History and Political Thought

This survey course in American history from colonial times to the present will include the political, economic, social, and cultural development at each phase of the country's growth and progress through the study of colonization, independence, early nationhood, sectional strife culminating in the Civil War, Reconstruction, industrial expansion, world power, economic depression, reform, two world wars, the Cold War, and contemporary issues.

The history of ancient Greece and Rome from the time of Homer to the fall of the Roman Empire will be examined in this course with particular emphasis on Greek and Roman politics, socio-economic life and structures, classical culture and philosophy, and the rise of Christianity.

While modern Russia has been influenced by Western Europe, Russian history and culture has followed its own unique path of development. In 1917, traditional Russia was transformed into the modern Soviet Union, becoming “the world’s first socialist state.” The Soviet Union attracted considerable world attention, not only for its military might, but also because of its social, economic, and cultural experimentation. Despite numerous social and economic problems that have beset Russia since the break-up of the Soviet Union, Russia continued to attract attention due to its rich natural resources, its arsenal of nuclear weapons, its capabilities in cyber warfare, and its willingness to assert conventional military power.

This course examines genocide and mass killing as a global phenomenon, with an emphasis on episodes during the twentieth century. Examples may include the Armenian Genocide, the Holocaust, the killing fields of Cambodia and the Rwandan Genocide, among others. Particular areas of emphasis will include the psychology of the perpetrators, survivor accounts, and the legacy of genocide and mass killing as it pertains to historical memory and denialism.

This course examines the origins, causes and contours of World War II with an emphasis on its global scope, political ideology and the rise of totalitarianism, military campaigns, the technological, imperial, social and economic dimensions of the war, racism as a factor in shaping the war in Europe and Asia, and the war’s moral and psychological implications.

This course will look at the origins of the American political system from the end of the Seven Years' War through the Louisiana Purchase and Marbury vs. Madison, focusing on government under the Articles of Confederation, the Constitutional Convention, ratification controversies, the first political party system, and Jeffersonian vs. Hamiltonian approaches to government. Offered alternate years. Cross listed with HST 309.

Religion has been an integral part of the American experience, including the American political experiment with democracy. While there is an official separation of church and state in America, there is also a recognition that religion is a significant influence on both public and private life in America. Many observers and experts have marveled at the degree of religious intensity in one of the most modern, powerful, and wealthy nations in the world. Despite the abundance of material wealth in the United States, many Americans continue to be drawn to something beyond that materialism. In both the American past and present, cultural values and ideas are a major part of American politics. Cross-listed with HST 315.