Schedule

PART 1. INTRODUCTION

Week 1: Why Study History

Wednesday, August 21 – Introduction to the Course

IN CLASS

  • Introductions!
  • The need for a historical understanding of the contemporary world, one that combines area studies and global history approaches
  • The map of the world

QUICK ASSIGNMENTS AFTER CLASS

  • Make sure that you can log in to Moodle and find our course Moodle site
  • Make sure you have a copy of R. Keith Schoppa
  • Make sure you can find the Readings Folder and Presentations Folder on Moodle
  • Bookmark this page on our Voices site – our Course Schedule
  • Please complete this brief survey before class on Friday so I can better get to know you

For More Reading

Friday, August 23—History and the World

PREPARATION

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Remember: your best way to prepare for class is to keep a notebook with a few well-chosen notes on the reading and the study questions
  • How does Schoppa intend to tell the history of the 20th c.? What is his approach?
  • What are his central themes? And central examples?
  • What does your map of the world look like?

IN CLASS

  • Blog entries from class next week – and sign ups
  • Introductions
  • How to think like a historian
  • Schoppa’s introduction of the 20th c.
  • Some important themes of the last 150 years

Week 2: An Introduction to the History of the World

Monday, August 26, Beyond Eurocentrism – An Introduction to World History

PREPARATION

  • If you haven’t already, please be sure to complete this brief survey before class so I can better get to know you
  • Read Robert Marks, The Origins of the Modern World (2020), “Introduction: The Rise of the West?” – at Moodle Readings folder
  • Sign up to write a blog entry on a class session on Moodle – follow this link
  • Register for a Voices account (if you don’t already have one) by completing this form. Then I will be able to add you as an Author on our Voices site and you will be able to post a blog entry for the entire class. You can choose any username you like, but be sure to use your Wooster email address.

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Remember: your best way to prepare for class is to keep a notebook with a few well-chosen notes on the reading and the study questions
  • We’re reading the introduction to Robert Marks global narrative of the origins of the modern world from 1400 to the present. Marks provides a helpful introduction to thinking about global history. After you read, you should be able to answer the following questions and discuss the following terms.
  • Note the “four interrelated themes” that Marks thinks define the modern world: Industrialization, nation-states, gap between wealthiest and poorest parts of the world, and the impact of people on the environment – can you say a word about each of these?
  • What is the story of the “rise of the West”? What is wrong with the story? Is it entirely wrong?
  • What is “Eurocentrism”? And what is wrong with it?
  • What is historical contingency? For example?
  • What is historical accident? For example?
  • What is historical conjuncture? For example?
  • What picture does Marks give of the world in 1400?
  • How does Marks explain the industrial and military success of Europe after 1800?

IN CLASS

  • Against Eurocentrism
  • A broad picture of modern history – with reference to contingency
    • what do we mean by “modernity”?
    • the West and the rest?

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Jorge Q.
  • Lilly A.

AFTER CLASS

  • I’ll distribute the Problem Set for Friday after class on Monday

Wednesday, August 28—Nationalism

PREPARATION

  • Read Benedict Anderson, “Imagined Communities” (1991) – at Moodle Readings folder

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • This reading comes from an influential book on nationalism. You’ve heard some echoes of their ideas in Marks already. But I can warn you – this is a graduate-level seminar reading. It may be a bit challenging
  • Anderson argues that three concepts had to fall away before it was possible to “imagine the nation”: a single language of truth, a belief in divine rule, a vision of time in which human history was indistinguishable from cosmology.
  • What was “print-capitalism”? And what was its impact? How was it involved in religious controversies?
  • What is a “nation”? What picture comes across of how nations are formed?

IN CLASS

  • Be sure we have two students ready to blog our class today
  • Anderson and the history of the nation
  • Revising the history of the 20th c. – taking a global view
  • Discuss: what does a global history look like?

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Nathan W.

Friday, August 30—Globalization and looking to the future

PREPARATION

  • Read Dipesh Chakrabarty, “Provincializing Europe” (2000) – at Moodle Readings folder
  • Complete weekly assignment (below)

Questions

  • Another reading from an influential work – this time in post-colonial studies. Again – this is a graduate-level seminar reading
  • What is this “Europe” that Chakrabarty wants to decenter or “provincialize”?
  • What are the concepts of “political modernity”? What value do they have? Are they universal? Should they be universal?
  • What is the “contradictory relationship” between European thought and political modernity?
  • What is the postcolonial critique of historicism that C presents?
  • Now, far more open-ended: what have you learned in these first few classes that might change the way you think about the world today?

PROBLEM SET DUE FRIDAY MORNING

  • Complete Problem Set #1 – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Chakrabarty and post-colonial studies
  • Discuss: Universal human rights? Decentering European ideals?
  • What have we learned?

For more fun

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Chloe P.
  • Sofia D.

Week 3: The World in 1900

Monday, September 2—The World in 1900: Ruhr Valley & Buenos Aires (Prof. Shaya)

PREPARATION

  • Note: yes, Monday is Labor Day. Nonetheless, classes are in session
  • Read first half of Schoppa, Chap. 1, 1900-1919

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • What picture of the world in 1900 comes through from Schoppa?
  • What central themes and examples do you take away?

IN CLASS

  • Introduction to the world in 1900
  • Ruhr Valley
  • Buenos Aires

AFter Class

  • I’ll share the weekly problem set by Monday night

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Madeleine H.
  • Gilad P-G

Wednesday, September 4—The World in 1900: Singapore (Prof. Margaret Ng) and Osaka (Prof. Jim Bonk)

PREPARATION

  • Read second half of Schoppa, Chap. 1, 1900-1919

Study Questions

  • What do you see as the impact of the First World War across the globe?
  • What central themes and examples do you take away?

IN CLASS

  • How to think like a historian
  • Singapore
  • Osaka

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Julia K.
  • Harry B.

Friday, September 6—The World in 1900: Dakar (Prof. Ibra Sene)

PREPARATION

  • No additional reading. Finish reading in Schoppa if necessary
  • Complete weekly assignment (below)

PROBLEM SET DUE FRIDAY MORNING

  • Complete Problem Set #2 – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Dakar
  • Discuss where we’ve been

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Ashton P.
  • Samantha J.

Week 4: Global Power Dynamics (and Exam #1 on Part 1)

Monday, September 9—Europe and the World (Prof. Shaya)

PREPARATION

  • No reading – but you might catch up on any readings you didn’t do well – or do the reading for Wednesday
  • Look forward to the exam on Friday – review readings, notes, and class presentations. You can see last year’s Exam 1 Study Guide on the Handouts page. I’ll update it for class on Monday

IN CLASS

  • Europe in broad historical perspective
  • Europe since 1945
  • Handout updated Exam Study Guide

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Edith-Michelle A.
  • Ava S.

Wednesday, September 11—The US and the World (Prof. Jeff Roche)

PREPARATION

  • Read Daniel Immerwahr, How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States, introduction
  • Read through the Exam #1 Study Guide before class

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • What was the US doing in the Philippines?
  • What is the place of Puerto Rico in the United States?
  • What is the logo map? And what is wrong with it?
  • What are (and what have been) the territories of the US?
  • What does it mean to say that the US is an empire?

IN CLASS

  • The US and the World
  • The Greater United States
  • Discussion

Friday, September 13—First Exam on PART 1 of course

IN CLASS

  • Exam #1 in class

DETAILS ON EXAM

PART 2. REGIONAL PERSPECTIVES

Week 5: Latin America in Historical Perspective

Monday, September 16—Latin America in Broad Perspective (Prof. Shaya)

PREPARATION

  • Thomas Holloway, “Latin America: What’s in a Name?” from A Companion to Latin American History (2008) – at Moodle Readings folder
  • Phillip Berryman, “Highly Unequal—And Middle Class?” in Latin America at 200 – at Moodle Readings folder

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Where did the idea of “Latin” America come from?
  • What, according to Holloway, might be some better categories to use to analyze this region? (Hint: how might we subdivide this larger region?)
  • (True/False). Latin America is statistically the most unequal region in the world.
  • How has the proportion of Latin Americans living in poverty changed in recent years?
  • By the way, what are the UN Millennium Development Goals?
  • What are some measures of inequality in Latin America?
  • How does Berryman account for Latin American inequality? That is, why are Latin American societies so unequal?
  • What are some signs of the rising middle class in Latin America?

IN CLASS

  • Class presentation
    • Legacies of Colonialism
    • Transculturation
    • Pre-Contact Americas
    • Imperialism
    • Independence
    • Neo-Colonialism
  • Discussion

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Anthony A.
  • Ricky G.

Wednesday, September 18—Latin America in the 20th c. (Prof. Michele Leiby)

PREPARATION

  • No addl reading – but finish the Holloway and Berryman if you did not
  • Please – before 9am on the day of class – complete this form. Share a question (or two or three) you might have about Latin American politics

IN CLASS

  • Latin America in the 20th c. – Broad Themes
  • Civil War and Political Violence
  • US Foreign Policy

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Alexis N.
  • Grady G.

Friday. September 20—Discussion

PREPARATION

  • Read Eduardo Galleano, Upside Down (1998) (selections) – at Moodle Readings folder
  • Complete problem set

PROBLEM SET DUE FRIDAY MORNING

  • Complete Problem Set – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Discuss themes from the week
  • Eduardo Galleano
  • Small group discussion

Week 6: Africa in Historical Perspective (with Prof. Ibra Sene)

Monday, September 23—Africa in Broad Perspective

PREPARATION

  • Read Jonathan Reynolds, “Africa’s Role in World History” (Berkshire, 2011) – at Moodle Readings folder

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Why is Africa’s place in history contentious?
  • Where does the idea that Africa is without history come from?
  • What do Hume & Hegel say about Africa in history?
  • What are some views of Afrocentric history?
  • Who are Carter Woodson, W.E.B. Dubois, and Cheik Anta Dior?
  • What are drawbacks of area studies approach to history?
  • What is insight of Patrick Manning? (Or, what are “zones of interaction”?)
  • Name 4 African countries and one important detail of their histories

IN CLASS

  • Historiography of Africa

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Andrew C.
  • Alex W.

Wednesday, September 25—Africa Since 1945

PREPARATION

  • Read Schoppa, Ch. 3, 1937-1949
    • Note that the reading doesn’t align with the topic of the week and the day’s lecture – but read to stay on track
    • Schoppa provides a general history of the 20th c. that can be useful for us. Note that in many ways it does not escape from a Eurocentric or Western-centric point of view
    • We won’t go over this material in class – but it will serve us when we talk about East Asia, the Middle East, and South Asia, for ex

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Some keys and examples to Schoppa’s account
    • Ideological struggles – Guernica, Comintern
    • Japanese invasion of China
    • Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union (less important for our course than for a general history of the 20th c.)
    • The Holocaust, genocide
    • The atomic age – Hiroshima, Nagasaki
    • Zionism, Palestine, Balfour Declaration, Israel, 1948 war
    • British India, Amritsar Massacre, Mohandas Gandhi
    • Bretton Woods, 1944 – and GATT, for ex
    • Dumbarton Oaks, 1944 – and United Nations, for ex
  • Where is Africa in the story of WW2 as told by Schoppa?

IN CLASS

  • 2500 Years of African History
  • Discussion

Friday, September 27—Discussion

PREPARATION

  • Read the following short pieces:
    • “Africa is Changing so Rapidly…,” The Economist, March 26, 2020 – in Moodle Readings under Economist – Africa
    • “Migration is Helping Africa…,” The Economist, March 26, 2020 – in Moodle Readings under Economist – Migration
  • Complete weekly assignment on Africa before class

PROBLEM SET DUE FRIDAY MORNING

  • Complete Problem Set – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Small group discussion
  • Questions for Prof. Sene

Week 7: East Asia in Historical Perspective (with Prof. Jim Bonk)

Monday, September 30—East Asia in Broad Perspective

PREPARATION

  • Read Schoppa, Ch. 4, 1950-1965
    • Note that the reading doesn’t align directly with the lecture
    • We’ll put the two together in our discussion on Friday – and beyond

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Some keys and examples to Schoppa’s account
    • Polio
    • China, the PRC (1949), Mao Zedong, the Great Leap Forward
    • Hiroshima, Nagasaki
    • Containment
    • The Cold War, client states
    • Korean War
    • Decolonization. Malaya (or Malaysia), Kenya, for example
    • French Indochina, Ho Chi Minh, Vietminh, Vietnam War
    • French Algeria, FLN, Franz Fanon
    • South Africa
    • Suez Crisis of 1956
    • Second Vatican Council
  • What is the significance of East Asia in the story of the Cold War as told by Schoppa?

IN CLASS

  • Introduction to History of East Asia

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Evan S.
  • Bennett D.

Wednesday, October 2—East Asia Since 1945

PREPARATION

  • Read Alexis Dudden, “Thinking about Japan’s Territorial Disputes,” Sungkyun Journal of East Asian Studies (2017)
    • Please be sure to read before class

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • What picture of Japanese empire do you take away from Dudden? What was its extent? And its history?
  • How does the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS, 1994) change the territoriality of states (according to Dudden)?
  • What do Japanese policymakers mean with assertions that disputed islands are “inherently Japanese”?
  • What other states have interests and claims to the islands claimed by Japan?

IN CLASS

  • East Asia Since 1945
  • Japan and its History

AFTER CLASS – BLOG ENTRIES FROM

  • Carly L

Friday, October 4—Discussion

PREPARATION

  • Read (this short opinion piece) Amitai Etzioni, “Is China a New Colonial Power?” The Diplomat (2020) – online at The Diplomat and in the Moodle Readings Folder
  • Then complete the last questions of the weekly assignment on East Asia

PROBLEM SET DUE FRIDAY MORNING

  • Complete Problem Set – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Discussion

FALL BREAK 10/5-10/13

Enjoy the break!

Week 8: Southeast Asia (with Prof. Margaret Ng)

Monday, October 14—Southeast Asia

PREPARATION

  • Read Schoppa, Ch. 5, 1966-1979
    • Note that the reading doesn’t align directly with the lecture
    • We’ll put the two together in our discussion on Friday – and beyond
    • There is a lot here. Please focus on the pieces that help explain what the 60s and 70s looked like outside of the US and Europe

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • A few questions on Schoppa Chapter 5
    • What, according to Schoppa, was the legacy of Stephen Biko?
    • According to S., what were some of the different demands of women in the 1960s and 1970s?
    • What, according to S., where the motivations (or justifications or explanations) for the atrocities (in East Pakistan or Cambodia for example) of the 1960s and 70s?
    • What was the role of the US in Southeast Asia in the 60s and 70s?
    • What was the Green Revolution?
    • Other relevant terms and names that come up include: Apartheid, Soweto Uprising, East Pakistan/Bangladesh, Burundi and Rwanda, Vietnam, Tet Offensive, Khmer Rouge, Cultural Revolution in China, Shanghai Communique, OPEC…

IN CLASS

  • Welcome back!
  • Introduction to Southeast Asia

Wednesday, October 16—Southeast Asia

PREPARATION

  • Read Eric Thompson, selections from “Modern Southeast Asia,” in The Story of Southeast Asia
    • Read the first section, pp. 182-185
    • Read the last two sections, pp. 205-12

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • How does the schooling of children in Southeast Asia (as described by Thompson) differ from the primary education you received (wherever that was)?
  • What is “modernity”? And where does it come from?
  • What are the most important events of the 20th c. that have shaped Southeast Asia?
  • Thompson explains the economic changes that have shaped Southeast Asia in the 20th c. What does “human development” look like in Southeast Asia today?
  • What is ASEAN?

IN CLASS

  • Modern Southeast Asia
  • I’ll share problem set after class on Wednesday

Friday, October 18—Discussion

PREPARATION

  • No additional reading. Complete problem set

PROBLEM SET DUE FRIDAY MORNING

  • Complete Problem Set – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Questions
  • Discussion

Week 9: South Asia in Historical Perspective

Monday, October 21—South Asia in Broad Perspective

PREPARATION

  • Read Richard Haas, chapter from The World: A Brief Introduction
    • “South Asia,” pp. 97-110
    • This is a helpful survey of South Asian politics and recent history, but you should note in reading it comes from a distinctly American point a view
  • “Three Visions of India”
    • Quotations from Nehru, Savarkar, and Shepherd

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Questions on Haas
    • What colonial power had the largest impact on South Asia?
    • What is the “thread that captures the essence” of South Asia?
    • What kind of politics have shaped independent India?
    • How about Pakistan?
    • What disagreements shape the relationship between India and Pakistan?
    • What foreign powers have been involved in Afghanistan (and when and why)?
  • On “Three Visions”
    • How does Nehru define India?
    • For Savarkar, what is the problem with Indian Muslims and Christians?
    • Why doe Shepherd find it strange to be called Hindu?

IN CLASS

  • Introduction to Research Paper Assignment
  • Class presentation
  • Discussion

Wednesday, October 23–Democracy and its Discontents in Modern India (with Praveen Swami)

PREPARATION

  • Read Schoppa, Ch. 6, 1980-1991
    • Note that the reading doesn’t align directly with the lecture
    • We’ll put the two together in our discussion on Friday – and beyond

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Questions on Schoppa
    • There is a lot in this survey of the 1980s. Don’t sweat the details, but do take away a picture of the following developments
    • Technological advances in the 1980s – in computers, for ex
    • The Bhopal disaster of 1984
    • Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 1986
    • Exxon Valdez spill of 1989
    • Amazon deforestation
    • Iran-Iraq War
    • Soviet war in Afghanistan
    • The collapse of pro-Soviet Communist regimes in Eastern Europe in 1989
    • China – the liberalization of the economy – and Tiananmen Square 1989
    • South Africa – Apartheid

IN CLASS

  • Independent India and the Challenges of Democracy

Friday, October 25—Discussion

PREPARATION

  • Read this short news excerpt
    • “Climate change is making the monsoon more dangerous,” The Economist, July 18, 2024 – in Moodle readings
    • Think about the interplay of geopolitics and climate change
  • Complete problem set by Friday morning

Problem Set Due Friday Morning

  • Complete Problem Set – on Moodle – stay tuned for details – due before class at 9am on Friday

IN CLASS

  • Discuss research paper assignment
  • Discussion of South Asian History

Week 10: The Middle East in Historical Perspective

Monday, October 28—The Middle East in Broad Perspective

PREPARATION

  • Read Dona J. Stewart, The Middle East Today: Political Geographical and Cultural Perspectives (2009), pp. 1-39.
    • This reading is taken from a text that discusses both the Middle East and North Africa. In our sessions this week, however, we will not discuss North Africa, except for Egypt. Therefore you don’t need to concern yourself with material relevant specifically to North Africa.
  • Also, give some thought to your research paper

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Key names & terms:
    • The Ottoman Empire, the Middle East
    • Orientalism
    • “clash of civilizations”
    • Islamists/Islamic fundamentalists, Jihadis
  • What incorrect ideas did medieval Christians hold about Islam?
  • What does Edward Said mean by orientalism?
  • How do Bernard Lewis and Samuel Huntington explain the contemporary hostility between “the west” and much of the Muslim world?
  • According to this reading, what is wrong with all these grand explanations about the divide between “the west” and Islam? What alternative explanation does this author advance?

IN CLASS

  • Class presentation
  • Discussion

Wednesday, October 30—The Middle East in the 20th c.

PREPARATION

  • Read Schoppa, Ch. 9, 1991-2000
    • Note that the reading doesn’t align directly with the lecture
    • We’ll put the two together in our discussion on Friday – and beyond

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Questions on Schoppa. Once again, there is a lot in this survey of the 1990s. Don’t sweat the details. Some terms and names and examples that you should take away
    • South Africa – Nelson Mandela and FW DeKlerk
    • Israel and Palestine – Intifada, Oslo Accords, Yitzhak Rabin
    • Breakup of Yugoslavia – Bosnian War, UN forces, Srbrenica Massacre, ethnic cleansing, Slobodan Milosevic
    • Rwanda and Burundi
    • Democratic Republic of the Congo
    • 2000 Olympics – 199 nations
    • Violence of the 20th c. – about 187 m. deaths from war and genocide
    • Aung San Suu Kyi – Myanmar, Rohingya

IN CLASS

  • Class presentation
  • Discussion

Friday, November 1—Discussion

PREPARATION

  • Read Declarations of Independence of Israel (1948) and Palestine (1988)
  • Re-read Final Paper Assignment. Do some initial thinking. Jot down some initial ideas for your research paper – due by midnight on Friday

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Taking into account both structure and content, in what ways do these two documents resemble each other? How do you account for those resemblances
  • What role does religion play in each document?
  • How does each of these two groups define themselves
  • How does each define the other?
  • How does each envision the place of the other in their new state?

IN CLASS

  • Discussion

After Class

  • Research paper initial ideas due by the end of the day – upload to Moodle

For More

PART 3. THEMATIC PERSPECTIVES

Week 11: Review, Exam, Final Papers

Monday, November 4—Work on Our Final Papers

Preparation

  • Take the Moodle Practice Exam – Required! You will need to download the Moodle Safe Browser and test on your computer. If you run into difficulty, restart your computer. The content of your answers does not matter, but I’d like to make sure that the exam browser is working for you. See more details on Moodle
  • Do some thinking on your research paper beyond your initial idea
    • Do you have a contemporary event or issue that needs some historical explanation?
    • Can you think of a few ways to put your topic into historical perspective?
  • Start your bibliography
  • Bring your laptop to class and prepare to discuss

In Class

  • Workshop research paper topics
    • We’ll share our ideas with each other – and do some research to identify sources and develop our background to write our research proposals

Wednesday, November 6—Review of our Regional Studies of the World

PREPARATION

  • Review: presentations, class notes, weekly assignments from Part 2 of the course
  • Read the Study Guide for Exam #2 – on our Handouts page – and prepare for the exam

IN CLASS

  • Review and discuss
    • How to think historically
    • Latin America
    • Africa
    • East Asia
    • Southeast Asia
    • South Asia
    • Middle East

Friday, November 8–Exam

Preparation

  • Review for exam

IN CLASS

  • We will take the second exam in class
  • Please bring your laptop – be sure you have power – you may want to restart your computer before the exam

After Class

  • Research paper proposal due Sunday by noon – upload to Moodle

Week 12: Globalization and Mobility (and Final Paper Projects)

Monday, November 11—Globalization

PREPARATION

  • Check out Our World in Data on “Trade and Globalization” – online here
    • There is a lot of information – and there are a lot of charts – here. Don’t let them overwhelm you! Choose one or two to study carefully and come to class with your observations and questions
  • Recommended (but entirely optional)
    • James Suzman, Sharon Bessell, and Arnagretta Hunter, “Podcast: Work with James Suzman” Asia & the Pacific Policy Society – online at Policy Forum
    • David Graeber and David Wengrow, “Ancient History Shows How We Can Create a More Equal World,” New York Times (2021) – online at NYTimes
    • Miriam Ching Yoon Louie, “Sweatshop Warriors, Immigrant Women Workers Take on the Global Factory” (2001) – at Moodle Readings folder
    • Nicholas Kristof, “The Best News You Don’t Know,” New York Times (2016) – at Moodle Readings folder
    • “A Pep Talk From Stephen Pinker,” Scientific American (2021) – online at Scientific American
  • Do some work on your research paper
    • Reread the assignment
    • Gather news sources that interest you – and start your bibliography
    • Come to class with your idea for the final paper

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • What is globalization?
  • How has global capitalism reshaped the world?
  • What can we see as the costs of globalization?

IN CLASS

  • Introduction to globalization
  • Global capitalism in historical perspective
  • Talk about research paper ideas

Wednesday, November 13—Immigration and Mobility

PREPARATION

  • Read Duiker, Contemporary History, on migration and population (just a couple pages)
    • Read “The Great Escape” and “The Danger of Overpopulation,” pp. 404-405, and “Migration and Climate Change,” p. 406 – in Moodle Reading Folder
  • Recommended (but entirely optional)
    • Patrick Manning, Migration in World History
    • Check out the interactive “World Migration Report 2024” United Nations IOM – online at IOM UN
    • See the United Nations High Commission on Refugees – online at UNHCR
    • “Climate Change and Displacement” – online at UNHCR
    • Mark Sachleben, “Human Migration: Immigration, Emigration, and Refugees”, from World Politics on Screen (2014) – at Moodle Readings folder
    • Maansi Kumar and Amyaz Moledina, “Mobility Studies: An inclusive interdisciplinary approach to understanding migration”at Challenging Borders (2017) – online at Challenging Borders
    • “The US Immigration Debate,” Council on Foreign Relations Backgrounder (2021) – online at CFR
    • Julia Laite, “Migration and Mobility” Introduction to Virtual Special Issue, History Workshop – online at History Workshop
    • “Infectious Disease Movement in a Borderless World: Workshop Summary” (2010) – online at NIH

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • How do we define immigration, emigration, refugees, domestic migration?
  • What are the forces that “push” or “pull” migrants?
  • Why are the politics of immigration so contentious?

IN CLASS

  • Migration in human history
  • Immigration in the contemporary world
  • The contentious politics of migration

Friday, November 15—Research Paper Workshop

PREPARATION

NO CLASS MEETING!

  • I’ll be at a history conference on Friday
  • Submit your research notes on Moodle to show me what you are working on and what you’ve learned

Week 13: Environmental History, Democracy & International Cooperation

Monday, November 18—An Environmental History of the Twentieth-Century World

PREPARATION

  • Read Duiker, Contemporary History, on environmental issues (just a couple pages)
    • Read “One World, One Environment” and “The UN Raises the Alarm,” pp. 417-423 – Duiker-Environment in Moodle Reading Folder
  • Continue work on research paper

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • What is the “health of the planet”?
  • What is the ongoing impact of climate change?

IN CLASS

  • The History of the Environment
  • Discussion

Wednesday, November 20—Democracy & Authoritarianism

Preparation

  • Read Duiker, Contemporary History, on liberal democracy and more (just a couple pages)
    • Read “Making Connections,” pp. 424-427 – Duiker-Liberal Democracy in Moodle Reading Folder
  • Continue work on research paper

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • Why “democracy in crisis”?
  • What is the state of democracy in Europe? In the US?
  • What is liberal democracy, anyway?
  • What are the prospects for democracy around the world?

IN CLASS

  • Democracy and authoritarianism
  • Discussion

For more on the subject

Friday, November 22—The Nation State and Globalization

PREPARATION

  • Read Keylor, “Epilogue, A World of Nations in the Era of Globalization” – in Moodle Readings Folder
  • Identify 2-3 examples that you think are most important to understand global and regional challenges today.

PART 4. CONCLUSIONS

Week 14: Final Paper Workshop & Thanksgiving

Monday, November 25—Final Paper Workshop

PREPARATION

  • For Monday’s class you will need to turn in your Research Paper outline and initial draft – before class by 9am
    • Outline: a simple outline that includes: title, statement of topic, thesis, issue/event in the news, historical perspectives, and conclusion
    • Initial draft. At a minimum: introduction (with thesis) and presentation of issue/event in the news. You may bring in more: historical perspectives, conclusion (may include some parts in outline form)
    • I will print and bring copies to class
  • You might want to review

Outline and Draft DUE BY Monday MORNING

  • Outline and initial draft are due Monday at 9am before class meets. Submit electronically as a single pdf to Moodle
  • Bring two printed copies to class (you’ll keep one copy with your notes – and turn the other one in to me)

IN CLASS

  • Turn in hard copies of outline and draft
  • Sample poster presentation
  • Workshop paper outline and drafts

Wednesday and Friday – No Classes! Thanksgiving!

Week 15: Class Conference & Conclusion

Poster Presentations this week

Monday, December 2—Class Poster Session 1

IN CLASS

  • Poster presentations by

Wednesday, December 4—Class Poster Session 2

IN CLASS

  • Poster presentations by

Friday, December 6–Last Class

PREPARATION

  • Work through Final Exam Study Guide – on our Handouts page – bring your questions
  • Review your notes, course outlines, course presentations
  • Come to class with answers to the following
    • What are a few details (names, events, examples) that you learned from the course? Bring a dozen important examples – your top dozen
    • What are a few concepts (ideas, arguments, interpretations) that you learned from the course? Bring your top five
    • And your answer to the question how can history help us understand the world today?

IN CLASS

  • Final Comments
  • Review
  • Celebration

Saturday, December 7—Paper Due

  • Paper Due
  • Submit electronically as pdf to Moodle
  • Deadline Saturday at noon

Exam Week

Monday, December 9. 2024, 8:00am to 10:30am

Final Exam

  • Meet in our regular classroom (come a few minutes early, ready to start at 8:00)
  • Bring your laptop
  • See full details on our Final Exam Study Guide – on our Handouts page