| ANCIENT WORLD |
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Origins of Western Civilization: Mesopotamia and Egypt, 3000 - 1200 B.C.E.
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This module compares the Bronze Age societies of Mesopotamia and Egypt. It examines the geography, agriculture, economy, social structure, religion, and cultural achievements of each society, taking particular note of the similarities and differences between the two societies.
Readings
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Sumerian Farmer's Almanac, ca. 1700 B.C.E.
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The Baal Myth from Ugarit, retold by Paul Brassey
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Mesopotamian Contracts, ca. 2300-2000 B.C.E.
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Enuma Elish
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Gilgamesh, Tablets 1-8, Anonymous, translated by William Ellery Leonard
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Hammurabi's Code of Laws, translated by L. W. King
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The Histories, Book 2, chapters 5-10, 19, 26, 35-36, Herodotus
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Egyptian Love Poetry, ca. 2000-1100 B.C.E.
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Memphite Theology of Creation, translated by John A. Wilson
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The Precepts of Ptah-Hotep, ca. 2200 B.C.E.
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Pyramid Texts, excerpts
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The Legend of Sargon of Akkadia, ca. 2300 B.C.E.
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Description of Egyptian Weather from A History of the Ancient Egyptians (1911), pp. 10-11, James Henry Breasted
Critical Thinking Questions
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Ancient Greek and Roman Art and Architecture, ca. 550 B.C.E. - 330 C.E.
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This module provides an overview of some of the major styles and media of ancient art via select works. Through the accompanying analytical essays, students are exposed to how historians and art historians use works of art as a historical source. All images are placed in their historical context via a timeline of events and developments.
Readings
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Athenian Constitution, 20-22, Aristotle
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Histories, Books 6 and 7, Herodotus
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The Iliad, chapter 1 (ca. 800 B.C.E.), Homer, translated by Samuel Butler
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The History of Rome, Book I, Livy
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Symposium, Plato
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Life of Alexander, Plutarch
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Life of Caesar, Plutarch
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History of the Peloponnesian War, Book 2, ch. 34-46, Thucydides
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The Aeneid, Book I, Virgil
Critical Thinking Questions
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| MIDDLE AGES |
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Medieval Art and Architecture, ca. 476 C.E. - 1453 C.E.
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This module provides an overview of some of the major styles and media of medieval art via a select sampling of works. Through the accompanying analytical essays, students are exposed to the ways that historians and art historians use artwork as a historical source. All images are placed in their historical context via a timeline of events and developments.
Readings
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Jean Froissart chronicles the Hundred Years' War (1370-1400), The Battle of Crécy
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The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Entry for 1066
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Assize of Clarendon, 1166
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The Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation, Book One, ch. 23-26, The Venerable Bede
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Rule of Saint Benedict, Sixth Century
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The Decameron: Introduction, Giovanni Boccaccio
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Clericis Laicos, 1296
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Charter of Cluny, 910
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The Divine Comedy: Inferno, Cantos 1-5, Dante Alighieri
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The Divine Comedy: Paradiso, Canto 33, Dante Alighieri
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Life of Charlemagne, Ch. 1-4, 15-31, Einhard
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Life of Saint Francis of Assisi, Ch. 1-3, 7, 13, Saint Bonaventure
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Rule of Saint Francis of Assisi, 1223
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Dictatus Papae (The Dictates of the Pope), ca. 1075, attributed to Pope Gregory VII
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Letter of Louis IX to his son
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Magna Carta (Great Charter)
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Secret History, Book 8, Procopius
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Account of Pope Urban II's speech at Clermont, 1095, Robert the Monk
Critical Thinking Questions
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A Year in the Life of a Medieval Peasant Family
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This module gives the student the opportunity to explore a year in the life of a medieval peasant family. In addition to the seasonal tasks, the module presents some of the limitations of, and innovations in, medieval agricultural production.
Readings
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Asnapium, ca. 800, An Inventory of One of Charlemagne's Estates
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The Dialogue Between Master & Disciple: On Laborers, ca. 1000
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Manorial Management and Organization, ca. 1270s, Plowing and Cultivating
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Manorial Management and Organization, ca. 1270s, Animal Husbandry
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Description of Manor House, 1265
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Polyptyque de Villeneuve St. Georeges, early 9th century, Abbot Irminon
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Survey of Somersham, 1222
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Tithable Products of the Land, ca. 1115, from Leges Edwardis Confessoris
Critical Thinking Questions
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Medieval Constantinople: The God-Guarded City, 330 - 1453
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This module allows the student to explore, by means of interactive maps and timeline, the city of Constantinople from its founding by the Emperor Constantine in 330 C.E. to its subjugation by the Ottoman Turks in 1453. In particular, students learn how monuments built by earlier regimes continued to shape the city, even as the rulers of the city changed. The exploration of each monument includes a description of its historical significance, while the timeline identifies seminal events in the history of the Byzantine Empire.
Readings
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The Alexiad, excerpts, Anna Comnena
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Brief Historical Notes, 8th century
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Homily against the Jews, John Chysostom
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The Crusade of Louis VII, excerpt, Odo of Deuil
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The Present Shape, Circuit, Length and Width of Constantinople, Book I, chapter IV of The Antiquities of Constantinople, Pierre Gilles
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The Walls of the City, Book I, chapter XIX of The Antiquities of Constantinople, Pierre Gilles
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The Senate House, Book I, chapter XVII, The Antiquities of Constantinople, excerpts, Pierre Gilles
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The Church of the Apostles, The Sepulcher of Constantine the Great, The Cistern of Arcadius and Modestus, The Palace of Placilla, and The Brazen Bull, Book IV, chapter II, of The Antiquities of Constantinople, Pierre Gilles
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The Blachernae, The Triclinium of the Blanchernae, The Palace, the Aqueduct and Many Other Places of Antiquity, Book IV, chapter V of The Antiquities of Constantinople, Pierre Gilles
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The Town of Galata, sometimes called Pera; A Description of Galata The Temples of Amphiaraus, Diana, and Venus, The Theater of Sycae, The Forum of Honorius, Book IV, chapters X and XI of The Antiquities of Constantinople, Pierre Gilles
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Iconoclastic Council, 754
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Description of the Great Palace, Liutprand of Cremona
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A Twelfth Century Description of the Hagia Sophia
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Decree of Second Council of Nicea, 787
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Charter of the Church of Christ Pantokrator (12th century)
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The Book of the Prefect
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On the Great Church, [Hagia Sophia], from De Aedificis, Procopius
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Justinian Supresses the Nika Revolt, 532, (From History of the Wars, I), Procopius
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The Magnificence of Hagia Sophia, Paul the Silentiary
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Description of the Palace of Blachernae, Benjamin of Tudela
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Description of the Jews of Constantinople, Benjamin of Tudela
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The Capture of Galata, from Chronicle of The Fourth Crusade and The Conquest of Constantinople, Geoffrey de Villehardouin
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The Treasures of Constantinople, from Chronicle of The Fourth Crusade and The Conquest of Constantinople, Geoffrey de Villehardouin
Critical Thinking Questions
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| EARLY MODERN PERIOD |
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God, Gold and Glory: Columbus and the Age of Exploration, 1413 - 1776
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This module explores the period 1415-1776, in which European exploration of the world began in earnest. The module covers Europe's initial overseas forays, the beginnings of commercial and military expansionism, and the historical implications of expansion both for Europe and the wider world. Employing interactive maps, images, documents, and exercises, the module reviews this history from multiple perspectives, charting the intersections of the technological, the economic, the cultural, and the religious factors that both led to and ultimately shaped European exploration and expansion at this time.
Readings
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An Aztec Account (1528)
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James Barbot, A Voyage to the New Calabar River (1699)
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Description of a Voyage from Lisbon to the Island of São Thomè (c. 1540), Anonymous Portuguese Pilot
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The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Díaz del Castillo, excerpts
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Bartolomé de Las Casas, In Defense of the Indians (1550)
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The Bull Inter Caetera (Alexander VI), May 4, 1493
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The Bull Romanus Pontifex (Nicholas V), January 8, 1455
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Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda, Democrates Secundus, or The Just Causes of War Against the Indians (1547)
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Fra Soncino: Letter to Ludovico Sforza (1497)
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The Requirement (1526)
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Treaty between Spain and Portugal concluded at Tordesillas; June 7, 1494 Ratified by Spain, July 2, 1494; Ratified by Portugal, September 5, 1494.
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Columbus's Letter to Gabriel Sanchez (1493)
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The Journal of Christopher Columbus, translated by Clements R. Markham
Critical Thinking Questions
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Exploring a Renaissance Painting
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This interactive module is designed to offer students a dynamic, enriching learning experience. The centerpiece module, Raphael's School of Athens, is brought to life using innovative pedagogy and today's technology, allowing students to click on figures in the painting to learn about their significance in history. The module also explains the content in which Raphael's School of Athens was painted and illustrates how religion, philosophy, and music influence Renaissance art.
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The Scientific Revolution, 1500 - 1750
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This module explores the historical transformation of understanding known as the Scientific Revolution. In order to both explain and problematize the complex historical narrative, this module reviews not only the canon of important thinkers and discoveries associated with the period, but also examines a number of their broader social, political, and economic applications.
Readings
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Preface to the Novum Organum, Francis Bacon
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Treatise on Drawing and Proportion, Leonardo Da Vinci
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Discourse on Method (1637), René Descartes
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Dr. Faustus, Christopher Marlowe, (erroneously attributed to C. Marklin)
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Letter to Christina, Galileo Galilei
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De Motu, On the Motion of the Heart, excerpts, William Harvey
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Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes
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An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690), excerpt, John Locke
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Principia, Preface, Isaac Newton
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Ethics (1677), excerpts, Benedict de Spinoza, Translated from the Latin by R.H.M. Elwes (1883)
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Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World [Gulliver's Travels] 1726, Part 3, chapter 5, Johnathan Swift
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The Origin of The Royal Society, 1645-1662, Dr. John Wallis
Critical Thinking Questions
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Warfare in Early Modern Europe: 1494 - 1648
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This module investigates the nature of warfare in early modern Europe. By exploring the changing nature of military technology and tactics, as well as illustrating the historical context of important wars from this period, the module presents the student with a solid introduction to both the military history of the time and the ways that the changing methods of warfare transformed politics and economics.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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Empires of Art: Comparing the Dutch Republic and Spanish Empire, 1500-1700
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This module compares two very different early modern societies -- Imperial Spain and the Dutch Republic -- by examining their respective cultural production, particularly painting. Organized around important themes (war, religion, politics, culture, gender, and economy) during a period that witnessed the Dutch transform themselves from a Spanish province to one of the world's greatest commercial powers and Spain tumble from the ranks of greatest military power in Europe to second rate status, this module introduces artwork as a form of historical evidence.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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Comparing Early Modern Art
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This module allows students to compare examples of early modern art across styles. Students can choose any two (of 18) paintings to compare, one next to the other, in order to discern how art styles changed from the Renaissance, through Mannerism, the Baroque, and, finally, Rococo.
Critical Thinking Questions
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Comparing Early Modern Architecture
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This module allows students to compare examples of early modern architecture across styles. Students can choose any two (of 18) buildings to compare, one next to the other, in order to discern how architectural styles changed from the Renaissance, through Mannerism, the Baroque, and, finally, Rococo.
Critical Thinking Questions
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| MODERN PERIOD: THE FRENCH REVOLUTION AND ITS AFTERMATH |
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The French Revolution: The Summer of 1789 and the Origins of the French Revolution
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This module examines the conditions in France that helped precipitate revolution in the late 1780s. It also reviews the major events during the first year of the French Revolution, providing a sound introduction to this vital period of modern history.
Readings
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Cahiers de doléances from 1789, Edited and translated by Merrick Whitcombe
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Decrees of the National Assembly, August 10-11, 1789
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Dispatches from Paris (April-July 1789), From Estates General to National Assembly
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Motion of the Herring Women of La Halle
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Letter from the Mayor of Dunkirk to the Intendant of Flanders, July 25, 1789
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October Days Depositions
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Recollections (1813), Guy-Marie Sallier
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Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, Approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789
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What is the Third Estate? (Qu'est-ce que le tiers état?), Emmanuel, Joseph Sieyes
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The King's Closing Speech, June 23, 1789
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Tennis Court Oath, June 20, 1789
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The Declaration of Independence (1776), The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America
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Declaration of the Rights of Women, 1791, Olympe de Gouge
Critical Thinking Questions
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The French Revolution: The Order of the Day - Terror in the French Revolution, 1792 - 1794
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This module explores the development of the Terror in the French Revolution. It illustrates the various phases of the Terror, from the urban violence of the summer of 1792 through the backlash in the wake of Thermidor in 1794, and reviews the factors behind the radicalization of the Revolution and the genesis of the Terror.
Readings
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Act passed by the Convention on 27 Brumaire an II, (November 17, 1793)
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The Constitution of 1793
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Extract from the Register of Deliberations of the General Council of the Commune of Paris, (September 11, 1793)
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Decree Regulating Divorce (September 20, 1792)
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The Indictment of Louis XVI (December 11, 1792)
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Decree Establishing the Levée en Masse (August 23, 1793)
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Proceedings of the National Convention (September 5, 1793)
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The Law of 22 Prairial, June 10, 1794 (22 Prairial, Year 11)
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Report on the Principles of Political Morality, (February 5, 1794), Maximilien Robespierre
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The Social Contract (1762), Jean-Jacques Rousseau
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Report to the Convention on Behalf of the Committee of Public Safety, (October 10, 1793), Louis de Saint-Just
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An Answer to the Impertinent Question: But What is a Sans-Culotte? April 1793
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The Law of Suspects, (September 17, 1793)
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Decree Establishing the Worship of the Supreme Being, (May 7, 1794)
Critical Thinking Questions
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The Wars of the French Revolution, 1792 - 1799
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This module explores the fabric of the wars of the French Revolution in two ways. First, it presents a series of four interactive maps detailing the military campaigns from 1792 to 1799, covering the rise and fall of the First Coalition, the beginning of the Second Coalition, and Napoleon's ill-fated invasion of Egypt. Second, it provides a series of essays on topics related to the conduct of the war. As a whole, the module offers an introductory survey of the contours of revolutionary warfare in Europe, from the rise of the Revolution through its ultimate demise at the hands of Napoleon.
Readings
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Charitas [On the Civil Oath in France], April 13, 1791, Pope Pius VI
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Statement of French Foreign Policy, April 14, 1792
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French Declaration of War on Austria, April 20, 1792
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The Brunswick Manifesto, July 25, 1792
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French Declaration of War against Britain and the Netherlands, February 1, 1793
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Decree of National Convention for National Conscription, (February 1, 1793)
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Treaty of Basle, April 5, 1795
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Proclamation to the Army of Italy, March 27, 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte
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Treaty of Campio Formio, October 17, 1797
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Treaty between France and the Cisalpine Republic, February 21, 1798
Critical Thinking Questions
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Napoleonic Europe
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This module examines the character and implications of the regime of Napoleon Bonaparte upon both France and Europe. Incorporating investigations of the military and administrative facets of Napoleon's career and legacy, the module reviews for the student Napoleon's rise to power, his actions while in control of France, and his lasting efforts to restructure the very fabric of Europe's political and social identity.
Readings
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Constitution of the Year VIII, December 13, 1799
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Napoleon's Presentation of the Constitution of the Year VIII to the French People, December 15, 1799
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Concordat with the Papacy; signed, September 10, 1801, published in Paris, Easter Sunday, April 8, 1802.
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The French Civil Code, the Code Napoléon, March 1803 - March 1804. Preliminary Title Of the Publication, Effect, and Application of the Laws in General Article 1)
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Imperial Catechism, April 4, 1806
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Napoleon Bonaparte, The Berlin Decree (1806)
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Treaties of Tilsit; July 7-9, 1807
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Prussian Edict of Emancipation (1807)
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Addresses to the German Nation (1808), Johann Gottlieb Fichte
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Napoleon's letter to Tsar Alexander 1, explaining the French Invasion of Russia; July 1, 1812.
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The Memoirs of Sergeant Bourgogne: 1812-1813 (Excerpt)
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Constitutional Charter of 1814, June 4, 1814
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First Treaty of Paris, May 30, 1814
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Napoleon's Proclamation to the French on his Return from Elba, March 1, 1815
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Considerations on the Principal Events of the French Revolution (1818), Madame de Staël
Critical Thinking Questions
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| MODERN PERIOD: THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: TECHNOLOGY, SOCIETY, IDEOLOGY |
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An Industrial Life: Isamabard Kingdom Brunel, 1806 - 1859
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This module explores the major events in the life of the British engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, using both his achievements and failures as a means to better understand the broader themes of the Industrial Revolution in Europe. By studying the life of this important figure in industrial history, the student receives both an engaging biographical narrative and a review of industrial life in Britain during the 19th century.
Readings
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The Arrival of the Great Eastern in New York (1860) from Illustrated London News, July 21, 1860
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Diary Entry, February 25, 1854, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Diary Entry, December 26, 1835, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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A letter from a woman on board the Great Britain describing the wreck to a friend in London
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Launch of the Leviathan, from Mechanic's Magazine (December 19, 1857)
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Obituary of Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Reflections on the Great Britain, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Report to Directors of Eastern Steam Navigation Company, June 10, 1852, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Report to Directors on the "Management of the Great Ship," October 1855, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Report to the Directors of the South Devon Railway Company on August 19, 1844, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Critical Thinking Questions
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Journey in Darkest England: Jack the Ripper and Victorian London
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This module explores the historical events and context surrounding the series of murders in late Victorian London attributed to the figure of Jack the Ripper. By situating these crimes in their proper historical setting, the module provides an introduction to the features of London in 1888, illustrating important aspects of urbanization, industrialization, the changing face of journalism, social reform efforts, and municipal engineering.
Readings
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Josephine Butler, Truth Before Everything (1897)
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Charles Booth, "Point of View" (1892)
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Catherine M. Booth, The Iniquity of State Regulated Vice (1884)
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Judith Walkowitz, "The Common Prostitute in Victorian Britain" (1980)
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Examples of the Reportage on Jack the Ripper (1888)
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Andrew Mearns, The Bitter Cry of Outcast London (1883)
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First Report of the Commissioners Appointed by Her Majesty to Inquire into and Consider the Most Effectual Means of Improving the Metropolis, and of Providing Increased Facilities of Communication Within the Same. London. January 27, 1844.
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Karl Pearson, The Bearing of Our Present Knowledge of Heredity Upon Conduct, An Abstract of a Lecture delivered in Play, 1904
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W.T. Stead, "The Maiden Tribute of Modern Babylon", We Bid You Be of Hope (1885)
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Robert Louis Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886)
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William Booth, In Darkest England and the Way Out (1890)
Critical Thinking Questions
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| MODERN PERIOD: NATION AND EMPIRE |
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Nation Building, 1848 - 1870: Italy, Germany and Comparative Examples
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This module explores nation building in mid-19th century Europe. Beginning with the Revolutions of 1848, it addresses the historical forces shaping and the events leading to the unification of Italy and Germany in the mid-19th century, as well as the limitations of the resulting states. Comparative examples are provided in the form of the Austrian Empire, battered by nationalist pressures from its sundry minority groups, and the United States, rent by war over two divergent social systems.
Readings
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Memoirs of Otto von Bismarck (1898)
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Capture of Napoleon III, Otto von Bismark, to his wife, 1870
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Review of Petitti's On Italian Railways (1846), Camillo di Cavour
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On the Origin of Species, Charles Darwin
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Addresses to the German Nation (1808), Johann Gottlieb Fichte
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Frankfurt Constitution of 1849
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Proclamation of the German Empire (1871)
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The Seventh Lincoln-Douglas Debate (October 15, 1858)
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Campaign Manifesto, 1848, Louis Napoleon
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The Communist Manifesto (1848), Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
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The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Napoleon (1852), Parts I and VII, Karl Marx
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The Duties of Man (1844-58), Giuseppe Mazzini
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Metternich Resigns, 1848
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On Liberty (1859), excerpt, John Stuart Mill
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Proclamation by French Government (1848)
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Prussian King Refuses German Crown (1849)
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Social Statics, Chapter II: "The Evanescence of Evil", Herbert Spencer
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Victor Emmanuel's Speech to Parliament (1860)
Critical Thinking Questions
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The Revolutions of 1848
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This module addresses the Revolutions of 1848 in Europe by i) examining the contending ideologies on the important social issues of the day, around which the conflict revolved; by ii) detailing the events that unfolded over a period of nearly two years; and by iii) providing both a contemporary and scholarly analysis of the revolutions.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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Unification of Italy
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This module addresses the unification process of the Italian peninsula in the mid-19th century. It surveys Italy since 1815, while examining different proposals advanced for the form of a new Italian state; the contrasts between North and South; and the role of the Church in Italian political life. Students are then taken through the important aspects of the Risorgimento, including the wars fought with Austria, and the critical involvement of France. Finally, the module takes up the limitations to state building in Italy: the compromises in the South; the characteristics of the new state; and resulting sense of disappointment that beset the peninsula after its creation.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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Unification of Germany
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This module covers the process of German Unification; assesses the unique characteristics of German nationalism; examines the social structure of Prussia, under whose auspices Germany was united; looks at the role of Bismarck, together with the notion of "Revolution from Above;" and investigates the illiberal character of the new German Empire.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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European Imperialism 1880 - 1900: Theory, Practice, Discourse
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This module addresses the phenomenon of European imperialism in the late 19th century by first summarizing contending explanations for European imperialism; then by identifying six important interest groups and exploring their relationship to one another, which determined imperialist policies; and finally by examining the operative ideology common to these interest groups, which conditioned the particular form colonization assumed.
Readings
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J. A. Hobson, Imperialism: A Study (1902)
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H. P. ANDERSON: MEMORANDUM, FRENCH OCCUPATION OF PORTO NOVO, 11 JUNE 18
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The Berlin Congo Conference: The General Act of Feb. 26, 1885
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Crime of the Congo (1909), Arthur Conan Doyle, 3 chapters
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Heart of Darkness (1901), Joseph Conrad
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Letters from Emin Pasha (1885, 1886)
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Jules Ferry's Foreward to Tonkin and the Motherland (1890), excerpt
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Speech of Former French Premier Jules Ferry to the Chamber of Deputies on July 28, 1885
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King Leopold's Soliloquy (1905), Mark Twain
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Rudyard Kipling, The White Man's Burden (1899)
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Letter from King Leopold II of Belgium to Minister Beernaert on the Congo, July 3, 1890
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E.D. Morel, The Black Man's Burden: The White Man in Africa from the Fifteen Century to World War I (1899)
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Henry Morton Stanley, How I Found Livingstone (1871), excerpts
Critical Thinking Questions
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The Origins of World War I
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This module addresses the origins of World War I by examining various historical explanations for the conflict, including both its short-term and long-term causes. By posing a series of questions with accompanying historical evidence, the module puts the student in the role of decision-maker in order to more readily grasp the complexities involved in the run-up to war. An interactive timeline and dynamic map round out the student's understanding of the history and political geography that conditioned decision-making at the time of crisis.
Readings
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Samuel Williamson, The Origins of World War I (1988)
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Dual Alliance, October 7, 1879
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Triple Alliance, May 20, 1882
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Russo-German Reinsurance Treaty, June 18, 1887
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Franco-Russian Military Convention (1892)
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Correspondence between France and Britain (1903)
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Entente Cordiale, April 8, 1904
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Anglo-Russian Entente (1907)
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The Tightening of the Entente: Letter of the British Foreign Secretary to the French Ambassador in London, November 22, 1912
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Germany's assurance of support for Austria, July 6, 1914
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Austrian ultimatum; Serbian reply, July 23, 25, 1914
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Kaiser-Tsar Telegrams (10) between July 29, 1914 and August 1, 1914
Critical Thinking Questions
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| Modern Period: Culture at the Turn of the 20th Century |
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Comparing Modern Art: Realism and the Beginnings of Modernism
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This module allows students to compare examples of modern art -- before Picasso -- across styles. Students can choose any two (of 18) paintings to compare, one next to the other in order to discern how art styles changed from the Realism, through Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, and, finally, Expressionism and Symbolism.
Critical Thinking Questions
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Identifying Modern Art Styles
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This module elucidates six major modern art styles -- Realism, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Expressionism, Abstraction, and Surrealism -- by exhibiting an everyday object, a chair, in each respective style. In this way, students can more clearly discern the differences between them and the unique characteristics of each.
Critical Thinking Questions
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Aspects of Modernism: The Visual Arts, 1863 - 1939
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This module introduces the concept of Modernism and places it in its historical context by tethering it to political, social and technological developments of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The module features a timeline that displays important works in the visual arts -- painting, sculpture and architecture -- and discusses their significance.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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| EUROPE BETWEEN THE WARS |
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"A New World Arisen": Russia's Revolutions, 1900 - 1924
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This module explores the period of revolutionary turmoil in Russia from the beginning of the 20th century through the early years of the Soviet Union. The module surveys not only the intense moment of upheaval in 1905 and 1917, but also investigates the background conditions and contingencies that helped shape this quarter century of Russian history. Employing an interactive timeline, maps, images, and primary materials, the module examines not only the patterns of revolution and reaction inside Russia, but also their implications for Europe and the wider world. The module also uses an interactive exercise dealing with Soviet political posters to explore the character of political culture in the new communist regime.
Readings
Critical Thinking Questions
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| EUROPE SINCE WORLD WAR II |
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Reconstructing Capitalist Europe, 1945-1960: The Marshall Plan
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This module explores the formation, composition, and execution of the European Recovery Program (the "Marshall Plan") launched by the United States following the end of the Second World War. To achieve this , the module employs in-depth document analysis, interactive maps, and exercises to evaluate the conditions of post -war Europe, American planning designed to foster European economic recovery, and European reactions and appropriations in response to the aid program
Readings
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Morgenthau Plan (1944)
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George C. Marshall, "The Marshall Plan Speech" (June 5, 1947)
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Hoover Report (April 1947)
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Kennan Memorandum (May 16, 1947)
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Clayton Memorandum (May 27, 1947)
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Pravda (June 1947)
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Andrei Vyshinsky Address to UN (September 1947)
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Truman Doctrine (March 12, 1947)
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The Foreign Assistance Act of 1948 (April 3, 1948)
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"Telling the Story of ERP to the Peoples of Western Europe" (August 1949)
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"This is the Road": Conservative Party General Election Manifesto (1950)
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Labour Party Election Manifesto (1950)
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Paul G. Hoffman, Peace Can be Won (1954)
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Clement Attlee, As It Happened (1954)
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Jean Monnet, "A Method"
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Charles Maier, "The Two Postwar Eras and the Conditions for Stability in Twentieth-Century Western Europe" (1987)
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