Course Descriptions

*Note: The first four courses listed above with an asterisk (HIST 103, HIST 105, HIST 107, HIST 108) are the Department's Introduction to History seminars.  Though they specifically deal with a particular period or series of events, their main purpose is to expose the student to the historical craft.  The overarching question for each is: How do historians construct a view of the past?  From this point of departure, the students examine how historians select questions for study, how they seek eyewitness accounts and interpret them, understanding the difference between primary and secondary sources, and how they present their findings.  These courses are designed to introduce first- and second-year students to the study of history; they they must be taken in the the first two years of your academic study. They are offered in a two-year rotation, one course each term.
*HIST 103 (3)---Introduction to History: Intoxication and Addiction in American History Prerequisite: Open to first-year students and sophomores; others by permission of the instructor.       Contemporary commentators regard addiction as a biological and psychological condition, rooted in heredity, biochemistry, and family dynamics. Yet, historians have argued that prior to 1800, there were no alcohol addicts, only Americans who over-indulged in drink. In this course we will examine evidence bearing on this radical thesis. By examining the experiences of Native Americans, native-born Protestants, and immigrant groups, we will also examine how women's concerns shaped nineteenth-century movements to control the use of alcohol and the American society. Documents bearing on the point of view of sufferers as well as professionals and reformers will be considered. Offered alternate years. III.W, V.1, V.5.
*HIST 105 (3)---Introduction to History: Doing Sweet Briar History Prerequisite: Open to first-year students and sophomores; others by permission of the instructor.      This course explores the realm of historical explanation using the Sweet Briar archives.  Each step in historical construction will be illustrated by short projects: locating sources, determining their contexts, analyzing sources with reference to their use as historical evidence, forming theory in response to evidence, and constructing narrative.  Each student will combine these short projects to create a history of a topic of her choice. Offered alternate years. III.W, V.5.
*HIST 107 (3)---Introduction to History: Stalin and Hitler Prerequisite: Open to first-year students and sophomores; others by permission of the instructor.      An examination of the careers of Stalin and Hitler, with particular emphasis on that period (1933-1945) during which both were in power. Topics include each man's role as leader of his country, his ideology, and his domestic and foreign policies. Special attention will be paid to the Holocaust and to the related question of whether the Soviet experience of the gulag is in anyway comparable. Offered alternate years. III.W, V.1.
*HIST 108 (3)---Introduction to History: Modern Law and Medieval Past Prerequisite: Open to first-year students and sophomores; others by permission of the instructor.      The roots of many contemporary western legal concepts reach far back into the past. This seminar explores the development of such topics as punishment, "just war," the foundations of civil rights, legal "personhood," and the Judeo-Christian underpinnings of western jurisprudence. Readings encompass primary historical sources and modern documents. Student writing will include essays, briefs, and a legal history research paper.  Offered alternate years.  May be counted toward the minor in law and society. III.W, V.1.
HIST 121 (3)---Early and Medieval Britain      This course surveys British history from antiquity to the War of the Roses. Topics include the early Celts and Britons; the Roman occupation; Christianization of the British Isles; Anglo- Saxon Britain, the Norman conquest; and the development of the monarchy, Parliament, and the common law. It also explores historicity of such popular subjects as the Arthurian tales. V.1.
HIST 127 (3)---English History, 1500-1689      A survey of English history under the Tudors and Stuarts, with some attention to Scotland and Ireland as well. The course will begin with an examination of early modern English society, including social relations in local communities and family structure, familial relationships and the position of women.  Other topics include: Henry VIII's "break with Rome," the Protestant Reformation, assessment of Elizabeth's abilities as queen, the Civil Wars, Restoration politics and the world of Samuel Pepys. V.1,V.5.
HIST 135 (3)---America, Origins to 1877      An exploration of the origins and development of the American nation from the colonial period through the end of Reconstruction. This course will inquire into the nature of colonial society, the meaning of the American Revolution, and the emergence of a capitalist social order. Other topics include the rise of slavery and the origins and after math of the Civil War. V.1.
HIST 136 (3)---The United States, 1877 to the Present      The second half of the two-course sequence explores major developments and crises that have shaped American identity since 1877. Particular attention will be paid to the context and impact of industrialism, the history of race relations, anticommunism, and the emergence of---and challenges to---a liberal political agenda. V.1.
HIST 206 (3)---Modern Israel      The Jewish national movement arose in nineteenth- century Europe as a response to Enlightenment ideals. The growth of nation-states coupled with the spread of democratic ideologies prompted many Jews to experiment with many forms of social utopia that eventually became the modern state of Israel.  The study of contemporary sources will shed light on the origins of Zionist ideology, the role of women in the development of the kibbutz collective settlement, and finally, the conflict between Israel and Arabs after the founding of thestatein1948. Offered alternate years. III.W, V.1, V.7.
HIST 209 (3)---Medieval and Early Modern Europe, 1100-1700      A survey of some major themes in European history between the 12th and 17th centuries.  Topics will include knightly society and the code of chivalry; the growth of cities and urban culture and values; monarchy and state-building; relations between church and state; Renaissance culture; traditional religion, the Reformation and the "Wars of Religion;" changing social and familial structures. V.1.
HIST 210 (3)---Modern Europe, 1700-2004: From Absolutism to EU Enlargement      This survey of European political and diplomatic history covers the development of the absolutist state to the 2004 enlargement of the European Union.  Though focusing on political history, it delves into European developments in economics, industrialization, social Darwinism, nationalism, Marxism, imperialism, fascism, communism, decolonization, genocide, and the welfare state.  Offered every spring. V.1.
HIST 216 (3)---A Clash of Civilizations? The Habsburgs and Ottoman Empires, 1246-1923 Prerequisite: HIST 209, HIST 210, or by permission of the instructor.       The Habsburg and Ottoman Empires are two entities that significantly shaped the courses of European and Middle Eastern history. This course explores the religious, political, social and economic relationships of the empires over the course of six and a half centuries with a focus on the last 200 years of their existence. We will discuss the rise and fall of the empires and their legacies on the shaping of modern Eastern European, Balkan, and Middle Eastern national movements and states.  Course offered every third year.  V.1, V.7.
HIST 221 (3)---Spirituality and Religious Institutions in U.S. History      Americans have long struggled to reconcile spiritual intensity with stable communal institutions. This course examines the historical development of this struggle, focusing in particular on its gendered dimensions and the formation of religious communities set a part from the mainstream of American life.  We will also examine the impact of religious zeal on American political life and movements for social change, and inquire into the social and cultural forces behind the resurgence of fundamentalisms and the rise of therapeutic spiritual philosophies in the twentieth century.  III.W, V.1, V.5.
HIST 223 (3)---The Ancient World, 8000BC to 300AD      This course probes the origins, rise, and characteristics of the civilizations that appeared in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Italy in the centuries from the Neolithic era to the rise of Christianity. The political, religious, economic, social, intellectual, and artistic dimensions of these civilizations will be examined. We will also discuss the legacy of the ancient world for the modern west. May be counted toward the majors in classics. V.1.
HIST 224 (3)---The Medieval West, 400-1350      This course challenges the perception of the Middle Ages as the "Dark Ages" by introducing the cultural, political, intellectual and religious complexity of the period from the fall of the Roman Empire to the Black Death. While focusing geographically on Europe, North Africa and the Near East, it also explores the medieval West in the context of sub-Saharan Africa and China.  Offered alternate years. V.1.
HIST 225 (3)---The U.S. South Prerequisite: Not open to students who have taken HIST 339.      A survey of Southern history from founding of Jamestown to the rise of the Sunbelt.  Topics will include the plantation, slavery, white society, Civil War, Reconstruction, Redemption, and the rise of Jim Crow.  The course will conclude with the South’s continuing efforts to deal with the legacies of its past. Offered alternate years. V.1, V.5.
HIST 228 (3)---Women in America      Women's experiences and past identities in America have been shaped by household structure and economics, religion, cultural assumptions and access to public life, among other factors. This course examines the history of women in America as daughters, mothers, wives, workers, individuals, and public actors to account for changing patterns of experience, opportunity and achievement. Offered alternate years. Maybe counted as a core course toward the minor in women and gender studies. V.1, V.5.
HIST 234 (3)---Masculinity and Power in America      This course explores the changing ideals and activities defining American manhood from the colonial period through the present. We will inquire into the cultural and social forces that shaped the "male" public sphere in the 18th and 19th centuries. Other topics include the varied relations between male identity and work, home life and leisure, the emergence of sexuality as a key component of masculinity, and the impact of urbanization, immigration and race on ideals of manhood. Offered alternate years. May be counted as a core course toward the minor in women and gender studies. III.W, V.1, V.5.
HIST 240 (3)---Gender, Sexuality and Family in pre-modern Europe Prerequisite: HIST 127, HIST 209, HIST 223, or HIST 224 recommended.      This course explores gender and sexuality in Europe and the Mediterranean from late antiquity to the Industrial Revolution.  It considers such topics as marriage and the family, “women’s work,” the influence of law and religion on gender roles and sexuality, and early debates about the differences between the sexes.  It also investigates the conflicting theoretical approaches to understanding gender difference, sex roles and sexual identity.  Offered alternate years.  May be counted as a core course toward the minor in women and gender studies.  III.W, V.1, V.5.
HIST 245 (3)---Imperial Russia Prerequisite: HIST 209, HIST 210 or permission of instructor.      A study of major political, diplomatic, economic and social developments from Kievian Rus to the fall of the tsarist state in 1917.  Special emphasis will be placed on the expansion of Moscovy and Russian imperialism.  Offered alternate years in conjunction with HIST 246.
HIST 246 (3)---The Soviet Union and Beyond Prerequisite: HIST 210 or HIST 245.      A study of major political, diplomatic, economic, and social developments from the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 to the presidency of Vladimir Putin.  Special emphasis will be placed on the state's continued expansionism and Soviet imperialism, Stalinism and de-Stalinization, World War II, and the Cold War.  Offered alternate years in conjunction with HIST 245.
HIST 251 (3)---The Idea of Race Prerequisite: One course in modern European history.      Race is a relatively new idea in Western civilization, and the course will trace its creation in eighteenth century Europe as a response to the African slave trade, through the nineteenth century's growth of "race science" and imperialism, and finally into twentieth century versions in such diverse movements as Fascism and anti-colonialism.  Although the course focuses on Western Europe, some mention will be made of North America. III.W, V.1, V.5.
HIST 258 (3)---History of Crime and Punishment in the West      This course surveys the foundations and development of western criminal law, penal institutions, and criminal jurisprudence from antiquity to the modern world. Patterns of criminality and enforcement, attempts at controlling crime, and philosophies regarding crime and punishment will be explored. We will also examine current debates on such controversial issues as violence, the death penalty, and the prosecution of "crimes against humanity." No knowledge of statistics or data analysis is assumed. Students will learn the necessary techniques and skills in the course. May be counted as an adjunct course toward the minor in law and society. III.Q, V.1, V.7.
HIST 261 (1, 2, or3)---Directed Study Prerequisites: One HIST course and permission of the instructor.      The study of introductory level material by an individual student or by a small group of students under the immediate supervision of a faculty member.
HIST 269 (3)---Africa in World Affairs      An introduction to modern Africa from 1880 to the present that concentrates on the experience of colonial rule and its relation to the rise of national movements that led to the creation of independent states in the 1960s. Special emphasis will be placed on economic and political developments during the period of independence that affect Africa's international relations. V.4, V.5.
HIST 272 (3)---Pre-Colonial African History      An introduction to the development of African political culture from the tenth to nineteenth centuries. After studying the historical foundations of local institutions, the course will focus on the formation of states before and during the period of the slave trade until about 1860. Emphasis on contemporary historical sources. V.4, V.5.
HIST 308 (3)---Encounters, Conquest and European Expansion, 1350-1650 Prerequisite: HIST 209 or HIST 224.      This course probes the economic, scientific, and territorial expansions that both fuelled and resulted from the "rebirth" of Western Europe during the early modern era. Topics include Columbus's voyages to the New World; the Portuguese slave trade in Africa; Italian and Ottoman commercial rivalries in the Mediterranean; Spanish, British and French colonization of the Americas; and Europe's scientific responses to the new and strange environments being mapped and explored. Offered alternate years. III.W, V.1.
HIST 312 (3)---Virginia: History and Memory Prerequisite: HIST 135 or HIST 225.      Virginia has occupied a central if contested position in the cultural memory of Americans. This research seminar explores key dimensions of Virginia's distinctive history, including its economic structure, race relations, and political culture. Through case studies of historical memorials, museums, and other sites of remembrance we will analyze the politics and social construction of collective memories of Virginia. Students will develop and present their own research projects, drawing on the rich public historical, printed, and archival resource available in Central Virginia. Offered every third year. This course may not be taken on a P/CR/NC grading option. III.O.
HIST 315 (3)---Illness and Healing in America Prerequisite: HIST 103, HIST 135, HIST 136, HIST 221, HIST 228, or HIST 234.      This course inquires in to the religious, medical, and cultural forces shaping the experiences of illness and healing in America. Key topics include Puritan modes of suffering, medical pluralism in the nineteenth century, the rise and fall of "nervousness" and other diagnoses, the medicalization of behavior once thought immoral, and the popularization of psychology in the twentieth century. The course pays particular attention to historical shifts in the relations between sufferer, community, and healer, and how such shifts affect understandings of health and illness. Offered alternate years. This course may not be taken on a P/CR/NC grading option. III.O.
HIST 319 (3)---The Playground of Empires: Eastern Europe and the Balkans in the 19th and 20th Centuries Prerequisite: HIST 209, HIST 210, or HIST 216.      Eastern Europe and the Balkans were traditional European border lands for centuries. Due to the regions' positions between expanding and contracting empires, they have been the "playground" of the Great Powers for the last three centuries. This course examines these struggles and the various reactions of the indigenous populations to the competing empires from the late 18th to the 21st centuries. Offered every third year. III.W, V.1, V.7.
HIST 321 (3)---Studies in Medieval History Prerequisite: HIST 209.      The millennium separating antiquity and the Renaissance witnessed the rise of western Christianity and capitalism, The invention of romantic love, the development of Islamic science, and the Black Death. Topics will alternate: Early Middle Ages or Dark Ages; High Medieval Renaissance(s); Medieval Iberia; The Disastrous Fourteenth Century. Offered alternate years. May be repeated for credit when topic is different. May be counted as a core course toward the minor in women and gender studies. III.W, V.5.
HIST 322 (3)---Renaissance and Reformation Prerequisite: HIST 127 or HIST 209.      The course will explore the social and cultural context of Renaissance and Reformation thought as well as the ideas and ideals of humanist intellectuals and religious reformers. The study of Renaissance Italy will include such topics as the family, sex and marriage, crime and criminal justice and social structure and politics in the city states as well as humanism and art. The Reformation section will examine traditional Catholicism and popular beliefs, as well as the ideals and goals of Protestant and Catholic reformers, and will assess there formers’ achievements. The focus of the course may be EITHER Renaissance OR Reformation. Offered alternate years. May be counted as an adjunct course toward the minor in women and gender studies. V.5.
HIST 330 (3)---The History of the European Union Prerequisite: HIST 210 or by permission of the instructor.      The idea of a united Europe is not new. However, the only peaceful attempt to achieve unity occurred after the Second World War. This course critically examines how and why the organization evolved from a limited customs union and trade agreement in 1952 to one with a major role on the international political and economic stage today. Offered every third year. V.1, V.7
HIST 336 (3)---Civil War, Reconstruction, and the New South Prerequisite: HIST 135, HIST 136, or HIST 225.      This course examines the causes and consequences of the Civil War and the Reconstruction of the South and its effects on white and black Americans. We will pay particular attention to debates over the proper interpretation of these events and the role played by them in national memory. As part of the requirements for the course, students will conduct archive-based research on topics relevant to the course and to the research needs of the Legacy Museum of African American History in Lynchburg, Virginia. This course may not be taken on a P/CR/NC grading option. Offered every third year.
HIST 339 (3)---Slavery and Emancipation in America Prerequisite: HIST 135 or HIST 225.      This course explores the rise, development, and abolition of slavery in North America. We will consider the distinctive characteristics of American slavery and of master-slave relations, the development of regional slave cultures, and the impact of the internal slave trade. We will also consider changes in African American experience following emancipation. As part of the requirements of the course, students will pursue research in local and regional archives culminating in a project that serves the needs of local historical institutions. This course may not be taken on a P/CR/NC grading option. Offered every third year.
HIST 344 (3)---Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the 20th Century Prerequisite: HIST 210, HIST 258, or by permission of instructor.      The question of genocide and ethnic cleansing has been the primary focus for those concerned with human rights and preventing these horrific events. This course will explore a number of genocidal events in the 20th century with a particular focus on the Holocaust. We will delve into issues that deal not only with the experiences of the victims, but those of the perpetrators to understand how and why they acted in such a barbaric manner. Offered every third year. III.W, V.1, V.5.
HIST 355 (3)---War and Society in Modern Europe Prerequisite: HIST 209 or HIST 210.      The study of war will illustrate connections between social organization, technology, and values in various periods in early modern and modern Europe. The course will conclude with an historical view of military thinking during the age of nuclear weapons. Offered alternate years.
HIST 358 (3)---The Cold War as History Prerequisite: HIST 210.      This historiography course presents a number of major works by historians and political scientists. The students will learn the narrative history of the Cold War, will examine works by various Cold War scholars, and will analyze some of the major debates in Cold War historiography. Offered alternate years. V.7
HIST 361 (1, 2, or3)---Special Study Prerequisites: 100-level HIST course and permission of the instructor.      The study of an intermediate level topic by an individual student or by a small group of students under the immediate supervision of a faculty member.
HIST 364 (3)---19th and 20th Century Nationalism Prerequisites: HIST 210 or permission of the instructor.      While nationalism has often played a legitimate and constructive role in political life, it has all too often been the source of intolerance, hatred, war, atrocity, and genocide. This course provides an opportunity for a close examination of the phenomenon of modern nationalism from its emergence in Revolutionary France to the end of the 20th century. It begins with an examination of some of the theories of nationalism and discussion of the relationship of nationalism to religion, language and culture, ethnicity and regionalism. The core of the course is a series of case studies. Offered every third year. V.5
HIST 377 (1, 2, or3)---Internship Prerequisites: Three credits in HIST and permission of the instructor, department chair, and dean.      This course is graded P/CR/NC only.
HIST 373 (3)---Making African History Prerequisite: HIST 269 or HIST 272.      By evaluating introductory African history textbooks in light of recent scholarship, the course will treat the variety of ways that historians construct a view of history. We will compare textbooks with regards to selected topics and then survey recent research in academic journals to show how fresh research and novel questions change our views of African history.
HIST 452 (3)---Senior Seminar Prerequisite: Open by permission to seniors.      The seminar will deal with the question “What is history”? Primarily this will involve an examination of some of the best works of historians in the last few years. It also will consider ways in which people organize, analyze, and interpret past experience. III.O.
HIST 461 (1, 2, or3)---Independent Study Prerequisites: One 100-level HIST course, one 200-level HIST course, and permission of the instructor.      Pursuit of an upper level research project determined in advance by the student in consultation with a faculty member who will act as the sponsor.

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