History

An introduction to important trends and topics in U.S. history from the end of the Civil War (1865) to the present. Includes political, economic, social, cultural and diplomatic subjects, with particular attention to matters of race and gender.

We live in an era of labor conflict when strikes make headlines. This U.S. history class explains how anarchists,
communists, reactionaries, Black nationalists, radical feminists, and other dissidents have built a movement to
challenge the capitalist system.

How does Christianity understand itself in relation to Judaism? How do Jews think about Christians? Has there always been conflict? Has there been mutual influence? An introduction to these traditions through themes of religious and cultural encounters. Themes include: sexuality and gender, race and violence, conversion, theology and politics.

This course examines the Nazi racial state and the genocide perpetrated against Europe's Jews and other so-called "racial enemies." Using primary sources including laws, identity papers, diaries, photographs, maps, testimonies, and much more, we will consider many voices and experiences from this era. 

A survey of East Asia since about 1800, with emphasis on Japan, China and Korea, and on East Asia as an international system. Attention to the historical development of politics, economics, society and social institutions, gender, thought, and international relations. Special attention to women's rights and social position in the modern period. 

Material Culture Studies explores how museums can interpret human-mediated objects. We will take an interdisciplinary approach to understanding humans and their things which can include everything from buildings and architecture to clothes and jewelry to sporting goods and everything in between. Objects are essential for humans --we use them to shape our world and give it meaning. In this class we focus on the interpretation of objects in historical and anthropological collections with some reference to art collections and archives. 

Explores major intellectual, political, and historical movements that define the modern Jewish experience in Europe, America, and the Middle East. Considers topics like emancipation and assimilation, Zionism, race, migration, and the Holocaust to understand the radical shifts of the Jewish diaspora.

An examination of women's and gender history in the 19th and 20th centuries across a range of European countries with particular focus on politics, gender roles, sexuality, and culture. Allows students to question narrow (national, disciplinary, epistemological) boundaries, think critically about the gendered constructions of European society, and reflect upon the distinctive contributions of women's history.

From “convivencia” among Jews, Christians and Muslim to the Spanish Inquisition and Expulsion of 1492, this course will explore the explore the history and culture of Jews from the Iberian Peninsula from the medieval period through the modern day. 

On August 24, AD 79, Mt. Vesuvius erupted, burying several Roman towns in the region of Campania, Italy, with a thick layer of volcanic ash and pumice. This event was a great tragedy for the people who lived in the area, causing vast destruction and considerable loss of life. For modern scholars, though, the event has proved an unusual blessing. Encapsulated within the volcanic debris is an unparalleled glimpse into the lives of the ancient inhabitants. In this course, we will explore the archaeological remains of Pompeii in order to learn about Roman life and culture in the early part of the Roman Empire. 

Introduces migration in East Asia within the global context of imperialism and colonialism, forced labor, refuge, and gender, from the 19th century to present. Topics include colonial migration, settler migration, forced migration, repatriation movements, and identity formation, domestically and internationally. Emphasis on Japan, China, and North and South Korea.

Research Credit. A survey of U.S. social history from 1607 to the present, focusing on the historical contours of female/male sex roles. Topics include marriage, the family, child-rearing, work, education, sexuality, and gynecology and reproduction. Analyzes the effects of war, racism, slavery, immigration, industrialization and consumerism along with abolitionism, temperance, feminism, civil rights and other social protest movements.

A survey of the history of Asians and Americans of Asian ancestry in the United States from the 18th century to the present, with emphasis on phases of immigrant history and interactions with recipient communities in the context of U.S. historical development and on issues of race, ethnicity, gender, naturalization and citizenship, and racial, ethnic and cultural identity. Prerequisite: An Earlham Seminar, an Interpretive Practices course, or consent of the instructor. Also listed as JPNS 372.

A survey of the history of American involvement in and attitudes toward the countries and peoples of the Middle East, with emphasis on diplomacy and policy-making, scholarship and the construction of knowledge, and representations of the Middle East in American popular culture.

A study of Japanese historical and institutional development in the early modern and modern periods, from the 15th century to the present. Topics include the Tokugawa period; the Meiji Restoration and modernization; the periods of colonialism, imperialism and militarism; postwar recovery and the economic miracle; and the challenges of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Explores economic, political, social, intellectual and international perspectives. Attention to prominent theories of development.

Surveys the history of southern African society from the earliest times to the post apartheid era. Topics include the nature of early indigenous African societies, the entrenchment of European domination, the subjugation of African chiefdoms, the role of international capital in transforming the economy, African resistance to segregation and apartheid, and dismantling apartheid.

This course explores the history of science, technology, modernity, and colonialism in East Asia from the premodern era to the Cold War. This course examines how science, technology, and medicine played an important role in the historical and social transformations in Japan, China, Taiwan, and Korea. Students will explore the historical and social processes in which scientific knowledge and technological artifacts were indispensable to the project of colonialism and in turn, how their infusion with new elements of colonialism led to the growth and proliferation of such knowledge and artifacts.