COURSES
Fall 2017 Course Descriptions
200-400 Level
SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE! Always check the University online schedule for the latest changes.
HIS 203-01 - History of Africa to 1870
84052 TR 9:30-10:45
Colleen Kriger
What is civilization? This course examines the variety of African civilizations throughout the continent, from ancient times up to the 19th century, and how closer study of African history has prompted scholars to revise the way "civilization" is defined. We will focus on ancient civilizations in Africa, the empires and city-states of the Islamic period, and the rise of trade with Europe, especially the Atlantic slave trade and its effects on African societies.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .ADS .GHP .GN .GPM.
HIS 206-01 - "Survey of the Premodern World"
84836 206-01 ONLINE
Richard Shelton
This course introduces world history from the dawn of civilization to the early modern era. Topics include Eurasian, African, American, and Greco-Roman civilizations and Christian, Islamic, South Asian, Chinese, and Byzantine cultures. Upon completion, students should be able to analyze significant political, socioeconomic, and cultural developments in premodern world history.
Field: Europe. Markers: .GHP .GL .GPM.
HIS 206-02 - "Premodern Global Development"
85233 206-02 TR 8:00-9:15
Caitlin Saraphis
This course will investigate pre-modern world history by exploring archaeological sites and written documents from the earliest centers of civilization in Asia, Africa, the Americas, the Mediterranean, and the South Pacific. We will look to trace concurrent cultural, political, and religious developments to better understand the origins of our modern world.
Field: Europe. Markers: .GHP .GL .GPM.
HIS 206-03 - "Mediterranean World"
86225 206-03 MW 3:30-4:45
Ian Michie
This class focuses on the history of the Mediterranean Sea from the origins of its earliest civilizations through the Middle Ages. The class will pay particular attention to the evolution and continuity of Mediterranean culture, society, and economic networks.
Field: Europe. Markers: .GHP .GL .GPM.
HIS 207-01 and -02- "The Caribbean in World History: From Columbus to Haiti"
MW 1:00-1:50 and F 12:00-12:50 or 1:00-1:50
Linda Rupert
From Columbus's misguided attempt to find a route to Asia, to the outbreak of the region's only successful slave revolution three hundred years later, the Caribbean was at the center of early modern world history. This course will explore major moments in Caribbean history and their relationship to wider historical trends: European empires and overseas colonies; piracy, trade, and smuggling; the transatlantic slave trade, slavery and the plantation complex. We will read a variety of original documents and also consider how historians have interpreted key events, focusing on how people lived and worked under different institutions and structures.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP .GL .GMO .IGS
The lecture portion of this class meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at 1-1:50. Smaller discussion groups meet on Fridays at either 12:00-12:50 or 1:00-1:50.
80147 207-01 - MW 1-1:50, F 12-12:50
80148 207-02 - MW 1-1:50, F 1-1:50
HIS 207-03 - "North and East Africa through the Middle Ages"
85292 207-03 TR 11:00-12:15
Ian Michie
This course will examine the cultural, religious, and political developments of a world region that underwent significant changes from the origin of human history through the fourteenth century. Influenced by dynamic exchange networks spanning the Sahara Desert, the Mediterranean and Red Seas, the Nile River, and the Indian Ocean, several prevailing civilizations arose in North and East Africa. The course will examine these civilizations as well as the impact of outside influences such as the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans. The class will also study the influence of religions, most notably Islam and Christianity, on the political and cultural transitions of North and East Africa.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP .GN .GPM .IGS.
HIS 207-04 - " Cultures in Contact"
86227 MW 3:30-4:45 Sarah McCartney
This course provides a broad overview of world history in the premodern and early modern eras from roughly 500 C.E. to 1800 C.E.. It emphasizes connection, comparison, and change across Africa, Asia and South America, and highlights "big picture" moments that impacted the world population. Particular attention is given to commercial networks and the spread of religions and ideologies across the Indian Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, which brought cultures into contact. Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP .GMO .GN .IGS.
HIS 208-01 through -02 - "European Expansion & Empires"
MW 11:00-11:50 and F 11:00-11:50 or 12:00-12:50
Jill Bender
This course surveys the rise and fall of European empires from the mid-eighteenth century to the late-twentieth century. From the Seven Years War to post-World War II decolonization, we will examine methods of expansion as well as resistance to imperialism. Particular attention will be paid to the social, cultural, and political repercussions of empires and imperial contact.
Field: Europe. Markers: .GHP .GL .GMO. IGS.
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.
80149 208-01 - MW 11-11:50, F 11-11:50
80330 208-02 - MW 11-11:50, F 12-12:50
HIS 208-03 - "Revolutions in Modern World History"
86209 TR 2:00-3:15
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.
Field: Europe. Markers: .GHP .GL .GMO .IGS.
HIS 209-01 - "The Pacific World in Modern Times"
84053 TR 3:30-4:45
Eric Oakley
The Pacific Ocean is the dominant geographical feature of our planet, covering more than one-third of the world's surface and a greater area than all land masses combined. Despite the vastness of this "ocean hemisphere," the Pacific has emerged as complex site of imperialism, conflict, and globalization since 1850. Readings will introduce places as different as the Panama Canal, Shanghai, the Kingdom of Tonga, and Pearl Harbor. Students will learn about fascinating persons such as Queen Lili'uokalani, Admiral Yamamoto, and Thor Heyerdahl. Moreover, the course emphasizes an interdisciplinary understanding of the past in which history intersects with fields such as anthropology and ecology. Topics include colonized peoples, environmental change, human migrations, war at sea, and media.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP .GMO .GN .IGS
HIS 209-02 - "Social Movements in Modern World History"
84054 MW 5:00-6:15 Brian Suttell
This course will emphasize social and political movements in world history from the late 18th century to the present, and analyze the historical conditions from which they arose. Topics will include (but are not limited to) independence movements in African and Asian nations, the Mexican Revolution and student movements in Mexico, the Cultural Revolution in China, the dismantling of apartheid in South Africa, and indigenous movements in Latin America. The course will also address the global connections of the civil rights movement in the United States. Students will interpret and analyze primary and secondary sources to create historical arguments.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP .GMO .GN .IGS.
HIS 211 - United States History to 1865
General survey of American history from colonization through the Civil War. Sections -01 through -04 are Writing Intensive.
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO.
211-01 through -04 Greg O'Brien
The lecture portion of HIS 211-01 through -04 meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at 11-11:50. Smaller discussion groups meet on Fridays at either 11:00-11:50 or 12:00-12:50.
80153 211-01 - MW 10-10:50, F 10-10:50 Writing Intensive
80154 211-02 - MW 10-11:50, F 11-11:50 Writing Intensive
80155 211-03 - MW 10-10:50, F 10-10:50 Writing Intensive
86210 211-04 - MW 10-10:50, F 11-11:50 Writing Intensive
86211 211-05 TR 9:30-10:45 Arlen Hanson
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO 86266 211-07 TR 8:00-9:15 Matthew Larson
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO
HIS 212 - United States History since 1865
212-01 through -04 Anne Parsons
General survey of American history from Reconstruction to the present. Sections -01 through -04 are Writing Intensive.
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO .WI
The lecture portion of HIS 212-01 through -04 meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at 1-1:50. Smaller discussion groups meet on Fridays at either 12:00-12:50 or 1:00-1:50.
80167 212-01 - MW 1-1:50, F 12-12:50 Writing Intensive
84055 212-02 - MW 1-1:50, F 1-1:50 Writing Intensive
84056 212-03 - MW 1-1:50, F 12-12:50 Writing Intensive
84233 212-04 - MW 1-1:50, F 1-1:50 Writing Intensive
84846 212-05 TR 3:30-4:45 Anderson Rouse
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO 85853 212-07 TR 6:30-7:45 p.m. Virginia Summey
Field: United States. Markers: .GHP .GMO
HIS 215-01 - Civilizations of Asia
86126 TR 2:00-3:15
James Anderson
This course is an introduction to the pre-modern history of Asia. We will focus on the following Asian countries: China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Most students in the West may only be familiar with these nations in the context of the traumatic episodes of war and violence and revolution that swept the region throughout the twentieth century. However, these countries are heirs to long histories of cultural brilliance and diversity. In this class we will first explore how the history of this region has shaped the common bonds that bring this part of the world together as a whole. Secondly, we will consider how the literary traditions of these various societies depict the social and political conditions from which modern Asian nations would later emerge.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP.GMO.GN.IGS
HIS 217 - The World of the Twentieth Century (1900-1945)
Political, social, and economic forces affecting Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. 1900-1945.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP.GMO.GN.IGS
80177 217-01 ONLINE Mark Moser
83425 217-02 TR 5:00-6:15 Mark Moser
85854 217-03 TR 8:00-9:15 Tim Reagin
86213 217-04 MW 3:30-4:45 Hannah Dudley-Shotwell
86267 217-05 TR 3:30-4:45 Brian Suttell
HIS 218-01 through -02: The World of the Twentieth Century (1945-2000)
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.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP.GMO.GN.IGS.
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..
82917 218-01 - MW 10:00-10:50, F 10:00-10:5087073 218-02 - MW 10:00-10:50, F 11:00-11:50
HIS 218-04 and -05: The World of the Twentieth Century (1945-2000)
87284 218-04 - MW 2:00-3:15
84854 218-05 - MW 6:30-7:45 p.m.
David Wight
The second half of the twentieth century witnessed extraordinary and rapid change across the globe. This class will examine the making of the contemporary world, from the end of World War II to the beginnings of the new millennium. It will focus upon three main themes: the geopolitical struggles of the Cold War and decolonization; the rise of contemporary globalization and attendant economic, cultural, and environmental issues; and global shifts in the status of women and attitudes toward gender and sexuality.
HIS 220-01 - The Ancient World
82538 TR 12:30-1:45
Stephen Ruzicka
Early civilizations: Near Eastern, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman to Reign of Constantine.
Field: Europe. Markers: .ARC.GHP.GPM.
HIS 221-01 through -02 - Medieval Legacy
MW 10:00-10:50 and F 10:00-10:50 or F 11:00-11:50
Richard Barton
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.
Field: Europe. Markers:.GHP.GL.GPM.
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..
83474 221-01 - MW 10:00-10:50, F 10:00-10:50
84061 221-02 - MW 10:00-10:50, F 11:00-11:50
HIS 222-01 Europe 1400-1789
80179 ONLINE
Jason Stroud
Survey of major socio-economic, political,
and cultural trends in Europe from the Renaissance to the French Revolution.
Field: Europe. Markers:.GHP.GL.GPM.
HIS 223-01 - European Revolutions, 1789-1989
80180 MW 3:30-4:45
Joseph Ross
Survey of major socio-economic, political, and cultural trends in Europe from the French Revolution to the present.
Field: Europe. Markers:.GHP.GL.GMO.
HIS 239-01: The First America: Latin America, 1492-1830
80182 MWF
11:00-11:50
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.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .GHP.GMO.GN.IGS.
HIS 308 - Navigating World History
80313 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.
Field: Wider World.
HIS 310 - Daughters of Eve: Women of the Middle Ages
86228 MW 2:00-3:15
Richard Barton
Speaking Intensive
This course offers an introduction to the experience of women in the Middle Ages through close examination of writings by and about women. One of the central themes will be the importance of gender as a category of cultural difference; with this in mind we will spend a fair amount of time considering the ways in which medieval society defined femininity, appropriate female behavior, and the female body, as well as the ways in which those definitions and understandings changed over time. A second organizing principle will involve power and agency; we will be concerned to ask whether and how women could exercise power (or act as 'agents' as opposed to 'subjects'). Third, since in the Middle Ages, as now, women and femininity were understood and culturally defined only in relation to men and masculinity, we will also spend some time comparing female experience with the experience of men. Fourth, we will examine the changing role of Christianity in shaping both women's lives and spirituality. In our exploration of these themes we will depend upon analysis of significant primary sources about women and femininity written both by men and by women. As a speaking-intensive class, students will be required (in addition to some written assignments) to help direct discussions (in small groups), to participate in two in-class debates concerning course materials, and to make a short presentation to the class about an aspect of women's lives in Medieval Europe.
Field: Europe. Markers: .GL .SI.
HIS 315 - Witchcraft and Magic in European History
84063 TR 11:00-12:15
Jodi Bilinkoff
You may have heard about the witchcraft trials in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. But, did you realize that by that time tens of thousands of people, mostly women, had been tried and executed as witches throughout western Europe? In this course we will examine the intellectual, religious, legal, and social factors that led to a "Witch Craze" in the period between 1480 and 1700.
Field: Europe. Marker: .WGS
HIS 316 - Interpreting American History
80314 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.
Field: United States.
HIS 317 - Creating a Public Past: History Beyond the University
86181 TR 11:00-12:15
Benjamin Filene
This course explores history beyond the classroom and "takes it to the street"—Tate Street, that is—through a public project. First we will look at how the past has been shaped and shared in public in America. Topics include world's fairs, historic pageants, early museums, Mount Vernon, slave narratives, Colonial Williamsburg, and the mini-series Roots (1976 and 2016).
Along the way, we will introduce the profession of public history: the world of museum curators, historic site interpreters, archivists and oral historians. The course culminates with students unearthing layers of history hidden just outside their door—on Tate Street—and devising creative ways to publicly share the stories they uncover, presenting an open-air history celebration up and down the street.
Field: United States.
HIS 339 - War, Society, and Reform: America, 1896-1945
86229 MW 6:30-7:45 p.m.
Matthew Hintz
Examines the impact during the first half of the twentieth century of two world wars, reform, industrialization, the changing status of women and minorities, and the emergence of mass culture.
Field: United States.
HIS 347 - History of North Carolina
80316 347-01 MWF 11:00-11:50 Christine Flood
(Speaking Intensive Section) Marker: .SI.
84322 347-02 TR 3:30-4:45 Virginia Summey
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 349 - The World at War 1939-1945
85857 TR 6:30-7:45 p.m.
Eric Oakley
The Second World War shaped the international system for decades and its legacies continue to resonate in the twenty-first century. This interdisciplinary course assumes a global view of the causes, central events, and outcomes of the most destructive conflict in history. Students will discover the European and Pacific Theaters of the war through a chronological series of biographical sketches, each of which highlight a significant event or concern. For example, students will meet fascinating individuals such as Dmitri Shostakovich, Soong Meiling, and Adolf Eichmann. Our exploration will emphasize close attention to primary artifacts, and students will complete a semester-length research paper on a subtopic of choice. Finally, the course addresses topics including the League of Nations, the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, the Final Solution and Holocaust, Manhattan Project, and Nuremberg Trials.
Field: Europe.
HIS 355 - The Roman Empire, 44 b.c.-337 a.d.
86230 TR 2:00-3:15
Stephen Ruzicka
Survey of politics and society at Rome under the Empire, when Rome dominated Western Civilization. Topics covered include: Augustus and the rise of one-man rule at Rome, the long "Roman Peace" and the civilizing of Europe under the Emperors, the rise of Christianity, and the transformed Empire of Constantine the Great.
Field: Europe. Marker: .GL
HIS 374 - British History, 1668-Present
86231 MWF 9:00-9:50
Jill Bender
Major landmarks in the social, political, intellectual, and cultural history of the diverse peoples of the British Isles from the Glorious Revolution of 1688 to the 21st century.
Field: Europe. Marker: .GMO.
HIS 377 - Russian History to 1900
84969 MW 2:00-3:15
Jeff Jones
This course introduces students to issues and debates in Russian history from its origins in roughly the 9th century until the eve of the 20th century. We will examine Russia's history as much as possible through the eyes of those who lived it, trying thereby to acquire a fuller understanding of Russia today. The course is divided into two sections: Early Russia to 1700; and Imperial Russia 1700-1900. Relying largely on primary sources, we will approach the subject material from several perspectives, including political, social, economic, and cultural, with a number of themes in mind: state and society; ideology/religion; family/gender; class; and war and peace.
Field: Wider World
HIS 380 - Near and Middle East Topics: "Byzantium: The First Christian Empire"
86234 TR 2:00-3:15
Asa Eger
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 Islamic and 'barbarian' lands. The approach will be interdisciplinary, studying Byzantine political, socio-economic, and religious history combined with a heavy emphasis on art, architecture, material culture, and archaeology.
Field: Wider World Markers: .ARC .IGS
HIS 389 - West Africa during the Atlantic Slave Trade
84066
TR 3:30-4:45
Colleen Kriger
How, why, and when did trade between Europeans and Africans along Africa's western coast become a trade in slaves across the Atlantic to the Americas? This course examines the history of this trade, how it was organized and carried out on the African side of the Atlantic, and how the slave trade and its abolition affected African societies.
Field: Wider World. Markers: .ADS.IGS
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 391-02 - Historical Skills and Methods
81870 TR 2:00-3:15
Jodi Bilinkoff
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. Students in the course address a variety of research problems in history using different sources and methods in preparation for HIS 511. Formal goals include: analyzing varieties of primary and secondary source materials; designing a project focus; finding and evaluating appropriate sources; learning citation methods; understanding how historiography can guide us to significant questions and methods.
When a German monk named Martin Luther posted his Ninety-Five Theses against the sale of indulgences in 1517 he set off a chain of events that would shatter a unified Christendom. Over the next two hundred years Europeans would struggle with a dizzying array of issues related to faith, power, education, gender roles, work, artistic expression, and individual and group identities in a multi-confessional society. In this course we will first briefly trace the history of the Protestant Reformation and the manifold Catholic responses. Then students will take on projects focusing on aspects of the Age of Reformations in Europe and its colonies in the period between 1500 and 1700. Over the course of the semester they will learn skills critical to carrying out historical research and writing, including ways of analyzing primary and secondary sources, how to design a project and develop a thesis, citation methods for notes and bibliographies, and strategies for composing clear and compelling prose.
Markers: .RI .WI
HIS 440 - Principles and Practices of Teaching History
84971 MW 2:00-3:15
Lisa Tolbert
Pr. Middle Grades or Secondary Social Studies Licensure candidates who have completed HIS 308, 316, and one other 300-level History elective for a total of 9 s.h., or permission of instructor.
This course is especially designed for students who are concentrating in social studies and plan to engage in teaching as a career. As an aspiring educator, how will you instill in your students a sense of the value and relevance of thinking historically in the 21st century? How do people learn history? Is there something distinctive about learning history compared to learning other academic subjects? This course will introduce you to the growing scholarship that addresses the distinctive challenges of teaching and learning history as both a subject and a discipline.
500-700 Courses | Advising Center | Undergraduate Bulletin | Courses
