Department of History

Spring 2004 Course Descriptions
200-300 Level

HIS 204 - History of Africa from 1870

Kriger TR 9:30-10:45

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.

HIS 211 - United States History to 1865

-01 Crawford MWF 11-11:50
-02 Tolbert TR 9:30-10:45
-03 de Beck TR 11-12:15
-04 Lee TR 2-3:15
-05 Robbins MWF 9-9:50
-91 Moore WEB

General survey of American history from colonization through the Civil War.

HIS 212 - United States History since 1865

-01 Anthony MWF 11-11:50
-02 S. Link MWF 1-1:50
-03 de Beck MWF 10-10:50
-04 Jackson M 6-8:50 [A survey that also gives close attention to several case studies in the American equal rights and human rights traditions.]
-05 Crawford TR 9:30-10:45
-06 Crawford TR 11-12:15
-07 S. Link MW 2-3:15
-08 S. Link MWF 12-12:50
-09 Franz TR 12:30-1:45
-81 W. Link WEB

General survey of American history from Reconstruction to the present.

HIS 216 - Civilizations of Asia

Jones MW 2-3:15

This course is an introduction to the pre-modern history of Asia, and will focus on the following 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.

HIS 220 - The Ancient World

Ruzicka MWF 1-1:50

Early civilizations: Near Eastern, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman to Reign of Constantine. (Same as CCI 220)

HIS 221 - Medieval Legacy

Barton TR 9:30-10:45

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 nation states, and the rise of the university.

HIS 222 - Europe 1400-1789

Melton TR 2-3:15

Survey of major soci-economic, political, and cultural trends in Europe from the Renaissance to the French Revolution.

HIS 223 - Modern Europe

Michaelsen TR 9:30-10:45

A survey of the political, social and cultural history of Europe from the time of the French Revolution to the present. Emphasis will be placed on the political culture and the emergence of the great ideological systems of the West (e.g., liberalism, conservatism, socialism, communism, nationalism, and fascism).

HIS 240 - Latin America: National Period

Floyd TR 8-9:15

Introduction to the political and economic history of Latin America since independence. Survey covers political dynamics, social transformations, and the evolution of export economics.

HIS 301 - Race and Slavery

Schweninger MWF 9-9:50

This course will examine the African American experience from Africa to the
New World, including early civilizations in West Africa, the Atlantic Slave Trade, slavery and freedom in the Caribbean, South and Central America, British North America, and African Americans during the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries in the United States.

HIS 302 - Race and Segregation

Jennison MWF 10-10:50

Race and segregation in the United States since the Civil War, including the origins of the Jim Crow laws, the civil rights movement, black urbanization, the Harlem Renaissance, black nationalism, and the African American experience in America.

HIS 310 - Daughters of Eve: Women in the Middle Ages

A. Barton MWF 1-1:50

This course offers an introduction to the experience of women in the Middle Ages through close examination of writings by and about women. In so doing we will be less concerned with the more traditional elements of medieval history and more interested in how such elements came to shape women's lives and opportunities. 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. Among the two paradigms to be considered will be the two most common and paradoxical medieval understandings of women: as "daughters of Eve" women were inherently sinful and inferior, but as "sisters of Mary" women shared in the virtues and special status of the Virgin. A second organizing principle will be the importance of the "family" as the central social institution in the construction of medieval ideas about womanhood. Thus we will examine the ways in which the shape of the family changed over the period 500-1500 and the impact of such changes on women's power, ability to work, religious experiences, and cultural opportunities. 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.

HIS 321 - Latin America and the US

Floyd TR 6-7:15

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 325 - History of the American Home

Tolbert TR 2-3:15

Study of houses as historical evidence of social change from the colonial period to the twentieth century. Topics include: impact of gender, region, social class, and ethnicity on American housing.

HIS 329 - Women in American History Part II

Levenstein MW 2-3:15

HIS 336 - Age of the Democratic Revolution

Calhoon MWF 9-9:50

The politics, social structure, warfare, and ideology of the American Revolution set against the background of early modern European thought and modern American constitutional development.

HIS 340 - US Since World War II

Jackson MWF 11-11:50

SPEAKING INTENSIVE. More general themes and developments in American political and social life will be organized around two central inquiries: 1) The civil rights movement, considered in its global, national and local contexts. We will look at its roots in local black communities, in Constitutional developments and political party competition, and in the contexts of WWII and the Cold War. We will examine its consequences on public life, from school desegregation to the War on Poverty. We will consider the importance of Martin Luther King's symbolic and local leadership. We will also spend "three weeks in Birmingham," in the spring of 1963, examining this pivotal event from a variety of perspectives drawn from student research assignments. 2) Vietnam, as political history and social experience. The war fatefully embodied the Cold War policy of "containment" of communism, and shaped foreign policymaking for the rest of the century and beyond. It also widened social, cultural, and political divisions that continue to shape American public life. Special attention to the experiences of the U.S. soldiers and Southeast Asian refugees who arrived in the United States after 1975.

HIS 347 - History of North Carolina

-01 Anthony MWF 1-1:50
-02 Anthony M 6-8:50

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: 1) when, how, and why North Carolina developed as it did. 2) How its actions and reactions were similar or different from the other states. 3) 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 351 - History of Greece, 2000 BC-31 BC

Ruzicka MWF 10-10:50

Mycenaean society, Greek "dark ages," colonization and tyranny, Athens and Sparta, flowering in the fifth and fourth centuries, conquests of Alexander, Hellenistic empires, and the diffusion of Greek civilization. (Same as CCI 351)

HIS 373 - English History to 1660

Melton TR 9:30-10:45

From 55 BC to the restoration of Charles II in 1660, this course surveys all the major developments- Roman, Britain, the Anglo-Saxons, Normans, and Medieval England, the Reformation and the Puritan Revolution. Within each period the main political, intellectual, religious, social, and economic themes are examined.

HIS 378 - Russian History Since 1900

Jones MWF 9-9:50

End of Tsarist Empire, Revolution of 1917 and its aftermath, Soviet Union under Stalin, and recent developments.

HIS 381 - The Near and Middle East

Saab T 6-8:50

This course deals with the history of the Israel and the Muslim Middle East in the twentieth century. After a background of events before and during the two world wars, we will examine a series of continuing controversial issues, such as the Arab-Israeli conflict, the revolution in Iran, and the use of oil. Student reading and discussion will be emphasized.

HIS 390 - History Internship

TBA Staff

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 Department Head.

HIS 392 - The Holocaust: History and Meaning

Schleunes MWF 11-11:50

This course examines the history of the Nazi Holocaust during World War II and explores a variety of meanings--intellectual and artistic--that have been imposed upon it.

HIS 399 - Images of Africa in Film

Kriger T 6-8:00 & R 6-8:50

Examines how Africa and Africans have been portrayed in film, from the creation and perpetuation of Hollywood stereotypes to the emergence of Independent Black Film and African Cinema.