Course Title: The Middle East since 1453
Course Number: History 198 (08)
Section Times/Days: MWF 10:00-10:50
Instructor: Najwa al-Qattan
Course Description
This course explores the political, socio-economic and cultural history of the Middle East from
the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453 to the present. It follows the history of the
region through the emergence of the Ottoman and Persian empires in the early modern period to
their demise during the Great War and replacement by the successor nation states that comprise
the region today. The course explores this history by focusing on a number of commodities for
the light that they shed on the economic and cultural worlds that made them possible, and for the
connections and networks that their histories illuminate: tulips; cotton; silk; oranges; oil.
Student Learning Outcomes
The course has the following objectives: to introduce students to the broad history of the Middle
East since 1453 by focusing on the history of a selected number of commodities that analytically,
comparatively, and concretely develop this history; to familiarize students with a selected
number of critical issues in Middle Eastern history; and to foster in students the conceptual skills
needed to make sense of historical as well as current events.
Required Texts
James Gelvin, The Modern Middle East: A History.
Requirements and Expectations
Students will be expected to attend all lectures, participate in class discussions, and do all the
readings. In addition, students will be required to pass a map quiz, sit for midterm and final
exams, and write two analytic papers.