Spring 2012 Advanced Courses
HISTORY DEPARTMENT ADVANCED COURSES SPRING 2012
The SFA History Department will offer the following advanced and graduate courses during the spring 2012 semester. For more information about individual courses, see the instructor.
All 300 and 400 level courses have a prerequisite of 6 hours of history.
To help students meet degree requirements, each semester the department will designate certain courses
Writing Enhanced.
HIS 321 WORLD HISTORY, Dr. Snider, MW 2:30-3:45, F-480
This course uses world history to look at the ways in which different peoples, cultures, and societies have developed and interacted over time. We will investigate various social, political, ideological, and economic processes and factors that shaped global history over time.
Meets an elective requirement for the International Studies second major or minor.
Meets a requirement for those seeking teacher certification in History for grades 8-12
HIS 326 AGE OF NATIONALISM, Dr. Booker, TR 8:00-9:15, F-477
Nationalism has been the most powerful political ideology in the world for the past two centuries. This course examines the social, economic, and political changes that contributed to the spread of nationalism and of nation-building in Europe during the long nineteenth century. Among the topics covered in the course are: the causes of nationalism, its effects on international stability, nationalism and empires, globalization and the future of the state, and how nationalism relates to liberalism, communism, and religion.
Writing Enhanced Course
HIS 330 EUROPEAN POPULAR CULTURE, 1500 – 1800, Dr. Allen, M 6:00-8:30, F-475
This course is an overview of European popular culture during the early modern period. We will examine the traditions and beliefs of ordinary men and women, set against the broader material conditions of daily life. Principal themes will include: definitions of popular culture and issues of methodology; literacy and reading, popular stories and folk tales; marriage, women, and family; popular religion, sainthood, the Reformation and religious change; witchcraft and magic; “private life,” old age and death; criminality; crowd behavior and popular violence.
HIS 331 LATIN AMERICA, ANCIENT TO 1830, Dr. Snider, TR 11:00-12:15, F-480
This course looks at the peoples, cultures, and events of Latin America from 8000BC to 1822. Through the use of primary documents, secondary readings, film, music, and other materials, we will look at the ways in which indigenous and colonial cultures from Mexico to the Tierra del Fuego operated and changed over time.
HIS 335 HISTORY OF TEXAS, Dr. Bradford, TR 2:00-3:15, F-480
The course is designed as a comprehensive survey course in Texas history beginning with pre-Columbian contact and continuing until the contemporary era. Because the course consists of such an expansive timeframe, a number of topics will only be cursorily covered in class lectures, making it essential that students supplement their understanding of course content with readings in the textbooks. The primary focus of the course will be the various political, social, and cultural themes that have played key roles in the development of Texas and Texans and the emphasized themes will be the ones the instructor feels most essential in gaining an understanding of Texas in a historical perspective. Course themes will include the exploration of the diverse cultural legacies of the state, the place of Texas in the American South, and the role of economic boom-and-bust cycles in shaping the state. Because this is an upper level history course, a key element of the course will be the growth of critical thinking among the students concerning the examination of historical themes and paradigms. Students will also be asked to read historical monographs outside of class and be able to provide a critical analysis of each work within the constraints of an essay quiz.
Meets a requirement for those seeking teacher certification in social studies for grades 4-8.
HIS 335.501 HISTORY OF TEXAS, Mr. Bradford, Web course
The course is designed as a comprehensive survey course in Texas history beginning with pre-Columbian contact and continuing until the contemporary era. Because the course covers such an expansive timeframe, a number of topics will only be cursorily covered in class lectures, making it essential that students supplement their understanding of course content with readings in the textbooks. The primary focus of the course will be the various political, social, and cultural themes that have played key roles in the development of Texas and Texans, and the emphasized themes will be the ones the instructor feels most essential in gaining an understanding of Texas in a historical perspective. Course themes will include the exploration of the diverse cultural legacies of the state, the place of Texas in the American South, and the role of economic boom-and-bust cycles in shaping the state. Because this is an upper-level history course, a key element of the course will be the growth of critical thinking among the students concerning the examination of historical themes and paradigms.
This course meets a requirement for those seeking teacher certification in social studies for grades 4-8.
HIS 342 HISTORY OF ENGLAND II, Dr. Malpass, MWF 10:00-10:50, F-475
This course surveys the History of England from the late Middle Ages through the Tudor-Stuart Era and the influence of the Glorious Revolution on Modern Britain with an emphasis upon constitutional, legal, and monarchial evolution. It is taught as an audio-visual course with slides, films and computers used extensively.
Meets an elective requirement for the Gender Studies minor.
May count toward the International Business major – see MMIB Department.
HIS 348 NEW SOUTH, Dr. Sosebee, TR 9:30-10:45 F-477
This course will explore the history of this unique region from the end of the Civil War through the present. It will examine political, economic, social, and cultural themes in an attempt to understand how and why the South developed its unique character and history.
HIS 351 TSARIST RUSSIA, Dr. Cox, TR 12:30-1:45, F-477
This course is a survey of the political, social and cultural history of Russia in the 18th and 19th century. Key topics will include: the reigns of Peter the Great and Catherine the Great; the tsarist government in the 19th century; the rise and fall of serfdom in Russia; and the development of the revolutionary movement which eventually brought down the monarchy in 1917. Students will read both works by historians and memoirs by participants in historical events.
HIS 414 FIRST LADIES, Dr. Cooper, MWF 11:00-11:50, F-477
Jacqueline Kennedy once said, “The one thing I do not want to be called is First Lady. It sounds like a saddle horse.” Her comment raises the question, “What is the role of the First Lady?” Never has there been such a position in the United States government that holds such potential power without so much as a job description for its occupant. The position was not written into the Constitution; nevertheless, the job has changed over time as presidential spouses have exhibited a range of personas—from begrudgingly playing the “ceremonial” wife to taking on more political duties and public tasks as an “activist” First Lady. Thus, this course seeks to analyze the ever evolving role of the First Lady from Martha Washington to Michelle Obama.
Meets an elective requirement for the Gender Studies minor.
Writing Enhanced Course
HIS 440 AMERICAN REVOLUTION, Dr. Lannen, MWF 8:30-8:50, F-477
An in depth look at the period from the end of the Seven Years War in 1763 through the ratification of the Constitution and Bill of Rights. It explores the place of the British North American colonies in the imperial scheme, growing disputes between the mother country and colonies over taxation, mob violence, the development of American identity, the military struggle over independence, the divisions between rebels and loyalists, and the debates over the United States Constitution.
HIS 448 GILDED AGE AND PROGRESSIVISM, 1877 - 1920 Dr. Beisel, MWF 12:00-12:50, F-480
This course will be a study of the sweeping changes that occurred in the American society, economy, politics, diplomacy, and culture between the end of Reconstruction and the conclusion of the Great War. Students familiar with such well-known national figures and events as Theodore Roosevelt, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Armour & Swift, Jane Addams, San Juan Hill, the Homestead Strike, and skyscrapers will learn about others such as the Hello Girls, The Otis Company, Jimmy Winkfield, Lillian Russell, Molly Maguires, Delano & Aldrich, and the telephone excise tax.
HIS 449 UNITED STATES IN WORLD WAR II, Dr. Taaffe, MWF 9:00-9:50, F-480
This course focuses on the United States’ military, diplomatic, economic, political, and social role in World War Two.
HIS 451 US SINCE 1945, Dr. Carney, T 6:00-8:30, F-477
This course centers on the cultural, social, and political development of the United States since 1945. Topics of the class will include postwar youth subcultures, the fight for civil rights, the Vietnam War, the culture of protest, the complexities of post-Cold War America, and the impact these struggles have had on shaping modern America. Special emphasis will be given to the culture of race as well as to the evolving concepts of equality as many Americans began to challenge conventional definitions of freedom and opportunity.
HIS 459 NAZI GERMANY, Dr. Jackson, W 4:00-6:30, F-480
Few brief periods in history have made as much difference in the lives of millions of people as did the years between 1930 and 1945. The epicenter of the period was in Germany, where the National Socialist regime after 1933 organized and launched a racial and military war. This course will discuss the continuities and discontinuities in German history – the “before, during, and after” impact of the Nazi regime. The ways the experiences of Germany were comparable to that of other Western nations will also be discussed. Some of the topics highlighted will be: Why did the Weimar Republic fail? Why did the Nazis succeed? How did the Nazis stand democracy on its head? What contradictions in democracy made this possible? What happened to individual rights in the totalitarian state? How did the radical departure from the ethics of the Western tradition turn Social Darwinism into the Holocaust? Was Hitler personally to blame or was the guilt collective? What responsibility do foreign governments like the U.S. have in the Nazi march to war and horror? What lessons can be gleaned from a study of the period? The course will be divided into three parts: The Nazi rise to power, their actions and policies while in power, and their waging of total war on Europe and the Jews.
GRADUATE COURSES
HIS 531 HISTORICAL RESEARCH, WRITING AND EDITING, Dr. Taaffe, R 6:00-8:30, F-480
This course focuses on learning the tools necessary for historians to conduct effective research, writing, and editing
HIS 541 THE WESTERN HERITAGE: ANCIENT, Dr. Dahmus, T 6:00-8:30, F-475
This course will study ancient Greek and Roman history through the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Students will complete a three-page paper each week on some aspect of Greek or Roman history.
HIS 570 COLLECTIONS MANAGEMENT, Dr. Sandul, M 6:00-8:30, F-477
Introduction to the broad fields of museum and archival work from the history of both areas to issues of theory and practice, to the development, care and use of collections. The course will also address staffing and management concerns, educational and exhibition development, and the social, economic, and political trends that shape collections.
HIS 578 VIETNAM WAR, Dr. Catton, W 6:00-8:30, F-477
Examines the origins, evolution, and consequences of the Vietnam conflict, 1945-1975. Within a broadly chronological framework, the course will focus on issues such as anti-colonialism and revolutionary politics, presidential decision-making, military strategy, war crimes, and the contested memories of the conflict. It will also seek to address some of the shortcomings of the current scholarship: as one historian has noted, the literature on the Vietnam War is dominated by “American scholars asking American-oriented questions and seeking answers in documents produced by Americans.” Therefore, considerable attention will be devoted to hitherto neglected aspects, notably the Vietnamese side of events and the conflict’s international dimensions. Students will be introduced to the classic works on the war as well as the latest scholarship.