Department of History

Faculty

Chair

  • Angela N. Creager

Associate Chair

  • Margot Canaday

Director of Undergraduate Studies

  • Janet Y. Chen

Director of Graduate Studies

  • Beth Lew-Williams
  • Erika L. Milam
  • Jack B. Tannous (acting)

Professor

  • Jeremy I. Adelman
  • David A. Bell
  • D. Graham Burnett
  • Margot Canaday
  • David N. Cannadine
  • Janet Y. Chen
  • Linda J. Colley
  • Thomas D. Conlan
  • Angela N. Creager
  • Yaacob Dweck
  • Laura F. Edwards
  • Sheldon M. Garon
  • Michael D. Gordin
  • Anthony T. Grafton
  • Molly Greene
  • Katja Guenther
  • Tera W. Hunter
  • Alison E. Isenberg
  • Harold James
  • William C. Jordan
  • Emmanuel H. Kreike
  • Kevin M. Kruse
  • Michael F. Laffan
  • Erika L. Milam
  • Yair Mintzker
  • Gyan Prakash
  • Ekaterina Pravilova
  • Helmut Reimitz
  • Marina Rustow
  • Emily Thompson
  • Keith A. Wailoo
  • Sean Wilentz
  • Julian E. Zelizer

Associate Professor

  • Edward G. Baring
  • He Bian
  • Vera S. Candiani
  • Jacob S. Dlamini
  • Joshua B. Guild
  • Matthew J. Karp
  • Beth Lew-Williams
  • Rosina A. Lozano
  • Federico Marcon
  • Jennifer M. Rampling
  • Teresa Shawcross
  • Jack B. Tannous
  • Wendy Warren
  • Max D. Weiss

Assistant Professor

  • Rhae Lynn Barnes
  • Michael A. Blaakman
  • Divya Cherian
  • Elizabeth Ellis
  • Isadora M. Mota
  • Iryna Vushko
  • Xin Wen
  • Natasha G. Wheatley
  • Trenton W. Wilson
  • Peter Wirzbicki
  • Corinna Zeltsman

Associated Faculty

  • Wallace D. Best, Religion
  • Michael A. Cook, Near Eastern Studies
  • M. Sükrü Hanioglu, Near Eastern Studies
  • Bernard A. Haykel, Near Eastern Studies
  • Eileen A. Reeves, Comparative Literature
  • Nigel Smith, English

Lecturer

  • James A. Dun
  • Joseph M. Fronczak
For a full list of faculty members and fellows please visit the department or program website.

Program Information

Information and Departmental Plan of Study

The plan of departmental study encourages the student to gain further knowledge of the major developments in (and problems of) history, spanning a broad range of time and place. Students also develop more focused expertise through independent historical research and writing. Through coursework and rigorous independent research, the history concentration emphasizes both depth and breadth. The department's website describes the program and requirements in detail.

Prerequisites

Before they enter the department, students are required to take and pass one (1) 200-level course from the list designated as prerequisites.

Prospective concentrators who have not fulfilled the 200-level prerequisite should consult with the director of undergraduate studies.

Program of Study

Course Advising

Before preregistration each term, each history student must consult with one of the department's designated undergraduate advisers.

Departmental Distribution Requirements

University regulations stipulate that undergraduates may not take more than 12 departmental courses, plus up to two departmental prerequisites taken during the first or sophomore years. Departmental regulations stipulate that undergraduates must pass at least 10 courses, including HIS 400, in order to receive the A.B. degree. Students who exceed the 31 courses required for graduation will be permitted to take extra departmentals. History courses taken in the first year and sophomore years are numbered among the 10 to 12 required for graduation. Starting with the class of 2023, students must take at least one course in each of the following four thematic areas: Knowledge & Belief (KB), Power & Conflict (PC), Pre-Modern, pre-1700 (PM), Race & Difference (RD). See the Distribution Requirements for a list of courses satisfying each of these areas. Many courses carry more than one designation. A single course may satisfy only one thematic requirement. In addition to the thematic areas, at least two (2) courses must also fulfill the Geographical Distribution Requirements that are principally focused on Africa, Asia, Latin America, or the Middle East. These courses may double count with the thematic courses.

*Students who entered the concentration in the spring of 2020, took a gap year, and joined the class of 2023 should consult with the director of undergraduate studies about the new requirements.

Cognates

The department allows students to take courses in other departments that will add depth and variety to their study of history.  When taken during the junior and senior year, up to two (2) such courses may be counted as departmental courses, i.e., cognates, provided they contribute significantly to the student's field of  concentration and/or independent work, and are substantially historical in their content. Cross-listed courses, such as CLA 217 and NES 201, are not cognates; they are automatically considered departmental courses. The designation of a course as a cognate must be approved by the director of undergraduate studies. The designation of a cognate course as a departmental should take place during the enrollment/advising period but no later than the University's "deadline for 'free course' change" (approximately two weeks after the beginning of the semester). Courses cannot be declared cognates retroactively, nor can they be changed later to non-departmentals. Cognate courses do not satisfy distribution requirements; however, they count in the determination of departmental standing and honors.

History of Science

Students should have an understanding of the history of science, technology, and medicine at various times and in various places and be able to address questions concerning the conceptual and institutional development of these activities in relation to the societies that pursued them.

History majors wishing to concentrate in the History of Science are required to meet thematic requirements (four courses) and geographic requirements (two courses, which can overlap with the thematic) among their 10 to 12 courses. They must also take courses that satisfy the following requirements:

  1. Two courses in science, engineering, or mathematics in addition to those used to fill the university's science distribution requirement.
  2. Four of the following courses (with the permission of the director of undergraduate studies, one of these courses may be replaced by a cognate course from another department, for example, in philosophy or sociology of science). These specific courses can and almost certainly will also serve to at least partially meet the geographic and thematic requirements:

277 Technology and Society (see EGR 277)

290 The Scientific Worldview of Antiquity and the Middle Ages

291 The Scientific Revolution and European Order, 1500–1750

292 Science in the Modern World

293 Science in a Global Context: 15th to 20th Century

294 Science and Medicine in the Early Modern World

295 Making America: A Technological History of the United States

297 Transformative Questions in Biology (see STC 297)

312 History of Anti-Black Racism in Medicine (see AAS 306)

355 The Art & Archaeology of Plague (see ART 361)

382 Beyond Tuskegee: Race and Human Subjects Research in U.S. History (see AAS 331)

391 History of Contemporary Science

392 History of Evolution

393 Race, Drugs, and Drug Policy in America

394 History of Ecology and Environmentalism

395 History of Medicine and the Body

396 History of Biology

397 Medicine and the Mind: A History of Psychiatry from the Asylum to Zoloft

398 The Einstein Era

399 In the Groove: Technology and Music in American History, from Edison to the iPod (see AMS 399)

452 Magic, Matter, Medicine: Science in the Medieval World

458 History and the Body (see GSS 426)

472 Medicine and Society in China: Past and Present

481 Science and Film

488 The Soviet Atomic, Space, and Information Ages

489 The Scientific Self

491 Fertile Bodies: A Cultural History of Reproduction from Antiquity to the Enlightenment

492 The Therapeutic Persuasion: Psychotherapy and American Life

493 '1, 2, 3, Testing,'. . . in the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine

495 Alchemy: Art and Science

494 Broken Brains, Shattered Minds

496 History of Neuroscience

497 Eating, Growing, Catching, Knowing: Historical Perspectives on Food, Science, and the Environment

498 History of Pseudoscience

499 Things

The independent work and comprehensive examination requirements are the same as for all other departmental majors.

Independent Work

Junior Year

Juniors write two junior papers of roughly 25–30 pages in length, one in each semester.

In the fall term of junior year, students are required to enroll in the HIS 400 Junior Seminars. Work in the junior seminar involves exercises in defining a topic for historical research and in identifying and evaluating a body of historical literature. Each student may expect to gain experience in the use of the library and bibliographical sources, to learn the correct technical form for presenting evidence clearly, and to develop a historical presentation convincingly. Students in HIS 400 will have the opportunity to choose from a number of seminars devoted to historical events or themes of wide importance, such as Irregular Warfare, Space History, Early Native American History, The United States and Latin America, or The Political Uses of American Streets.

In the spring term of junior year, in consultation with their adviser, the student selects a topic and writes a research paper on an independent basis. Written work equivalent to that submitted in the first term is required. The two semesters of junior independent work must be focused in two different geographical fields and in two different time periods. Students should consult their advisers about this requirement.

Senior Year

The independent work consists of writing a thesis on an approved subject of the student's choice. The thesis usually relies on research in original source materials, but it may also involve reinterpretation of familiar materials.

Senior Departmental Examination

The senior departmental examination in the department consists of an oral examination based on the senior thesis and related topics.

Study Abroad

NOTE: All semester abroad opportunities will be contingent upon a number of factors, including health and safety conditions abroad, domestic and international travel restrictions, program-specific protocols related to COVID-19, and the guidelines for sponsored travel as outlined by the University (for further information, consult the Office of International Programs). The department has the following policies:

  1. Sophomores intending to major in history may not count a history course taken abroad toward the requirement to enter the department. The course cannot be used to substitute for the 200-level prerequisite (see above).
  2. The department's spring HIS 400 junior seminar will be open to sophomores intending to go abroad in the fall of their junior year, thus enabling them to write their first junior paper in the spring of their sophomore year and preparing them to write the second while abroad or in the resident semester of their junior year (if they elect to spend only one semester abroad). Students who meet the requirements of junior independent work while at Princeton will still be expected to undertake a full course load while abroad. Moreover, to take full advantage of the international experience, study abroad should include some research work, and we urge students to take seminars that include a research component. 

Interdepartmental Programs

Interdepartmental programs of particular interest to history department students are the Programs in African Studies, African American Studies, American Studies, Asian American Studies, Classics, East Asian Studies, European Cultural Studies, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Hellenic Studies, History and the Practice of Diplomacy, Judaic Studies, Latin American Studies, Medieval Studies, and Near Eastern Studies. Students should consult the director of undergraduate studies and the director of the relevant program.

Courses

HIS 201 A History of the World Fall CDHA

An overview of world history. Begins with Genghis Khan's Mongol Empire, which collided peoples, goods, and ideas across the Eurasian landmass, and traces the global transformations that connected or disconnected societies through time. The dynamism of Asia; environmental specificities of Africa and the Americas; slavery and other links across the Atlantic; the surprise onset of European predominance; colonialism, anti-colonialism, globalization. What is the past and future of Islam? How is China's staggering wealth up to 1750 and its recent ascent explained? Where did the U.S. come from and where is it going? Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: J. Adelman

HIS 207 History of East Asia to 1800 (also
EAS 207
/
MED 207
) Not offered this year HA

General introduction to major themes in the cultural, intellectual, and institutional history of China and Japan, with some attention to Korea and Southeast Asia. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: T. Conlan, X. Wen

HIS 208 East Asia since 1800 (also
EAS 208
) Spring HA

An introduction to the history of modern East Asia, examining the inter-related histories of Korea, Japan, and China since 1800 and their relationships with the wider world. Major topics include: trade, cultural exchanges, reform and revolution, war, colonialism, Cold War geopolitics, socialism. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: H. Bian, S. Garon

HIS 210 The World of Late Antiquity (also
HLS 210
/
CLA 202
/
MED 210
) Not offered this year HA

This course will focus on the history of the later Roman Empire, a period which historians often refer to as "Late Antiquity." We will begin our class in pagan Rome at the start of the third century and end it in Baghdad in the ninth century: in between these two points, the Mediterranean world experienced a series of cultural and political revolutions whose reverberations can still be felt today. We will witness civil wars, barbarian invasions, the triumph of Christianity over paganism, the fall of the Western Empire, the rise of Islam, the Greco-Arabic translation movement and much more. Instructed by: J. Tannous

HIS 211 Europe from Antiquity to 1700 Fall HA

The course deals with four main topics: the Greek city-state, the Roman Empire and the rise of Christianity, the formation of medieval European society, and the Renaissance and Reformation. Emphasis will be laid on those social, political, intellectual, and religious developments that contributed most directly to forming modern European civilization. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: A. Grafton

HIS 212 Europe in the World: From 1776 to the Present Day (also
EPS 212
) Spring HA

The emergence of modern societies from the Europe of the Old Regimes. Emphasis on problems and themes, including the French and Industrial Revolutions, nationalism, science and its discontents, popular culture, the mass movements of revolution and war. Intended as an introduction to Europe for students with little background in history. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: H. James

HIS 216 Archaic and Classical Greece (See CLA 216)

HIS 217 The Greek World in the Hellenistic Age (See CLA 217)

HIS 218 The Roman Republic (See CLA 218)

HIS 219 The Roman Empire, 31 B.C. to A.D. 337 (See CLA 219)

HIS 220 Jews, Muslims, and Christians in the Middle Ages (See NES 220)

HIS 223 Introduction to the Middle East (See NES 201)

HIS 227 The Worlds of the Middle Ages (See MED 227)

HIS 231 Ancient Greek and Roman Medicine: Bodies, Physicians, and Patients (See CLA 231)

HIS 240 The Perception of China and Asia in the West (See EAS 240)

HIS 241 Faith and Power in the Indian Ocean Arena Not offered this year HA

This course offers a chronological and topical overview of one of the world's most diverse and contested spaces. Sketching the deep linkages between East Africa, the Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, short focused readings and in-depth precepts will highlight such issues as the spread of Buddhism and Islam, the rise of colonialism, the importance of nationalist and third-worldist movements, the struggles for exclusive ethno-religious enclaves and the consequences for diasporic communities with ever-tightening links to the Americas, Europe and Australasia. Instructed by: M. Laffan

HIS 245 The Islamic World from its Emergence to the Beginnings of Westernization (See NES 350)

HIS 267 The Modern Middle East (also
NES 267
) Not offered this year HA

An introduction to the history of the Middle East from the late eighteenth century through the turn of the twenty-first, with an emphasis on the Arab East, Iran, Israel, and Turkey. Instructed by: M. Weiss

HIS 270 Asian American History (also
AMS 370
/
ASA 370
) Not offered this year CDHA

This course introduces students to the multiple and varied experiences of people of Asian heritage in the United States from the 19th century to the present day. It focuses on three major questions: (1) What brought Asians to the United States? (2) How did Asian Americans come to be viewed as a race? (3) How does Asian American experience transform our understanding of U.S. history? Using newspapers, novels, government reports, and films, this course will cover major topics in Asian American history, including Chinese Exclusion, Japanese internment, transnational adoption, and the model minority stereotype. Instructed by: B. Lew-Williams

HIS 278 Digital, Spatial, Visual, and Oral Histories Not offered this year HA

The course focuses on unconventional historical sources and approaches including oral, spatial, computational, and digital history. Conventional written sources typically reflect the biases of a small elite. Oral history can be used to recapture the history of individuals, groups, and phenomena that written sources have erased. Spatial history (through the use of Geographic Information Systems or GIS), digital history, and computational history greatly enrich the study of the past by adding new types of data and by offering platforms to integrate a great variety of sources in new multi-dimensional, multi-media, and interactive formats. Instructed by: E. Kreike

HIS 280 Approaches to American History Spring HA

An intensive introduction to concepts, methods, and issues in American history, especially recommended for prospective concentrators. The problems investigated in the course (the Revolution, class and cultural relations, literature and society, and others) will vary. Emphasis will be on the framing of historical questions and immersion in the actual sources of history. One lecture, two classes. Instructed by: K. Kruse, L. Edwards

HIS 281 Approaches to European History (also
ECS 304
) Not offered this year HA

An intensive introduction to the methods and practice of history, designed to prepare students for future independent work through the close reading of sources on three different topics in European history. This year these will be: 1) the Galileo affair; 2) the trial and execution of Louis XVI; and 3) the trials of Nazi leaders at Nuremberg. The class combines lecture with discussion, to introduce students to the basic vocabulary of European historiography and to develop their skills in the interpretation and analysis of documents, the framing of historical questions, and the construction of effective arguments. Instructed by: Y. Mintzker

HIS 282 A Documents-based Approach to Asian History (also
EAS 282
) Not offered this year HA

An intensive, documents-based introduction to methods and issues in Asian history, focusing on topics that embed Asia in the wider context of world history. Especially recommended for prospective concentrators. The problems investigated (Marco Polo in Asia, Jesuits in China, Russo-Japanese War, Japan's Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, etc.) will vary. Emphasis will be on interpreting primary sources, framing historical questions, and constructing historical explanations. Two 90-minute classes. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 290 The Scientific Worldview of Antiquity and the Middle Ages Not offered this year HA

The emergence and development of natural philosophy in ancient Greece, with consideration of its Egyptian and Babylonian background and its subsequent articulation and modification in the medieval worlds of Islam and Western Europe. Emphasis is placed on the interplay of science and culture. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 291 The Scientific Revolution and European Order, 1500-1750 Not offered this year HA

Beliefs about the nature of the universe, the Earth, and even the human body changed drastically during the early modern period. This course examines this transformation of natural knowledge as a process of both social and intellectual reorganization. Explores how Europeans developed a new mechanistic science for astronomy, physics, and medicine with a dynamic culture of new institutions and technologies. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 292 Science in the Modern World Not offered this year HA

The evolution of science since Newton. Emphasis is placed on the major developments of scientific theory and practice since the chemical revolution of the late 18th century. Topics considered will also include: the development of science as a discipline; the connections between science and mathematics, philosophy, and technology; and the emergence of science as an integral part of modern societies. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: M. Gordin

HIS 293 Science in a Global Context: 15th to 20th Century Not offered this year HA

Science and technology have literally changed the world. This course examines how, with an emphasis on understanding the place of scientific knowledge in the history of European exploration and expanding global power. How did the sciences go out into the world? How did certain disciplines and practices take shape in global interactions since 1400? How does knowledge become universal? What instruments, institutions, and activities made this possible? Two 90-minute classes. Instructed by: D. Burnett

HIS 295 Making America: Technology and History in the United States Not offered this year HA

This course will introduce students to technology in U.S. history, from the Colonial Era through the Twentieth Century. Throughout, we will consider how people designed, made, and used technologies in order to accomplish work, to organize society, and to make sense of their world. Warfare and agriculture; transportation and communication networks; plantations and factories; media, money, and information systems; engineers and other kinds of technologists: all will be explored, examined, and analyzed in order to understand the role of technology in making the nation. Instructed by: E. Thompson

HIS 303 Colonial Latin America to 1810 (also
LAS 305
) Fall HA

The principal themes of Iberian imperialism and colonial society from preconquest to the eve of independence. The main issues to be covered will be: Amerindian civilization, the conquest of the Americas, social and cultural change, and evolving economic relations. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: V. Candiani

HIS 304 Modern Latin America since 1810 (also
LAS 304
) Not offered this year HA

A survey of Latin America from the wars of independence to recent struggles for democracy. The focus will be on state formation in the 19th century, relations with the world economy, and changing patterns of social and political life in the 20th century. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 306 Becoming Latino in the U.S. (also
LAO 306
/
LAS 326
) Spring HA

The course follows the major themes and issues surrounding the history of Mexican Americans in the United States. It seeks to explain the historical origins of the continuing debates over land ownership, assimilation expectations, discrimination, immigration regulation, and labor disputes. The course focuses primarily on the US citizens created after the Mexican American War and Mexican immigrants to the US. It looks transnationally at Mexico's history to explain US shifts in public opinion and domestic policies. While the course examines the impact of Mexican Americans in many regions of the country, it will focus on those in the Southwest. Instructed by: R. Lozano

HIS 310 Religion and the American Revolution (See REL 357)

HIS 314 Precolonial Africa (also
AFS 313
) Not offered this year HA

A survey course that begins with an overview of the continent at the end of the third century A.D. and ends with the death of Moshoeshoe in the 19th century. Focuses on several great themes of African history: long-distance trade, state formation, migration, religious conversion to either Islam or Christianity, forms of domestic slavery, and the impact of the slave trade. Two 90-minute classes. Instructed by: E. Kreike

HIS 315 Colonial and Postcolonial Africa (also
AFS 316
) Spring HA

The impact of European colonial rule on the traditional societies of Africa in the 19th and 20th centuries. One of the dominant themes will be the emergence of the intelligentsia in colonial areas as proponents of nationalism. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: J. Dlamini

HIS 316 South African History, 1497 to the Present Not offered this year HA

Beginning with a brief precolonial regional overview, the course examines European occupation following 1652; explores slavery, the frontier, intergroup relations, the growth of nationalism, the Boer War and unification, African resistance movements, the structure of politics, constitutional developments, and debates over race and class; and ends with the 1980s constitutional crisis. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: E. Kreike

HIS 317 The Making of Modern India and Pakistan (also
SAS 317
) Not offered this year HA

An exploration of three major themes in the history of India's emergence as a nation-state: colonial socio-economic and cultural transformations, the growth of modern collective identities and conflicts, and nationalism. Topics covered include: trade, empire, and capitalism; class, gender, and religion; Gandhi, national independence, and partition; and postcolonial state and society. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: G. Prakash

HIS 318 Topics in 18th-Century Literature (See ENG 338)

HIS 321 Early Modern Japan (See EAS 321)

HIS 322 20th-Century Japan (also
EAS 324
) Fall HA

An analysis of change and continuity in modern Japanese society, with emphasis on industrialization, social discontent, parliamentary democracy, war, defeat, the "economic miracle," and Japanese preoccupation with national identity in a Western-dominated world. Divided between the prewar and postwar periods. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: S. Garon

HIS 324 Early Modern China (also
EAS 354
) Fall HA

China between the 1570s and the 1860s, from its early involvement in the new world economy to the crises of the Opium War era. Emphasis on the history and culture of the Qing empire, its success and challenges, with attention to family and society, religion, art, and literature. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: H. Bian

HIS 325 China, 1850 to the Present (also
EAS 355
) Spring HA

China's transformations and continuities from the civil wars of the mid-19th century to the economic reforms of the 1980s. Topics include the opium crisis, the impact of natural disasters, the fall of the imperial dynasty, China's struggle with Western and Japanese imperialism, and experiments in government and society on mainland China and Taiwan since 1949. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: J. Chen

HIS 326 Topics in Ancient History (See CLA 326)

HIS 327 Topics in Ancient History (See CLA 327)

HIS 328 Classical Historians and Their Philosophies of History (See CLA 324)

HIS 337 The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1800 (See NES 437)

HIS 340 Culture and Society in Late Imperial China: 1000-1900 (See EAS 340)

HIS 342 Southeast Asia's Global History (also
EAS 342
/
NES 343
) Spring HA

Provides an introduction to Southeast Asia and its prominent place in global history NES 343 through a series of encounters in time, from Marco Polo in Sumatra to the latest events in such buzzing cities as Bangkok, Jakarta, and Hanoi. For the early modern period we will read various primary sources before turning to consider a series of diverse colonial impacts across the region (European, American, and Asian), and then the mechanisms underpinning the formation of some of the most vibrant, and sometimes turbulent, countries on the world stage. Two 90-minute classes. Instructed by: M. Laffan

HIS 343 The Formation of Europe in the First Millennium (also
CLA 343
/
HLS 343
/
MED 343
) Not offered this year HA

A study of the emergence of a distinctive Western European civilization out of Christian, Greco-Roman, and Germanic institutions and ideas from the decline of the Roman Empire to about A.D. 1050. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: H. Reimitz

HIS 344 The Civilization of the High Middle Ages (also
CLA 344
/
MED 344
) Not offered this year HA

An analysis of typical institutions, social and economic structures, and forms of thought and expression from about 1050 to about 1350. Emphasis is placed on the elements of medieval civilization that have influenced the subsequent history of European peoples. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: W. Jordan

HIS 345 The Crusades (also
HLS 345
/
MED 345
) Not offered this year HA

The Crusades were a central phenomenon of the Middle Ages. This course examines the origins and development of the Crusades and the Crusader States in the Islamic East. It explores dramatic events, such as the great Siege of Jerusalem, and introduces vivid personalities, including Richard the Lionheart and Saladin. We will consider aspects of institutional, economic, social and cultural history and compare medieval Christian (Western and Byzantine), Muslim and Jewish perceptions of the crusading movement. Finally, we will critically examine the resonance the movement continues to have in current political and ideological debates Instructed by: T. Shawcross

HIS 349 The Arab-Israeli Conflict (See NES 338)

HIS 351 France, 1815 to the Present Not offered this year HA

The political and social history of France from Napoleon to the Fifth Republic. The impact of revolution, industrialization, and war on French society in the 19th and 20th centuries. Particular attention will be paid to movements of popular revolt and the efforts of elites--rural, bourgeois, and technocratic--to maintain control in the face of social ferment. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 353 God, Satan, Goddesses, and Monsters: How Their Stories Play in Art, Culture, and Politics (See REL 350)

HIS 358 History of the Balkans (also
HLS 358
) Not offered this year HA

Examines the rise of nationalism in the Balkans, beginning with an examination of Balkan society under the Ottomans and continuing up through the establishment of nation-states in the 19th and 20th centuries. Case studies will include Greece, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Albania. Themes covered: social organization, prenational politics, imperialism, cultural and economic elites, the Ottoman heritage. One lecture, two preceptorials. Instructed by: M. Greene

HIS 359 Modern Jewish History: 1750-Present (also
JDS 359
) Spring HA

This course surveys the breadth of Jewish experience from the era of the Enlightenment to the contemporary period. Tracing the development of Jewish cultures and communities in Europe and the United States against the background of general history, the course focuses on themes such as the transformation of Jewish identity, the creation of modern Jewish politics, the impact of anti-Semitism, and the founding of the State of Israel. Two 90-minute classes. Instructed by: Y. Dweck

HIS 360 The Russian Empire: From Peter the Great to Nicholas II (also
RES 360
) Not offered this year HA

Eighteenth-century enlightened absolutism: reforms of Peter and Catherine the Great, shaping of national identity and a modern state. Nineteenth-century tensions between reform from above and revolution from below, with a focus on the political role of social groups and special attention to the origins of revolutionary conflict in 1905 and 1917. Two 90-minute classes. Instructed by: E. Pravilova

HIS 361 The United States Since 1974 Not offered this year HA

The history of contemporary America, with particular attention to political, social and technological changes. Topics will include the rise of a new conservative movement and the reconstitution of liberalism, the end of the divisive Cold War era and the rise of an interconneted global economy, revolutionary technological innovation coupled with growing economic inequality, a massive influx of immigrants coupled with a revival of isolationism and nativism, a revolution in homosexual rights and gender equality coupled with the rise of a new ethos of "family values." Instructed by: J. Zelizer

HIS 362 The Soviet Empire Not offered this year HA

An examination of the transformation of the Russian Empire into the Soviet Empire. Topics include: the unfolding of single-party revolutionary politics, the development of Stalin's personal despotism, the violent attempt to create a noncapitalist society, the monumental war with Nazi Germany, and the nature of everyday life. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 365 Europe in the 20th Century Not offered this year HA

The history of Western and Central Europe since World War I viewed from the perspective of Europe's rapidly changing role in world history. Europe's political, social, and economic adjustment to the Russian Revolution, to the emergence of America and Russia as superpowers, and to the loss of overseas imperial possessions. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 366 Germany since 1806 Not offered this year HA

Sets German history after the Napoleonic invasion in a context of international politics, and shows how the development of a peculiarly German idea of the nation was a response to pressures exerted by European political changes and by the European state system. Examination of how, after national unification in 1871, German domestic policy in turn affected the whole world: in German foreign policy before the First World War, in the aftermath of 1918, and during the Nazi dictatorship. Treatment of the separate courses of the two Germanies since 1945 and of their position in world politics. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: H. James

HIS 367 English Constitutional History Not offered this year HA

A study of the development of the English Constitution to 1600, with special emphasis on the institutions and ideas that form the background for American constitutional history. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: W. Jordan

HIS 370 Britain from the American Revolution to World War II Not offered this year HA

Thematic survey of the social, cultural, and political transformations in the lives of women and men in Britain from the Industrial Revolution to the present. Topics include Britain's rise and fall as the first "modern" society and imperial power; national identities and civil society, gender, and class; democracy and imperialism; Irish nationalism and contemporary culture. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: L. Colley

HIS 371 The Colonization of North America Fall HA

An overview of European colonization in North America, covering New France, New Spain, New England, the Middle Colonies, the Chesapeake area, South Carolina, and the sugar islands. Special emphasis upon social structures, labor systems, race, gender, religion, political cultures, and the problem of imperial control from Jamestown through the Great Awakening of the 1740s. Particular attention will be paid to the various and changing encounters of Africans, Native American, and Europeans, and to the importance of slavery in the colonization process. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: W. Warren

HIS 372 Revolutionary America Not offered this year HA

A survey of the causes, course, and consequences of the American Revolution, from the Seven Years War to the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. Topics include colonial protest and the crisis of the British empire; the politics of war and independence, including the significance of slavery; the relationships between war, society, and ideology; the roles of Loyalists and Native Americans; and patriot experiments in republican government. Particular attention will be paid to how gender, race, region, status, Indigeneity, and class shaped experiences of the revolutionary era. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: M. Blaakman

HIS 373 Democracy and Slavery in the New Nation Not offered this year HA

A survey of society, culture, and politics in the United States from the ratification of the Constitution to the Compromise of 1850. Topics include the rise of cotton slavery, Northern capitalism and class formation, the politics of cultural change, Jeffersonianism, Jacksonian democracy, and the political economy of sectionalism. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: S. Wilentz

HIS 374 History of the American West (also
AMS 360
) Not offered this year HA

The history of the place we now know as the U. S. West, from European contact to the mid-twentieth century. Primary focus on the struggles over access to land, resources, and power in old and new Wests, with particular attention given to the role of visual and popular culture in shaping the national imagination of the region. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 376 The American Civil War and Reconstruction Spring HA

Surveys the causes, issues, and consequences of the nation's bloodiest conflict. Topics include slavery and antislavery, Manifest Destiny, the growing sectional conflict, the clash of arms, the transforming impact of the Civil War, the transition from slave to free labor in the South, and postslavery race relations. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: M. Karp

HIS 377 Gilded Age and Progressive-Era United States, 1877-1920 Not offered this year HA

The rise of the modern corporate state in America. Primary focus on the development of big business in the years following the Civil War, accompanying social processes such as immigration and urbanization, and the political responses to these phenomena, particularly populism and progressivism. Other topics include labor, blacks and racism, women in progressive America, and the intellectual response to modernity. Concludes with the United States' entry into World War I. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 378 American Economic History (See ECO 370)

HIS 380 U.S. Foreign Relations Fall HA

The relations between the United States and other nations from 1776 to the present, treating political, economic, and military aspects of U.S. foreign affairs, with special attention to the art of diplomacy. Two lectures, one precept. Instructed by: J. Fronczak

HIS 383 The United States, 1920-1974 Fall HA

The history of modern America, with particular focus on domestic political and social changes. Topics include the Roaring 20s; the Great Depression and the New Deal; the homefront of World War II and the Cold War; the civil rights movement and the Great Society; the Vietnam War; the sexual revolutions; the Silent Majority, the Nixon administration, and Watergate. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: K. Kruse

HIS 384 Gender and Sexuality in Modern America (also
GSS 384
) Spring CDHA

An examination of changing patterns of manhood and womanhood, with an emphasis on women's experience. Topics include housekeeping, child rearing, birth control, sexuality, work, feminism, and the role of gender in religious and political movements and economic development. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: M. Canaday

HIS 386 African American History to 1863 (See AAS 366)

HIS 387 African American History Since Emancipation (See AAS 367)

HIS 388 Unrest and Renewal in Urban America (also
URB 388
/
AMS 380
/
AAS 388
) Fall CDHA

From colonial settlement to the present, this course weaves a comprehensive history of American cities. Over centuries, cities have symbolized democratic ideals of "melting pots" and innovation, as well as crises of disorder, decline, crime, and poverty. Urban life has concentrated extremes like rich and poor; racial and ethnic divides; philanthropy and greed; skyscrapers and parks; violence and hope; downtown and suburb. The course examines how cities in U.S. history have brokered revolution, transformation and renewal, focusing on class, race, gender, immigration, capitalism, and the built environment. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: A. Isenberg

HIS 389 American Cultural History Not offered this year HA

This course will serve as an intensive historical survey on the rise of mass popular culture and entertainment from roughly 1800 to 1980 and will investigate the ways multiethnic American popular culture (photography, rock 'n' roll, jazz, sports, film, radio, and other forms of multimedia and expressive culture) was influenced by and shaped the American political landscape, race relations, labor, gender, sexuality, technology, and urbanization. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: R. Barnes

HIS 393 Race, Drugs, and Drug Policy in America (also
AAS 393
/
SPI 389
) Spring HA

From "Chinese opium" to Oxycontin, and from cocaine and "crack" to BiDil, drug controversies reflect enduring debates about the role of medicine, the law, the policing of ethnic identity, and racial difference. This course explores the history of controversial substances (prescription medicines, over-the-counter products, black market substances, psychoactive drugs), and how, from cigarettes to alcohol and opium, they become vehicles for heated debates over immigration, identity, cultural and biological difference, criminal character, the line between legality and illegality, and the boundaries of the normal and the pathological. Instructed by: K. Wailoo

HIS 396 History of Biology Not offered this year HA

An examination of the emergence of biology as a scientific discipline since 1750, focusing on the cultural context and social impact of changes in biological knowledge. Particular attention will be paid to changing conceptions of life, the institutionalization and financial support of biological research, and how interactions with the physical sciences have shaped life sciences. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Instructed by: A. Creager

HIS 400 Junior Seminars Fall/Spring HA

The junior seminars serve to introduce departmental majors, in the fall of their junior year, to the tools, methods, and interpretations employed in historical research and writing. Students may choose from a range of topics; assignments to specific seminars are made on the basis of these choices at the beginning of the fall term. Seminar topics tend to be cross-national and comparative. All juniors must be enrolled in one of the seminars. One three-hour seminar. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 404 The Rise of the Republican Party Spring HA

For the first seventy-five years of U.S. history, anti-slavery parties were confined to the radical fringe of national politics. Yet just six years after it was founded in 1854, the Republican Party became the only third party organization in U.S. history to capture the Presidency.The triumph of this new, avowedly anti-slavery was unprecedented: "the revolution of 1860," some called it. But who exactly were these Republicans? How did they rise so far, so fast, and against such mighty obstacles? And what sort of world did they want to build? Using both primary and secondary sources, this seminar will explore these and other vital questions. Instructed by: M. Karp

HIS 405 Native American History Not offered this year HA

This course covers the history of Native Americans until 1838 (the end of forced Removal). It has two central goals: to emphasize the variety of Native American societies and cultures that existed (and exist) in North America, and to highlight the centrality of Native American history to North American history as a whole. Readings will include: the accounts of the travels of Cabeza de Vaca and of John Smith, the Jesuit Relations, the Life of Black Hawk, the journals of Lewis and Clark, several captivity narratives, and Cherokee documents written during Removal. Instructed by: W. Warren

HIS 408 Selected Topics in 20th-Century Latin America (also
LAS 408
) Not offered this year HA

Research and reading on topics related to economic development and political change with attention to specific national contexts, such as authoritarian state and society in Argentina and Brazil; revolution and social change in Mexico, Cuba, and Chile; problems in Latin American foreign relations. One three-hour seminar. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 417 Gandhi: The Making of the Mahatma Not offered this year HA

This seminar examines Gandhi's political life extending from his campaign for the rights of Indians in South Africa to his role in the struggle for Indian independence from British rule. Focus on those historical processes that turned M. K. Gandhi into a major 20th-century figure--the Mahatma. Issues relating to imperialism and nationalism form the context in which the seminar looks at Gandhi's life and seeks to understand Gandhian ideology and its different--often conflicting--historical appropriations. One three-hour seminar. Instructed by: G. Prakash

HIS 419 Topics in the History of Modern Syria (also
NES 419
/
COM 438
) Not offered this year HA

This seminar situates cultural production in Ba`thist Syria (1970-present)--in terms of its conditions of creation, circulation and reception--within a broader framework, namely, the history of modern Syria. Through an exploration of historical debates in the scholarly literature on politics, aesthetics and culture, students will both contextualize and comment upon ongoing discussions surrounding contemporary Syria. The course engages with a wide range of media, from literature and drama to television and film. All readings are in English, although those with interests/abilities in French or Arabic will be encouraged to exercise them. Instructed by: M. Weiss

HIS 428 Empire and Catastrophe (also
HLS 428
/
MED 428
) Spring HA

Catastrophe reveals the fragility of human society. This course examines a series of phenomena--plague, famine, war, revolution, economic depression etc.--in order to reach an understanding of humanity's imaginings of but also resilience to collective crises. We shall look in particular at how political forces such as empire have historically both generated and resisted global disasters. Material dealing with the especially fraught centuries at the transition between the Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period will be set alongside examples drawn from antiquity as well as our own contemporary era. Instructed by: T. Shawcross

HIS 430 Communication and the Arts (See ECS 331)

HIS 432 Environment and War (also
ENV 432
) Not offered this year HA

Studies of war and society rarely address environmental factors and agency. The relationship between war and environment is often either reduced to a simple environmental determinism or it is depicted as a war against nature and ecosystems, playing down societal dynamics. The seminar explores the different approaches to the war-environment-society nexus and highlights how and why the three spheres should be studied in conjunction. The objective is to assess how and why environmental and societal factors and forces caused and shaped the conflicts and how in turn mass violence shaped societies and how they used and perceived their environments. Instructed by: E. Kreike

HIS 433 Imperialism and Reform in the Middle East and the Balkans (See NES 433)

HIS 444 Intellectual History of China to the Fifth Century (See EAS 415)

HIS 448 History: An Introduction to the Discipline Fall HA

An introduction to the discipline of history aimed at, but not limited to, history majors. Through case studies, students will learn how historians of the last few generations have framed problems, found and interpreted evidence, and built arguments. Participants will both study the major recent movements in the discipline of history and reflect on and improve their own historical techniques. The course will culminate with an examination of history and memory in the early 21st century. Prerequisites: successful completion of the department's junior requirements or comparable work in another department. One three-hour seminar. Instructed by: A. Grafton

HIS 459 The History of Incarceration in the U.S. (also
GSS 459
/
AMS 459
) Not offered this year HA

The prison is a growth industry in the U.S.; it is also a central institution in U.S. political and social life, shaping our experience of race, class, gender, sexuality, citizenship, and political possibility. This course explores the history of incarceration over the course of more than two centuries. It tracks the emergence of the penitentiary in the early national period and investigates mass incarceration of the late 20th century. Topics include the relationship between the penitentiary and slavery; the prisoners' rights movement; Japanese internment; immigration detention; and the privatization and globalization of prisons. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 460 Topics in American Legal History Not offered this year HA

An in-depth exploration of a topic in American legal history. In some years the course will investigate an event, such as a famous or infamous trial or case. In other years the course will explore historical dimensions of a particular legal concept, such as "rights," "coercion," "dependency," the "family," or "property." One three-hour seminar. Instructed by: Staff

HIS 467 Financial History (See SPI 466)

HIS 477 The Civil Rights Movement (See AAS 477)

HIS 494 Broken Brains, Shattered Minds Not offered this year HA

An exploration of the complex relationship between the making of brain science and the human experiences of brain damaged people. Topics include iconic cases of brain damage like the railway worker Phineas Gage who survived an iron rod perforating his brain, the emergence and historical function of neurological case histories, the study of brain-damaged soldiers in WWI, the "neurological novels" of Alexander Luria, and the popular writings of Oliver Sacks. Instructed by: K. Guenther