History (HIST)

Return to History | Courses Index

[1] Graduate Courses in History (HIST)

5301 AMERICAN ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY This course explores current trends and issues in gifted education, including meeting the needs of creative students, talent development and innovation, and identifying and serving promising underrepresented groups.

5302 HISTORY OF WITCHCRAFT  This upper division course explores the history of witchcraft in Europe and the British colonies culminating in an in-depth examination of the Salem witch trials.  We will pay particular attention to magical knowledge and the social, cultural, religious, and political causes of witchcraft accusations.  We will also discuss the profile and stereotype of the witch as well as what circumstances might make people usually safe from accusations equally susceptible.

5305 THE UNITED STATES AND THE MIDDLE EAST, 1776 TO THE PRESENT An overview of the evolution of the relationship between the United States and the Middle East from American independence to the present day.

5306 ATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE This course covers the history of the trans-Atlantic slave trade from the early 16th to the late 19th century. Students examine why Europeans bought slaves, why Africans sold slaves, how slaves coped, resisted, and adapted, and how the Atlantic slave trade came to an end. Lecture, discussion, document analysis, writing.

5308 GENDER IN AMERICAN HISTORY Examines the history of gender in American history from the colonial period to the present. Emphasis on class, race, and ethnic differences.

5311 AMERICAN COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY HISTORY The age of exploration, colonization, and developments leading to the American Revolution, 1492-1783. Emphasis on the contribution of the era to American political, social, and intellectual tradition.

5322 EARLY NATIONAL HISTORY, 1783-1848 The course covers the social and political development of the United States from its origins in 1787 to 1848.  The class focuses on the debate over the Constitution, political and philosophical differences among Americans in the early republic, the market revolution, social change and reform of the antebellum period, the political controversies of the 1790s and the 1830s, westward expansion, sectional tensions and the differences in the social and economic development of different regions of the United States.  Lecture, discussion, analysis of documents, participatory classroom activities, research, and writing.

5324 TOPICS IN AMERICAN HISTORY Students study special topics in American history to be determined by instructor and the needs of students who enroll. This course can be repeated for credit. Lectures, discussion, analysis of documents, writing.

5327 THE AMERICAN WEST Influence of the frontier and of western expansion on the history of the United States.

5328 MODERN LATIN AMERICA An examination of critical issues that challenge the countries of contemporary Latin America, from race and the environment to debt, development, and democracy.

5330 CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION, 1848-1877 Upper-division elective.  The course covers the sectional crisis of the 1850’s, the establishment of the Confederate States, social and political developments in the Union and Confederacy during the war, emancipation, military policy and strategy, and Reconstruction.  Lecture, discussion, analysis of documents, participatory classroom activities, research, and writing.

5333 UNITED STATES IMMIGRATION AND ETHNIC HISTORY FROM COLONIAL TIMES TO PRESENT This course examines immigration to the United States from the colonial period to the present.  It considers social, cultural, political, and economic themes to analyze immigrant experiences and explain native-born attitudes toward newcomers.  Lecture, discussion, document analysis, writing.

5334 TOPICS IN EUROPEAN HISTORY Students study special topics in European history to be determined by instructor and the needs of students who enroll. This course can be repeated for credit. Lectures, discussion, analysis of documents, writing.

5335 DIPLOMATIC HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES Survey of the diplomatic history of the Revolutionary period, the early national era, the Civil War, America’s rise to world power, two world wars, and the Cold War.

5336 WORK, WEALTH, AND POWER IN UNITED STATES HISTORY This course explores the social and cultural history of the American working classes. Topics include the rise of industrialization and wage labor, slavery, the labor movement and labor relations, war, deindustrialization, and globalization. While the emphasis will be exploring the beliefs and experiences of American workers, the course will also pay attention to the historical development of capitalism in the United States and will examine the relationships of power between Americans of different economic positions.

5338 AMERICAN HISTORY THROUGH FILM Examination of how the history of film and the film industry in America relates to broader political, economic, cultural and social trends.

5340 THE EMERGENCE OF MODERN AMERICA, 1877-1920 Topics examined include the conquest of the last western frontier, the rise of big business, progressivism, and the United States as a world power.

5343 HISTORY OF MEXICO A history of the world’s most populous Spanish-speaking country, focusing mostly on the events and figures after 1800. Topics include the War of Independence, the role of the peasantry and organized labor, Mexican Catholicism and Church-State Relations, the Mexican Revolution, relations with the U.S. and the world, emigration and immigration, and NAFTA.

5344 TOPICS IN WORLD HISTORY Students study special topics in World history to be determined by instructor and the needs of students who enroll. This course can be repeated for credit. Lectures, discussion, analysis of documents, writing.

5345 THE SOUTH TO 1865 Survey of the old South, with an emphasis on southern nationalism, slavery, politics, and social and intellectual developments.

5346 THE SOUTH SINCE 1865 The path of the South back into the Union, the problems faced by the region, and their legacy to the present.

5347 IDEAS AND SOCIETY IN MODERN EUROPE A study of the inter-relationships among the arts, science, religion, and social change in Europe since 1648.

5350 AMERICA IN DEPRESSION AND WAR, 1920-1960 Examination of political, social, economic, and intellectual developments. Topics include the Twenties, the Depression, America in World War II, and the Cold War.

5355 THE ROLE OF ARKANSAS IN THE NATION United States history as reflected in the history of Arkansas. Emphasis on the ways Arkansas reflects or departs from national trends.

5358 RECENT AMERICAN HISTORY The political, social, cultural, diplomatic, and economic history of the United States from 1960 to the present.

5359 HISTORY OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT Explores the origins, development, and impact of 20th century African American struggles for equality, focusing on the post-WWII civil rights movement and the rise of Black Power. Special attention to the impact of these movements on domestic politics, education, foreign policy, and popular culture.

5360 THE MEDITERRANEAN WORLD IN LATE ANTIQUITY, 300-900 AD Examines the political, social, economic, religious, and intellectual development of the Mediterranean World from the establishment of Christianity as an officially sanctioned religion to the dawn of the feudal age. Lectures, discussion, analysis of documents, writing.

5361 THE MEDITERRANEAN WORLD IN THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD, 900-1400 AD Examines the political, social, economic, religious, and intellectual development of the Mediterranean World during the High Middle Ages. Lectures, discussion, analysis of documents, writing.

5362 TUDOR AND STUART ENGLAND 1485-1690 A survey of the political, religious, social, and economic history of England and the British Isles during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

5365 THE HISTORY OF IMPERIALISM:  A REVIEW OF WORLD COLONIAL SYSTEMS This course is a review of world imperialism from the early modern era through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.  The course will consider political, economic, social, class, gender, geographical, and ethnological themes and addresses the perspective of the West and other cultures (particularly in Africa and Asia).  Prerequisites: HIST 1320, 2320.

5369 VICTORIAN BRITAIN A historical survey of the primary elements constituting British society from the end of the Napoleonic period through the First World War.

5370 EUROPE, 1815-1914 Europe’s political and cultural development from the Vienna Congress to the eve of World War I.

5374 THE EUROPEAN RENAISSANCE AND REFORMATION The early modern age in Europe.

5376 EUROPE, 1914-1939 Background and history of World War I; peacemaking and international organization; the rise of Fascism, National Socialism, and Japanese imperialism; and collapse of the peace.

5377 EUROPE IN A GLOBAL ERA World War II, the Cold War, development of the European Union, collapse of the Soviet Union and other recent events.

5381 MODERN CHINA Chinese history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

5383 MODERN JAPAN Japan since 1800, including such topics as the overthrow of feudalism, the Meiji Restoration, the struggle for representative government, imperialism, ultranationalism, militarism, and the economic miracle.

5385 FRENCH REVOLUTION AND NAPOLEON The causes of the revolution and its impact on France and Europe with emphasis on social, political, and economic changes through revolution and the reforms of Napoleon.

5386 THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC, 1931-1945 Critical evaluation of Japanese-American relations covering such topics as Asian nationalism, Western imperialism, and Japanese expansion. (This course may be counted as either United States or World History.)

5390 ROMAN CIVILIZATION This course traces the development of the Roman World from its inception to the last days of the Tetrarchy and the eventual splintering of Roman territory.

5394 GERMANY SINCE 1918 A survey of German history since World War I, including the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich, World War II, and the division and reunification of postwar Germany.

5397 HISTORY OF IRELAND, 1500-PRESENT Examines major themes in Irish history from the Tudor conquest of Ireland, and the ensuing Ulster plantation in the early 17th century, to the modern Troubles in Northern Ireland.

5398 THE POLITICS OF SEX AND SEXUALITY IN MODERN EAST ASIA This discussion-focused seminar course examines the role that sex and sexuality have played in the intersection of state power and individual experience in East Asia, from the eighteenth century to the present. Students will examine a combination of primary and secondary sources, with a special emphasis on how historians have used gender theory and queer theory to understand Chinese and Japanese political development.

6V01 THESIS RESEARCH (Variable credit: 1-3 credit hours.) Thesis research. Repeated for six hours of degree credit. Students who do not complete the thesis within six hours must continue to enroll in the course for one hour each fall and spring semester until the thesis is complete.

6300 HISTORIOGRAPHY AND METHODS An introduction to historiography and historical methods.  This is a required course.

6303 SELECTED TOPICS IN AMERICAN HISTORY Examination of a specified topic in American history. (This course can be repeated if a different topic for credit.)

6304 SELECTED TOPICS IN EUROPEAN HISTORY Examination of a specified topic in European history.  (This course can be repeated if a different topic for credit).

6305 SELECTED TOPICS IN NON-WESTERN HISTORY Examination of a specified topic in non-Western history.  (This course can be repeated if a different topic for credit.)

6310 ADVANCED SOCIAL STUDIES INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS Advanced Social Studies Methods combines education theory and best practice to offer experienced and novice teachers the opportunities to strengthen their teaching skills through readings, discussions, research, and active learning experiences. The class will be offered in the summer, with a mixed format of pre-institute, online discussions of readings, written assignments and a five-day summer institute. The course is open to licensed teachers and students enrolled in the Master of Arts in Teaching program.

6315 THE CIVIL WAR ERA This course is an intensive reading seminar on the Civil War era. It addresses the institution of slavery, the rise of sectional politics and the struggle over slavery’s expansion into the West, the secession crisis, military strategy, daily life on the home front, emancipation, post-war Reconstruction, and how we remember and memorialize the war in the 20th and 21st centuries.

6323 COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY AMERICA, 1492-1789 Principal interpretive problems of the Colonial and Revolutionary eras.

6324 NINETEENTH-CENTURY AMERICA Reading Seminar.  This course provides an in-depth examination of scholarly work about the economic, social, political, and intellectual transition of the United States over the course of the Nineteenth Century from a pre-modern to a modern society.  Discussion, completion of historiography paper. Prerequisite(s) None.

6325 TWENTIETH-CENTURY AMERICA The complexities and strains in American society associated with the rise to political, economic, and military power in the global community.

6340 CONTEMPORARY EUROPE, 1945-PRESENT An intensive examination of post-war Europe.

6341 MEDIEVAL HISTORY, 450-1450 The complexities of a developing European society as it goes through the processes of economic development, urbanization, social and political stress, and intellectual formation.

6342 EARLY MODERN EUROPE Reading Seminar.  This course explores themes relating to the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the subsequent political and religious upheaval of early modern Europe.

6345 MODERN EUROPE, 1870-1945 Development of modern Europe with an emphasis on the world wars, failure of peace conferences, and the rise of the dictators.

6350 AFRICAN HISTORY This course is intended for students who wish to engage in an in-depth study of the economic, social, political, and intellectual forces and trends that have shaped the history of modern Africa. Discussion, completion of historiography paper.

6370 HOLOCAUSTS IN HISTORY A study of the Holocaust of World War II in comparison with other genocides of the twentieth century, such as the Armenian, Cambodian, and Rwandan genocides.

6371 RESEARCH IN HISTORY An advanced course in historical research and scholarly writing.  Students will be expected to produce an article-length paper based on primary sources.  This is a required course.

6397 INDEPENDENT STUDY IN HISTORY This course allows students to engage in reading and research under the guidance of a faculty member and may be counted as European, Non-Western, or United States history, depending on the subject of study. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor and department chair.

6399 ASIAN HISTORY This intensive reading seminar explores recent scholarship on the social, cultural, and political history of Asia, from the early modern period to the present. Student-led discussion and completion of historiography paper.