class will also consider examples of memoirs and historical films. Major topics will include propaganda, gender and class relations on the home front and in occupied territories; ideological change during wartime; and partisan activity, ethnic violence and ethnic cleansing during and after wars. Examples will be drawn from the Habsburg Monarchy and its successor states, the Balkans, and Germany. Students will be required to write two short papers on assigned topics and one longer paper analyzing the historiography on a topic of their own choosing. HIST408N is a reading seminar
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408O: Senior Seminar: East Africa
M 10-12 P. Landau
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408P: Senior Seminar: Writing the History of American Film
Th 1-3 Giovacchini
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This senior seminar will offer students the opportunity to write a research paper on a particular aspect of the history of American film. We shall begin our seminar with 4/6 weeks of introductory readings focusing on historiographical and methodological issues. We shall then get to the nuts and bolts of writing a publishable research essay as well as to the techniques of clearly and effectively presenting one's work in public.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408R: Senior Seminar: Agricultural History: Human Communities and Other Species
Tu 10-12 Mendelsohn
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
This seminar studies U.S. agriculture, emphasizing food crops from 1870 to present. Americans have used state power, culture, science and technology to transform nature into agriculture, and the economics of agriculture has worked within the broader ecology that sustains agricultural productivity. Americans also have organized themselves and their neighbors to labor in agriculture and in rural places. Government policy tells part of the story, but the central thread is agricultural work and practice, as informed increasingly by science. Students are encouraged to use extremely varied and rich collections about Maryland agriculture that are available locally; they may focus on the people involved in agriculture or on systems of agricultural production. Hist 408R is a research seminar.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408T: Senior Seminar: Arab Nationalism
W 1-3 Wien
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
Arab nationalism has been a dominant political ideology in the Arab world since the early 20th century. While the performance of Arab regimes has largely disqualifies Arab nationalism as political practice, it is still a powerful source of imagery in Arab public discourse and forms the basis of individual identities for many people in the region. This course will examine the origins of Arab nationalism, its evolution as an ideology, and its application as a political agenda in the Arab lands from Morocco to Iraq. A strong focus will be on Arab nationalism as a cultural phenomenon and its visible expressions and on its relationship with religious identity and political Islam in particular. Students will have to submit a long final research paper based on
individual readings of primary sources in English translation, secondary sources, and works on the theory of nationalism and post-colonial theory. Hist 408T is a readings seminar.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408V: Senior Seminar: Asian American History
W 2-4 Mar
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
The majority of Americans trace their ancestry to other countries. Whether one's roots are European, African, Latino, Asian or Native American, the migration and meeting of diverse peoples is a central American experience. In this course, we introduce historical research methods by exploring meanings of some key social controversies related to the history of American diversity. Fundamentally,we ask, who is "ethnic" and what does it mean to be an "ethnic" American? Using personal accounts of ethnic Americans, we will explore how historical ideas about race, ethnicity and immigration contribute to debates over defining meanings of American identity. Each student also will conduct an original historical research project. Hist 408V is a research seminar.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 408X: Senior Seminar: Inequality in the 20th Century United States
M 10-12 Freund
Prerequisite: Permission of department. HIST majors only.
The United States in the 20th century has been resource-rich, technologically advanced, and quite affluent. Why, then, have so many Americans remained poor? What are the origins of the extreme gap between rich and poor—a gap that has fluctuated throughout the century and that is currently growing—and what forces have increased or narrowed it? In what ways has federal policy alternatively exacerbated the wealth gap and ameliorated poverty? How have the nation’s economic, political, and social science elites viewed the origins of economic growth and inequality, and how have their views shaped government action? How have impoverished Americans responded to their poverty, and how have their understandings and strategies often conflicted with mainstream, “elite” views of poverty’s origins?
After a brief introduction to the “long” history of American capitalist growth, we will focus on the enduring debate over wealth and poverty that was triggered by the Great Depression. Our readings and discussions will focus on three key periods of political, intellectual, and policy intervention: the New Deal era, the modern Civil Rights movement and Great Society reform, and the Reagan Revolution. We will examine state policy, popular discourses about growth and poverty, and the work of activists ranging from “laissez faire” think tanks to the National Welfare Rights Organization. Our goal is to explore how public policy, economic and poverty experts, and activists have alternatively challenged, sustained, and in the process transformed the politics of rich and poor in the modern United States. This is a readings seminar.
CORE Capstone (CS) Course.
Hist 419M: Special Topics: Postwar Japan through Film and Fiction
Tu 2-4, Th 2-3:15 Mayo
Cross-listed as ARHU 308A & JAPN 418B.
Hist 419O: Special Topics: Afro-Diasporic Dialogues in the Americas
MW 1-2:15 Sartorius
The African diaspora is a concept that attempts to comprehend the shared experiences of African-descended peoples throughout the world, particularly in the Americas. While many of those peoples identify with a particular nationality—being Brazilian, Cuban, or from the United
States above or alongside being black, of color, or of African descent—many of them have forged connections with each other across national boundaries. This class will use novels, memoirs, and recent historical scholarship to explore the history of the connections that
Afro-Latin Americans and Afro-North Americans have created in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Ultimately, the course will help us understand the historical possibilities and limitations of conceiving of African Americans as a hemispheric, transnational social group.
Hist 419P: Special Topics: Gender, War, and Society
TuTh 11-12:15 Michel
“War is men’s business,” some have claimed. But with the blurring of battlefront and homefront, modern wars tell a different story: both women and men can become involved in wars as fighters as well as victims. Starting from the perspective of gender, this course will examine America’s wars of the 20th century. We will look at a variety of primary sources, including novels, memoirs, and films in addition to historical studies, and consider questions such as: How are “heroes” constructed? What is the effect of war on sexual and social values? Does the periodization of war look different from a gender perspective? What is the impact of war on women’s employment patterns and political opportunities? How does the presence of women in the military change the nature of warfare? Do wars permanently alter gender relations in belligerent countries?
Hist 419Q: Special Topics: Jews of Eastern Europe, 1580-1939
TuTh 2-3:15 STAFF
Cross-listed as JWST 419E.
Hist 419R: Special Topics: Construction of Jewish Knowledge
MW 2-3:15 Cooperman
This course asks what Jews mean when they say that they “know” something. Who in the Jewish world has the right to decide whether something is knowledge or simply an opinion? or wrong knowledge (heresy)? or simply nonsense? We will explore this question through careful examination of primary texts drawn from Jewish literature from the bible to modern literature. In the background, we will also be asking what we ourselves mean by "knowing," how we evaluate our own educational system in America today. Though there are no formal prerequisites for this course, this is an upper-level course and students are expected to be familiar with the basic texts and concepts of Judaism and Jewish history.
Hist 419T: Special Topics: History of Jewish Women’s Spirituality
TuTh 9:30-10:45 Adler
Cross-listed as JWST 419A and WMST 498T. The starting point for this course is a question: did so-called "normative Judaism" of any period necessarily include the experiences of Jewish women? As students of Jewish history we learn the broad outlines of the history of the religion as well as of the people. The course of Judaism is fascinating and worthy of further research in itself. However, what may be an alternate field of research is the history of women's Judaism. If it is true that women had different religious experiences, what were these and how and why did they change over time? This course is exploratory. It will not answer all of these questions
but it will offer the students a window into women's Judaism in different eras and areas. Students will be provided with primary documentation and skills and methodologies to understand it. The main goal of the class is to understand what women were doing in different
time periods. If this leads us to a more complete picture of Judaism as a whole, we will have been truly successful.
Hist 419Y: Special Topics: History of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Africa
TuTh 2-3:15 Jones
What did slavery mean in African societies? How did a trade in slaves develop and what impact did participation in the slave trade have on African states, societies and economies? This course investigates the history of slavery and the slave trade in Africa. You will learn about the meaning of slavery in Africa, local uses of slavery in Africa and Africa’s connection to the Trans-Saharan, Red Sea and Trans-Atlantic slave trades. This class involves an equal amount of lecture and discussion. Evaluation will be based on exams, essays, quizzes and discussion assignments. Readings include monographs by historians of slavery and the slave trade in Africa, primary source documents and analytical essays.
Hist 419Z: Special Topics: United States-East Asian Relations from Pearl Harbor to Vietnam
MW 1-2:15 Zhang
A special topic lecture/research class for history seniors. Aiming to probe into the insights of how Washington perceived threats, defined security interests, formulated strategies, and evaluated actual policies toward East Asia (China, Japan and Korea) during the Cold War period. Consisting of lectures and archival research.
Hist 428A: Chinese cities and Frontiers
TuTh 3:30-4:45 Gao
This course will survey Chinese urban development from 1800 to the present. Emphasis will be
placed on urbanization as the process of city-building and frontier exploration over time and
the impacts on Chinese political, economic, and cultural life. A special section of the course
will devoted to study of Chinese borderland and frontier cities. Studying urban spaces and changes,
the course will discuss issues of modernity, identity, ethnicity, community formation, and gendered
experiences.
Hist 428B:Gender, Sexuality, and History in Nineteenth Century Britain
W 3:30-6:00 Taddeo
This course will study the 19th Century in Britain, with particular emphasis on the intersections of class, gender, sexuality, and race. Readings include “classic” and revisionist texts in social and cultural history that address such topics as working class sexuality, middle-class family life and morality, imperial culture, constructions of masculinity and femininity, sexology and the medicalization of homosexuality, the state regulation of prostitution, and the anxieties about gender and sexuality at the fin de siecle. Note: This is not intended as a research seminar; the readings and assignments focus on the historiography of this period. Each student is responsible for leading one or two weekly discussions. Assignments include several short essays and one l5-20 page paper.
Hist 431: Stuart England
MW 9-10:15 Baron
This class examines the history of England from the accession of King James I (1603) to the death of Queen Anne, the last of the Stuart monarchs in 1714. This period witnessed a series of political upheavals, ideological developments, social changes, and economic transformations that are crucial to understanding how the modern world came into being. Many ideas and values that now reign supreme in the Anglo-American world – including representative democracy, popular political sovereignty and religious toleration – first emerged in the crucible of seventeenth century English society. In addition, by the end of the period, England was well along the path towards a modern market economy, paving the way both for the “industrial revolution” and for later English colonial/military domination. All of these changes and processes will be examined in detail over the course of this semester.
Hist 453: Diplomatic History of the United States from 1914
MW 10-11:15 Zhang
American foreign relations in the twentieth century. World War I, the Great Depression, World War II, the beginning of the Cold War, the Korean War, Vietnam, and the end of the Cold War. A lecture class for history seniors.
Hist 457: History of American Culture and Ideas since 1865
TuTh 9:30-10:45 Giovacchini
Prerequisite: Hist 157, 211, 213, 222, 255, 265, or 275; or permission of instructor.
From the end of the Civil War to the present, the United States experienced major economic depressions, was engaged in conflicts of global proportions, experimented with atomic diplomacy, and radically re-structured her political, cultural, and social foundations. More importantly the USA became a nation, possibly the first one (we’ll test a few hypotheses about this) that lived inside and outside of her boundaries.
During this period, new media were developed and, for example, the American film industry became the world leader in film production. Hollywood films and other cultural artifacts were seen by millions inside and outside of the United States influencing their lives and prompting their comments. The United States, in fact, became a nation which existed and affected reality both within and without her national boundaries. American stars became household names in most American and non American families and American military and business might was experience d everyday in most of the world. At the same time American future was at the centre of intense debates that engaged politicians, intellectuals, and ordinary people inside and outside of the United States.
This course will try and charter the course of the cultural history of the United States as a history shaped by domestic and international events and commented upon by Americans as well as by not – or not yet -- Americans. In the course of the semester we shall look at several artifacts diaries, films, radio broadcasts, and other forms of intellectual interventions which we shall consider as engaged in a tight -- though not necessarily direct or reflective -- relationship with their historical context.
Hist 461: Blacks in American Life, 1865-present
TuTh 9:30-10:45 Moss
Prerequisite: Hist 157, 210, 211, 222, 254, 255, 265, or 275; or permission of instructor.
The role of blacks in America since slavery, with emphasis on developments in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries: the migration from farm to city, the growth of the civil rights movement, the race question as a national problem.
CORE Diversity (D) Course.
Hist 462: The United States Civil War
TuTh 2-3:15 Rowland
Prerequisite: Hist 156, 210, 213, 222, 254, or 275; or permission of instructor.
This course examines the most serious crisis in the history of the United States. It opens with an overview of American society in the mid-nineteenth century, followed by discussion of sectional conflict and the coming of war. The remaining two-thirds of the course focuses on the war itself. Topics include secession and the formation of the Confederacy; the resources and strategies of the warring societies; mobilization for war; political, social, and economic developments on the homefronts; how a war to preserve the Union became a war against slavery; and the role of slaves and ex-slaves. Although military developments receive considerable attention, little time is devoted to the tactics of particular battles. Writing assignments include three formal papers (5-6 pages each), two of which are based on primary sources. Informal, in‑class writing about the assigned readings constitutes a significant proportion of the course grade; students must complete the assigned readings on schedule in order to do well in the course. Midterm and final examinations are essay in form.
Hist 475: History of Mexico and Central America II
TuTh 11-12:15 Vaughan
Prerequisite: Hist 251, LASC 234 or 235; or permission of instructor.
History of modern Mexico from independence in 1821 to the present. The course focuses on the dilemmas and achievements of nation and state formation in a stratified, dispersed multi-ethnic society vulnerable to foreign pressures and domination. A centerpiece of the course is the Mexican Revolution of 1910, out of which emerged a vibrant and strong national identity as well as the twentieth century's longest ruling authoritarian party, the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI). Special attention is given to questions of ethnicity, race, and gender, as well as class.
Hist 483: History of Japan since 1800
TuTh 11-12:15 Mayo
A survey of Japan's emergence as a modern nation-state and industrial society. Lectures, discussions, and readings will emphasize modern Japan's intellectual, social, religious, and cultural life and its changing role in East Asian and international power politics. The course will end with an inquiry into Japan's post-World War II recovery, its development as global economic giant, and its transition from modernism to postmodernism.
Hist 499: Independent Study
By arrangement.
By permission of department. Repeatable to 6 credits.