ALL FINAL EXAMS BEGIN THE WEEK OF APRIL 27, 1998. PLEASE CONSULT EXAM REVIEW BELOW.
PEER REVIEW WORKSHEET FOR WEBPAGE PROJECT
FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE:
HST 102-06 THURSDAY APRIL 30, 1998, 2:00PM, MH
101
HST 102-C1 FRIDAY MAY 1, 1998, 10:00AM, MH 101
HST 102-C2 FRIDAY MAY 1, 1998, 12:00NOON, MH 101
HST 102-C3 MONDAY APRIL 27, 1998, 12:00NOON,
MH101
FOR INTERNET SOURCES CITATION USE THE GUIDE AVAILABLE BELOW:
MLA-STYLE
CITATIONS OF INTERNET RESOURCES
Readings:
John P. McKay, Bennett D. Hill, and John Buckler. A History of Western
Society. Volume II, From Absolutism to the Present. Fifth Edition.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1995.
(READING PACKET): Sources from the Humanities: History and Religious Studies. First Edition.
Additional readings distributed in class, on reserve at the library, and linked to this syllabus. Assignments TBA.
General Resources:
Search the
Internet
U. of Dayton Library and Online
Resources from Ohiolink
U. of Dayton
Department of History Homepage (History Resources)
U. of South Dakota History
Students Web Project
U. of Dayton Humanities Base
Homepage
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course is a thematic and chronological survey of "Western Civilization" from the early 1700s through the twentieth century. Since the course covers nearly three centuries of sometimes very diverse history which virtually spans the globe, major themes are used to give it a sense of order. The course will stress the economic, technological, social, political, intellectual, cultural, and military development and expansion of "Western Civilization" and its impact on the world.
THEMES OF COURSE:
The development of European civilization (English, Spanish, French, German, etc.) and its subsequent expansion throughout the globe has been one of history's most important and significant events. In many ways, our reference to our world as "Western Civilization" is the result of that European development and expansion. That is, the worldwide expansion of European civilization over the past few centuries has profoundly influenced peoples' lives throughout the world. In a sense, we are all, in one form or another, either a product of "Western Civilization" or somehow influenced by it.
European expansion exported ideas, systems of government, economy, and society throughout the world. Armies of soldiers, and more significantly, armies of colonists, conquered territories and established new pockets of European society in far off lands. Millions of peoples began world migrations, both forced and unforced, to many new and different places. Different peoples came into contact and influenced each other. Intellectual, technological, social, economic and political innovation led to further development and expansion. Slowly, a "Western Civilization" was created which spread its ideas, problems, successes, conflicts, and tyranny through much of the world. In doing so, it profoundly influenced world development.
In essence, this course will try to discover what the term "Western Civilization" means to us and why it is important in terms of who we are as humans in our modern world. The basic question to remember as we travel through centuries of history is "How did we get to where we are today and what does it mean?" Therefore, throughout the course we will explore some of the fundamental issues of what it means to be human (autonomy and responsibility, the individual and society, faith and reason, and humans beings and nature) by analyzing historical applications of these issues.
REQUIREMENTS:
General:
Reading all the assignments by the assigned date, regular attendance
to lectures, completion of the map (due Monday of Week two), two exams,
and a comprehensive final exam. In addition, all students will write and
publish a WEB-BASED PROJECT by the end of the semester (See the section
entitled WEB-BASED PROJECT for more information.). All students are
strongly encouraged to ask questions throughout the lecture, participate
in discussion, and come to office hours.
Attendance:
Students are required to attend classes regularly and not miss more
than four classes in the semester. Please remember that the lectures,
discussion, and the readings are the core of this course and therefore,
you are expected to attend all classes. Every two class periods missed
after the first four, for example absences five and six, will result in
an automatic one half grade reduction for the final grade. Due dates are
cast in stone! There will be no make up exams and late assignments will
not be accepted. Only in the case of family or personal emergency, with
prior notification, will I consider a deviation from this policy.
Web-Based Project:
During the semester the entire class will develop four WEB-BASED PROJECTS
treating one of the four Humanities Base Themes (autonomy and responsibility,
the individual and society, faith and reason, and humans beings and nature)
through a collaborative historical analysis of some important aspect of
Western Civilization. There are four primary goals in this project:
1.) To explore the Humanities Base Themes from a concrete historical
perspective.
2.) To build basic research, analysis, and communication skills.
3.) To produce the presentation collaboratively, as the coordination
and compilation of several students' work, and to publish it on the WEB
for others to use and build on.
4.) To build confidence in using, analyzing, and building online
resources as part of the educational experience of history students.
Each student will be a member of one of four teams (each team will consist of approximately 9 students) that will develop their page around one of the themes. The results of each group's analysis will appear as a multimedia presentation in a format readable by Web browsers (HTML) and linked with the other projects through my homepage. The Webpages will consist of text and analysis as well as anything that one can scan, record, photograph, or videotape. Have fun with this project; however, its point is not to perform tricks but to develop a cogent, elegant, and powerful critique of some aspect of our culture's history. For an example of the only other STUDENT WEB-BASED PROJECT see U. of South Dakota History Students Web Project.
Class Evaluation:
DISCUSSION/MAP 10% (50 points)
WEB PROJECT 20% (100 points)
EXAMS 40% (200 points)
FINAL EXAM 30% (150 points)
TOTAL 100% (500 points)
Students can earn a maximum of 500 points throughout the semester. The
grading scale is:
450-500 points = 90-100% = A
400-449 points = 80-89% = B
350-399 points = 70-79% = C
300-349 points = 60-69% = D
299-below = = F
STUDENT PROGRESS WILL BE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION!
WEEKLY SCHEDULE:
Week 1 READ: McKay, Chapter 19
Course Introduction. Guidelines, requirements, goals, and themes.
WEB-BASED PROJECT GUIDELINES.
Week 2 READ: McKay, Chapters 19 and 20
Daily Life: Agriculture, Population, Economy and Superstition.
The Old World in Change: The Enlightenment.
LINKS:
Eighteenth-Century
Resources: Links to Many Web Sites
Nicholaus
Copernicus (1473-1543)
Johannes Kepler
(1571-1630)
Galileo Galilei
(1564-1642)
Isaac
Newton 1642-1727)
John Locke (1632-1704)
Week 3 READ: McKay, Chapter 16
Absolutism and Constitutionalism in Western Europe.
FILM: Versailles
Week 4 READ: McKay, Chapter 17 and Chapter 21
Absolutism in Eastern Europe.
Revolution in Politics: France and the U.S.
LINKS:
The
French Revolution
The
Tennis Court Oath
Week 5 READ: McKay, Chapter 21 and 22; Handout 1
The Napoleonic Era and the Independence of Latin America--Recreating
a New World.
Revolution in Technology: The "Industrial Revolution."
LINKS:
The Napoleonic
Era
The Agricultural
Revolution
Week 6 READ: McKay, Chapter 23
FILM: The "Industrial Revolution."
Ideologies and Upheavals.
LINKS:
The Industrial
Revolution http://members.aol.com/mhirotsu/kevin/trip2.html
British Industrialization
U.S. Industrialization
Week 8 READ: McKay, Chapters 25 and 26
Nationalism.
Imperialism.
LINKS:
Italian Unification
German Unification
Imperialism to 1914
Week 14 READ: McKay, Chapter 30
Europe and the Americas after the War.
LINKS:
The North Atlantic Treaty (Apr. 4, 1949)
NSC-68 (1950)
Week 15 READ: McKay, Chapter 31
The Cold War.
Life in the Nuclear World and the Cold War Warmed Over.
LINKS:
President R. Regan's Speech to the House of Commons
(Evil Empire Speech) (1982)