Introduction

Courses for Spring 2009
    100 level
    200 level
    300 level
    First Year Seminars

Courses for Fall 2009

History courses taught at Wake Forest
  

History Courses for Spring 2009

100 Level Courses

History 102A & 102B. Europe & World in Modern Era (3h). MWF 11-11:50 & 12-12:50. B117. Fitzgibbon. What does it take to be an effective leader in the modern world? In this course, we will explore challenges to traditional forms of political and religious leadership from the time of Luther through the popular dismantling of the Berlin Wall. We will also analyze how the emergence of modern civil society has created new opportunities for leadership in science, business, philanthropy, religion, community organizing, and public health.

History 102C & 102D. Europe & World in Modern Era (3h). TR 9:30-10:45 & 12-1:15. B117. Hughes. Europe was backward and poor, compared to China, India, and the Middle East, as late as the 17th and even 18th centuries.  But in the late 19th century it dominated and strongly influenced the world.  Brutal wars, 1914-1918 and 1939-1945, dramatically eroded its influence, as did economic development elsewhere in the world.  Yet it still remains rich and powerful.  Moreover, the Untied States derived its major institutions and values from its European origins.  This course will examine the ways in which Europe, in no small part through its interactions with the rest of the world, developed and exported, and other parts of the world in turn appropriated and adapted, the key ideologies and institutions that characterize the world in which we live.  We will talk about intellectual movements, economic development and competition, and political institutions and cultures; about bureaucracies, markets, corporations, trade unions, political parties, and social movements.  We’ll start in the 17th century and end with the collapse of communism and beginnings of our current, post-Cold War, world.

History 103B & 103C. World Civilizations to 1500 (3h) MWF 11-11:50 & 12-12:50. A208. Zhang. This course is a modest attempt at an immense task: we will be tracing the trajectory of human history from the very beginning (the “Big Bang” if you will) to 1500 CE by focusing on only a few segments of it geographically and temporally. We will examine such topics as the formation and comparative features of early “complex societies” in ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, South and East Asia; the development of classical civilizations in Greece and China; the emergence and spread of world religions (especially Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam), the evolution of technology, economic life, and social institutions as well as thought and the arts throughout the medieval world, and the quickened traffic of peoples, goods, and ideas across cultural and geographical borders at the dawn of the early modern Era. The goals of this course are (1) to better acquaint ourselves with the basic themes, theoretical approaches and interpretive strategies in the field of world history; (2) to sharpen our skills in analyzing a wide variety of primary sources and in developing and/or critiquing a historical argument; (3) to expand our capacity to sympathetically understand and relate to the human individuals and communities who are far removed from us both in space and time, the issues they encountered and the responses they made, and to better appreciate the contributions all of them made to the world we now live in.

History 103D & 103E. World Civilizations to 1500 (3h) TR 8-9:15 & 9:30-10:45. A208. Raley. This course will provide a comparative, thematic study spanning from the Paleolithic origins of humanity and the birth of world civilizations in various locations around the globe following the agricultural revolution of the Neolithic Age to the beginning of the early modern era (ca. 1500 C.E.). In the course of our historical and cultural investigations, we shall focus our attention not only upon surviving primary sources, but shall also consider the debates of modern historians over the interpretation and meaning of the surviving evidence. Examining global societies through such “lenses” as mythology, religion, philosophy, ethics, law codes, systems of governance, modes of warfare, treatment of conquered peoples, business practices, architecture, language and writing, growth of new technologies, and, of course, the everyday lives of those who were part of these societies will help us come to terms with cultures that are so far removed from our own today, both geographically and temporally. A related emphasis in this course will be the place of women in global history—in particular, women’s experiences in what typically have been patriarchal societies. Above all, “World Civilizations to 1500” offers students an opportunity to understand better the origins, cultural heritages, historical responses, and degree of interaction and cross-cultural fertilization among the world’s principal civilizations, and thereby simultaneously to develop a greater awareness and appreciation for cultural diversity in our world today.

History 105A. Africa in World History (3h). MWF 11-11:50. A103. Plageman. While popular imagination suggests that the African continent has been isolated from history and historical events, this course examines Africa and Africans as central to the development of the wider world.  Throughout the duration of the semester, we will analyze how Africans have influenced and were influenced by global events, particularly in the regions of the Mediterranean Sea, Indian Ocean, and expanding Atlantic World.  Major themes include the emergence and interrelations of early civilizations, the spread of Christianity and Islam, expanding networks of economic exchange, and migration.  The course will place major emphasis on slavery, the Trans-Atlantic, Trans-Saharan and Indian Ocean slave trades, and the creation of the African Diaspora.  After establishing Africa’s centrality to the emergence of the modern world, the class will examine how Africans and peoples of African descent experienced and shaped colonial rule, the transition to national independence, and possibilities for the post-colonial period.

History 105B & 105C. Africa in World History (3h). TR 1:30-2:45 & 3-4:15. A102. Parent. This course examines the continent of Africa from prehistory to the present in global perspective, as experienced and understood by Africans themselves.  Africa’s vast diversity in ecology, language, tradition, economy, and civilization has all developed in relationship to other regions and peoples of the world.  African origins of humankind and civilizations are opening areas of discussion.  Africans influenced and were influenced by the trends of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. An analysis of internal developments of traditional religions and the world religions of Islam and Christianity will be analyzed.  External pressures will also be analyzed, especially the slave trades and colonial domination.  These pressures have impacted societal formations, patterns of trade, migration, and demography. Resistance to colonial occupation, national independence, and post-colonialism are major themes.  Attention will also be given to changing conceptions of gender and sexuality during Africa’s transition from peasant to modern urban societies.

History 108A & 108B. The Americas and the World (3h). MWF 10-10:50 & 11-11:50. A102. McGraw. This course offers an introduction to the global patterns that have shaped the Americas since the late fifteenth century.  Likewise, the ways that modern nation-states in this region have transformed the world economy and the circulation of ideas, peoples, and ideologies will be explored.  We will discuss the enduring impact of contact between Native American, European, and African peoples in crafting new identities, cultures, and polities.  Although our lens will encompass much of the hemisphere, the analytical weight the course attaches to slavery, abolition, and nationalism will require special attention to the places where economic and political development were most firmly rooted in human bondage: Brazil, Cuba, and the United States.  Novels, autobiographies, essays, and scholarly monographs will assess similarities and differences in the evolution of work, sex and marriage, social status, migration, education, political rights, urban mores, and belief systems.

History 108C & 108E. The Americas and the World (3h). MWF 10-10:50 & 12-12:50. A103 & A102. Hayes. This course explores major developments in the history of North, Central, and South America, with consistent attention to the changing global context. Through memoirs, biographies, and autobiographies, we will seek to put a human face on such familiar abstractions as colonialism, slavery, republics, industrialization, and globalization. Class sessions will mix lecture, discussion, film, debate, and source interpretation to uncover the human aspirations, ideals, and struggles of the past five centuries.

History 108D. The Americas and the World (3h). MWF 1-1:50. A102. Wakild. This course serves to introduce students to the sweeping history of the Americas and various attributes of the historical method.   Starting with an interrogation of what the cultures of the Americas were like before 1492, we will then proceed through the dynamics of colonialism, slavery, piracy, revolutionary movements, and nationhood.  We will consider the ways themes in world history influenced the development of colonies and independent nations in the Americas.  We will spend most of the course investigating trends and themes that span the hemisphere with particular attention to South and Central America. 

History 109A. Asia and the World (3h). TR 12-1:15. A103. Hellyer. This course explores how East Asia, chiefly China, Japan and Korea, have interacted with the outside world from 1500 to the present.  Over the course of the semester, we will consider East Asian views of Europe and the US, the nature of early modern commercial and diplomatic relations, the adoption of new technologies and Christianity in East Asia, East Asian “modernization” in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, WWII in East Asia, communism and socialism, and rapid economic development in the region since WWII.

History 109B. Asia and the World (3h). TR 1:30--2:45. B117. Rahman. This class will take a thematic approach to the history of Asia and its connections with global history. Primary focus of this class will be South Asia and the world. However, we will also discuss Southeast as well as East Asia in order to obtain a rather comprehensive and comparative understanding of the continent. The aim of this course is to appreciate the diversity within Asia and understand the history of this continent as linked with world history. Although we will cover different time periods, our focus will be the last five centuries. What are the different societies and traditions within Asia? What have been their contributions to the world? What historical incidents have linked Asia to the rest of the world? Such questions will be considered to explore the political, economic, social, and cultural history of Asia and its interactions with the outside world. Specific topics will include different religious traditions, imperialism, global trade and commerce, the Indian Ocean, crosscultural interactions, modernization, nationalism, and decolonization movements.

Credit cannot be received for both 101 and 103 or 102 and 104.
All classes held in Tribble Hall unless otherwise noted.

 100 level  |  200 level  |  300 level  |  FYS

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200 Level Courses

History 207. The High Middle Ages Through the Renaissance (3h). MWF 12-12:50. A103. O'Connell. The period from 1150 to 1550 witnessed a dramatic transformation in the patterns and practices of European culture.  During these 400 years, Europe exploded from its boundaries, overturning religious and intellectual traditions and expanding geographically, economically, and politically.  The High Middle Ages saw the rise of towns, universities, and cathedrals; the Church faced reformations from within and without, and the personal bonds of feudal kingship gradually gave way to the bureaucracies of developing nation-states.  These transformations did not go unchallenged; struggles over religious unity and political hegemony combined with natural disasters such as plague and famine to further upset the traditional order.  The European Renaissance revived the learning of the classical world, using it to claim a place for human reason and creativity in society.  This class will examine how and why these transformations in European civilization took place

History 224. Great Britain: Eighteenth Century to Present (3h). TR 12-1:15. A208. Vella. This course will introduce students to the major themes and problems of British history in the modern period: the integration of the four nations, economic growth and industrialization, imperial expansion, responses to the American and French revolutions, urbanization, class cleavages, the rise of the middle classes, Parliamentary reform, the Irish question, trade unionism, the two world wars, the creation of the modern welfare state, decolonization, the European Union, immigration, Thatcherism, "New Labour" and the ongoing debates over British national identity. Class discussions will draw from a diversity of primary and secondary sources as well as a rich store of visual culture. Assessment will be based upon performance in class discussions, a midterm exam, a research paper, a book review and a final exam.

History 243. The Middle East since 1500 (3h). TR 12-1:15. A102. Wilkins. This course surveys Middle Eastern history from the emergence of the Ottoman and Safavid Empires in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to the development of nation-states in the late twentieth century.  The course places emphasis on the transformation of state and society under early modern Muslim powers, the regional impact of a changing world economy and European imperialism, the political and social effects of World Wars I and II, the protracted process of decolonization in the post-WWII era, and religious revivalism in the late 20th century.  

History 245. Modern China (3h). MWF 2-2:50. A208. Zhang. This course surveys Chinese history from 1600 to the present, focusing on the “long twentieth century.”  We will study the major political, economic, and cultural transformations occurring in China within the context of modernization, imperialism and (semi)colonialism, world wars and civil wars, revolution and reform, and the ongoing processes of globalization by examining a variety of sources, including personal accounts, literary and artistic works, and films, among other things.

History 261. Modern South Asia (3h). TR 9:30-10:45. A103. Rahman. This course will provide an overview of history, culture, and politics of modern South Asia beginning with the political ascendancy of the British in India in 1750s till date. The British started gaining political foothold since the mid-eighteenth century. It is a landmark in the history of the Indian subcontinent since a gradual defeat of the Mughal Empire gave way to the British starting a journey of conquest and expansion and the eventual formation of the British Empire. This course maps out a general history of various events and incidents of historical importance in chronological as well as thematic manner. We will discuss a range of issues covering colonialism religious identity, reform, modernity, the nationalist movement, and independence in 1947. We will also briefly touch upon the post-colonial South Asia.  
Topics in this course include: South Asian society and culture, British conquest and economic subordination, Indian responses to British intervention, socio-religious reform movements among Hindus and Muslims, role of women in the making of modern South Asia, the revolt of 1857, Indian independence struggle, Gandhi, Muslim League and the demand for Pakistan, partition of British India, role of Jawaharlal Nehru in the formation of independent India, post-independence Pakistan, and occasional and brief introductions to the South Asian states of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

History 269. African History Since 1830 (3h). MW 3--4:15. A305. Plageman. This course provides an overview of African History from the abolition of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade to the post-colonial era of independent African nations. Course themes will include the end of the slave trade and the imposition of the “legitimate” trade on African economies; European exploration and the “scramble” for Africa; the imposition and evolution of colonial rule; social transformations during colonial rule; urbanization and gendered change; nationalism and the struggle for independence; white minority rule and Southern Africa; post-independence economic and political challenges; and the Rwandan genocide. We will approach these themes through a wide variety of source materials—including primary sources, photographs, life histories, film, and popular culture—in order to privilege African perspectives, initiatives, and agency.

100 level  |  200 level  |  300 level  |  FYS

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300 Level Courses

History 308 & 608. The World of Alexander the Great (3h). TR 9:30-10:45. A102. Lerner. Surveys the rise of Macedonia first under Philip II, and then his son, Alexander III, whose conquests fused the destinies of the Greek World and those of Asia and Africa. Even after the kingdoms of his successors yielded to the conquests of the Romans and Parthians, the composite Hellenistic Civilization, or imitations of it, prevailed for several generations in the lands between the Ganges River and Cornwall, and between Gilbraltar and the Aral Sea. The course examines Alexander’s conquests, and then the main features of Hellenistic Civilization from about 350 until 50 B.C.E. Special attention will be given to aspects of Hellenistic literature, philosophy, science, religion, culture, and art.

History 311AA. Special Topics: Immigration and Ethnicity in US History (3h). MW 2-3:15. A102. McGraw. This course asks students to locate current U.S. policy debates as well as family stories of arrival and adaptation within the history of immigration and ethnicity since 1789.  We will situate changing patterns of migration within the maturation of the global economy, the expanding sphere of U.S. foreign relations, and the rise of domestic movements for restriction, reform, and recognition.  Students will observe that the territorial boundaries of the United States have moved with the same frequency as its peoples, and we will attempt to reconcile this fluidity with the assumption of fixity that has underwritten policies on immigration, naturalization, refugee assistance, and the employment of temporary workers.
In addition to scholarly monographs, this course uses novels to gain a more intimate understanding of personal and community experiences of relocation. Both fiction and film will be used to map the ways in which the idea of an immigrant past has been central to our national identity.  We will study the evolution of language – especially slang – as an indicator of how migration has influenced understandings of race versus ethnicity and who may lay claim to an authentic “American” identity.  Finally, we will examine the problems inherent in studying the movement of peoples in the past, given that most written records recount a single place; this problem merits particular attention as historians recognize that the repeated crossing of borders in different directions has been a central pattern in the history of migration.

History 311AB. Special Topics: Southern Music as Social History (3h). MW 2-3:15. A103. Hayes. This course uses the rich, diverse musical creations of the U.S. South to explore the social history of the region, with concentration on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Through close listening to songs and reading of texts that supply context and interpretation, we will examine regional phenomena like the power of evangelical Protestantism, the development of and challenges to white supremacy, rural poverty and its confinements, and the rise of the Sunbelt. In the process, we will self-consciously reflect on the nature of historical source materials and the different experiences revealed by non-official sources.

History 311AC. Special Topics: Race and the Courts (3h). TR 1:30-2:45. A208. Hopkins. This course will use the historical method to examine the impact of state and federal court cases upon the evolution of race relations in this country.  Topics for consideration will include  the impact of Dred Scott  and Plessy v. Ferguson  upon social relations in the United States;  Reconstruction, lynchings, and the emergence of the KKK; the analysis  of civil  rights during the Great  Depression and the New Deal; separate but equal applications in American life; voting rights issues; school desegregation before and after Brown with a particular emphasis on the Michigan college desegregation case and ending with the landmark case regarding racial balance in the public school system, Parents v. Seattle. Further, other subject areas will be devoted to race and the military, race and sports, and the rights of immigrants. The goal of the course is to demonstrate the historical evolution of race relations in the United States which are  predicated upon the judicial interpretation of the rights of its citizens.

History 311EA. Special Topics: Women in Medieval Society (3h). TR 12-1:15. A104. Raley. This course will focus upon the lives and daily activities of women from all venues of medieval society, ranging from peasant women and prostitutes to professed and unprofessed religious women, and even extending to elite women like Hildegard von Bingen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Blanche of Castile. We will discuss such issues as marriage, childbirth, life expectancies, family life, legal status, religious life (including not only Catholicism and religious heresy, but also “other” religious faiths such as Islam and Judaism), farming, urban industries, medical care, literacy, education, and a host of other issues as they relate to women in medieval society.

History 341 & 641. Africans in the Atlantic World, 1750-1815 (3h). W 3-5:30. B117. Parent.

History 350 & 650. World Economic History: Globalization, Wealth and Poverty, 1500-Present (Service Learning Component) (3h). TR 1:30-2:45. A103. Hellyer. This course explores the growth of globalization and its role in the creation of wealth and poverty in both developed and underdeveloped nations since 1500.  Specifically it uses food as a lens to consider how trade, industrialization, and agricultural and technological advances have shaped particularly the lives of common men and women in recent centuries.  In the concluding weeks, it explores how this history shapes our world today.

History 351 & 651. Global Environmental History (3h). MW 3-4:15. A208. Wakild. This class examines world history through sustained attention to the biological, chemical, geological and physical systems that both sustain and challenge human life.  This class is designed to foster critical thinking on issues of the use of the environment and the power to make decisions about the finite resources available on the earth.  We will ask how spiritual beliefs, scientific understandings, national boundaries, political agendas, economic conflicts, and cultural differences play into the ways we (as humans) create and use various aspects of the environment.  How have these uses changed over time, to what ends, and for what reasons?  How have mental maps guided societies over time and when and why have they changed?   The course is explicitly comparative and is intended provide you with enough information to make meaningful comparisons, useful generalizations, and specific understandings about the ways in which humans have shaped and been shaped by non-human nature.  This course meets an elective requirement for the Environmental Studies Minor.

History 356 & 656. Jacksonian America, 1815-1850 (3h). MWF 2-2:50. B117. Fitzgibbon. What does fierce political conflict actually signify? This question lies at the heart of historical research on Jacksonian America, a period, like ours, characterized by intense partisanship, inflated political rhetoric, and profound economic and social change. Andrew Jackson polarized American voters as few presidents have, yet in retrospect, many of the hot-button issues of his time seem trivial compared with the rival parties’ consensus that the nation had to respect the rights of property owners, even if that meant protecting slavery. Were voters simply reacting to Jackson's populist political style? Were rival politicians merely exploiting people's need to vent their frustration during times of great change and uncertainty? Or were citizens engaged in a meaningful conflict over who should govern America and what kind of nation the United States should become? To what extent did the parties mediate and resolve conflict? To what extent did they exacerbate a sense of political and economic disenfranchisement which the reforms of the 1820s and the 1830s were intended to resolve?
To answer these questions, we will examine not only the early history of the United States' two-party system, but also the structure of American society during the early 19th century and major focal points of conflict: slavery, abolitionism, elite-dominated courts and legislatures, banks, Andrew Jackson’s use of power, alcohol, dueling, the status of women, the political role of immigrants, Masonry, the Catholic Church, the Church of Latter Day Saints, and the West.

History 369 & 669. Modern Military History (3h). MWF 10-10:50. B117. Hughes. After the Vietnam War, where the US won all the battles but lost the war, the Department of Defense and others began asking how that could have happened.  This course is designed to help Americans answer that question by putting military experience in a broader political, economic, cultural, and social context.  We will talk about military technology, tactics, and strategy and about battles and wars, but we will always place them within the larger historical context.  We can’t understand how the narrowly military elements developed and how and why they were successfully—or unsuccessfully—deployed unless we recognize the complex range of factors that influence both military choices and ultimate outcomes.

History 390A & 690A. Research Seminar: Stalinism (3h). T 2-4:30. A104. Rupp. For over two decades, Russia has faced a number of profound challenges in attempting to restructure its polity, society, and economy.  Many of the features of the Soviet system that have been dismantled were created during the Stalinist era, particularly between the launching of the First Five Year Plan in 1928 and the Nazis' invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.  At the same time, in the last few decades an increasing number of historians have turned to the study of the Stalinist period, introducing new topics and interpretations which have engendered considerable controversy in the scholarly community.  This seminar is designed as an intensive if introductory examination of the issues central to the history of the Stalinist period – Stalin’s personality and its importance in shaping the Soviet regime, the collectivization of agriculture, rapid industrialization, fundamental social and cultural change, and the Great Terror.  The readings to be discussed in the first half of the semester provide a representative sample of the sources, methodologies and interpretations that have been employed in trying to understand the phenomenon of Stalinism, while the second half of the semester is given over to the research and writing of a twenty-five to thirty page seminar paper.

History 390B & 690B. Research Seminar: The Confederacy (3h). W 2-4:30. A104. Escott. Through primary research, students will explore revealing and often surprising aspects of the political, social, or military history of the Confederacy.

History 390C & 690C. Research Seminar: Venice between East and West (3h). W 2-4:30. B116. O'Connell. Between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, Venice ruled over a powerful and constantly changing empire that controlled large portions of the eastern Mediterranean.  Beginning in the fifteenth century, the Venetian Republic also maintained a sizable mainland state that pulled the city into the politics of the Italian Peninsula.  This course examines the way Venice negotiated its position at the imaginary boundary between East and West, creating a powerful merchant republic that brought together many different religious, social, and ethnic groups within the confines of the lagoon city.  In this seminar, we will explore some of the central questions of Venetian history, including: how did Venice maintain a sense of social order in such a diverse city?  What role did family and gender play in the Venetian city-state?  What was the role of politics, art, and culture?  What were the exchanges between center and periphery?  What was the relationship between orthodoxy and heresy? The seminar will conclude with a discussion of the political and economic decline of Venice and its reinvention as a tourist site and living museum for the modern era. 

History 390D & 690D. Research Seminar: War and Society in the Early Modern Period, 1400-1800 (3h). R 3-5:30. A104. Wilkins. This seminar examines the multifaceted relationship between warmaking and society in  the European and Muslim worlds in the Early Modern Period.  It explores the ways in which the process of warmaking – the mobilization of civilian populations, the manufacture of weapons and supplies, and the building of administrative mechanisms – transformed states and societies.  Even before the Industrial Revolution took place, the growth of national armies, expansion of state bureaucracies, and the rise of gunpowder technologies contributed to the shaping of states and societies, both European and Muslim, that we can call “modern.” 

History 391 & 691. Honors Seminar(3h). T 2-4:30. B116. Escott. Required for majors who are seeking departmental honors, this seminar examines the enterprise of writing history through analysis of the work of some fine historians.  Assigned readings will focus on important studies of slavery and racism in the US past, and frequent papers will supplement class discussions.

History 392 & 692. Individual Research (3h).

 100 level  |  200 level  |  300 level  |  FYS

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First Year Seminars

FYS 100. World War II (3h). MWF 9-9:50 & 11-11:50. A104. Rupp.

 100 level  |  200 level  |  300 level  |  FYS

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