History Courses
Fall 2011
New Courses are marked*
Courses satisfying Core curriculum requirements are listed below and are accurate as of March 15, 2011. Please note that in some cases core designations may be pending—this list will be updated as necessary; in addition, you should check the online list provided by the registrar for the most up-to-date information.
European History
**Please remember that only four courses at the 100-level can be counted toward the major!
CLS 103 Greek History Field 4 and Global Awareness
Social, political, and intellectual history of the Greeks from the end of the Bronze Age to the Hellenistic period.
TR 10-11:15 (Dr. Banchich)
HIS 107 History of Modern Europe 1500-1815 Field 4 and Global Awareness
The major political, economic, social, and intellectual currents in Western Civilization from 1500 to 1815.
MW 3:00-4:15 (Dr. Kiser)
MW 4:30-5:45 (Dr. Kiser)
TR 10-11:15 (Dr. Jones)
HIS 108 Modern Europe Since 1815 Field 4 and Global Awareness
The major political, economic, social, and intellectual currents in Western Civilization from 1815 to the present.
TR 1:00-2:15 (Dr. Maddox)
TR 2:30-3:45 (Dr. Maddox)
HIS 213 Twentieth Century Europe Field 4 and Global Awareness
Formerly HIS 113, The Twentieth Century. Students who have taken HIS 113 are not eligible to take HIS 213
Major political, economic, social and intellectual currents in Europe since 1900.
W 6:00-8:45 (Prof. Pavlakis)
CLS 300 Roman Law and Society Field 5, Justice, and Oral Communication
Exploration of major concepts and principles of Roman law and the society in which they developed. Studies of cases from the writings of Roman jurists.
TR 11:30-12:45 (Dr. Williams)
HIS 315 The Renaissance
This course examines the intellectual and cultural changes that dramatically characterize the Renaissance and separate it from the Middle Ages. At the same time, it considers the social, political and economic conditions that complicate the picture, revealing what at times was a harsh and brutal world. We will examine the Renaissance from many angles: intellectual and cultural ferment; court society and politics; trade and commercial activity; daily experience and life. We will also consider how the Renaissance, which took root in the Italian states, found distinctive expression in other parts of Europe.
MWF 11:00-11:50 (Dr. Kiser)
*HIS 331 Britain’s Monarchy Oral Communication
The history of Britain’s monarchy from the end of the middle ages to the present. Emphasis on the transformation of the monarchy from the center of government in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to a largely symbolic, even vestigial constitutional mechanism in the twenty-first. The history of the monarchy will be placed in the context of broader social, cultural, economic and political developments such as the emergence of democracy, the industrialization and urbanization of British society, the acquisition and loss of empire, and the growing power of popular culture. In addition, attention will be paid to the historiography of monarchy, and in particular to a comparison of popular, political, and scholarly approaches to the subject.
T 2:30-5:15 (Dr. Gibert)
HIS 345 Twentieth-Century Russia
In October 1917 the Bolshevik Party led a socialist revolution in Russia that had profound implications for that country and the rest of the world. The new state forged in the violence of war, revolution, and civil war quickly developed into an industrial giant and world superpower. Through lectures, discussions, and a close readings of primary and secondary sources, students in this course will explore the social, cultural, economic and political history of the Soviet Union. Some of the topics covered include the 1905 and 1917 revolutions, the Stalinist Terror, the Great Patriotic War, Cold War, and the collapse of the Soviet Empire.
TR 10:00-11:15 (Dr. Maddox)
*HIS 348 Twentieth Century Marxism Field 2 and Ethics
Examines the history of Marxist thought from the beginning of the 20th century to the collapse of the Communist regimes in central and eastern Europe in the turmoil of the early 1990s. Explores in particular the ways in which Marxist thinkers like V. I. Lenin, Georg Lukacs, Antonio Gramsci, Wilhelm Reich, and the Frankfurt School responded to the collapse of socialist unity in the first days of World War I, the “failure of the revolution” in the immediate postwar period, the degeneration of the Bolshevik revolution into a one-man, one-party dictatorship in Soviet Russia, and the emergence of fascism in the interwar period. Also addresses the relationship between means and ends in the attempt to create an equitable society based upon the principles of reason, humanity, and justice.
TR 1:00-2:15 (Dr. Jones)
US/North American History
Please remember that only four courses at the 100-level can be counted toward the major!
HIS 123 History of the United States: The Colonial Period to Reconstruction Field 4 and Diversity
Introduction to major themes of American history through the Civil War including: the Columbian Exchange and colonization, American Revolution, paradox of freedom and slavery, emergence of a market economy, secession and Reconstruction.
R 6:00-8:45 (Dr. Kotlik)
MWF 1:00-1:50 (Dr. Scime)
MWF 2:00-2:50 (Dr. Scime)
MWF 8:00-8:50 (TBA)
MWF 9:00-9:50 (TBA)
HIS 124 History of the United States: 1877 to the Present Field 4 and Diversity
Industrialization and urbanization of the United States with the accompanying social, economic, and political problems; America’s emergence as a major power in world affairs.
TR 1:00-2:15 (Dr. K. Dierenfield)
HIS 235 From Jamestown to Yorktown: Making the United States Field 4 and Diversity
An in-depth survey of the earliest stages of the development of the United States, focusing on the North American and European societies before first contact; the settlement and natureof the English colonies in the Chesapeake, New England, the middle colonies, and the Carolinas; Indian and European contact and conflict in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries; the “revolutions” of the late seventeenth century; the growth and maturation of the colonial economy, society, and culture (including religion); the eighteenth-century battle for empire (both as an ally with England and as an enemy striving for independence and self-governance); and the consequences of victory in those battles.
MWF 11:00-11:50 (Dr. Bailey)
HIS 242 Family in American History Field 4 and Diversity
Formerly HIS 290. Students who have taken HIS 290 are not eligible to take HIS 242
This course explores the social history of American families from colonial times to the present. By looking at the experiences of a variety of families—colonial Puritan, slave, middle-class Victorian, frontier, immigrant, 20th century suburbanite—it examines themes such as work, childhood, marriage and gender roles.
MWF 12:00-12:50 (Dr. Rosenbloom)
HIS 251 Sports in America Field 4
Babe Ruth. Jim Brown. Bill Russell. Gordie Howe. Tiger Woods. Martina Navratilova. These extraordinary sports champions are widely recognized for their immense athletic skill and remarkable success in competition. Though organized sports were once frowned upon, they are now one of America’s most popular culture productions. This course will investigate the history of sporting and athletic endeavors by tracing their rise from informal folk games to today's multi-billion dollar entertainment industry that attracts large crowds. We will also look at the decline of amateurism, the use of steroids, and practice of stadium welfare, among other troubling sports problems in our time. Along the way, we will look at how America’s sporting culture has both shaped the greater society and been heavily influenced by larger historical trends, including industrialization, urbanization, and commercialization.
TR 8:30-9:45 (Dr. B. Dierenfield)
HIS 254 First Peoples Field 4 and Diversity
The story of the first peoples of the Americas from their first appearance 20,000 years ago down to the present, with a special emphasis on native North America. Includes a survey of the histories and cultures of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, employing the latest findings from archaeology, anthropology, genetics, ethno botany as well as history.
TR 11:30-12:45 (Dr. Burich)
TR 1:00-2:15 (Dr. Burich)
HIS 259 Environmental History of the US Field 4
This course examines the evolving relationship between humans and the nonhuman natural world in the lands now known as the United States. Our course begins in the pre-colonial era with a consideration of the ecological footprint of Native American societies. It ends with the paradoxical present – when “going green” is an undeniably widespread cultural phenomenon, yet environmental regulations and even the science upon which these regulations are based endure an increasingly withering political backlash. Topics to be discussed along the way include but are not limited t the ecological implications of the arrival of African and European peoples in North America, westward expansion, the environmental roots and impacts of industrialization, the industrialization of agriculture, the advent of an increasingly complex built environment, the environmental implications of an economy of mass consumption, and the development of ecological consciousness. Students will read a mix of primary and secondary sources. Classes will be divided between lecture and discussion. Welcome in advance to this class – please do not hesitate to contact the instructor with any questions!
MWF 1:00-2:15 (Prof. Powers)
*HIS 298 Historian's Craft: Radicalism, Enthusiasm, and History in Early America Writing Intensive
All history majors are strongly encouraged to take a “Historian’s Craft” course.
This course is designed to introduce students systematically to the analysis of historical texts, the standards of historical writing, and the methods of historical research while exploring a specific topic of historical interest, in this case the eighteenth-century religious movements often known as the “First Great Awakening,” In this course students will read a variety of primary and secondary texts. By discussing this material in class and analyzing it in their own writing, students will prepare to pose significant historical questions about these moments in history. The dual purposes of the course (writing instruction and exploration of the First Great Awakening) will be intertwined throughout the syllabus.
MWF 10:00-10:50 (Dr. Bailey)
HIS 371 Colonial America
Examination of British North America including the nature of the colonists, their contact with other peoples, the origins of slavery and the creation of a distinct American society.
MW 3:00-4:15 (Dr. Bailey)
HIS 386 The Civil War Era
Covers the events leading up to the War, including abolitionism and Bleeding Kansas. There will also be an in-depth examination of the military strategies and tactics of the War as well as the process of modernization that War engendered. The course will conclude with an analysis of the successes and failures of Reconstruction.
TR 10:00-11:15 (Dr. Burich)
*HIS 450 America and the Holocaust Core Capstone
Open to Senior History Majors; others with permission of the instructor.
This course explores the response of the United States to the Holocaust and the systematic and deliberate extermination of an estimated ten to twelve million people, of whom six million were Jews, during the Second World War. It also examines the implications of the American response to the Holocaust for the inequities and prejudices that remained at the core of American life in the mid-twentieth century. The course is organized in two parts: the first a chronological treatment of United States response to the Holocaust as it unfolded in the events of 1933-1948, and the second an exploration of significant cultural documents that were produced in response to the Holocaust and that shed light on how these events forced a self-examination of American political life and social values.
MWF 10:00-10:50 (Dr. Rosenbloom)
History of Asia, Africa, and Latin America
Please remember that only four courses at the 100-level can be counted toward the major!
HIS 109 History of Asia to 1800 Field 4 and Global Awareness
Comparative study of civilizations, cultures, religions, and institutions of the Far East and South Asia.
MWF 11:00-11:50 (Dr. Devereux)
HIS 110 History of Asia Since 1800 Field 4 and Global Awareness
The various independence and revolutionary movements and their evolution into the modern nation-states of Asia.
TR 2:30-3:45 (Dr. Barker)
HIS 131 History of Latin America to 1830 Field 4 and Global Awareness
MWF 12:00-12:50 (Dr. De La Pedraja)
MWF 1:00-1:50 (Dr. De La Pedraja)
HIS 300 Historical Geography
Required for HIS/Social Studies Education majors and International Relations majors. Next offered spring, 2013.
Examines the interaction between the historical process and human, physical, and cultural geography.
MWF 9:00-9:50 (Dr. Devereux)
HIS 359 Japan 1868 to Present
Development of modern Japan from Restoration of 1868 to the present.
TR 11:30-12:45 (Dr. Devereux)
Other History electives
HIS 402 Seminar: Historiography
History honors program; permission of Chair or Instructor
A study of the major historians of Western civilization, emphasizing the student’s development of a meaningful personal philosophy of history.
R 2:30-5:15 (Dr. Valone)
HIS 411 Senior Honors Thesis
History honors program; permission of Chair or Instructor
Research and writing of a thesis to satisfy requirements for graduation with Honors in History.
F 2:00-4:45 (Dr. Jones)
HIS 498 Internship
Internships may be arranged with a variety of organizations. Possible sites include the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural Site Foundation, the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, and the Colored Musicians’ Club. If interested, please consult Dr. Rosenbloom.
Courses in the All-College Honors Program
HON 220 War and Society in Modern Europe (Dr. Gibert)
HON 221 Violence in American History (Dr. B. Dierenfield)
HON 227 Vices and Addictions in American Society (Dr. K. Dierenfield)