1999-2000 Bulletin Entry for:

(file last updated: [7/6/1999 - 13:11:5])

Objectives

The concentration in history seeks to provide students with a broad introduction to the development of the modern world. The concentration is flexible, enabling students to devise individual programs tailored to their own specific needs and interests. In consultation with their faculty advisor, students should design a concentration that makes sense in terms of their other course work and career plans. This concentration strategy will be different for each student. A student planning a professional career in history, for example, will certainly want to take a broad variety of courses, perhaps do a junior tutorial (HIST 98a or 98b), write a senior thesis (HIST 99d), and master the foreign languages required for that area of specialization. Students interested in other careers, such as law or business, will design programs of study that complement their course work in other departments and programs (for example, legal studies or economics). The department strongly recommends that students acquire geographic and chronological breadth, which is best provided by our set of two-semester surveys in American, Asian, European, and Latin American history. Apart from taking one or more of these surveys, students should also select appropriate offerings from our more advanced courses that are thematic or national in scope and that permit more intensive analysis. The department is deeply committed to the development of writing and analytical skills, which are invaluable and transferable, regardless of future career--be it higher education, teaching, law, business, or public service. The advanced courses, with smaller classes, provide an ideal opportunity to develop those skills.

The graduate program in comparative history leads to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Applicants wishing to take only the degree of Master of Arts may apply for admission to the M.A. program described below. Deadline for applications to the Ph.D. program is February 1; for applications to the M.A. degree program, it is August 1.

The graduate program trains students to approach the past from a comparative perspective. This method represents the most fruitful way to interpret the past, and the program fosters it in two ways. First, students specializing in European history will develop expertise in two broad fields of history--either medieval and early modern or early modern and modern. Students specializing in non-European history will master two comparable fields. Second, all students will study their fields from a thematic approach that transcends national boundaries and moves away from conventional periodization.

The comparative history program gives students a broad understanding of historical developments and fosters the ability to make cross-cultural comparisons. The thematic approach is central to the process. The Brandeis history faculty is exceptionally diverse in its interests and offers the student a variety of approaches to the past, such as the study of political structure, social relations and institutions, women and the family, war and diplomacy, psychohistory, culture, or thought. Each student will read widely on two topical areas, and in the process learn what developments were unique and which ones were comparable over time and space.

Finally, students will take an outside field beyond the areas of their qualifying examinations. This may be in another area of history such as the history of the United States, Latin America, Middle East, Africa, East Asia, Jewish history, or the history of science. It may also be in related programs such as anthropology, economics, English and American literature, literary studies, Near Eastern and Judaic studies, politics, or sociology.

The program is designed to prepare students for the competitive academic environment of the next decade. It trains them in methods of historical research and equips them to teach a broad range of subjects. On a deeper level, comparative history fosters intellectual flexibility and interdisciplinary skills that can be creatively employed inside and outside academia.

A small, select student body will work in close cooperation with the faculty. Most instruction will take place in seminars specifically designed for graduate students or in individual conferences with faculty advisors. From the beginning, the curriculum will help students prepare for their qualifying examinations and guide them toward eventual dissertation research.

During the first year, students must prepare a major research paper on a topic chosen in consultation with a principal advisor. The paper may be comparative in research (involving two or more symmetrical case studies), or it may focus upon a single case (with that research informed by a reading of secondary literature on similar cases). The paper constitutes the major intellectual enterprise of the first year, and students devote one-quarter of their time to it. Students must also enroll in HIST 197a (Historical Research: Methods and New Frontiers). During their first two years of residence, students must also enroll in comparative history seminars that treat significant problems in a comparative perspective and introduce students to the methods and issues of comparative history. European specialists will also enroll in two introductory graduate colloquia, which cover the early modern and modern periods. Finally, before they may take the qualifying examination, all students must complete a tutorial or other work focusing on a part of the world geographically or chronologically removed from their principal area of specialization with a view to gaining a comparative perspective on their major research interest.

Students specializing in European history are expected to have a general mastery of a major and a minor field of history, either medieval, early modern (1450-1750), or modern (1750-present). Students specializing in non-European history will present a major and minor field approved by the executive committee. Two faculty members examine in the major field; one faculty member shall examine for the minor field. First-year colloquia shall provide the basic groundwork for field preparation. By the beginning of the fourth semester the student must submit a working orals bibliography, which will serve as the basis for the qualifying exam, to be administered at the end of the fourth semester. The exact delimination of the major and minor fields is to be made by the student and examiners, with the formal approval of the chair of the Comparative History Program.

Students should normally plan to complete all work for the doctorate, including the dissertation, within five years after entering the program; prolongation of study past the sixth year is discouraged.

The program in American history offers two graduate degrees: Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy. Its curriculum is designed to help students gain a comprehensive understanding of American history and mastery of historical research and writing.

Its flexible program of study allows students to work closely with the faculty in independent reading and research courses. Individual courses of study are developed for each student, to help in preparation for qualifying examinations, and as preparation for dissertation research. Normally, the first year's work is concentrated in American history, and centers on directed research and a critical approach to problems of historiography. Second-year students are encouraged to complete their preparation in their examination fields through directed readings and relevant courses. Applicants should note with care the four parts of the examination, specified under Degree Requirements, in which all students are expected to demonstrate proficiency. Studies in related fields are arranged individually with appropriate members of the University's graduate faculty. For students with appropriate qualifications, there are opportunities for advanced study and research at neighboring universities in such fields as legal, business, and religious history.

How to Become an Undergraduate Concentrator

Students normally begin their studies with one of the general courses in historical studies and then go on to more advanced courses. To declare and design a concentration, the student should first see the undergraduate advising head; together they will select as advisor a faculty member who seems best suited to that student's interest and area of future work. The advisor and student will then select a course of study that gives greatest coherence to the student's other course work and career plans.

How to Be Admitted to the Graduate Program

Comparative History

The general requirements for admission to the Graduate School given in an earlier section of this Bulletin apply. Students with a sound preparation in history and who have demonstrated unusual imagination and critical insight will receive special consideration. Undergraduate majors in the other social sciences or in allied fields such as comparative literature may, however, apply. Applicants should submit a sample of written work, preferably in history.

Students may be admitted for full- or part-time work. Partial scholarship assistance is available for a limited number of exceptional candidates.

American History

The general requirements for admission to the Graduate School, given in an earlier section of this Bulletin, apply to candidates for admission. An undergraduate major in history is the preferred preparation for admission, and the student's undergraduate curriculum should include some fundamental courses in American history and related fields in the social sciences or humanities. Students with the M.A. degree in history or a professional degree in law or other related fields are especially invited to apply. Prospective students interested in Crown Fellowships or the special arrangements for study in professional fields at neighboring universities, noted above, should submit applications by February 15.

Faculty

American Southern and women's history.

Latin America. Women's history. Social history.

Modern history. Culture and thought. Psychohistory.

Modern history. Political and social institutions.

History of American foreign policy. International and cultural history.

Modern history. Social institutions.

Russia and Germany. Social and religious history.

History of science. Early modern Europe.

History of ideas. Political theory.

Modern European and French history.

Colonial America. American social and cultural history.

Medieval history.

Modern history. Social institutional history.

Legal and political institutions.

East Asian history and civilization. Sino-Western relations.

Early modern European history. Germany.

Legal history.

The following members of other departments are affiliated with the Department of History:

Joyce Antler (AMST), Lawrence Fuchs (AMST), Avigdor Levy (NEJS), Antony Polonsky (NEJS), Benjamin Ravid (NEJS), Jehuda Reinharz (NEJS), Jonathan Sarna (NEJS), Silvan Schweber (PHYS), Stephen Whitfield (AMST).

Requirements for the Undergraduate Concentration

All concentrators are expected to complete satisfactorily at least eight semester courses in history from among the HIST and cross-listed offerings. No course grade below a C will be given credit towards the concentration requirement of eight courses. Students who wish to take more than one course numbered under 50 must have written approval of the department advising head. Acceptable AP scores in American or European history exempt concentrators from equivalent course(s) but do not reduce the total number of courses required to complete concentration. A minimum of six courses counted toward concentration must be taught by members of the history faculty, except that transfer students and those taking a year's study abroad may offer up to four semester courses taught elsewhere depending on individual circumstances, and need take only four courses taught by members of the history faculty. To apply such transfer courses for history concentration, a student must obtain the approval of the department advising head.

In addition, HIST 98a and 98b (Readings in History) may be taken by students on a subject of particular interest to them that is not covered in the regular curriculum or as a supplement to work on the Senior Honors Thesis. (The consent of the instructor is required.) HIST 99d (Senior Research), which must be taken in addition to the regular eight-course requirement, enables students to undertake an honors thesis and is required for degrees granted with distinction. In addition to HIST 99d, students must also enroll in HIST 97a (Senior Honors Seminar) if offered.

The concentration can be combined with other programs of study, such as Latin American studies or Russian and East European studies. Students should consult their advisors to design a concentration that best complements the requirements of other programs.

Students with exceptional records may apply for the B.A./M.A. Program in either comparative history or American history. Applications to either graduate program must be made no later than May 1 preceding the senior year. Consultation with the advisor is highly recommended by the beginning of the sixth semester; transfer students should apply by the fourth semester of residence. All applications should include a proposed course of study, specifying how all degree requirements will be met. Grades of B- or better are required in the 100-level courses. The total number of courses required for completion of a B.A./M.A. program is 38, of which at least four must be at the graduate level and not counted toward concentration requirements.

Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts

Comparative History

This one-year, full-time program has the following requirements:

Each student must pass an examination in one foreign language.

Each student will complete the first-year program as defined for the graduate program in comparative history.

An M.A. degree in history will be awarded to those students who have satisfactorily completed one year of residence as full-time students, completed the mandated first-year courses, fulfilled the language requirement, and completed their research seminar requirement.

American History

Students who are admitted for a terminal M.A. degree must complete one full year of course work and the foreign language requirement. Courses will include the two-semester colloquium in American history, a major research project, and four other courses approved by the executive committee.

Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Comparative History

During the first year in the program, students will complete a major research paper and two colloquia in history. Within the first two years, they must also take two seminars in comparative history, beside fulfilling the outside-field requirement.

The minimum residence requirement for doctoral students is three years.

The use of foreign languages is an essential tool for the comparative historian. Each student will be expected to pass, upon admission, one language examination testing the ability to read historical prose with a dictionary. The second language examination must be passed before taking the qualifying examination. All students in European history must show competence in French and German. Medieval students must also offer Latin. Students may in some instances petition to substitute a language appropriate to their research interests for either French or German.

Each student will take the qualifying examination at the end of the fourth term. Any student who has failed to complete the qualifying examination by the fifth term will be dropped from the program.

The student will normally define a dissertation topic in the term preceding the qualifying examination but in no case later than the end of the fifth term in the program.

For the dissertation prospectus, students will make an oral presentation setting their proposed topic in comparative perspective.

When the student's dissertation committee accepts the completed dissertation, the candidate must defend it at the Final Oral Examination.

American History

Doctoral candidates must complete three years in residence at Brandeis and a minimum of 16 semester courses. Programs of study and concentration will be formulated for each student, subject to the approval of the executive committee. Students will be required to maintain an average of B or better in order to continue in the program. Continuance of fellowship support requires an average of A- or better.

Incoming students normally will be expected to take two double-credit courses of Directed Research in American History in their first year of residence. The committee may, at its discretion, grant a student transfer credit of up to one year toward the Ph.D. residence requirement for relevant graduate or professional work done elsewhere. Application for such credit shall be considered only after a student has completed one term's residence in a full-time program. The second 300-level Directed Research course may be waived by the committee on the basis of a master's thesis or comparable research project at the graduate or professional level done elsewhere. In the first year all students enroll in the Colloquium in American History.

The minimum residence requirement for doctoral students is three years.

A high level of reading proficiency in one foreign language is required of all students. Students are expected to pass the language examination during the first year of residence. The completion of language requirements at another university does not exempt the candidate from the Brandeis requirement.

Each doctoral candidate must pass at the doctoral level a qualifying examination in the following four fields: (1) general American history, one examiner to be in early American history and the other in modern American history; (2) a period of specialization in American history; (3) an area of comparative modern European, Asian, Latin American, or African history; (4) a related discipline in the social sciences or humanities, or a subdiscipline in history.

All proposed fields must be submitted in writing and approved by the executive committee. The period of specialization will normally be selected from the following: 1607-1763, 1763-1815, 1815-1877, 1877-1914, 1914-present.

The comparative history field may focus on such themes as 19th-century emigration/immigration, 18th-century American and European political and social philosophy, the history of the modern family, or the frontier in global perspective. The fourth field may involve training in politics, international relations, or literature, for example, to provide perspectives and methods that can illuminate historical problems. Or it can involve a subdiscipline in history that has a distinctive subject matter and methodology, such as American social, legal, ecological, or intellectual history.

Students entering the program without previous graduate training in American history are expected to take the qualifying examination no later than the end of their fifth term of residence and must pass the examination by the end of the sixth term. Students who have earned an M.A. degree in history elsewhere are expected to take and pass the qualifying examination by the end of their second year in the program.

Qualifying examinations will be taken separately for each of the fields, with the general American field coming at the end. For each of the fields (2), (3), and (4), as above, the student will choose one appropriate faculty member with the approval of the chair of the program. That faculty member, in consultation with the student, will define the requirements, course of preparation, and mode of examination (written and/or oral) for the field.

For the general American field, the chair will appoint two members of the executive committee as examiners. The two faculty members in consultation with the student will define in advance the major themes or problems on which the examination will be based. So far as possible, fields (3) and (4), as above, should be selected with a view to broadening and deepening the student's understanding of his/her American history fields and providing valuable background for the dissertation work.

With the consent of the chair and the professor concerned, qualified students in appropriate cases may be examined in fields (3) or (4), as above, by a faculty member at another university. Moreover, with the consent of the executive committee, examinations in fields (3) or (4), as above, may be waived for students with the M.A., J.D., or other advanced degrees.

During the early stages of their dissertation work students are expected to present a prospectus in a Works-in-Progress session attended by the program's students and faculty. When the dissertation is accepted by the committee, a final oral examination will be scheduled at which the candidate must successfully defend his/her dissertation before the committee and other members of the faculty who may participate. In most cases a student's dissertation committee consists of the advisor, another American history faculty member, and an outside reader from another university.

Courses of Instruction

(1-99) Primarily for Undergraduate Students

[ ss ]

Focuses on ideas about knowledge and politics. Readings include selections from More, Montaigne, Locke, Rousseau, Madison, Thoreau, Marx, Mill, James, Freud, Sartre, and Habermas. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

[ ss ]

An introductory survey of American history to the Civil War. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Hangen

[ ss ]

An introductory survey of American history from the Civil War to the present. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Jones

[ ss ]

Analytical introduction to modern European history considering such issues as the French Revolution, economic and social modernization and the industrial revolution, the evolution of modern nationalism, imperialism and socialism, development of the world market, imperialism, diplomacy and war in the 20th century, Bolshevism and the decline of liberalism, modern totalitarianism, World War II, decolonization, the Cold War, the revival of Europe, and the revolutions of 1989. Usually offered every year.

Staff

(Formerly HIST 32b)

[ cl¹¹ cl³⁷ ss ]

A social history of the family in Europe from early modern to contemporary times. Topical emphasis on changing patterns in kinship and household structure, child rearing, sex-role differentiation, employment, and marriage. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Kelikian

[ cl³ cl³⁸ nw hum ss ]

Introduction to the historical foundations of Latin America: Amerindian civilizations, Spanish conquest, colonial economy and society, independence movements, and their aftermath. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Arrom

[ cl³ cl²⁴ nw hum ss ]

Modern Latin America, with stress on the interactions of economics, politics, and external dependency in the region. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Arrom

[ cl³⁸ cl⁴¹ nw hum ss ]

A selective introduction to the development of forms of thought, social and political institutions, and distinctive cultural contributions of China and Japan from early times to the beginning of the 19th century. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Schrecker

[ cl³ cl²⁷ cl⁴¹ nw hum ss ]

The civilization of East Asia at the beginning of the 19th century, the impact of the West, the contrasting responses of China and Japan to the confrontation and the development and nature of their present societies. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Schrecker

Explores a variety of scholarly research methods and introduces students to issues and problems in the writing of history. Seniors who are candidates for degrees with honors in history must enroll in this course in the fall term, along with HIST 99d. Usually offered every year.

Staff

See HIST 97a for course description. Usually offered every year.

Staff

Usually offered every year.

Staff

Usually offered every year.

Staff

Seniors who are candidates for degrees with honors in history must register for this course and, under the direction of a faculty member, prepare an honors thesis on a suitable topic. Usually offered every year.

Staff

(100-199) For Both Undergraduate and Graduate Students

[ cl¹⁷ hum ss ]

Survey of Roman history from the early republic through the decline of the empire. Covers the political history of the Roman state and the major social, economic, and religious changes of the period. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Kapelle

[ cl³⁹ ss ]

Survey of medieval history from the fall of Rome to the year 1000. Topics include the barbarian invasions, the Byzantine Empire, the Dark Ages, the Carolingian Empire, feudalism, manorialism, and the Vikings. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Kapelle

[ cl³⁹ ss ]

Survey of European history from 1000 to 1450. Topics include the crusades, the birth of towns, the creation of kingdoms, the papacy, the peasantry, the universities, the Black Death, and the Hundred Years War. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Kapelle

[ ss ]

Survey of the relationships between Medieval Europe and neighboring cultures, beginning with the decline of Byzantium. Topics include a detailed look at the crusades, the Spanish reconquista, the crusader kingdoms, economic growth and the foundations of imperialism. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Kapelle

[ cl³⁹ ss ]

Survey of English history from the Anglo-Saxon invasions to the 15th century. Topics include the heroic age, the Viking invasions and development of the English kingdom from the Norman conquest through the Hundred Years War. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Kapelle

[ ss ]

Exploration of the critical changes in English government and society in the 14th and 15th centuries. Topics include the Black Death, the lordship of Ireland, the Hundred Years War, the Scottish War of Independence, and economic change. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Kapelle

[ cl³⁰ ss ]

Culture, society, and economy in the Italian city-state (with particular attention to Florence) from feudalism to the rise of the modern state. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Kapelle

[ ss ]

Examines the religious upheavals that transformed Europe between the 15th and 17th centuries. Topics include Luther's break with Rome, peasant uprisings, the Counter-Reformation, and wars of religion. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the fall of 1995.

Staff

[ cl¹⁷ ss ]

Many of the central questions asked by science and the methods used to solve them were first developed in antiquity. This heritage was built upon in the Middle Ages and laid the groundwork for the Scientific Revolution. Examines primary texts and their social and cultural contexts. A comparative perspective is gained by an examination of science in non-western cultures, in particular China and the Islamic world. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the fall of 1998.

Mr. Hellyer

[ ss ]

Explores the varieties of exchange in history, from the circulation of food, money, and marriage partners to the exchange of prayers, friendship, and violence. Readings include theoretical works in economics and anthropology and historical monographs on the Western and non-Western worlds. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Sreenivasan

[ ss ]

Survey of Western Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. Focuses on the changing relationship between the emerging modern state and its subjects. Topics include the development of ideologies of resistance and conformity, regional loyalties and the problems of empire, the politics of the early modern court, changing technologies of violence, and the social foundations of order and disorder. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Sreenivasan

An examination of the fundamental building block of pre-modern European society. Topics include the demographic structures, economic foundations, and governing ideologies that sustained the household, as well as the repercussions of failure or refusal to live according to "normal" forms. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Sreenivasan

[ cl¹⁶ ss ]

In the wake of Columbus, Eurasian humans, plants, animals, and microorganisms combined to completely change the human and ecological face of the New World. Focuses on changes in the Caribbean and New England regions, but also offers comparative perspectives drawn from European encounters with other parts of the world. We conclude with an examination of the first glimmerings of an environmental consciousness among Western scientists. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Hellyer

[ cl⁹ cl²³ cl⁴³ ss ]

The sources, content, and results of the French Revolution; its place in the broader context of the democratic revolution of the West. A study of the events and analysis of the elements involved. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Black

[ cl⁵ ss ]

Science is now the dominant institution for understanding and manipulating the natural world. Many of its key elements--mathematical law, experiment, systematic observation, open communication--arose in the scientific revolution of the 17th century. This course examines the cultural and intellectual origins of modern science through the seminal works of Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, and Newton. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Hellyer

[ cl³⁴ ss ]

The major scientific and technological advances since 1900 and their relations to the main intellectual currents. The relation of science to technology, social structure, and political institutions. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Schweber

[ cl⁹ cl²¹ cl²³ cl²⁹ ss ]

Main themes and issues, modes and moods, in philosophy and the sciences, literature and the arts, from the skeptical crisis of the late 16th century to the Romantic upheaval of the early 19th. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Binion

[ cl²¹ cl²³ cl²⁶ cl²⁹ ss ]

Main themes and issues, modes and moods, in philosophy and the sciences, literature and the arts, from mid-19th-century Realism to late 20th-century Unrealism. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Binion

(Formerly POL 185b)

[ cl⁹ cl²¹ ss ]

The Enlightenment as a source of the intellectual world we live in today. Examination of some of the political, philosophical, and scientific writings of the philosophers. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Hulliung

[ ss ]

The demographic, economic, and French revolutions; Napoleonic imperium; instability and revolt in restoration Europe; romanticism; urbanization and industrialization; revolutions of 1848; national unification and ethnic politics; the "liberal era." Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Black

[ cl²⁷ ss ]

The world of nation-states; urbanization and mature industrial societies; science and culture; attacks on liberal civilization; socialism, collectivism, and imperialism; domestic tensions and world politics. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Black

Examines changing relationships between physicians and their patients since the 18th century. Topics covered include the emergence of the modern medical profession, hospital-based medicine, links between medicine and the state, women and medicine, and medical ethics. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

[ ss ]

The evolution of the modern international system from 1815 to the present. Focuses on the domestic bases of international strengths and changes in the balance of power from Napoleon to the end of the Cold War. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Black

[ ss ]

Examination of industrialization and social change in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries. The cultural, economic, and political consequences of commercial expansion and urban growth will be traced. Usually offered in odd years.

Ms. Kelikian

[ ss ]

Changing relations between state and society in England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Eastern Europe. Topics include war mobilization, popular culture, and mass politics during the twenties; the political economy of authoritarianism; and the organization of consent in the thirties. Usually offered in even years.

Ms. Kelikian

[ cl⁴⁶ ss ]

Examines gender relations in England, France, Italy, Germany, and Russia since the Puritan revolution. Topics include law, family structure, sexualities, education, deviance, patterns of power and sociability, criminal and civil codes, and medicine and science. Usually offered in even years.

Ms. Kelikian

[ ss ]

A comparative analysis of dictatorship in Europe, Japan, and Latin America during the 20th century. Topical emphasis on the social origins, mass culture, and political organization of authoritarian regimes. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1997.

Ms. Kelikian

[ ss ]

"The Thirties" is an undergraduate seminar that examines the 1930s in Europe and North America. Using chiefly literary sources, it studies reactions to fascism, the depression, the Soviet experiment, the Spanish Civil War, and other upheavals of the decade, culminating in the coming of war in 1939. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Jankowski

[ ss ]

Topics include Victorian society and culture, Britain in the world economy, liberalism, socialism, and the rise of labor, democracy, and collectivism between the wars, labor in power, mass culture, the Thatcher Revolution. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Black

[ ss ]

Examines impact of the end of the Eurocentric world system, including the division of East from West Europe, the German question, the impact of decolonization, the involvement of the United States, the growth of the European community, and the collapse of communism. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the summer of 1997.

Mr. Jankowski

[ ss ]

What's going on with Oprah's book club? How did we get to the point where TV creates a bestseller? We explore possible answers to those questions by studying the impact of literacy on Indians, the rise of the novel, the development of newspapers, reading and writing among slaves, muckraking journalism, and other topics dealing with the role of print in American culture.

Staff

[ ss ]

Surveys the history of religious belief and practice in America, from 1600 to the present. We give special attention to religion in popular culture and explore the use of mass media by religious institutions and individuals.

Staff

[ cl²³ ss ]

Explores French politics and society from 1789 to the present. Emphasis on the shocks from which it has had to recover, including revolutions, wars, and foreign occupation, the implantation of stable institutions, and the continuing role of intellectuals in French society. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Jankowski

[ ss ]

Hitler's personality and politics in their German and European context, 1889-1945. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1996.

Mr. Binion

[ ss ]

Systematic analysis of Russian history in the 18th and 19th centuries. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Freeze

[ cl²⁵ ss ]

Systematic examination of Russian and Soviet history in the 20th century with particular attention to the problem of modernization, revolution, construction of a socialist society, and the collapse of the USSR. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Freeze

[ cl²⁵ ss ]

Examination of central issues in Soviet history, with particular attention to major sources and controversies. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Freeze

[ ss ]

The Battle of Gettysburg will be presented from the perspective of not only the military events that occurred in the summer of 1863, but also the causes and consequences of the battle. Thus, one aim is to address the drama and meaning of the larger conflict through an intense, but far-ranging, discussion of a pivotal event within it. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Hall

[ ss ]

Explores the causes, character, and consequences of the American war for independence. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Fischer

[ ss ]

Readings and discussions on the classical literature of American history, the great books that have shaped our sense of the subject. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Fischer

[ ss ]

An in-depth investigation of the Salem witch trials of 1692 and their role in American culture during the last 300 years. Focusing on gender, religion, law, and psychology, the class explores primary sources as well as films, plays, and novels. Students will also conduct field research in Salem. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1998.

Ms. Kamensky

[ cl¹¹ cl³⁶ ss ]

This survey of nonpublic life in the United States explores the changing nature of families and the material environments that have shaped and reflected American domestic ideals during the last four centuries. Major topics include gender roles and sexuality; production, reproduction, and material culture in the home; conceptions of the life course; racial, ethnic, and regional variations on the family; the evolution of "public" and "private" life; and the relationship between the family and the state. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Kamensky

[ ss ]

A survey of the history of slavery, the American South, the antislavery movement, the coming of the Civil War, and Reconstruction. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Fischer

[ cl³⁶ cl³⁷ ss ]

An introductory survey exploring the lives of women in Anglo-America from European settlement through the Civil War. Topics include the "history of women's history"; the role of gender in Native American, African, and European cultures; women's religion, work, and sexuality; and the changing possibilities for female education and expression from the colonial period through the 19th century. Usually offered in odd years.

Ms. Kamensky

[ ss ]

The social evolution of modern America, from the antebellum period to late 20th-century postindustrial society. Usually offered even years.

Ms. Jones

[ ss ]

We will put ourselves in workers' and managers' shoes, trying to understand why American working-class history has been so fractious over the last 400 years, while also reading and discussing the merits of different types of labor history.

Ms. Jones

[ ss ]

Explores the American West in history and myth, focusing on nationalism, the frontier as part of American identity, cultural diversity and conflict, environmental conditions and their management, and approaches to historical truth through primary source documents. Usually offered every year.

Staff

[ ss ]

An examination of the brief life of the southern Confederacy, emphasizing regional, racial, class, and gender conflicts within the would-be new nation. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Jones

[ ss ]

Development of American party politics, the legal system, and government. Special attention paid to the social and cultural determinants of party politics and economic and social policymaking. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Keller

[ cl²⁰ ss ]

An inquiry into European and American ideas about democracy, examining the transformation of social and political thought in the context of scientific, religious, philosophical, and socioeconomic developments. Usually offered every year.

Staff

[ ss ]

Explores the intellectual activities of women in early America from 1630 to 1861. Considers women as readers, writers, thinkers, and conversationalists by reading primary as well as secondary sources. Special attention is paid to the influence of British and French female intellectuals. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1999.

Staff

[ ss ]

Focuses on the American experience in World War II. From the 1920s to the early 1940s, totalitarian regimes were widely believed to be stronger than open societies. The outcome of World War II demonstrated the opposite. By combining the methods of the old military and political history with the new social, cultural, and economic history, we examine history as a structured sequence of contingencies, in which people made choices and choices made a difference. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Fischer

[ ss ]

An examination of the relationship of law to the political, economic, and social development of the United States. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Keller

[ cl²⁶ cl³³ ss ]

Developments in American philosophy, literature, art, and political theory examined in the context of socioeconomic change. Usually offered every year.

Staff

[ cl²⁴ nw wi ss ]

Provides a broad overview of Latin American women's history from the 16th to the 20th centuries. Explores the diversity of women's experience in different races and classes, and in different times and places. Usually offered every third year. Will be offered in fall of 1999.

Ms. Arrom

[ cl³ nw ss ]

This seminar explores relations between the Caribbean and the United States during the 20th century. Emphasis is on the Greater Antilles (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic), but students may study other countries in research papers if they wish. Usually offered in even years.

Ms. Arrom

[ cl²⁴ nw ss]

Interdisciplinary exploration of the historical roots of modern Mexico. Emphasis on the 1910 Revolution, causes and consequences of underdevelopment, social change, relations with the United States from a Mexican perspective, and the current crisis of the Mexican state. Usually offered in odd years.

Ms. Arrom

[ cl⁴¹ nw ss ]

A general introduction to Japan's modern transformation from a late feudal society into a powerful nation-state capable of challenging the Western powers. Particular attention is given to feudal legacies, rapid economic growth, nationalism and ultranationalism, the "Pacific War" between Japan and the United States, the meaning of defeat, issues of postwar democracy, and the workings of the postwar political economy.

Staff

[ ss ]

This course traces high politics, popular culture, and the making of Italian society from unification to the present. It examines the crisis of the liberal state, Mussolini's seizure of power, mass consent during Fascism, postwar reconstruction, terrorism, and the rebirth of Regionalism. Usually offered in odd years.

Ms. Kelikian

[ ss ]

Explores the transformation of Germany from the Reformation of the 16th century to the establishment of the German Empire in 1871. Its primary focus is on political and social history. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Freeze

[ ss ]

This course is intended to offer a systematic examination of modern Germany from the establishment of the German Empire in 1871 to unification in 1990. Its primary focus is political and social history. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Freeze

[ ss ]

The "archival revolution" of 1991, which declassified an immense quantity of previously secret materials, has encouraged a radical revision of the Stalin revolution in the 1930s. We seek to make a critical analysis of post-Cold War scholarship. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Freeze

[ cl⁴¹ ss ]

An advanced seminar introducing important issues and approaches in contemporary scholarship on China. Reading, discussion, bibliographical training, and term paper. Topics will deal with the close of the imperial era and with Sino-American relations. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Schrecker

[ cl⁴¹ nw ss]

Social, historical, and political theory is one of China's greatest contributions to world civilization. Studies the most influential schools (Confucianism, Mohism, Taoism, and Legalism) through the reading and discussion of original texts. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Schrecker

(Formerly POL 181b)

[ cl²⁰ ss ]

From Marx's first major book in 1845 to the French upheavals of 1968, the history of left-wing politics and ideas. The struggles between Marxist orthodoxy and anarchist-inspired, left Marxist alternatives. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1999.

Mr. Hulliung

(Formerly POL 183b)

[ cl²³ cl³⁴ cl⁴³ ss ]

The rise of social theory understood as a response to the trauma of industrialization. Topics include Marx's concept of "alienation," Tonnies' distinction between "community" and "society," Durkheim's notion of "anomie," Weber's account of "disenchantment," and Nietzsche's repudiation of modernity. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Hulliung

[ ss ]

Examines the military and diplomatic, social and economic history of the war. Topics include war origins; allied diplomacy; the neutrals; war propaganda; occupation, resistance, and collaboration; the mass murder of the Jews; "peace feelers"; the war economies; scientific warfare and the development of nuclear weapons; and the origins of the Cold War. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1998.

Mr. Jankowski

[ ss ]

A reading and research seminar on the American involvement in Vietnam. The purpose of the seminar will be to teach the history of America's longest war, as well as to improve the student's ability to write a research paper using source materials. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Schrecker

[ cl³⁶ ss ]

Selected readings in the history of American women, with an emphasis on historiography, research methodology, and the conceptual frameworks of several major, recent secondary works in the field. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Jones

(Formerly HIST 150a)

[ ss ]

This reading seminar and writing workshop will explore the changing nature of the historian's craft in an age when notions like "objectivity," authors' control over texts, even the possibility of verifiable truth have come under attack. We will explore theoretical writings on post-modern narrative, but our main focus will be on practice: reading and writing history that engages these concerns. Usually offered in even years.

Ms. Kamensky

[ ss ]

Reading and discussion seminar exploring problems in the history of British North America from the first white settlement through the mid-18th century. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Fischer

[ ss ]

Advanced coordinated research from primary materials. Students will engage in a common project in American social history. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Fischer

[ ss ]

A critical analysis of classical historiography. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

[ cl⁴⁴ ss ]

Examines the response of American government to the nation's economic, social, and political problems during the 20th century. Explores such diverse topics as antitrust, conservation, social welfare, voting reform, and regulation of alcohol and cigarettes. Compares and contrasts contemporary politics with that of the Progressive era. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

[ ss ]

The theory and practice of psychohistory from its beginnings as applied psychoanalysis through its emergence as an independent discipline to the main tendencies and controversies in the field today. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Binion

(Formerly POL 196b)

[ cl²⁰ cl²³ cl⁴³ ss ]

Readings from Camus, Sartre, Beckett, etc. Examination and criticism of romantic and existentialist theories of politics. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Hulliung

[ ss ]

An examination of the major reform movements of the 20th century. Special attention will be devoted to the principles of the reformers and to answering the question of whether a given reform movement built upon earlier models or marked a new departure. Usually offered in odd years. Will be offered in the fall of 1999.

Mr. Hulliung

(Formerly POL 195b)

[ ss ]

This course intends to consider some of the fundamental questions raised by modern democratic life through a careful study of some of the best writings of American political thinkers. We will focus our inquiries on the principles underlying self-government and on the character of the citizenry in a republic rather than on the structure of governmental institutions. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Hulliung

[ ss ]

Focuses on the literature of American intellectual history, from the Puritans to the present. We discuss methodological issues, chart the course of development in the historical study of American ideas, and examine classic and recent works in the field. Intended for undergraduates with considerable background in American history and for graduate students. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

[ ss ]

An introduction to the major episodes in the religious, social, political, and intellectual history of early modern Europe (ca. 1450-1800), with special attention given to methods of historical scholarship and discussion of various historiographic interpretations. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Sreenivasan

(200 and above) Primarily for Graduate Students

(Formerly HIST 198a)

Topics vary from year to year. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Kamensky

(Formerly HIST 198b)

An examination of major themes in the historiography of modern America. Topics vary from year to year. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Keller

HIST 210a Historical Research: Methods and New Departures.

(Formerly HIST 197a)

Provides an introduction to research methods and the newest approaches (conceptual, methodological, thematic) in historical research. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Binion

(Formerly HIST 197b)

Designed for first-year graduate students. Usually offered every year.

Ms. Kelikian

Designed for second-year graduate students. Usually offered every year.

Staff

Designed to introduce students to the methods, sources, and writings about global and non-western histories. Taught collectively by specialists in Latin American, Asian, African, and Middle Eastern history. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Hellyer

(Formerly HIST 199b)

Designed for first-year graduate students. Comparative examination of major historical issues in Europe from the 18th through the 20th centuries. Usually offered every year.

Mr. Jankowski

Designed for second-year graduate students. Comparative examination of major historical issues in Europe from the 18th through the 20th centuries. Usually offered every year.

Staff

(Formerly HIST 201e-209e)

Students will normally elect one research topic in the fall term and the spring of the first year. Each is designed to provide experience in designing, researching, and writing a substantial essay of a monographic character, based on extensive use of sources. Each is equivalent of two full courses. Specific research topics are selected by the student in consultation with the professor. Usually offered every year.

Staff

Usually offered every term. Specific sections for individual faculty members as requested.

Staff

Usually offered every term. Supervised graduate teaching in American history.

Staff

Usually offered every semester. Specific sections for individual faculty members as requested.

Staff

Specific sections for individual faculty members as requested. Offered every year.

Staff

Specific sections for individual faculty members as requested. Offered every year.

Staff

Specific sections for individual faculty members as requested. Offered every year.

Staff

Cross-Listed Courses

Africa and the West

Introduction to Afro-American History

Survey of Southern African History

Research on the Urban Underclass

The Ecology of Community: Knowing Your Place

Seminar in the History of Ideas: Case Studies

Islam: Civilization and Institutions

History of the Jews from 1492 to the Present

History of the Jews from the Maccabees to 1492

The Rise and Decline of the Ottoman Empire, 1300-1800

Merchants, Moneylenders, and Ghetti of Venice

History of Anti-Semitism

History of the State of Israel since 1948

Modern Jewish History to 1880

Modern Jewish History, 1880-1948

East European Jewish Immigration to the United States

A History of the Jews in Warsaw, Lodz, Vilna, and Odessa

History and Culture of the Jews in East-Central Europe to 1914

History and Culture of the Jews in East-Central Europe, 1914 to the Present

The Destruction of European Jewry

The American Presidency

Race and Politics in the United States

Utopia and Power in Modern Political Thought

American Political Thought