COURSES
Fall 2014 Course Descriptions
200-400 Level
SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE! Always check the University online schedule for the latest changes.
HIS 204-01 - History of Africa from 1870
88154 MWF 9:00-9:50 Ian Michie
When, how, and why did European nations colonize the African continent? And, an equally important question, What is the legacy of European colonialism in Africa today? This course examines major themes in recent African history, and discusses theoretical debates in the history of Africa during the colonial period and since.
Topics to be covered include: the imposition of colonial rule and wars of resistance; styles of colonial rule; theories of underdevelopment and the effects of colonial policies; Pan-Africanism, nationalism, and independence movements; the creation of apartheid; decolonization; and issues facing independent Africa such as neo-colonialism and the dismantling of apartheid. These themes will be studied with reference to the regions of west, east, central, and southern Africa.
HIS 207 - Topics in Premodern World History II: "Islamic Civilization: From Mecca to the Crusades"
80255 207-01 TR 2:00-3:15 Asa Eger
80256 207-02 TR 12:30-1:45 Asa Eger
In the middle of the seventh century, Arab tribes coalesced and emerged from the Arabian Peninsula, conquering an enormous expanse of territory that reached from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean to the deserts of India in less than one hundred years. In the following centuries, Islamic civilization took shape, a dynamic process framed by Islamic ideals yet influenced by the many cultures this civilization embraced. The products of this civilization included magnificent monuments, extensive works of literature and science, far-flung trade routes that connected to east Asia, and new agricultural and technological innovations. This course will familiarize students with the history of the rise and spread of Islamic civilization as a complex and interdependent process that occurred throughout the Near East, North Africa, Spain, and Central Asia. We contextualize this process in the world before Islam and the rise of the Prophet Muhammad at the start of the seventh century and continue until the time of the Crusaders at the end of twelfth century. Our approach will be interdisciplinary. We will look at the history, art and architecture, archaeology, environment, literature, and religion of Islamic civilization.
HIS 207-03 - Topics in Premodern World History II: "Silks and Spices: History of the Silk Road in China"
87605 TR 9:30-10:45 Susan Thomas
Following the prosperous Silk Road of the Northwest and the thriving spice trade of the South China Sea regions, Imperial Chinese courts remained engaged in international exchanges of goods and ideas since ancient times. This course will examine the intersection of trade and tribute in patterns of foreign relations China conducted with its neighbors through the arrival of European powers in the 16th century. Material trade, and the socio-cultural exchanges accompanying it, will serve as the central theme in this course. While remaining "China-focused," we will also explore the ways in which the various peoples have existed in the region for over two thousand years, fighting during much of this time for both political autonomy and cultural self-identity. Some of the secondary topics we will explore include the fluid, border-less nature of the frontier between South China and northern Southeast Asia, a study of Late Imperial China's "Southern Silk Road," China's tribute relations with various southern maritime kingdoms, and a broad study of pre-modern Chinese frontier management throughout the empire. Through a critical reading of recent scholarship on related topics, we will determine for ourselves the impact that global trade patterns had on the historical development of this very important region of the world.
HIS 208-01 - Topics in Modern World History I: "Peoples of Empire"
80257 W 6:00-8:50 p.m.Jamie Mize
At their height, European empires covered most of the globe and held sway over a majority of the world's population. Despite the geographic reach of European empires, European imperial subjects were a minority. This course will focus on the non-European peoples that made up a majority of imperial populations. Students will be introduced to the perspectives, voices, and actions of the indigenous peoples in these empires through a series of case studies that will focus on particular native peoples, locales, and empires throughout the world. This perspective will encourage students to think less about specific individuals and events in terms of "conquest," and instead will introduce them to broader analytical frameworks, such as, cultural diversity, historical memory, agency, and change over time.
HIS 208-02 - Topics in Modern World History I: "Women and Gender in World History"
80588 TR 11:00-12:15 Hannah Dudley Shotwell
This course will introduce students to some of the major themes in the study of women and gender by examining continental European history in a world context. We will explore how women's experiences changed over time and differed according to location. We will also explore how concepts of gender shaped and were shaped by history. Students will learn how to analyze a variety of primary sources and evaluate historical debates. We will consider how looking at women and gender changes our understanding of history and sheds light on contemporary global politics.
HIS 208 - Topics in Modern World History I: "Revolutions in Modern World History"
87607 208-03 MWF 1:00-1:50 Mark Moser
88155 208-04 MW 3:30-4:45 Mark Moser
This course will be a comparative overview of major "revolutions" in modern world history. Topics covered will include the Scientific Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, the Technological Revolution of the late 20th century, as well as important political and cultural revolutions that have taken place globally in the modern era. Major emphasis will be placed on the impact of these revolutions on the individual.
HIS 208-05 - Topics in Modern World History I: "Nationalism in Modern History"
88158 ONLINE Jason Stroud
The idea of nationalism and concepts of the state have been powerful and pervasive in the modern era. In this course, we will investigate the origins, the different manifestations, and the human impacts of these ideas. A central theme of the course will be that the idea of nationalism is not fixed, unchanging, or inevitable—it changes over time as a result of human actions. Topics include the effects of the industrial revolution on national identity, the rise of the modern nation-state, and the role of nationalism and national identity in various twentieth century movements and conflicts. We will read and analyze both primary and secondary sources in this course.
HIS 211 - United States History to 1865
General survey of American history from colonization through the Civil War.
80264 211-01 MWF 10:00-10:50 Joseph Ross
80265 211-02 TR 11:00-12:15 Brian Lee
80266 211-03 TR 3:30-4:45 Donna Ward
86067 211-04 ONLINE Mark Moser
HIS 212-01 - United States History since 1865
80294 MW 9:00-9:50 and F 9:00-9:50 or F 10:00-10:50
Charles Bolton
General survey of American history from Reconstruction to the present. All sections are Writing Intensive.
The lecture portion of this class meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at 9:00-9:50. Smaller discussion groups meet on Fridays at either 9:00-9:50 or 10:00-10:50.. You must register for one of the 212R discussion groups listed below at the same time you register for HIS 212-01.
85450 212R-01 - F 9-9:50
85453 212R-02 - F 9-9:50
85455 212R-03 - F 9-9:50
85456 212R-04 - F 10-10:50
85533 212R-05 - F 10-10:50
85534 212R-06 - F 10-10:50
HIS 217 - The World of the Twentieth Century (1900-1945)
Political, social, and economic forces affecting Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. 1900-1945.
80315 217-01 MWF 12:00-12:50 Justina Licata
87609 217-02 MW 3:30-4:45 Virginia Summey
86067 217-03 ONLINE Mark Moser
HIS 218-01 - The World of the Twentieth Century (1945-2000)
86070 MW 10:00-10:50 and F 10:00-10:50 or F 11:00-11:50
Jeff Jones
This class will examine global issues in the contemporary world, focusing mainly on the post-World War II period, from the dropping of atomic bombs on Japan in August 1945, to the complex, high-tech, evolving world of today. We will examine some of the important political, economic, social, and cultural changes of the second half of the twentieth century and how these changes have shaped the world we live in today.
The lecture portion of this class meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:00-10:50. Smaller discussion groups meet on Fridays at either 10:00-10:50 or 11:00-11:50.. You must register for one of the 218R discussion groups listed below at the same time you register for HIS 218-01.
87611 218R-01 - F 10-10:5087612 218R-02 - F 10-10:50
87613 218R-03 - F 10-10:50
87614 218R-04 - F 11-11:50
87615 218R-05 - F 11-11:50
87616 218R-06 - F 11-11:50
HIS 220-01 - The Ancient World
85316 TR 12:30-1:45 Stephen Ruzicka
Early civilizations: Near Eastern, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman to Reign of Constantine.
HIS 221-01 - Medieval Legacy
87769 TR 9:30-10:45 Caitlin Saraphis
Survey of Western European history from the end of the Roman Empire to the fifteenth century exploring such varied aspects of the medieval experience as pilgrimage, crusade, peasant life, the emergence of national states, and the rise of the university.
HIS 222-01 - Europe 1400-1789
80320 MW 11:00-11:50 and F 11:00-11:50 or F 12:00-12:50
Jodi Bilinkoff
Survey of major socio-economic, political, and cultural trends in Europe from the Renaissance to the French Revolution.
The lecture portion of this class meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at 11:00-11:50. Smaller discussion groups meet on Fridays at either 11:00-11:50 or 12:00-12:50.. You must register for one of the 222R discussion groups listed below at the same time you register for HIS 222-01.
85442 222R-01 - F 11-11:5085443 222R-02 - F 11-11:50
85444 222R-03 - F 12-12:50
85445 222R-04 - F 12-12:50
HIS 223-01 - European Revolutions, 1789-1989
80321 MWF 12:00-12:50 Emily Levine
A survey of the political, social, and cultural history of Europe from the time of the French Revolution to the present with emphasis on the emergence of political ideologies and categories of inclusion and exclusion in the boundaries of Europe.
HIS 239-01 - The First America: Latin America, 1492-1830
80323 MWF 10:00-10:50 Peter Villella
Introduction to the early history of Latin America. Emphasis on the clash of cultures, Indian-Spanish relations, and the structure and mechanisms of empire.
HIS 308-01 - Navigating World History
80556 TR 9:30-10:45 Steven Ruzicka
Pr. Social Studies Licensure candidates or permission of instructor
Introduction to and overview of world history, ca. 8000 B.C.E. to the present. Prepares Social Studies Licensure majors to teach world history at the middle grades and high school level.
HIS 316-01 - Interpreting American History
80557 TR 12:30-1:45 Thomas Jackson
Pr. Middle Grades or Secondary Social Studies Licensure candidates or permission of instructor
Examination of a broad variety of primary source evidence and historiographical methods for studying the American past from the colonial era through the twentieth century.
HIS 321-01 - Latin America and the United States
80563 MW 2:00-3:15 Peter Villella
A history of inter-American relations from the Monroe Doctrine to the Caribbean Basin Initiative. An examination of traditional interpretations and contemporary arguments and the Latin American context and perspective.
HIS 333-01 - American Indian History to 1840
80559 MWF 11:00-11:50 Steven Peach
This course investigates the sweeping changes and enduring continuities that punctuated Native North America between the era of the first hunter-gatherers and the forced removal of American Indians to reservations in the nineteenth-century United States. It traces the history of Native people and their encounters with European and African newcomers in the Northeast, the Southeast, the Southwest, and the Northwest Coast. Each of these regions contained a mishmash of cultural beliefs and practices, shifting political structures, local and far-flung trade networks, various language families and dialects, and diplomatic customs that were the building-blocks of fluid alliance systems. The central theme of this course emphasizes the connections that Native, European, African, and Métis peoples forged in the changing world of Native North America. This course has an important skills-building component, as you will evaluate primary sources, examine a full-length monograph, and craft a historical argument in the form of a case study essay.
HIS 341 - Pirates of the Caribbean
85597 TR 11:00-12:15 Linda Rupert
From the raids of John Hawkins and Francis Drake in the 1500s, to Dutchman Piet Heijn's daring capture of the Spanish silver fleet, to Henry Morgan's dramatic ascent as Governor of Jamaica, piracy was intricately woven into the history of the early modern Caribbean. Few historical actors have been so thoroughly romanticized or so completely decontextualized as Caribbean pirates. This course introduces students to the fascinating, complex, and changing role of corsairs, buccaneers, and privateers in shaping the emerging colonial economies, societies, and cultures of the Caribbean, from the first arrival of Europeans through the mid eighteenth century.
HIS 343 - The Old South
88161 MWF 10:00-10:50 Christopher Graham
Economy, society, and polity of the South from colonial times to the Civil War. The institution of slavery. Emphasis on period 1820-1860.
HIS 347 - History of North Carolina
80562 347-01 MWF 11:00-11:50 Christine Flood (Speaking Intensive Section)
81990 347-02 MW 2:00-3:15 Christopher Graham
This is a survey course. It spans more than 400 years of state history - from colonization to the present. It is American history with the spotlight on North Carolina. Objectives of the course include an examination of:
- when, how, and why North Carolina developed as it did.
- How its actions and reactions were similar or different from the other states.
- How the development of its economic, social, and political structure determines present-day North Carolina with special emphasis on such topics as: a) the economy b) politics c) race relations.
HIS 354-01 - Roman Republic, 754 BC-44 BC
87618 TR 2:00-3:15 Stephen Ruzicka
Study of the social and political forces that led to Rome's conquest of the Mediterranean World - and of the transformation which world conquest wrought on Rome itself. Topics covered include: the Roman Constitution and politics, the Roman conquest of Italy and then of the whole Mediterranean, and the decline of the Republic.
HIS 356-01 - The Making of the African Diaspora
88802 TR 11:00-12:15 Omar Ali
Explores the making of the African Diaspora in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean worlds through a combination of historical and ethnographic studies. Same as AFS 355.
HIS 380-01 - From Late Antiquity to Byzantium (337-850 C.E.)
87619 TR 9:30-10:45 Asa Eger
What is Late Antiquity? When does it begin? How similar or different was the Byzantine Empire from its Roman predecessor? This course will introduce students to the periods of Late Antiquity and Byzantium (337-850 C.E.) as a crucial period of history that witnessed large changes on every level of society in the transition from the classical to medieval worlds. The course will start with the Emperor Constantine and continue until the after the Age of Iconoclasm. The class will address larger topics in classical and early medieval history and question traditional views on the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, the Dark Ages, and Byzantium's relations with Persian, Islamic, and 'Barbarian' lands. We will focus on the lands of the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The approach will be interdisciplinary, studying Byzantine political, socio-economic, and religious history. We will study topics in early Christianity, pilgrimage, and monasticism, urbanism, agriculture, and trade using a wide variety of primary and secondary sources, with equal emphasis on art, archaeology, and texts from the Byzantine Empire. There is no prerequisite for this course.
HIS 387-01 - History of the Chinese Frontier
87620 TR 12:30-1:45 Jamie Anderson
While remaining "China-focused," we will explore in this course the ways in which the various peoples have existed in the frontier region of the Chinese empire throughout history, fighting during much of this time for political and cultural autonomy. Some of the topics we will explore include the fluid, border-less nature of the frontier, both north and south, Imperial China's "grand strategy" for the settlement of Inner Asia, court tribute relations with various northern and southern kingdoms, and modern China's border management as a challenge to shaping the new nation state. It is the desire of the instructor that, after the completion of this course, we will have a larger historical context in which we can more clearly evaluate the events of the last 400 years. Comparing and analyzing various scholarly works, we will write our own history of the Chinese frontier and, in the process, reveal how the present informs our understanding of the past.
HIS 390 - History Internship
Field learning experience in public or applied history. Academic supervision provided by job supervisor. Assigned reading and written reports. May be repeated. Prerequisite: Consent of Director of Public History.
HIS 391-01 - Historical Skills and Methods
83599 TR 12:30-1:45 Richard Barton
Research Intensive. Restricted to history majors.
This is a required course for all history majors (except social studies concentration candidates who complete HIS 430 for research methods). It serves as a prerequisite for the capstone course in the major. Our first goal is to outline and practice a set of skills which students can take with them to other upper-level history classes, and especially to History 511. Among these skills are the following: 1) producing feasible research questions and topics from the reading of primary and secondary sources; 2) becoming familiar with the main categories of (and attributes of) primary sources pertinent to a topic; 3) becoming familiar with the locations and/or databases in which these sources can be accessed; 4) analyzing primary sources as texts, and not merely as data-mines (i.e., asking who? When? Where? Why?); 5) identifying the arguments of secondary sources and evaluating those arguments; and more.
HIS 392-01 - The Holocaust: History and Meaning
87622 MW 2:00-3:15
Emily Levine
The Holocaust is central to our political, moral, and cultural world in twenty-first century America. Yet the Holocaust still confounds efforts to understand the perpetrators' motivations and the victims' experiences. How did "ordinary" Germans respond to the Nazi regime? Why did special units commit murder so efficiently and ruthlessly?
What role did other countries—the US and the Soviet Union—play? In this course we will study the origins and implementation of the Holocaust, and the challenge this event poses to the study of history. Among the topics to be covered are the centrality of the "Jewish Question" and the long history of anti-Semitism in Germany; the role of the Holocaust within the larger context of World War II in Europe; and debates about Germany's aims. We will pay close attention to how the Holocaust has been remembered and memorialized and how memory aids and differs from the work of professional historians.500-700 Courses | Advising Center | Undergraduate Bulletin | Courses
