The
courses offered through
the Millsaps College Department of History include myriad
possibilites for your studies, requirements, enjoyment, and
future. The following is a complete list briefly describing
the courses currently offered at Millsaps in addition to those
for upcoming semesters. You'll notice that most courses are
offered once a year in every curriculum year's spring or fall
semesters. Some are offered additionally in more concentrated
semesters during the summer, while others are biannual or
upon the whim of the History faculty and staff. They can do
that.
History Courses Offered at Millsaps College
IDST
1200 (4 Semester Hours)
Sex, Religion & Prehistory SYLLABUS
Dr. Robert
McElvaine
This course will explore the early history of human beings
by attempting to address three areas that historians have often
overlooked or shortchanged: History cannot be properly understood
if we look solely at the activities of only one of the sexes;
the assumption that there are no basic, innate traits or predispositions
in the human species; and the sharp division between archeology/anthropology
and history.
HIST
2100 (4
Semester Hours)
History of the United States to 1877 SYLLABUS
Dr. Kristen Tegtmeier Oertel
A survey of the cultures and history of the peoples that lived
in the area that became the United States, from the Pre-Columbian
era through European colonization, the introduction of African
slaves, the American Revolution, the early Republic, the Civil
War, and Reconstruction.
HIST
2110 (4
Semester Hours)
History of the United States since 1877 SYLLABUS
Dr. Robert McElvaine
A survey of the main developments in the United States and how
they affected American men and women from the end of Reconstruction
through industrialization and urbanization, the emergence of
the United States as a world power, the rise of a partial welfare
state, the Cold War, and the present.
HIST
2120 (4
Semester Hours)
Women (and Men) in America SYLLABUS
Dr. Robert McElvaine
An interdisciplinary examination of the history of women and
the ways in which they have interacted with men and maledominated
institutions over the course of American history. The course
will employ works of literature, art, .lm, and music among its
means of exploring the changing lives of women and men in America.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
2130 (4 Semester Hours)
African American Heritage SYLLABUS
Dr. Kristen Tegtmeier Oertel
This course will explore the history
and culture of African Americans from the Colonial era to the
civil rights decades of the mid-20th century. Careful attention
will be paid to the Atlantic slave trade, slavery, emancipation,
Reconstruction, the "Great Migration" of 1915-40,
and the civil rights movements of the 1950s and '60s.
HIST
2210 (4 Semester Hours)
European Civilization Since 1789 SYLLABUS
Dr.
Amy Forbes
This course is a survey of the major
social, political, economic, and intellectual developments in
European history from the French Revolution of 1789 to the revolutions
in Eastern Europe in 1989/1990. Lectures and discussions will
be devoted to understanding the influence of ideology (liberalism,
conservatism, socialism, nationalism) on social and political
life; the role of material factors (economic change, urbanization,
the experience of warfare) in historical change; and the global
expansion of Europe and the extension of European ideas and
institutions to other peoples of the world.
HIST
2310 (4 Semester Hours)
African History and Society
An interdisciplinary survey of major
themes in African history from the earliest records of human
activity on the continent to the struggles for South Africa.
Literature, music, art, and popular culture will be studied
as ways of understanding the complex contemporary issues faced
by Africans.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
2320 (4 Semester Hours)
Topics in African History
An interdisciplinary examination of a
particular topic, period, or region in African history. The
topics, which include "The Shaping of South Africa,"
and "Listening to the African Past," will change from
year to year.
This course may be repeated for credit with a different topic.
HIST
2400 (4 Semester Hours)
Middle Eastern History and Society
An interdisciplinary survey of major
themes in Middle Eastern history from the advent of Islam to
the Persian Gulf conflict and the Madrid Peace Conference. Literature,
music, art, and popular culture will be studied as ways of understanding
the contemporary issues faced by men and women of this region.
Offered in alternate years
HIST 2600 (4 Semester Hours)
Colonial Latin America
Dr. Andrew Paxman
This course will begin by surveying pre-Columbian societies and then follow Latin American history from 1492 to the independence era of 1791-1825. It will consider the central questions of how Spain & Portugal subjugated territories so vast without a large standing army, the colonial roots of the differences between British North America and Spanish and Portuguese America.
HIST 2610 (4 Semester Hours)
Modern Latin America
Dr. Andrew Paxman
This course will survey Latin American history from the independence era to the present. There will be a particular focus on Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina. Themes considered include nation building, revolutions, populism, race and class, the mass media, democratization, and relations with Europe and the United States.
HIST
3110 (4 Semester Hours)
Civil War and Reconstruction SYLLABUS
Dr. Kristen
Tegtmeier Oertel
An examination of the political, economic, military, diplomatic,
and social aspects of the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.
HIST
3130 (4 Semester Hours)
American Revolution and Beyond SYLLABUS
Dr. Kristen Tegtmeier Oertel
An examination of the political, economic, social, and cultural
events that led to the American Colonial revolt against Britain
and the establishment of the Federal Union in the Constitution
of 1787, and the early Republic from the administration of George
Washington to Thomas Jefferson.
Offered occasionally
HIST
3140 (4 Semester Hours)
Age of Jefferson and Jackson, 1800-1848
A continuation of American Revolution and Establishment of the
Federal Union, this course will examine the political, economic,
social, and cultural history of the United States from the administration
of George Washington to the conclusion of the Mexican War.
Offered occasionally
HIST
3160 (4 Semester Hours)
Topics in American Culture
An interdisciplinary exploration of a particular topic in American
culture. The history, literature, thought, music, art, and popular
culture of a period (such as a decade) or aspect of the United
States will be studied. Topics will change from year to year.
This course may be repeated for credit with a different topic.
(The
'40s and '50s, Colonial America, History of Sexuality in
the United States.)
Offered occasionally
HIST
3170 (4 Semester Hours)
The Great Depression SYLLABUS
Dr. Robert McElvaine
An interdisciplinary examination of American history and culture
during the Great Depression (1929-41), utilizing literature,
film, music, painting, and photography, as well as more traditional
historical sources.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3180 (4 Semester Hours)
The Sixties SYLLABUS
Dr. Robert McElvaine
An interdisciplinary examination of American history and culture
during the 1960s, utilizing literature, film, music, painting,
and sculpture, as well as more traditional sources.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3190 (4 Semester Hours)
Our Times: America since 1970 SYLLABUS
Dr. Robert
McElvaine
An interdisciplinary examination of American history and
culture from 1970 to the present, utilizing literature, music,
and cinema, as well as more traditional historical sources.
HIST
3210 (4 Semester Hours)
Britain and the World, 1688-1914
Dr.
William Storey
This course surveys the rise of Britain to global hegemony,
paying particular attention to cross-cultural relations, as
well as environmental and technological history.
HIST
3220 (4 Semester Hours)
Britain and the World, 1914 to the Present SYLLABUS
Dr. William Storey
This course surveys the history of Britain and the British
Empire in the 20th century, paying close attention to the impact
on culture of decolonization and the world wars.
HIST
3240 (4 Semester Hours)
Topics in European Culture and History
An
interdisciplinary examination of a particular topic, period,
or region of European culture. Topics will change. This course
may be repeated for credit with a different topic.
Available topics:
The French Revolution and Napoleon (Section 1) SYLLABUS
Dr. Amy Forbes
This course aims to give a thorough introduction to the
French Revolution and to its effects on the course of world
history. The scope of the course will cover politics, social
conflict, cultural developments, warfare, economics, nationalism
and gender relations.
Art and Power in Europe: Ritual, Myth and Propaganda,
from the Emperor Augustus to the House of Windsor SYLLABUS
Dr. Amy
Forbes
This course analyzes the role of rituals, myths and propaganda
in politics. Throughout Western history, cultural means have
been used to create, express or legitimate political power.
The course investigates how paintings, films, poems and ceremonies
have been manipulated to bolster the political authority of
rulers, including Louis XIV, Hitler and Elizabeth II.
History of Modern France SYLLABUS
Dr. Amy
Forbes
This course examines the history of modern France – the
political, social, cultural, economic, scientific, artistic,
ideological, institutional history of France as a nation and
the French as a people from the age of absolutism (roughly 1650)
to the socialist era of the 1980s and 1990s. Particular attention
will be paid to construction of the French nation, cultural
and social self-definition, colonial interaction, and sociopolitical
relationships between France and other nations.
HIST
3250 (4 Semester Hours)
European Women
Dr. Amy Forbes
This course examines the experience of women and the meaning
of gender in Britain, France, and Germany from the onset of
industrialization through the period following the Second World
War. Particular attention will be paid to the following: the
impact of industrialization on the European family; the Victorian
construction of separate spheres; the role of the state in defining
gender roles and regulating sexuality; and the impact of war
on gender relations.
Offered occasionally
HIST
3260 (4 Semester Hours)
Britain since 1750
A survey of Britain since 1750, this course charts the forging
of a national identity through Britain's varied experiences
of war, empire, religion, and consumerism. It has as its focus,
the centrality of empire to British domestic politics and culture.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3270 (4 Semester Hours)
Introduction to Cultural History
This course explores the importance of culture in shaping
modern European history. Students will examine various methodologies
of cultural history and see how historians analyze key shifts
in modern Europe by using diverse and (often bizarre) documents.
In particular, the class will compare works on political culture,
popular culture, and manufactured or commercial culture.
Offered occasionally
HIST
3290 (4 Semester Hours)
History of Sexuality SYLLABUS
Dr. Kristen Tegtmeier Oertel
A survey of historical developments from the 18th through
the 20th centuries, this course examines the codi.cation and
regulation of sexuality in European society. The class will
explore the underlying politics of sexual knowledge, the structures
of permission and prohibition, and the key debates that ranged
on these matters.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3310 (4 Semester Hours)
Topics in African History SYLLABUS
Dr. William Storey
An interdisciplinary examination of a particular topic,
period, or region in African history. The topics, which include
"The Shaping of South Africa" and "Listening
to the African Past," will change from year to year. This
course may be repeated for credit with a different topic.
Offered occasionally
HIST
3410 (4 Semester Hours)
Topics in Middle Eastern History
An interdisciplinary examination of a particular topic,
period, or region in Middle Eastern history. The topics, which
include "The Twice-Promised Land" and "Islam
in History," will change from year to year. This course
may be repeated for credit with a different topic.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3510 (4 Semester Hours)
Ancient History
A survey of the Mediterranean world from
the Bronze Age to c. 200 C.E., with a topical emphasis on Classical
Greece, the Late Roman Republic, and the Early Roman Empire
and with a methodological stress on reading, analyzing, and
interpreting ancient sources in translation.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3520 (4 Semester Hours)
The Middle Ages
A survey of the history of Western Europe
from c. 200 to c. 1300, with a topical emphasis on the religious,
political, economic, social, and cultural developments of the
High Middle Ages and a methodological stress on reading, analyzing,
and interpreting medieval sources in translation.
HIST
3530 (4 Semester Hours)
Renaissance and Reformation
A survey of Western Europe from c. 1300
to c. 1600, with a topical emphasis on the crises of the Late
Middle Ages, the intellectual and artistic developments of the
Italian Renaissance, and the religious and political developments
of the Protestant Reformation and with a methodological emphasis
on reading, analyzing, and interpreting original sources in
translation.
Offered in alternate years
HIST
3540 (4 Semester Hours)
Early Modern European History
A survey of the history of Western Europe
from the 16th century to 1789, with a topical emphasis on the
Scienti.c Revolution, Constitutionalism and Absolutism, the
Enlightenment, and the coming of the French Revolution, with
a methodological emphasis on reading, analyzing, and interpreting
original sources in translation. Offered in alternate years.
HIST 3610 (4 Semester Hours)
Latin America on Film
Dr. Andrew Paxman
This course will study the cinematic representation of Latin American history and society, from 1492 to the present. We will look at three kinds of cinema: (i) Latin American films depicting local history; (ii) U.S. and European films depicting Latin American history and society; and (iii) Latin American films that serve as historical documents.
HIST 3620 (4 Semester Hours)
Revolutionary Mexico
Dr. Andrew Paxman
An examination of the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920: its causes, its process, and its legacy from 1920 until the present. We will survey politics, industry, social change, and the arts, including songs, murals, and films.
HIST 3720 (4 Semester Hours)
Biography as History
Dr. Andrew Paxman
A two-part course. In the first half of the semester we will study biographies of men and women, both famous and little-known, from the USA, Europe, and Latin America. In the second half, students will research and write a short biography of a subject of their choice.
HIST
4750 (4 Semester Hours)
Senior Seminar in History
An examination of how history is written
and interpreted and of particular problems in history. May be
taken by students who have two courses in history and is required
for all history majors.
HIST
4760 (4
Semester Hours)
The Origins of the First World War, 1870-1916
SYLLABUS
Dr.
William Storey
During the fall term we will examine the long-term and short-term
causes of the First World War as well as the war's first two
years. We will take a global approach, paying particular attention
to imperial rivalries and diplomatic relations, as well as to
the ways in which environmental endowments and technological
developments were related to global inequality and international
tension.
HIST
4760 (4 Semester Hours)
Environment, Technology, and Power
Oil and Politics in World History SYLLABUS
Dr.
William Storey
This course will focus on oil in world history, in an effort
to draw out the ways in which oil has (or has not) been fundamental
to modern world history. As we work our way through the global
history of oil, we will also consider key texts and issues in
environmental and technological history. These include cultural
views of the landscape; the rise of big business; the ecological
origins of global inequality; the historiographical debate over
technological determinism; the "tragedy of the commons";
and the relationship between individual liberty and ecological
sustainability.
HIST
4760 (4
Semester Hours)
The History of History
History has a history, and this course is an advanced introduction
to it, in the West, from Antiquity to the Enlightenment. With
regard to its content, we will survey historical writing in
Classical Greece, Rome, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the
Reformation, the 17th Century, and the Enlightenment. In each
case, we will discern the general characteristics of the period's
historiography, seek to account for them historically, and consider
their strengths and weaknesses. With regard to its method, the
works of Greek, Roman, medieval, Renaissance, Reformation, 17th-century,
and Enlightenment historians will be our sources. It is by reading,
analyzing, and discussing selections from their works that we
will attempt to understand how and why ideas about the content
of historical writing, the methods to be employed in undertaking
it, and the purposes of writing and reading it have changed
over time. In doing so, we will gain insight both into past
history and into the history of the past.
HIST
4800-4802 (1,
2, 3, or 4 Semester Hours)
Directed Readings
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