Department of History
Course Descriptions
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS (HIST)
FOUNDATION COURSES
101 Introduction to World History
A team-taught survey of world history
since the 15th century. Serves as a basic
introduction to the discipline of history and to
the history major. Familiarizes students with
a global, non-Eurocentric approach to history.
One semester, 3 credits.
201 Western Civilization since the
Seventeenth Century
The development of Western civilization in
the Age of Reason, the Enlightenment and the more recent ages of Revolution, Romanticism,
Imperialism, and World Wars. One semester, 3 credits.
206 United States to 1865
Origins and early national development of the
United States to the Civil War; development of
colonial peoples and communities, growth of
nationalism, rise of democracy, and divisiveness
of Civil War. One semester, 3 credits.
207 United States since 1865
National development from Reconstruction
to the Reagan era. Explores industrialization, urbanization, foreign policy and wars,
domestic politics, and social trends and
movements. One semester, 3 credits.
210 The Making of the Atlantic World:
1400-1800
Unlike typical courses, which focus on a
particular region, this course examines the
history of the Atlantic Ocean, itself, from
discovery of the Americas to the American
and Haitian Revolutions. Drawing on readings
about people in colonial North America,
colonial Latin America, pre-colonial Africa,
and European history, we will explore the
connections among the peoples of all four
of these continents. We will examine how
historians have come to understand the
Atlantic as a bridge between cultures, and as a
means of cultural, economic, intellectual, and
ecological exchange. One semester, 3 credits.
220 East Asian Civilizations
The development of East Asian civilizations,
primarily China and Japan, from earliest times to the present, emphasizing the relationships
among social, economic, political, and intellectual institutions. One semester, 3 credits.
230 Introduction to African History
A history of sub-Saharan Africa from the
fifteenth century through the present,
exploring the trans-Atlantic slave trade,
European colonialism, and post-colonial
developments. One semester, 3 credits.
242 Introduction to Colonial Latin America
Latin America from pre-Columbian
times to the 1820s; topical treatment of
historical developments and trends basic to
understanding the colonial period of Latin
American history. One semester, 3 credits.
246 Introduction to Modern Latin America
Topical treatment of political, cultural, and
economic developments in Latin America that are basic to understanding the modern period
of Latin American history (1820s-1990s). One semester, 3 credits.
247 Introduction to Modern Central
America
Topical treatment of political, cultural, and
economic developments in Central America that are basic to understanding the modern
history (1820s-1990s) of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and
Panama. One semester, 3 credits.
WORLD AREAS
Asia
321 Imperial China
China from earliest times to the l9th Century;
emphasizes the major social, economic, and political developments of the imperial period.
Not open to those who have taken 220. Prerequisite: 101. One semester, 3 credits.
323* Modern China
History of modern China, 1600 to the present;
the impact of imperialism on traditional Chinese society, the Taiping Revolution of the
mid-19th Century, revolutionary development
in the early 20th Century; history of the
Chinese Communist movement from 1921 to
1949; and history of the People’s Republic of
China. Prerequisite: 101 or 220. One semester,
3 credits.
329* Modern Japan
Major social, political, economic and
intellectual developments in Japan from the
17th century to the post-World War II era;
the transition of Japan from an agrarian to an industrial society; the nature and social costs
of Japanese capitalism; the expansionist thrust; the breakdown of the state in the 1920s and
1930s. Prerequisite: 101 or 220. One semester, 3 credits.
EUROPE
360* Race, Class and Gender, in Modern
Europe
Explores the history of the categories of
race, class, and gender in Europe since the
late eighteenth century through the present,
and the manner in which those categories
have both enabled and circumscribed
human actions and state policies. Examines
theoretical approaches to the study of race,
class, and gender; historical processes and
events that employ race, class, and gender; and
historical events that question conventional
understandings of race, class, and gender.
Prerequisite: 101, 201, or instructor
permission. One semester, 3 credits.
362* The European City
Introduces students to the development
and changing character of European cities
in the modern era. Discussion of how and
why cities were built and rebuilt, how they
were represented and understood as places
of danger and possibility, how people lived
in and moved through them, how different
social groups seized access to the urban
environment, and how cities were understood
as causing social problems and changing social
behaviors. Prerequisite: 101, 201, or instructor
permission. One semester, 3 credits.
363* Socialism and Revolution in Modern
Europe
Explores the relationship between socialism
and revolution. Begins with the radical
idealism of the French Revolution, continues
with the utopian socialists of the 1830s
and 1840s, and then follows socialism and
revolution in Europe through the development
of Marxism and working-class political
organizations, the Paris Commune of 1871, the
Russian Revolution of 1917, and the events of
May 1968. Prerequisite: 101, 201, or instructor
permission. One semester, 3 credits.
364* Modern France, 1789-present
Examines French history from the French
Revolution to the present. Themes include
the revolution, the rise of republicanism,
the modernization of France's economy, the consequences of France’s role in the "scramble
for Africa," Vichy and its legacy, as well as contemporary questions of nationalism and
identity. Prerequisite: 101, 201, or instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
365* Germany Since 1870
Modern Germany was born with the
unifi cation of German territories in 1870.
This course follows German people and
their politics from 1870 to 1991, through the
German Empire, World Wars I & II, Hitler and
the Holocaust, the division of Germany into
two nations in 1945 and its reunifi cation after
the fall of Communism in 1989. Prerequisite:
101, 201, or instructor permission. One
semester, 3 credits.
LATIN AMERICA
342* Gender and Sexuality in Latin
American History
An exploration of sexual difference and
sexuality among women and men in Latin
American history. Focusing on the relationship
between the family and the state, the course
will investigate such themes as patriarchy
and paternalism, gendered forms of labor
and political organization, feminism, and
machismo and masculinity. Prerequisite: 101,
242, or 246. One semester, 3 credits.
346* History of the Caribbean
An examination of the region's history
from the period of European exploration
to the present. Thematic emphases on the
attempts by Caribbean societies to forge
autonomous political and economic units and
the struggles of Caribbean peoples to come
to terms with the ethnic and racial diversity
that characterizes the island populations.
Through these prisms, the course will explore
such issues as colonialism, monoculture,
slavery, amancipation, national independence
movements, and tourism. Prerequisite: 101,
242, or 246. One semester, 3 credits.
347* Modern Mexico
The history of Modern Mexico from the 1880s
to the 1990s. Topical focus on revolution, state formation, modernization, identity, immigration and cultural formations and
practices. Prerequisite: 101, 246, or instructor
permission. One semester, 3 credits.
348* U.S.-Mexico Border Studies
The history of the US-Mexican border from
its creation in the mid-19th century to the beginning of the 21st century. Special focus on
how the creation of a border creates political,
social, and economic spaces that promote
cultural formations and human endeavors
that are hybrid amalgamations with many
(often-confl icting) sources of inspiration.
Prerequisite: 101, 246, or instructor
permission. One semester, 3 credits.
349* African American Diasporas
This course will explore the history of the
connections that Afro-Latin Americans and
Afro-North Americans have created in the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Ultimately,
the course will interrogate the historical
possibilities and limitations of conceiving
of African Americans as a hemispheric,
transnational social group. Prerequisite: 101,
242, or 246. One semester, 3 credits.
UNITED STATES
300* Colonial America
The European, Native American, and African
backgrounds, experiences, and evolving institutions of the English colonies in North
America from the initial contact of peoples
to the establishment of a mature provincial
society. Prerequisite: 206. One semester, 3
credits.
302 Frontiers in America
This course looks at the history, from
discovery until the 1850s, of America's
"frontiers." We will explore the meanings both
popular culture and historians have applied to
the word frontier, from a boundary between
civilization and barbarism to a zone of cultural
exchange and interaction. We will look at
regions such as New England, Louisiana, New
Mexico, and the Great Lakes area to try to
understand the different ways settlers, slaves,
and Native Americans interacted in America's
founding years. Prerequisite: 206 or instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
306* Recent United States
Traces the history of the United States from
World War II to the present. Topics include the
emergence of the Cold War, social and cultural
trends in the fi fties and sixties, liberation
movements of the sixties, Vietnam, and the rise
of modern conservatism. Prerequisite: 207 or
instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
309* Women, Family, and Work in the
Modern U.S.
Historical investigation of women's daily
experiences and of ideas of femininity and masculinity in the U.S. with a focus on
motherhood, labor, sexuality, and social
movements. Prerequisite: 206, 207 or
instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
310 Slavery in North America
This class investigates the history of slavery
and forced labor in America before 1860. We will study such topics as Indian slavery, the
transatlantic slave trade, the development of African cultures in America, and the antislavery
movement. We will try to understand
the diversity of slavery and slave cultures in
North America's different regions as we assess
the central role slavery played in the creation
of American society. Prerequisite: 206 or instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
311 Native American History
This course looks at the native peoples and
cultures of North America and their history from ancient times to the present day.
Prerequisite: 101, 206, or 207, or instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
316* Urban Encounters: The City in US
History
The history of U.S. cities and suburbs from the
late nineteenth century to the present. Topics
include housing, public policy, transportation,
gender, race and ethnic relations in the city,
and urban popular cultures. Field trips
included. Prerequisite: 207 or instructor permission. One semester, 3 credits.
THEORY AND METHODS SEMINARS
50 Internship
Professionally supervised work or service
learning at sites chosen to further the student's history major and career choices. May be
repeated only once for credit. Permission. One semester, 1-3 credits.
60 Preceptorship in World History
A one-semester course taken in the junior or senior year designed to give a student experience as a teaching assistant. Students
can work with Whittier faculty or off-campus teachers who offer world history courses.
Other teaching or tutoring experiences may
count as a preceptorship. Intended for those
students who want to teach secondary school
or to enter a graduate program in history.
Prerequisite: 101 and Junior standing.
Permission. One semester, 1 credit.
61 Preceptorship in U.S. History
A one-semester course taken in the junior
or senior year designed to give a student
experience as a teaching assistant. Students
can work with Whittier faculty or off-campus teachers who offer U.S. history courses. Other
teaching or tutoring experiences may count as
a preceptorship. Intended for those students
who want to teach secondary school or to enter
a graduate program in history. Prerequisite:
206 or 207 and Junior standing. Permission.
One semester, 1 credit.
280 History and Theory
How do historians know what happened in
the past? Can they know? What are the most important ways in which historians approach
understanding and interpreting the past? This seminar explores those questions through
reading and discussing signifi cant works by
and about historians. Prerequisite: 101 or
any other 200-level course. One semester, 3
credits.
380 Historical Methods
Introduction to methods of historical research
and writing. Students will produce a major research paper. For those pursuing a history
major and others interested in developing
basic skills. Prerequisite: 280. One semester,
3 credits.
480 Capstone Seminar
Signifi cant contributions to the history and
theory of the processes creating the modern world are read and discussed. For history
majors and others in the social sciences or humanities. Prerequisites: 380. One semester,
3 credits.
190, 290, 390, 490* Selected Topics in
History
Variable credits. Permission. May be repeated
for credit.
295, 395, 495 Independent Studies
Credit and time arranged. Permission. May be
repeated for credit.
*Not offered every year.
