History

Programs

Courses

HIST 122: Intro to U.S. History since 1865

Credits 4

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.

HIST 123: Prohibition: Alcohol Politics in U.S. History

Credits 3
Between 1920 and 1933, the United States banned drinking or selling alcohol. This class explores the ideas about family, religion, sex, immigration, and race that led to Prohibition. It examines the nightclubs and organized crime networks that sold illegal liquor, and it shows why prohibition failed so quickly.

HIST 124: Strike: Labor and Capitalism in U.S. History

Credits 3

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.

HIST 128: Jewish/Christian Encounters

Credits 3

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.

HIST 141: History of California

Credits 3
This course is an introduction to the study of U.S. history that focuses on California's past and present. The course examines California both as an ideal – one defined by beautiful weather, booming economies, and open minds – and as a physical space produced amid urbanization, industrialization, immigration, racist violence and environmental crisis. Students engage with cultural, economic and political events in California's past, from native people's survival strategies in Spanish missions in the 1770s to the Silicon Valley tech industry in the 21st century. Students will build the critical reading, academic writing and discussion skills that are necessary for success in a liberal arts environment. In addition to reading academic books from history and related scholarly disciplines, students will discuss visual art, watch and write about Hollywood films, and analyze popular literature. Appropriate for first-year students.

HIST 151: Health & Healing: Religious Perspectives

Credits 3
Is religious belief compatible with science and reason? How have Jews and Christians understood epidemics, illness, medical ethics, and the relationship of the Bible to science? In what ways have scientists defended or debunked "religion"? Topics also include controversies over evolution, racial science, public health, theologies of health care equity.

HIST 204: The New Promised Land

Credits 3
The first Jews set foot on American soil in 1584, and Jewish understanding of the United States and its non-Jewish majority have been complicated ever since. This course explores the history, sociology and theology of American Judaism from the colonial period to the present day with a particular focus on the Jewish minority experience and the evolution of Jewish-Christian relationship. Students also will consider themes of Jewish activism, the rise of the congregational denominations, the appeal of nostalgia, and the development of a particularly Jewish-American culture and cuisine.

HIST 205: Intro to Quaker History

Credits 3
An introduction to the history of the Religious Society of Friends from the 1640s to the present. Particular attention will be given to Quakers as activists and reformers and the role of Earlham in Quaker history.

HIST 215: The Holocaust

Credits 3

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. 

HIST 221: Peace & Reconciliation in East Asia

Credits 3
A survey of peacebuilding and reconciliation in East Asia with global comparisons to conflict resolution studies and transitional justice. Students will seek a formula for sustainable peace for conflicts between Japan and China, Japan and Korea, and North and South Korea. Topics include imperialism and colonialism, war crimes and atrocities, territorial disputes, colonial and forced migration, and international relations.

HIST 223: From Anarchism to Xenophobia: Europe's Long 19th Century

Credits 3
Explores the tensions between the forces of stability and the forces of upheaval from the French Revolution through the outbreak of World War I. Investigates the traditional, hierarchical nature of European society, then tracks how many Europeans sought to overturn the existing political, social, and gender order. Themes include revolution, nationalism, socialism, colonialism, white supremacy, antisemitism, feminism, and utopianism.

HIST 228: Modern East Asia

Credits 3

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. 

HIST 231: African History to 1880

Credits 3
Introduces students to Africa's long and varied past. Surveys the development of the continent from the Nile Valley civilization to the loss of independence in the 1880s. Topics include Africa as the site of the earliest human development, ancient Egypt's relationship to the rest of Africa, the influence of Islam, the origins and nature of African states and empires, the organization and consequences of the Atlantic slave trade, the impact of European traders and missionaries, and the scramble for Africa in the 1880s. Prerequisite: An Earlham Seminar or consent of the instructor.

HIST 232: African History since 1880

Credits 3
Surveys the African loss of sovereignty and the establishment of European colonial dominance in Africa. Focuses on economic, political and social distortions resulting from foreign domination. Considers the impact of African reactions to these developments. Special attention to the struggle for independence and the re-emergence of independent African states. Prerequisite: An Earlham Seminar or consent of the instructor.

HIST 233: Research Methods in History

Credits 3
This course focuses on the process of developing, researching and writing a substantial historical research paper. It will be centered on a broad theme such as empire, power or technology. Prerequisite: Earlham Seminar or Sophomore Standing.

HIST 241: Ancient Mediterranean History

Credits 3
In antiquity, the Mediterranean Sea united rather than divided cultures. This course surveys ancient civilizations around the Mediterranean basin, paying particular attention to the cultural interactions that shaped and transformed the earliest history of this region. The course focuses upon four key centers of civilization: the kingdoms of the Near East, Egypt, Greece and Rome. Among the topics we will consider: Hittite and Mycenaean relationships during the Bronze Age, Greek colonization and interaction with Egyptians, Phoenicians, Italians, and Near Eastern cultures during the 7th and 6th centuries B.C., the Persian empire and its clash with the Greeks in the 5th century, and Roman expansionism during the Roman Republic. Reading includes primary texts in English.

HIST 244: The Modern Jewish Experience

Credits 3

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.

HIST 246: European Women's & Gender History

Credits 4

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.

HIST 253: Citizenship & Minority Issues in East Asia

Credits 3
A survey of citizenship and minority issues in East Asia from the 19th century to the present within the global contexts of refuge and citizenship rights, legacy of colonialism, assimilation and cultural identity, ethnicity, and gender and disabilities. Emphasis on Japan, China, and North and South Korea.

HIST 290: Cuban History

Credits 3
The historical experience of Cuba is unique in the western hemisphere, and indeed in the world, for only Cuba underwent transformation from being a colony of Spain to being a neocolonial U.S. protectorate, then an independent republic, and finally a socialist country, all within less than a century. This course will neither praise or condemn Cuban socialism or U.S. imperialism, but instead help students appreciate and understand the complexities of the historical dynamics that gave rise to the current contours of the Cuban Revolution.

HIST 313: The Jews of Spain and Portugal

Credits 4

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. 

HIST 315: Pompeii: Life & Death in a Roman Town

Credits 4

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. 

HIST 320: East Asian Migration & Diasporas

Credits 4

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.

HIST 332: Pan Africanism

Credits 4
In the context of the philosophical paradigm of Afrocentricity, this course traces and interrogates the trans-National solidarity activism of Africans and their descendants in the diaspora (North America, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe and Asia) towards their political, economic, social and psychological freedom and/or unity from the 19th century to present. Some of its major themes include: Black Nationalism, Black Power, Ethiopianism, Negritude, Rastafarianism and Black Consciousness. The primary instructional methodology is the interpretation and critical analysis of Pan-African literature and films.

HIST 343: Renaissance & Baroque Europe

Credits 4
Did the years between 1300 and 1715 represent the "autumn of the Middle Ages" or did they usher in the modern age? How do we make sense of an era that saw both the brilliant discoveries of the Scientific Revolution and the seemingly irrational witch trials? The persistence of small peasant communities and the expansion of vast trade networks across the globe? Topics include the Renaissance, the Reformation, the "discovery of the New World," the Scientific Revolution, absolutism, and the escalation of global trade.

HIST 346: Europe in the 19th Century

Credits 4
Explores the tensions between the forces of stability and the forces of upheaval from the French Revolution through the outbreak of World War I. Investigates the traditional, hierarchical nature of European society, then tracks how many Europeans sought to overturn the existing political, social, and gender order. Themes include revolution, nationalism, socialism, imperialism, feminism, anarchism, terrorism, artistic experimentation, and urban life.

HIST 350: Words & Works of Ancient Rome

Credits 3
In the last decade or so, scholars of Classical Greece and Rome have begun to recognize the importance of integrating both literary and artistic evidence in order to gain a clearer picture of the ancient past. Drawing upon this understanding, this course focuses on the literary and artistic works from successive periods in the history of ancient Rome in an attempt to discover the character or spirit of each age. Our sources include a wide range of texts (epic and lyric poetry, drama, history) and artifacts (architecture, sculpture, painting, daily objects). As we examine these "words" and "works" we seek to uncover the attitudes, values, and ways of seeing and thinking about the world that make each period of Roman history unique. Knowledge of a classical language not required.

HIST 351: Workplace Justice: Readings in U.S. Labor History

Credits 3
Economic inequality in the United States has soared to its highest level since the “Gilded Age” of the 1880s. This course explores the social movement that, for two centuries, has aimed to close the gap between rich and poor: the labor movement. The class has two intellectual goals. First, it examines how historical phenomena like industrialization, urbanization and racialization have shaped the work process. Second, it traces the theories and practices that working people have used to build a movement for economic justice. The class is interdisciplinary, drawing on scholarly works in History, Political Theory, Anthropology and Economics, as well as literature, film and popular culture.

HIST 352: US Urban History

Credits 4
This class examines the history of United States cities as both physical and ideological spaces. Two methods guide the course's approach to urban history. First, readings and discussions engage the ideas of the intellectuals who have guided urban policy over the last two centuries, examining how the work of Daniel Burnham, Robert Moses, Jane Jacobs and many others have influenced transportation systems, housing construction and neighborhood design. Second, the class explores the mobilization of ordinary people who live in cities, tracing how poor people, immigrants, people of color, single women, LGBT people and other local groups have shaped sanitation systems, public housing projects, freeway construction and urban redevelopment.

HIST 353: Latin America to 1825

Credits 3
An examination of the origin and development of Latin American civilization, with particular attention to the European conquest and its effect on Native Americans: the origin and development of colonial institutions and conditions which led finally to the demise of the colonial system.

HIST 354: Latin America since 1825

Credits 3
Emphasizes the 20th century, examining patterns of modernization, development and resistance. Sources include literature and works reflecting religion and popular culture.

HIST 357: Reading in African American Women History

Credits 4
Explores select topics in the history of African American women from the era of antebellum slavery to the present, using such primary sources as slave narratives, autobiographies, documents and historical monographs. Topics include gender relations in the slave community, the gendered nature of slave resistance and rebellion, the politics of economic emancipation, women's activism in the struggle against racial violence and segregation and the role of women in the Civil Rights and Black Power movements.

HIST 367: Subjects of Desire

Credits 3

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.

HIST 368: African American History to Emancipation

Credits 4
A survey of African Americans from the era of the Atlantic slave trade to the passage of the 13th amendment. Topics include the paradox of the co-existence of slavery and freedom, the nature of the slave community, the issue of slave resistance and the role of free African Americans in the abolition movement. First-hand accounts and secondary materials give students an appreciation of the African American historical experience in the United States.

HIST 369: African American History since Emancipation

Credits 4
Surveys the history of African Americans from the era of Emancipation through the migrations that transformed blacks into a national, urban minority to the political, cultural and economic challenges in the era of conservatism. Topics include the struggle to define race and citizenship after the Civil War, the impact of migrations on black society and national politics, the consequences of the rise of a black industrial working class, campaigns for civil and human rights, and the emergence of the black power movement.

HIST 371: Herodotus & the Greek

Credits 3
The defiant bravery of king Leonidas as he and his famous band of 300 Spartan soldiers held the pass at Thermopylae against the might of the Persian Empire is a familiar one, celebrated in popular memory as an act that transcends history to become legend. Did it really happen that way? Or is this image largely a product of the imagination of Greece's first historian, Herodotus, considered by many to be “the father of history”? This course explores the way that Herodotus immortalized the conflict between the Greeks and Persians during the 5th century B.C. Students trace the forces that shaped this famous clash of cultures, and look at Herodotus' account in conjunction with other archaeological and historical evidence in order to talk about how history is created.

HIST 372: Asian American History through the Media

Credits 3

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.

HIST 374: Modern Japan

Credits 4

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.

HIST 378: History of South Africa

Credits 4

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.

HIST 410: Philosophy of History

Credits 4
Examines the assumptions, conventions and foundations of historical argument, the constitution and character of historical evidence and the nature and scope of philosophical speculation about what history is and about the epistemological and theoretical constraints governing the work of historians. Readings include both primary and secondary materials in history, historiography, and the philosophy and theory of history.

HIST 440: Research Seminar: Cooperation

Credits 3
An advanced research seminar on a topic related to the field of European History. Specific topic is selected each semester. Focuses on the process of developing, researching and writing a 25-page historical research paper. Open to any interested student in any discipline.

HIST 488: Senior Seminar

Credits 4
Required of all History majors. Includes common readings, student reports on selected works, and revision and presentation of a major paper from a previous History course.