Faculty
Susan Farnsworth, Professor of History (Program Chair)
Mary Hayes, SND, Professor of History
Mary Lynn Rampolla, Associate Professor of History
Description
The history major is particularly flexible. Student may select an
orientation suiting their own individual interests, supported by
complementary courses in art, literature, the social sciences, theology,
and philosophy.
The study of history is integral to a liberal education. Students
acquire skills in interpretation and synthesis based on systematic
inquiry and research, analysis of evidence, and the formation of
critical judgment. They develop an informed perspective about the
varieties and diversity of human experience and about their own
inherited cultural traditions. They learn ways to study the past and to
make connections between the past and the issues of the contemporary
world. Through their investigation of human experience, they develop an
understanding of institutions, ideas and values different from theirs,
and, in turn, recognize and deepen their own values.
Training in history offers a foundation for many different careers.
Broad reading, the development of critical perspective, the discipline
of research, organizational ability, logical presentation of evidence
and conclusions, intuitive insight, understanding of human nature -- all
these prepare the student for a wide variety of pursuits including law,
business, print and broadcast journalism, public relations, teaching,
and museum education and curatorial work.
The History Program offers both a major and a minor to students in
the College of Arts and Sciences.
Prerequisites for History Courses
All history courses at the 200-level or above require the completion
of a 100-level course as a prerequisite or permission of the instructor.
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Major Requirements
Required Courses (34 credits)
Students majoring in history must take the following distribution of
courses at the 200-level or above:
TWO courses in Europe before 1700, including HIS 231
TWO courses in Europe after 1700, including HIS 485
THREE courses in United States history, including HIS 337 and HIS
338
TWO courses in Non-Western history, including HIS 255
ONE elective course in history
ONE seminar or colloquium
History majors are advised to take at least two upper-division
courses in a complementary discipline, such as art, literature, any one
of the social sciences, theology, and philosophy.
Where applicable, interdisciplinary
courses may also fulfill requirements for the major, for example:
HUM 350 Medieval Moment and HUM 381 Victorian Studies.
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Minor Requirements
Required Courses (18 credits)
To earn a minor in history, students must take the following
distribution of courses at the 200-level or above:
ONE course in European history
ONE course in United States history
ONE course in non-Western history
THREE elective courses in history
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Program Policies
Advanced Placement:
A score of 4 or 5 on the AP examination is accepted for credit toward
the degree. AP credit will not be accepted to replace the required
curriculum and is not accepted for the major.
CLEP Policy: CLEP
credit is not accepted for history major or minor requirements.
Grades in Major Courses:
Students are required to earn a grade of "C" (2.0) or better
in all courses counted to fulfill requirements for the major.
Pass/No Pass: With
the exception of practica and internships, courses fulfilling a major
requirement may not be taken pass/no pass.
Senior Assessment:
Senior history majors are required to pass a written and an oral
comprehensive examination, normally administered in the second week of
the spring semester.
Study Abroad: To
support their major, students are encouraged to study abroad, preferably
in their junior year.
TELL Policy: TELL
credits may count towards the major if the student is able to document
active participation in an event, movement, or issue that has shaped
contemporary history.
Transfer Credits:
Students may apply transfer credits toward the major in history if the
accepted courses parallel courses required for the major at Trinity. In
all, transfer students must complete a minimum of 16 credits in history
at Trinity, including a colloquium or seminar at the 400-level.
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Course Descriptions
HIS 101 Trials of the Centuries
Examines a fundamental historical problem - the relationship of the
individual to his/her society - by focusing on a series of notorious
trials. The trials studied in this course illustrate different areas of
conflict between the behavior of individuals and the values of their
societies.
3 credits
FLC Area II, History Cluster
HIS 125 Medieval Foundations of Western Society
Examines the structure, organization, and development of medieval
life, thought, and institutions. Topics include the medieval vision of
reality, rural life and the growth of towns, the development of
political and religious institutions, and the expansion of the
intellectual and cultural life of medieval Europe.
3 credits
Core IV
HIS 126 Trends in Western Society 1815-1945
Examines the political, economic, social, and intellectual developments
since 1815, which have given form and shape to contemporary Western
societies.
3 credits
Core IV
HIS 127 Kings and Constitutions: Europe 1430-1815
Explores the growth of the idea and the reality of the national state in
Europe. Topics include medieval theories of monarchy, civic humanism and
the growth of Italian city-states, the politics of the reformation, the
wars of religion, 17th century absolutism and the growth of
representative institutions, Enlightenment ideas of the state; the
French Revolution and Napoleon.
3 credits
HIS 128 Creation of the Atlantic World 1450-1750
Examines the emergence of the Atlantic World as the point of contact
linking the peoples of Europe, Africa, and the Americas. The course
details the migrations, voluntary and involuntary, of Africans and
Europeans to the Western Hemisphere and their contact with native
nations. Topics include the transformation of African localities as a
result of the slave trade and the development of localities in the
Western Hemisphere.
3 credits
FLC Area II, History Cluster
HIS 130 Introduction to American Civilizations
Explores the major themes that have shaped the American experience from
the Colonial period to World War I. Topics include the Age of
Exploration and Discovery, the American Revolution, the causes of the
Civil War, and industrialization and urbanization.
3 credits
FLC Area II, History Cluster
Core IV
HIS 132 Twentieth Century United States
Introduces the critical issues of 20th-century United States, including
the transition to a post-industrial society, the challenge of the Civil
Rights and feminist movements, the development of the modern welfare
state, and the consequences of the United States' role as a global
superpower.
3 credits
Core IV
HIS 133 Travelers' Tales
Considers travelers' accounts of the journeys and the lands they visit
as a unique window into the cultural interactions of the past. This
course focuses on travelers from a variety of cultures and historical
periods, and it explores what their accounts of their experiences can
tell us not only about the people they encountered but also, and perhaps
more importantly, about the travelers themselves. The course examines
what motivated people to travel and how travelers perceived the cultures
they encountered. In so doing, the course will consider the relationship
between reality and fiction in travelers' tales, the assumptions
travelers brought to these interactions, and the ways in which their
experiences modified (or did not modify) their perception of the
"others" whom they encountered.
3 credits
FLC Area II, History Cluster
HIS 135 The Upheavals of War: War and Social Change
Emphasizes and explores the ways in which societies ensnared in the
throes of war are permanently transformed by the experience. Among the
issues considered are the impacts of war on social dynamics, class
roles, economic order, gender identity, religious faith, and
intellectual consciousness. In semesters focused on the modern era, wars
to be considered include the World Wars, the Arab-Israeli Wars, the
Vietnam War, and wars of colonial liberation.
3 credits
FLC Area II, History Cluster
HIS 137 His Story, Her Story: Makers of World History
Examines the role played by extraordinary individuals in shaping
historical processes - one of the most basic and important issues
historians must face. By studying the life stories of prominent figures,
students learn not only about their contributions in the past but also
about the human characteristics we continue to value today. The course
identifies makers of of history in different historical periods and
cultures in order to understand them as real people and to determine
what shared attributes may have promoted their abilities to influence
history. Sources used will include contemporaneous documentation,
academic biographies, and imagery in popular culture in an effort to
find the complex human beings among those frequently mythologized as
historical "heroes" and "heroines."
3 credits
FLC Area II, History Cluster
HIS 153 Introduction to World History: Africa, Asia, and the
Middle East
Compares the great cultures, religions, and political systems of Africa,
Asia, and the Middle East, focusing on their integration into the world
order. Assesses the impact of European imperialism and the ongoing
struggle to establish a contemporary national identity.
3 credits
Core IV
HIS 199 Honors Seminar: The Historian as Detective
Introduces students to the practice of the historian's craft as a
form of detection and analysis. Students learn how to pose historical
questions, find and evaluate evidence, "interrogate" documents
and other historical "witnesses," and develop and support
historical arguments. The course also investigates the ways in which
history intersects with other disciplines, including political science,
economics, literature, theology, and the natural sciences. By
invitation.
3 credits
HIS 231 The Renaissance and Reformation
Studies the political, social, and economic history of the major centers
of the Italian Renaissance, the Northern Renaissance and Christian
humanism, the scientific revolution, the relationship between humanism
and reform, the continental and English Reformations, and popular
culture in early modern Europe. Cross-listed as HUM 231.
3 credits
HIS 234 Kings, Commoners and Constitutions
Examines religion and politics in the 17th century, the English
constitutional conflicts and the triumph of the common law tradition,
the mystique and reality of royal power in the court of France, the
trend toward secularization of thought, and the growing role of
commoners in political institutions.
3 credits
HIS 236 American Colonial History
Explores the cultural backgrounds, political institutions, and social
movements of Colonial America from the Age of Exploration through the
American Revolution; emphasizes the transition from the first to the
third generation, the long-term causes of the American Revolution, and
the development of "Republicanism" ideology.
3 credits
HIS 240 United States Environmental History
Explores the relationship between Americans and the natural environment,
from the colonial era to the present. Topics to be considered are the
agricultural and industrial economies; the development of consideration
and wilderness protection movements; and the different meanings of the
landscape for Native American, European-American, and African-American
citizens.
3 credits
HIS 243 Women in United States History
Surveys women's experience in United States culture from the Colonial
period to the present, with special emphasis on the 19th century debate
on women's "proper sphere," the awakening of feminism in the
1880s, and the rebirth of the feminist movement in the 1960s and
1970s.
3 credits
HIS 245 Women, Work, and Family in Medieval and Early Modern
Europe
Examines the contrast between the images of women, both positive and
negative, and the reality of women's lives in medieval and early modern
Europe. Topics include women's role in the family, women's work, women
and medicine, women's legal standing, life in the convent, the role of
noble women, the education of women, and women's spirituality.
3 credits
HIS 254 Contemporary East Asia, 1945 to the Present
Examines the emergence of China and Japan since World War II. Topics
include revolution and growth of the People's Republic of China; the
American occupation of Japan; Japanese economic recovery and
development; and political, social, and cultural issues in China and
Japan.
3 credits
HIS 255 Contemporary History of the Third World
Looks at the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Beginning
with the imperial penetration at the end of the 19th century, the course
traces the rise of nationalism, the impact of the world wars, the
process of decolonization, and the challenge of nation building in an
age of global politics.
3 credits
Core IV
HIS 257 Japan and the United States
Explores the changing dynamics in the relationship between Japan and
the United States, beginning in the mid-19th century. Topics include the
emergence of Japan and the United States as world powers, the
development of misunderstandings and tensions that culminated in the
Pacific theater in World War II; the restoration of closer ties after
1945; and the economic, political and cultural characteristics that
shape the contemporary connection between the two societies.
3 credits
HIS 304 The Tudor Age
Explores the social, political and cultural life of 16th century
England. Topics include the rise of the Tudor state, the court of Henry
VIII, the English Reformation, king and parliament, Shakespeare's
London, the Elizabethan age and the question of female rule, Mary Queen
of Scots, English colonial expansion, and science in the age of
Elizabeth.
3 credits
HIS 308 World War I in World History
Explores the international impact of World War I, assessing its effects
on international relations, its disruption of global economic forces,
and its transformation of human beliefs and values. The course reviews
the causes of the war, the experience of total war, and the challenges
of peacemaking, with reference to the European, Middle Eastern, and
African theaters of war.
3 credits
HIS 309 World War II in World History
Explores World War II as a defining event of 20th century world history.
Focusing equally on the European and Pacific theaters of war, the course
will trace the tensions that exploded into war and study the impact of
technology, politics, economic resources, and ideology on the conduct of
total war. The war's profound impact on the human spirit and its
enduring legacy also will be assessed.
3 credits
HIS 326 History of Science: Mapping the Known Universe
Examines the relationship between Europeans' sense of self-identity
and the way they depicted the larger world around them, focusing
attention on geography, cosmology and astronomy, and physiology. Topics
include reality and fantasy in medieval maps; Marco Polo's Travels and
Columbus' Journal; the religious, philosophical, and social significance
of the Copernican revolution; the "magical" view of the
universe and the human body; and the mechanization of the world
picture.
3 credits
HIS 328 Darwin and Darwinism: Race, Gender, and Power
Examines the cultural and social factors in the development of Darwin's
theory of evolution and its acceptance or rejection by members of the
scientific community; explores the impact of Darwin's theory on
non-scientific aspects of society, both in the 19th century and
today.
3 credits
FLC Seminar II
HIS 337 The United States, 1787-1865
Studies the evolution of American political and constitutional
institutions, emphasizing the presidency, the extraconstitutional
emergence of political parties, and the political implications of
economic policy. Chronological development highlights the Federalist
achievement, Jeffersonian period, the Age of Jackson, and the causes
leading to the Civil War.
3 credits
HIS 338 The United States Comes of Age: 1865-1941
Studies the political and economic consequences of the evolution of the
United States to an urbanized, industrialized society, the dilemmas of
Reconstruction, the formation of a national economy, the politics of
equilibrium from 1865-1896, the Progressive Movement, the New Deal, and
the emergence of the United States as a world power.
3 credits
HIS 339 African American History
Surveys African American history. Topics covered include the impact
of slavery and the consequences of Reconstruction, with a major emphasis
on the social and intellectual history of African-Americans since
1877.
3 credits
HIS 342 U.S. History from 1946-1988
Studies World War II, the Cold War, McCarthyism, the Civil Rights
movement, the Great Society, Vietnam, and Reaganism.
3 credits
HIS 344A African American Women's History
Explores the history of African American Women from the years of slavery
to the present, emphasizing their influence in the creation of African
American culture. Topics include the experience of African American
women as workers, as individuals in their communities, as intellectuals,
and as leaders in reform movements and political organizations.
3 credits
HIS 356 Modern Africa
Introduces the modern political, economic, and cultural experience of
Africa. Topics include the 19th century scramble and partition, the
indigenous response, the Colonial regimes, the emergence of the masses,
the independence movements, and post-independence achievements and
challenges.
3 credits
HIS 358 The Modern Middle East
Surveys the Middle Eastern world from the 15th to the 20th century.
Topics include the Islamic heritage, imperialism and the growth of
nationalism, the struggle for independence, the Arab-Israeli conflict,
and the tension between tradition and modernity.
3 credits
HIS 363 Enlightenment and the French Revolution
Examines the sources of Enlightenment thought, the influence of the
Enlightenment on the French Revolution, the course of the Revolution in
documents and eye-witness accounts, the role of peasants and artisans in
the French Revolution, and Napoleon, the man and the legend.
3 credits
HIS 366 Europe, 1815-1914: The Age of Revolution and Reform
Examines the great powers of the 19th century: England, France, Germany,
Austria, and Russia, as they achieved global, political, economic, and
cultural dominance. Assesses the events, leaders, resources, and ideas
that contributed to the establishment of Europe's far-reaching
influence.
3 credits
HIS 369 Vietnam
Examines the forces contributing to the impact of Vietnam on
20th-century world history. Topics include the development of Vietnamese
national identity, the role of France in Indochina, the phases of United
States involvement in the region, and the postwar character of the
Vietnamese state.
3 credits
HIS 390 Close Encounters: Islam, Judaism and Christianity in the
Middle Ages
Explores the relationships between Christianity, Judaism and Islam in
the Middle Ages. Topics include Arab and Christian histories of the
Crusades, the reception of Arabic science and medicine by medieval
universities, Christian-Jewish relationships in medieval towns, the
roots of anti-Semitism, misrepresentations of Islam and Judaism in
Christian literature, and early Christian travels to Asia.
3 credits
HIS 393 Women in United States History to 1900
Explores women's experience in United States culture from the colonial
period to 1900. Topics include the diversity of women's cultures and the
impact of this diversity on family, work, and socialization; women's
legal and political standing; and the conflicts among women exemplified
in religious, ethnic, class and racial difference.
3 credits
HIS 394 Women in the Twentieth Century United States
Explores women's experiences in 20th century United States. Topics
include the struggle for the suffrage, women's diverse responses to the
Depression and World War II, women's role in the Civil Rights movement
and the rebirth of feminism in the 1960s and 1970s.
3 credits
HIS 431 Social Landscapes in U.S. Culture
Explores questions of identity, diversity and power in the United
States in the 20th century, focusing on concerns about the meaning of
"America." Through the examination of symbolic landscapes, the
course will explore the ways social change challenges dominant
ideologies.
3 credits
FLC Seminar II
HIS 466 Special Interest Seminar
Provides an in-depth examination of specialized topics in history. In
Fall 2001, the seminar focuses on the religious, cultural, political,
and economic interactions of an expanding Europe with the larger world
community during the late medieval and early modern periods. Subjects
for analysis are selected according to the interests of the students;
this course may fulfill the seminar requirement for history majors.
3 credits
HIS 472 Colloquium: The 1960s
Examines specialized topics in the United States since 1941.
Possible subjects include World War II and the 1960s. Course fulfills
the seminar requirement for history majors.
4 credits
HIS 485 Age of Dictators: Europe 1914-1945
Examines the transformation of the European order as a result of
World War I and the peace of 1919; the rise of the dictatorships; Lenin
and Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler; World War II.
3 credits
HIS 489 Practicum
Provides students with the opportunity to pursue applied research at
museum and federal and D.C. government agencies. To be eligible for
placement, students must demonstrate research and writing skills;
minimum of 104 on-site hours; pass/no pass; permission required.
3-4 credits
HIS 497 Independent Research
Allows students to pursue an independent research project under the
direction of a faculty member. Only senior majors may enroll with
permission of the program chair; formal written application must be
submitted by the student to the program; preliminary discussion with
individual professor.
credits arranged
HIS 499 Senior Thesis
Allows students to pursue a senior thesis under the direction of a
faculty member. Only senior majors may enroll with permission of the
program chair. Formal written application and a proposal for research
with bibliography must be submitted to the program chair by November 1.
Check with program chair for requirements.
credits arranged
Prerequisite: HIS 497
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