Ancient

An exploration of society and ecology from the period of earliest settlement until the construction of the Tokugawa shogunate c. 1600. Includes the development of the classical imperial state, the formation of the medieval warrior governments, and the experience of mass civil war during the 16th century. We are concerned with the complex sources of power-land and food control, violence, family and class structures, literacy and knowledge, social contracts.

This course surveys Mexican history from the late colonial period (ca. 1780) to the present. Although previous exposure to Latin American history and/or things Mexican is useful, it is not required. Each year I emphasize a different aspect of Mexican history, and this year the emphasis in the readings, the paper, and to a certain extent the lectures will be on popular culture. The paper will ask you to relate the readings (on Mexican food, rock music, Cantinflas, Posada prints, etc.) to the broad political-social-economic narrative that will be presented in lecture.

This course examines the transformation of American society since the Civil War.

History of the American environment and the ways in which different cultural groups have perceived, used, managed, and conserved it from colonial times to the present. Cultures include American Indians and European and African Americans. Natural resources development includes gathering-hunting-fishing; farming, mining, ranching, forestry, and urbanization. Changes in attitudes and behaviors toward nature and past and present conservation and environmental movements are also examined.

This course will consider the emergence and decline of the Yugoslav state (1918 - 1991) from two different but closely related standpoints à that of history and politics, and that of language, literature and culture. Throughout Eastern Europe, but especially in the former Yugoslavia, these two aspects have been so interconnected that it is not possible to understand one without some comprehension of the other.

This seminar is designed especially to introduce college freshmen and sophomores to American history by acquainting them with some of the major works in the literature. Some are old classics, e.g., Ben Franklin's autobiography and Tocqueville's Democracy in America, which have become renowned almost as much as historical documents as for their historical content.

The history of medieval Italy is one of vivid contrasts: of beauty and brutality, freedom and tyranny, piety and blasphemy. The great poet of the Inferno summons us to consider such contrasts in nearly every canto: how can such stunningly beautiful language conjure images of such horrendous violence? This course explores the world that produced Dante, Giotto, and Saint Francis. It first traces the emergence of independent city-states in northern and central Italy after the millennium, emphasizing the particular conditions and experiences that created this distinctive medieval civilization.

Goals: This course has four major goals. The first goal is to provide students with basic literacy in the field of Middle East history. This can prepare you for more advanced courses in the Dept. of History (such as 109C) or courses in other departments that require some background in the history of the Middle East. Second, this course explores what it means to do history by explicitly referring to various approaches and methodologies used to construct narratives about change over time.

The United States has been termed a ";nation of immigrants."; And indeed, following the massive depopulation of the native populations, people from five continents over four centuries have moved to America. This course will provide an overview of that migration beginning with the colonial migration which brought the free and unfree to a less developed colonial region.

During the first half-century before World War II, the United States became an industrialized, urban society with national markets and communication media. This class will explore in depth some of the most important changes and how they were connected. We will also examine what did not change, and how state and local priorities persisted in many arenas.