History H109 (18951)
Fall 2011
CA235, Tue/Thu 1:30-2:45
Prof. Michael Snodgrass (misnodgr@iupui.edu)
Office: Cavanaugh Hall 503S (278-7761)
Office Hours: M 4:30-5:30, T 12:00-1:00
PERSPECTIVES ON THE WORLD SINCE 1800:
Global Connections and Human Encounters
Course objectives:
This introductory course on world history examines the major political, economic, and cultural
developments that shaped our world over the past two centuries. We analyze these trends by
focusing on two broad themes: Western imperialism and the Cold War. Among the key issues
we study are the causes, nature and consequences of colonialism in Africa and India; the
development of an integrated global economy; immigration to the Americas; the rise and decline
of communism in Europe and Asia; the Cold War struggle to spread and contain communism by
the US and USSR; and struggles for self-determination, democracy, and social justice in Latin
America and the Middle East.
As part of our International Studies TLC, the course introduces students to the common features
and key distinctions between the histories and cultures of world regions. Consistent with
IUPUI’s Principles of Undergraduate Learning, H109 is designed to develop student skills of
critical and comparative analysis, improve writing proficiency, and enhance one’s capacity to
organize and express his or her thoughts. Students will sharpen these skills through a variety of
assignments: analyzing historical documents, writing essays, engaging in classroom discussions,
and preparing for quizzes and examinations.
This syllabus, class announcements, lecture outlines, assignments, and links to online documents
are posted to the Oncourse system. Most are under the Resources tab.
Required Readings:
Scott B. Cook, Colonial Encounters in the Age of High Imperialism (1996)
Eric Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes: A History of the World, 1914-1991 (1994)
Ngugi Wa Thiongo, The River Between (1965)
Stephen Kinzer, All the Shah’s Men (2003)
Course requirements and grading (based upon 1,000 total points):
Two exams = 400 points; one book review essays = 250 points; two quizzes = 100 points; one
map assignment/quiz = 50 points; one public history analysis = 100 points; and, class
participation = 100 points.
Assignments:
Two exams involve multiple choice questions, matching, essays, and identification terms. Book
Revew Essays will address specific issues related to the Ngugi or the Kinzer books. Students
will submit one essay and may choose to write on either book. Assignments are posted to
Oncourse and are due on either Sep. 8 or Dec. 1.
Public History Analysis will critically examine how local monuments and museums interpret the
US involvement in foreign conflicts. Due on Nov. 3.
Two quizzes (Aug. 31, Sep. 8) involve multiple choice questions, matching, and identification
terms. The readings and lectures covered are noted in the course schedule.
Class participation grades are not a reward for attendance. Students who eagerly participate and
demonstrate consistent preparation receive an A; occasional participation and steady attendance
earns a B; a consistent but otherwise silent presence in the classroom earns a C; poor attendance
results in a D or lower. Taking notes is considered an essential part of class participation and
will influence this grade as well.
Final grades: A+ (1,000-980), A (979-930), A- (929-900), B+ (899-880), B (879-830), B- (829800), C+ (799-780), C (779-730), C- (729-700), D (699-600), F (599-0).
Remember...
...that all late assignments are penalized as follows: one grade (B to C) for assignments not
turned in on due date. NO ASSIGNMENTS ACCEPTED ONE WEEK AFTER DUE DATE.
...that students will not read newspapers, do crosswords puzzles, text messages, or use laptop
computers in the classroom. Only those students who formally petition to use a laptop to take
notes may do so, but they must submit those notes for review when asked. Please be advised that
those who are observed using the Internet during class lose this privilege immediately. Students
who violate these rules will see their final grade penalized by 20 points for each offense.
...that all students are expected to take notes as a means of remaining focused and preparing for
exams. Failure to do so will affect one’s class participation grade.
...the attendance policy: history tells us that persistent absenteeism results in lower grades. That
is especially the case for this class since NO MAKEUP QUIZZES are given except in
documented emergencies, in accordance with IUPUI policy.
...to save all papers on your hard drive and to retain graded assignments. (Do this for all classes
at IUPUI.)
...to check the Oncourse grade book to ensure your grades are recorded correctly.
...that plagiarism and cheating will be punished in accordance with IUPUI’s Code of Student
Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct. For procedures, see IUPUI Campus Bulletin
(http://www.iupui.edu/~bulletin/iupui/2010-2012/policies/index.shtml). The official plagiarism
policy states: “A student must not adopt or reproduce ideas, words, or statements of another
person without an appropriate acknowledgment. A student must give due credit to the originality
of others and acknowledge an indebtedness whenever he or she does any of the following: a.
Quotes another person's actual words, either oral or written; b. Paraphrases another person's
words, either oral or written; c. Uses another person's idea, opinion, or theory; or d. Borrows
facts, statistics, or other material, unless the information is common knowledge.”
PART ONE: COLONIAL ENCOUNTERS
Aug. 22
Empires in World History
Aug. 24
The Industrial Revolution
Map Assignment Due
Aug. 29
Nationalism and the New Imperialism
Readings: Cook, Colonial Encounters, Preface, Introduction & Chapter1
Online documents:
Jules Ferry on French Expansion:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1884ferry.html
The British justify their conquest of Egypt:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1908cromer.html
Aug. 31
Into the Heart of Darkness
Readings: Cook, Colonial Encounters, Chapter 2 & 3
Online documents:
A British East Africa Company agent on the role of missionaries:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1893lugard.html
Quiz #1 (covers lectures/readings from Aug. 29 & 31)
Sep. 6
Mass Immigration and Europe’s Settler Colonies
Readings: Cook, Colonial Encounters, Chapter 5
Sep. 8
The Civilizing Mission
Readings: Ngugi, The River Between
Essay due today in class
Sep. 13
Immigration and Nation Building in the Americas
Online documents:
Manifest Destiny defined (1839):
http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/osulliva.htm
Indian Removal (1830) (read text and ‘related entries’):
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2959.html
Sep. 15
Building an American Empire
Sep. 20
Debating Empire in the USA
Readings: Cook, Colonial Encounters, Chapter 4
Online Documents:
Senator Beveridge advocates a US policy of imperialism:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1898beveridge.html
American Anti-Imperialist League:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1899antiimp.html
Quiz #2 (covers lectures/readings from Sep. 13, 15 & 20)
Sep. 22
Informal Empires in Latin America
Sep. 27 & 29 No class this week - Prof. Snodgrass attends history conference in Mexico
Oct. 4
India under British Rule (aka, the British Raj)
Readings: Cook, Colonial Encounters, Chapter 6
Oct. 6
British Imperialists and Irish Rebels
Oct. 11
East Asia Encounters the West
Oct. 13
World War One and the Fall of Empires
Readings: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Introduction & Chapter 1
Oct. 18
Fall Break
Oct. 20
Mid-Term Exam
PART TWO: THE COLD WAR
Oct. 25
The Russian Revolution
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapters 2 & 13
Oct. 27
Nationalism and Fascism in Europe
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapters 3 & 4
Nov. 1
World War Two and the Origins of the Cold War
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapters 5 & 8
Online documents:
George Kennan (US Ambassador to USSR): “The Long Telegram”
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/coldwar/documents/episode-1/kennan.htm
Nov. 3
Containing Communism in East Asia
Public History Analysis due today
Nov. 8
The Cuban Revolution
Nov. 10
Dictators and Dirty Wars in Latin America
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapter 15
Nov. 15
Mahatma Gandhi and India’s Struggle for Independence
Online documents:
Background on Mahatma Gandhi and the Quit India Movement:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahatma_Gandhi
Jawaharlal Nehru on the meaning of Indian independence:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1947nehru1.html
Gandhi’s influence on US civil rights movement:
see Oncourse video “MLK Jr. in Gandhi’s Footsteps”
Nov. 17
African Independence Movements
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapter 7
Nov. 22
Nation Building and the Cold War in Post-Colonial Africa
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapter 12
Dec. 1
The Cold War in the Middle East
Readings: Kinzer, All the Shah’s Men
Essay #2 due in class today
Dec. 6
Revolution in the Middle East
Dec. 8
Legacies of the Cold War
Reading: Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, Chapters 16 & 19
FINAL EXAM
Tuesday, Dec. 13, 1:00-3:00 (in our classroom)