History 102B: Western Civilization: 1648-1990
MWF 1100-1150, Wyatt Hall 307
Benjamin Tromly, Department of History
Office: Wyatt 128
Email (preferred method of contact): btromly@pugetsound.edu
Telephone: X 3391
Office hours: Mon 2-4, W 2-3, Fr 10-11or by appointment (please email)
Course Moodle page: access through moodle.pugetsound.edu
Course Description:
This course is a survey of the history of modern Europe. Its topic is “the West,” a
term that often carries connotations of progress, reason, and social opportunity.
We will seek to complicate such an idealized view of Western Civilization, which
oversimplifies the tumultuous conflicts brought about by modern developments
and ignores their social, cultural and even demographic costs. In pursuing this
agenda, we will focus on three interconnected strands of historical change that
are usually taken as being quintessentially “Western”: the rise of the modern
state, technological and economic development, and the increasing hold of
secularization and reason. All of these broad trends brought in their wake both
unprecedented opportunities and problems. In examining modern states we will
discuss the expanding controls of distant powers over people. Our discussions of
economy and society will emphasize the emergence of new kinds of social
divisions along distinctions of class, gender, nationality, and race. And we will
explore how the modern rational worldview has met with strong countercurrents, some of which have harnessed the potential of the human mind for evil
ends.
With the goal of seeing both the costs and benefits of Western development we
examine a range of contrasting historical voices and opinions. Our discussions
focus on close reading of primary source materials like memoirs, laws,
diplomatic notes, political pamphlets, paintings and fictional literature, as well as
scholarly analyses. This course is intended as an introduction to the discipline of
history. It seeks to engage students in the interpretive art of historical enquiry
and provide exposure to different approaches historians have employed in
making sense of the past.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
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Participation 10%: Discussion will play a large part in all of our class meetings.
You are expected to come to class having done the readings for that day
and be prepared to share your questions and thoughts about them. Full
participation in class discussions—not merely being present—is necessary
for a successful grade in the course.
As part of your participation grade, you will complete a passage analysis
assignment. Each student will be assigned a class date. On this day, bring
a 1 page (single-spaced) paper to class that isolates a passage in the
PRIMARY SOURCE readings for that day (we will discuss what
constitutes a primary source early in the course). Type one or two
sentences from the passage at the top of the page (this is to jog my
memory of the reading). In the paper, do the following:
-explain what you think the author is trying to convey in the passage.
Then ponder what unintended messages or assumptions might be
conveyed.
-explain why you find the passage significant. This might mean different
things. The passage might hint at an important aspect of the day’s
readings, or raise a question that strikes you as important, or connect to
previous discussions in the class, or contradict some part of the readings
or class discussions.
-you will be asked to identify your passage and explain its significance in
class.
Quizzes 12%: Three short in-class quizzes are scheduled in the syllabus. Their
purpose is to encourage you to do all the assigned readings. We will
discuss what will to expect on the quizzes in class.
First paper, 14%: The first paper assignment will ask you to analyze one aspect
of the Enlightenment using several sources from class readings.
Second paper, 21%: The second paper assignment will ask you to articulate an
argument about the impact of industrialization or the French Revolution
using class readings. You will be asked to select and use at least one extra
source from Perspectives from the Past or a website with documents on
the French Revolution (to be discussed)
Final paper, 23%: The final paper assignment will ask you to make an analytical
argument using a life source (memoir, diary, or set of letters) of an
important figure in Western Civilization in the period in question. Expect
a document containing a description of the assignment and a list of
possible sources in the course of the semester. For now: as you do the
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readings, take note of interesting figures you might find interesting to
learn more about.
Final examination, 20%: The final exam requires synthesis and analysis of
material from the entire course, but focuses particularly on material not
covered by the midterm.
COURSE INFORMATION AND POLICIES:
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Attendance at all class meetings is expected. Each unexplained absence is
viewed with irritation and dismay and influences your grade; after three
absences, your final grade in the course will automatically be lowered by
half a letter grade (from B+ to B). I will distribute an attendance sheet at
each class. You are responsible for putting a check next to your name at
the beginning of each class. If medical or family emergencies prevent you
from coming to class, please let me know before or soon after the class.
I strongly encourage you to visit me in office hours. There is no need to
schedule an appointment during scheduled office hours. If you are
unavailable during these times, please contact me in advance by email to
schedule a meeting.
The best way to reach outside of class is via email. Please check your UPS
email account—or a different account you give me—regularly. On
occasion, I will send emails to the class to provide you with reading
questions and important contextual information. I try to respond to email
as quickly as possible, but I cannot promise that I will respond promptly
to messages sent on weekends or holidays.
The quizzes final exams are given only at the scheduled times. If you miss
a quiz you will need to submit additional written work to make up for it.
Claims for academic accommodation for an individual’s learning
disabilities must be directed at the beginning of the semester to
Disabilities Services at the Center for Writing, Learning, and Teaching at
253.879.2692.
All assignments must be submitted at the start of class on the due date or
as otherwise instructed. Papers should be typed, double-spaced, and
proofread, with page numbers and parenthetical citations. No need for a
works cited list or a bibliography as you will be using course materials in
your papers. Please submit papers in hard copy only. Late papers can be
sent by email (you are responsible for making sure that you have attached
the file).
Late work will be penalized at the rate of ½ a letter grade per day late (a
‘B’ paper handed in two days late becomes a ‘B-‘) and will not be accepted
more than five calendar days following the due date. Please notify me
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before the paper is due if health or family emergencies prevent you from
submitting work.
You are strongly encouraged to review UPS’s policies on academic
honesty and plagiarism as detailed in the Academic Handbook.
Plagiarism will result in a 0 on the assignment in question, with greater
penalties possible.
Students who want to withdraw from the course should read the rules
governing withdrawal grades, which can be found at
http://www.pugetsound.edu/student-life/student-resources/studenthandbook/academic-handbook/grade-information-andpolicy/#withdrawal
IMPORTANT DATES:
Sep 19: quiz 1
October 1: paper 2 due at 4 PM in folder outside my office
Oct 29: quiz 2
W October 31: due at 4 PM in folder outside my office
M Nov 19: quiz 3
Dec 13: third paper due at 5 PM in folder outside my office
TBA: Final exam
GRADING CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING ALL WRITTEN WORK IN COURSE:
An “A” paper contains a perceptive, original, and compelling central argument
which reflects an original perspective. It is clearly written, well-organized into
sub-arguments, and supported by a variety of specific examples drawn from the
readings.
A “B” paper is a solid effort which demonstrates a good grasp on the course
materials. But a “B” paper might have one or more shortcomings. It might
provide a summary of ideas and information drawn directly from readings and
discussions without independent thought or synthesis. Or it might give evidence
of independent thought yet suffer from unclear and/or unconvincing
presentation of an argument, a lack of textual evidence, or be sloppily written.
A “C” paper shows a decent grasp on the course material but lacks a thorough or
accurately defended argument. A paper receiving a grade lower than “C” suffers
from more serious shortcomings, such as not responding adequately to the
assignment, frequent factual errors, the lack of a cohesive thesis, poor
organization, unclear writing, or a combination of these problems.
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GETTING HELP WITH WRITING: Anyone and everyone can become a better
writer. The UPS Center for Writing and Learning is located in Howarth 109. Its
mission is to help all writers, at whatever level of ability, become better writers. I
strongly urge you to take advantage of its services. To make an appointment,
call 879-3404, email writing@ups.edu, or drop by Howarth 109. I am happy to
discuss writing assignments before or after you have written them. Although I
do not usually read full drafts of papers, I am happy to look at a thesis statement
or a section of a paper.
CLASS PARTICIPATION GRADING CRITERIA:
Students who receive an “A” for class participation attend regularly, complete
their readings assignments consistently, think about the material prior to class,
and participate effectively in class discussions, both by listening to others and
making perceptive contributions (including the “initiating the discussion”
assignment).
A “B” participation grade will be assigned if a student attends class faithfully
and completes reading assignments, and participates in discussion to some
extent. But a “B” student is more passive; he or she does not consistently try to
respond to the contributions of others.
A “C” participation grade is granted if a student attends regularly but does not
willingly participate in discussions and takes no initiative for generating or
responding to ideas.
A lower participation grade reflects a combination of the following difficulties:
frequent absences, lack of preparation for class, and silence during class.
COURSE TEXTS:
The following titles are available for purchase at the Campus Bookstore and
through online services. They are also available on two-hour reserve at Collins
Memorial Library.
Mark Kishlansky, Patrick Geary, and Patricia O'Brien, Civilization in the West,
Volume 2 (since 1555) (7th Edition)
Perspectives from the Past, 4th edition, volume 2, edited by James Brophy, Joshua
Cole, Steven Epstein, John Robertson, and Thomas Safley (NewYork: W. W.
Norton and Company, 2009)
Course reader.
SCHEDULE OF CLASSES:
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Note: readings are to be done in preparation for the class for which they are
listed. For instance, you read John Evelyn before class on Aug 31.
Another note: Readings in the course reader are marked (CR).
August 27: Introduction to class
August 29: Starting points: estates, states, communities
Please look over the syllabus and bring questions or concerns to class.
Civilization in the West, 450-466, 472-477
Sources on pre-modern social groups (“Lords and peasants under the Old
Regime,” “Town-dwellers”) (CR)
PREP: How did Europeans understand social inequality in the early modern
period? Why were local communities so important in the life of early modern
Europeans? How did states in early modern Europe differ from modern states?
Aug 31: Society and the natural world in the seventeenth century
Civilization in the West, 442-450, 500-520
John Evelyn's Diary, 1658 (CR)
Perspectives from the Past, 279-284 (Bacon)
PREP: The textbook and the short Evelyn source give a sense of the
precariousness of life in early Modern Europe. This sets the context for thinking
about the scientific revolution when Europeans became confident in controlling
their environment in new ways. How did Bacon explain what he saw as the poor
state of scientific knowledge in his age? How is true knowledge to be produced?
How did Bacon understand the relationship between science and religion? Why
did Bacon think that science would benefit humanity?
September 3: no class (Labor Day)
September 5: The Emergence of Constutionalism in the British Isles
Civilization in the West, 477-487
Perspectives from the Past, 236-252 (Filmer, Locke)
PREP: Today we look at the competing ideologies of absolutism and
constitutionalism in England in the seventeenth century. On Filmer: on what
grounds does he reject the doctrine that a people should be able to choose the
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form of government it receives? In what way is such a thought contrary to the
laws of nature in his view? In what way does political power resemble a family?
-Much of the excerpt from Locke is a rebuttal of Filmer. How does he challenge
Filmer’s doctrine of patriarchy? How does Locke explain “nature” differently
than Filmer?
-For both sources, try to imagine why or why not an English person of the time
might have accepted or rejected the author’s reasoning.
-a few broader questions about the historical events in the textbook: Why did the
Staurt monarchs fail to create an absolutist order in England? How were
religious conflicts intertwined with revolution and political change?
Sep 7: Absolutist Rule and the Sun King
Civilization in the West, 487-489 (from “The Zenith of the Royal State”), 492-497,
520-528
Excerpts from Memoirs of Duc de Saint-Simon (CR)
PREP: Why was court ceremony so important to the rule of Louis XIV? What did
Saint-Simon think of the court and the absolutist state order? What problems or
weaknesses plagued in French absolutism? How was France at the time of
Louis’s death different from the country it had been at the time of his accession?
September 10: Other State-building Trajectories in Europe: Russia, Germany
Civilization in the West, 489-492, 532-542, 544-545 (up to “Frederick the Great”
only)
Document on reign of Peter I of Russia in Basil Dmytryshyn, ed., Imperial Russia:
A Source Book, 1700-1917 2nd ed., 30-36 (CR)
Sources on German state-building (CR)
PREP: How did absolutism in Russia and Prussia differ from the French model?
What kinds of changes in governance does Pososhkov suggest to Peter I? What
does the document suggest about the state of the Russian economy and society?
On the short sources on Germany, what were the differences between the Holy
Roman Empire and Austria, or the HRE and “Germany”? Why was the HRE in
decline? Why might Prussia have become an important European power at this
time?
III. The Enlightenment and its Limitations
September 12: The Enlightenment
Civilization in the West, 560-568
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Perspectives from the Past, 359-363 (Kant), 326-332 (Montesquieu)
PREP: The Kant reading is a famous statement of enlightenment thought. How
and why does he think the freeing of thought will improve society? How does he
understand the connections between enlightenment and politics and between
enlightenment and religion? Montesquieu’s work is an empirical study of laws in
many different states. How does law relate to political liberty? In his discussion
of criminal laws, how does he determine which laws are better than others? Are
you persuaded that his conclusions are “founded in nature” and reason as he
claims?
Sep 14: The Enlightenment, Religion and Women: film screening
A section of The Nun (1966). In eighteenth-century France a girl (Suzanne
Simonin) is forced against her will to take vows as a nun. Based on a work by
Denis Diderot.
no additional readings
Sep 17 Women in the Enlightenment (and quiz preparation)
Perspectives from the Past, 353-359 (“Women’s Role in the Enlightenment”)
Sep 19 In-class quiz
First quiz in class
September 21: The enlightenment and the economy
Civilization in the West, 511-520 (review as needed), 550-558, 568-570
Perspectives from the Past, 421-426 (Smith), 430-432 (Malthus)
PREP: Smith was the most important critic of the regimented mercantilism of his
time. Instead of maximizing exports and minimizing imports to gain precious
metals, he argued, governments should embrace the “invisible hand” of
capitalism and free trade. How did his thinking build on the enlightenment? Our
other reading is Malthus, another thinker of the enlightenment who reached very
different results from applying reason to the economy. How does his view of
nature and humanity differ from those of Smith? Who do you think had the more
convincing argument for people at the time? Think about our discussion of
societies during the period from last class: what kind of developments in Europe
might provide evidence in support of Smith or Malthus?
September 24: Enlightened Absolutism, with a focus on Catherine the Great of
Russia
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Civilization in the West, 542-550, review 568-569
Correspondence of Catherine II in Russian Women, 1698-1917: Experience and
Expression: An Anthology of Sources, 165-173 (CR)
Political Testament of Frederick II (CR)
PREP: What was enlightened about enlightened absolutism? How did it differ
from the previous and supposedly non-enlightened absolutism of Louis XIV,
Peter I and others? How do the ideas about governance expressed in Frederick
II’s testament compare with other ideas of ruling that we have examined? What
common ground did Catherine II have with Voltaire?
Sep 26: European societies in the age of Enlightenment
Civilization in the West, 560, 570-586
Jacques-Louis Ménétra, Journal of my Life, translated by Arthur Goldhammer, 1929 (CR)
PREP: Universalism and reason were core ideas of the Enlightenment, but did
Europeans, including “enlightened” Europeans, live up to them? How would
you characterize the role of women in Enlightenment salons? The Jacques-Louis
Ménétra source is one of very few extant autobiographies of “common” people in
eighteenth century Europe. He was a Parisian artisan who was educated in a
parish school. We read the beginning of his memoirs in which he talks about his
childhood: his abusive father and various pranks and experiences, some
probably made up. Was Ménétra a product of the Enlightenment? What were his
positions on religion? What were his views of sexuality and women?
IV. The Dual Revolutions and New Ideological Divides, 1789-1848
September 28: The French Revolution, part I
Civilization in the West, 590-603
Perspectives from the Past, 386-393 (Grievance Petitions, The Tennis Court Oath,
Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen)
PREP: What do the grievance petitions suggest about the agenda of the Third
Estate? Does the document help to explain why the Third Estate eventually voted
to form a National Assembly? A few terms are not defined in the readings. Taille:
a direct tax on peasants; Vingtièmes: a form of income tax paid by the nobility as
well as the Third Estate; Capitation: originally an emergency tax that had become
a permanent addition to the taille; Bailliage: area of jurisdiction of baillis (bailiffs),
kings’ administrative representatives who were responsible for the application of
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justice and control of the administration in that area. Finally: which ideas of the
enlightenment do you see reflected in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and
Citizen?
Oct 1: No class
Paper one due in folder outside my office 4 PM
Oct 3: French Revolution, part II
Civilization in the West, 603-608
Perspectives from the Past, 396-398 (The Law of Suspects)
Additional document on revolutionary terror to be distributed in class and on
moodle
PREP: The Law of Suspects document provides a window on the reign of terror
in France. Does the document suggest why the revolutionary state was willing to
suspend the civil liberties of people, despite itself emerging from a revolution in
the name of rights and liberty?
October 5: Napoleon and the Exporting of the Revolution
Civilization in the West, 609-614
Perspectives from the Past, 416-419 (Code Napoleon)
Jacob Walter, Diary of a Napoleonic Foot Soldier, 3-19 (CR)
PREP: We read an excerpt from the Code Napoleon about the status of women.
Why do you think the Napoleonic state defined the legal status of women in this
way? Walter is a unique autobiographical account of a Napoleonic soldier. He
was a stonemason in a town incorporated into the Napoleonic client state of
Westphalia, and he was drafted into the Napoleonic armies. Here he recalls an
1806-1807 campaign into Prussia, including recently annexed parts of Poland.
What does the source say about the relationship of armies to civilians during the
Napoleonic wars? How does Walter perceive the lands and peoples he
encounters during the campaign?
October 8: Reactions to the French Revolution: Conservatism and romantic
nationalism
Civilization in the West, 654-666
Perspectives from the Past, 486-489 (Metternich), 526-529 (Fichte)
PREP: How did Metternich defend the repressiveness and division of postVienna Germany? What nefarious forces were threatening Germany, and why
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was it necessary for Austria to police the German Confederation? What does
Fichte want his audience to think about the nation? What made Germans
different from the French in his view? Why would reviving Germany save
humanity as a whole?
Oct 10: Industrial Revolution and Class Society
Civilization in the West, 626-643
Perspectives from the Past, 426-430 (Ure), 436-438 (Rules of a Factory in Berlin)
PREP: The main question for our class is whether the onset of industrialization
improved the lives of everyday citizens, however defined. How does Ure argue
that industry had improved the lot of common people? Do you think his
arguments were justified by the historical record? Now read the factory rules
document. How does this document color your reading of Ure? Why were
factory rules so strict? Do you think they were enforced?
V. Creating Mass Cultures and Polities, 1848-1914
Oct 12 critiques of the industrial revolution
Civilization in the West, 643-650, 666-676, 709-711
Perspectives from the Past, 447-454 (Owen, Marx and Engels)
PREP: Today we look at ideological critiques of the industrial revolution. What is
Owen’s argument here? How does he reconcile profits with calls for social
improvement? What would Marx and Engels say to Owen? According to them,
why exactly is capitalism doomed? What are the processes involved? How do
you understand the assertion that the victorious proletariat will not form a ruling
class like those of the past?
Note: October 12 is not a travel day. If you need to miss class on the 12th please
submit a three-page paper addressing a specific topic of your choice relating to
the day’s readings, due on the 12th by 4 PM by email.
Oct 15- 16 Fall Break
Oct 17: 1848, The Year of Failed Revolutions
Civilization in the West, 676-681
Alexis de Tocqueville on the Revolution of 1848 (CR)
Francis Palacky, “Open Letter to the Frankfurt Assembly”(CR)
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PREP: Who was de Tocqueville and how was he engaged in the political process?
How did he view the outset of revolution? What were the “June Days” and what
was their historical significance in his eyes? How was the revolution of 1848
different in the Hapsburg Empire? What was Palacky’s agenda in writing to the
Frankfurt Assembly? How do you think the Germans in the assembly would
have reacted to this letter?
Oct 19: Bourgeois Britain
Civilization in the West, review 652-653, 669-670, 698-700, 704-707
Perspectives from the Past, 572-578 (Butt), 515-518 (Beeton)
PREP: The main focus for our discussion of Ireland is the potato famine. Why
were the tenant farmers of Ireland so vulnerable to crop failure? How did the
British respond to the crisis? Does Butt discuss policies that might have been
adopted to avoid famine? Why weren’t they in his opinion?
-How does Beeton explain the duty of the “mistress” in a bourgeois home? Why
was such prescriptive literature important in the period? How do you think the
age of industrialism influenced the position of women?
Oct 22: German Unification
Civilization in the West, 684-695, 700-704, 711-713
Perspectives from the Past, 548-550 (Bismarck)
Documents on Bismarck and the “Enemies of the Reich” (CR)
PREP: How did the process of German unification differ from the Italian case?
Based on the source from Perspectives from the Past, how would you characterize
Bismarck on the political spectrum from left to right? Why did he choose to
support universal manhood suffrage? Why did Bismarck attack the churches,
and particularly the Catholic Church, in the first years of the new German
empire? Were similar conflicts going on elsewhere in Europe
Oct 24: Modernization and secularization in the nineteenth century: France
Civilization in the West, 695-698, 707-709, 716-717, 722-723
Perspectives from the Past, 506-508 (Ferry)
Eugen Weber, “Is God French?” from Peasants into Frenchmen: The Modernization
of Rural France (CR)
Oct 26: Oppositional mass politics: Socialism, Anti-Semitism
Civilization in the West, 717-725, 729-732
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Nikolaus Osterroth, “From Prayer to Struggle” (CR)
Perspectives from the Past, 560-563 (Drumont)
PREP: Where does Bernstein think the Communist Manifesto had been wrong? Is
his argument and especially his depiction of the socialist movement persuasive?
What are his suggestions for how the socialist movement should adapt? How did
Drumont depict the Jews and why do you think such ideas might have
developed a substantial mass following in this period? What were the social
bases of anti-Semitic movements?
Oct 29: Modern Feminism
Second quiz in class
Civilization in the West, 725-729, 735-741
Perspectives from the Past, 639-644 (Pankhurst)
Documents on critics of the militant tactics of the WPSU (CR)
PREP: How did Pankhurst justify her militant tactics? How did Pankhurst and
Fawcett differ on British history and political history more generally? How
exactly does the excerpt from Lange differ from both Pankhurst and Fawcett?
Which position do you find most persuasive or progressive?
Oct 31: no class
Paper 2 due at 4 PM in folder outside my office
Nov 2: The ‘New’ European Imperialism
Civilization in the West, 751-769
Friedrich Fabri, Does Germany Need Colonies? (1879) (CR)
Houston Stewart Chamberlain, “The Importance of Race” (CR)
PREP: What are Fabri’s arguments for empire and why might they have seemed
convincing to some at the time? Chamberlain has the dubious distinction of
being a pioneer of modern racism. How does he explain the superiority of what
he calls the Teutonic race? How is his argument related to developments in
science, and Darwinism in particular?
Nov 5: Cultural Wars: Liberating the self?
Civilization in the West, 729-735
Excerpt from Friedrich Nietzsche, The Gay Science (CR)
Perspectives from the Past, 659-663 (Freud)
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PREP: Nietzsche is best-known as a critic of European values. What does he
mean by “God is dead”? Why might he welcome “signs of a more virile, warlike
age” on the horizon? What is the essence of Freud’s method? What was new
and—for many Europeans—threatening about Freud’s psychoanalysis? Do you
see any parallels between Nietzsche and Freud as thinkers?
VI. The Great War-Revolution of Europe, 1914-1945
Nov 7: Living and Dying in World War One
Civilization in the West, 743-750, 774-787
Perspectives from the Past, 670-676 (Barbusse, Jünger)
PREP: What was new about the experience of combat in WWI? In preparation for
our discussion of the front, please isolate a passage or short episode in the
Barbusse or Jünger readings that you found most interesting or most useful in
understanding of life at the front. Also, ponder ways in which the two sources
handle the theme of “dehumanization.”
Nov 9: Collapse of Empires and the Russian Revolution
Civilization in the West, 787-797, 816-823
“Ekaterina Olitskaia” from In the Shadow of Revolution: Life Stories of Russian
Women from 1917 to the Second World War, ed. Sheila Fitzpatrick and Yuri
Slezkine, 34-48 (CR)
PREP: How did Olitskaia depict the February Revolution in Russia? Why did the
initial euphoria of revolution dissipate? What issues drove her apart from her
sister, who became a follower of the Bolsheviks, and why were these questions so
heavily debated? Do you see any parallels between the Russian Revolutions of
1917-1920 and the French Revolutions that began in 1789?
Nov 12 individual consultations on final paper (details and sign-up sheet to be
distributed in class)
Nov 14: The Troubled Interwar Order in Europe
Civilization in the West, 797-802, 806-816
Hans Fallada, Little Man, What Now? (1932) (CR)
Nov 16: Totalitarianism on the Right and the Holocaust
Civilization in the West, 823-837, 847-853
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“The Persecution of the Jews,” in Michael Burleigh and Wolfgang Wippermann,
The Racial State: Germany, 1933-1945, 77-103 (CR)
PREP: What were the origins of the Nazi Party in Germany? How were the Nazis
able to separate acculturated Jews from German society? According to Burleigh
and Wippermann, how wide was complicity for persecution and the Holocaust
among the population of Germany and other European countries?
Nov 19: World War Two
Quiz 3 in class
Civilization in the West, 840-847, 853-862
“The Indoctrination of the German Soldier,” from Sources of the Western Tradition,
410-413 (CR)
PREP: How did the German propaganda depict the Soviet Union? What were the
ideological origins of the phrase “Jewish Bolshevism”? How receptive were
soldiers to such propaganda and why?
Nov 21-25 Thanksgiving Break
Nov 26: The Onset of the Cold War
Civilization in the West, 862-867, 870-885
Documents in From Stalinism to Pluralism: A Documentary History of Eastern Europe
since 1945, 34-42 (CR)
Sources on the Algerian War (Jacques Duclos, Pierre Frank) (CR)
PREP: How did the Truman Doctrine depict global communism and did it do so
accurately? Does the Soviet document, which is a programmatic speech on the
Western bloc delivered by Stalin’s minion Zhdanov to the Cominform alliance of
communist parties, accurately depict the “imperialist camp”? Do the two
documents have anything in common?
Nov 28: Societies on both sides of the Iron Curtain
Civilization in the West, 885-892
Carolyn Steedman, Landscape for a Good Woman, 27-47 (“The Weaver’s Daughter”
(CR, Bb)
Slavenka Drakulić, How we Survived Communism and even Laughed, 21-32 (CR)
PREP: Steedman, an influential sociologist, explores her working-class
upbringing in London in the 1950s. Who is the woman in Steedman’s dream?
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Why was her family marginalized in postwar British society? What special
challenges did women face under socialism according to Drakulic? Was this fate
harsher than that of Steedman’s mother? Drakulic is a prominent Croatian
journalist and feminist. She emigrated from her homeland during the Bosnian
war in the early 1990s after she was attacked in the press for being insufficiently
patriotic. The excerpt is from her memoir of life in communist Yugoslavia. How
do Steedman and Drakulic depict material conditions in their home countries?
Why were fashion, cosmetics, and the trappings of consumer society so
important to Yugoslavian women?
Nov 30: Challenges to the Postwar Order: the ‘60s
Civilization in the West, 892-897
Michael Berman, How it All Began: The Personal Account of a West German Urban
Guerilla, 9-38 (CR)
PREP: Baumann was a German youth activist and revolutionary terrorist. When
the East German archives were opened in the 1990s it was discovered that he was
an informer for the East German secret service and had reported on many of his
revolutionary allies. A few clarifications: SDS=Socialist German Student Union,
an organization of radical college students that staged protests and
demonstrations and espoused a radical democratization of society.
K1=Commune 1, a group of radical Germans who opposed the bourgeois family
as the root of fascism. Based on his memoir, what life experiences might have
alienated Bermann from West German society? Why did he move from the
counterculture of rock music and long hair to radical politics? How does
Baumann discuss the place of sexuality in the youth movement? How did men
and women relate to each other in the radical subculture? What is Baumann’s
ideological position? Does he have a clearly articulated worldview? How did the
politics of K1 differ from the traditions of the European left?
Dec 3: The Collapse of Communism
Civilization in the West, 900-916
Perspectives from the Past, 818-822 (Havel)
PREP: Havel was a Czech dissident playwright who became the president of an
independent Czechoslovakia (and soon, Czech Republic). How does Havel
explain the power of communism in Eastern Europe? Why does he start with the
example of the greengrocer? What ties the greengrocer to the state? What is the
best strategy of opposing the communist system and why?
Dec 5: Changes in Western Europe in the 1970s and 1980s
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Civilization in the West, 912-930
Perspectives from the Past, 811-815 (Thatcher), 858-863 (Wallraff)
PREP: According to Thatcher, what ills afflicted Britain and how should they be
overcome? Why might her speech have appealed to sections of British society?
Which parts of society would be sympathetic to her brand of conservatism? On
Wallraff: What were the trials and injustices faced by Turkish immigrants in
Germany? Why do you think such injustices could occur in developed,
democratic West Germany?
Dec 13 third paper due at 5 PM in folder outside my office
Note: this syllabus is subject to change as needed for the successful outcome of
the course.
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