Royal Mask, 16th c. Benin History 112

World Civilization since 1600
Taipei 101 Tower

Dr. Doug Campbell, docampbell@nvcc.edu,Office: LC- 320
Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays, 12:15-2:00 pm, Thursdays 6-7 pm, or by appointment.
Flex time for appointmentsThursdays,1-6 pm

The best way to get in touch with me outside of class is through email, which I check several times a day during business hours. If you need to meet with me in person, making an appointment is always a good idea, even if you want to meet during my office hours. While I am usually in my office during office hours, sometimes I may briefly be away from desk to make copies, check my departmental mail, meet with colleagues, etc.  Making an appointment is the most effective way to ensure you won't have to wait.

Welcome
Themes
Readings
Grading and Due Dates
Expectations
Description of Course Elements
Course Schedule

Welcome to History 112

You just happen to be lucky enough to have enrolled in a class on the history of the world.  Seriously. History is enormously interesting, and I love teaching it.   If I do my job correctly, you will love learning about it.  And of course, not only is history fascinating, but it's also valuable in an intellectual sense.  Learning about how people lived in the past can help broaden your horizons, making your outlook less parochial and more cosmopolitan.  It's sort of like traveling to a foreign country without the discomfort of a long, uncomfortable plane ride. History, of course, can also inform your understanding of the present by showing you the deeper roots of problems and trends in the contemporary world.  And finally, a well-taught history course is chock full of practice in all sorts of useful skills that employers are interested in, such as critical thinking, analyzing documents, and crafting well-written arguments based on evidence.  So history can be fun, can enrich your intellectual life, and make you more money.  What could be more awesome?


One thing to keep in mind with this course, however, is the fact that learning is not a spectator sport.  You can't just sit back passively and expect to get anything near the full benefit of this class.  You need to be actively engaged in your own education.  I certainly have to play my  part, and I promise to do my best to present an interesting and dynamic class which offers you all sorts of opportunities to learn cool stuff.  The actual learning is your job, though.  To put it another way, I can cook the most delicious banquet imaginable, and set the table in the most attractive way possible, piling it high with all sorts of fabulous delicacies.  But in the end, you're the one who actually has to eat the meal.  So if you're going to take this class, I'll ask you to make a conscious decision to engage in all of the opportunities available to you, and to commit to coming to all of the class sessions, to participating in an active and thoughtful manner in all of our class discussions, to completing all of the assigned readings, and to submitting all of the required assignments.  If you do, I promise it will be worth your while.  Your place at the table is set, and you are invited....

Stuff the College makes me include:


Course Description

Surveys Asian, African, Latin American, and European civilizations from the ancient period to the present. Part
II of II. Lecture 3 hours per week.

General Course Purpose

Surveys the general history of the world from about 1600 CE to the present and allows students to reach a
basic understanding of the characteristic features of the world's historical development from 1600 CE to the
present. Students will learn about some of the important political, economic, social, intellectual, cultural and
religious changes that shaped the development of the world’s civilizations in this period of time.

Course objectives

Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:

Course Prerequisites: None

Themes

Our primary goal is to investigate what it means to be human by looking at what humans were like in the past. To that end, this class is going to use several themes as "lenses" through which to examine the human past.  The themes are:


Government: What are the origins of human governments?  What are the various forms that government has taken over the centuries? Which forms work best? Which are worst?

Gender: Are different social roles for men and women essential or arbitrary? How have human opinions on gender, marriage, and sexuality changed over time?

Race: What is race? Are the supposed distinctions between racial s real or simply imagined? Why has racial thinking played such a significant role in the modern era? To what extent has racism served to justify prejudice and social inequality?

Social Class: Are inequalities in wealth and power an inherent part of human life or an evil to be overcome? On what basis should wealth and power be allocated?

There are of course plenty of other lenses through which to look at the past, but these are a good start and should give plenty of interesting questions to examine for one class.

Readings

You must have access to the following text:

Peter von Sivers, Charles A. Desnoyers and George B. Stow, Patterns of World History, volume 2, brief 3rd edition, Oxford University Press, 2018, ISBN 978-0-19-069732-7. You can also use the combined volume, 2nd edition, Oxford University, 978-0-19-939961-1, which covers the same material.

We will be making useof various free online readings on a weekly basis.  Make sure to regularly consult and keep up with the reading assignments described below in the Class Schedule.

    
Course readings should be completed BEFORE you come to the first class session of the week for which they are assigned, and you should have access to them in class, either by printing them out, or through an Internet-enabled device with a large screen (a smart phone probably won't cut it). It is especially important to read the documents listed as "Primary Sources to Read" as we will definitely be discussing those in class. Taking notes on them, marking the most important passages, and jotting down any questions you might have is highly encouraged.


Grading and Due Dates

Your overall grade for the class will consist of the following elements. Assignments which are not turned in will not receive any points. No work for the course will be accepted after May 7 -- no exceptions!

Scores will be posted on Canvas, and will be accompanied by general comments about the strengths and weaknesses of your work.  If you would like a more detailed description of aspects of the assignment which could be improved, just ask me and I will be happy to provide one.

Course Element Points Due Date
Attendance and Participation 150 Points Every Class
Introduction Assignment 25 Points January 19
Haitian Revolution Paper (2 pages) 100 Points February 7
Imperialism Paper (2 pages) 100 Points March 1
Midterm Exam 100 Points March 5
Source Criticism Paper  (2 pages) 100 Points Source Proposal due March 22
Finished Paper: March 29
Book Review Paper (2 pages) 100 Points Book Proposal due March 8
Finished Paper: April 19
Research  Paper (4 pages) 200 Points Topic Proposal: February 23 (5 points)
Prospective Bibliography: April 12 (40 points)
Thesis Statement Draft: April 26 (5 points)
Finished Paper: May 3 (150 points)
Reflective Paragraph 25 Points May 10
Online Final Exam 100 Points May 10

Grading Scale

Your final grade for the course will be calculated according to the point scale below.  Don't pay any attention to the percentage calculated in Canvas's grade center.  The only things that matters in terms of your overall grade is the total number of points you have earned by the end of the semester as compared to this point scale.


Points
Final Course Grade
900-1000 A
800-899 B
700-799 C
600-699 D
599 and Below F


Expectations

You will need access to the internet and to wordprocessing software for this class.  You should be familiar with using Canvas (the College's learning management system) in order to submit assignments and view your grades, and you should regularly check your NOVA email account, which is the only way I have of getting in touch with you outside of class.

Guidelines for Conduct During Class Meetings


Disruptive Behavior
: Please be considerate. Disruptive behavior will not be tolerated.  Private conversations during lecture or class discussions, ringing mobile phones, texting, sleeping, or walking into class late or out of class early all distract and disturb your instructor and your classmates, and will count against your participation grade.  Repeated instances of rude behavior may result your removal from the classroom.   If you have a question or a comment on the course material, please raise your hand and share it with the class.


Electronic Devices: The use of electronic devices is permitted in classes only with the approval of the professor, and with the understanding that such devices are to be used only for class-related purposes.  Class is not the time to browse the internet, send or read email, use social media or game. Smart phones may be stored by the professor at his discretion at the front of the room for the duration of the class meeting if it seems like they are becoming an obstacle to student learning.

Abuse: Any student who seems to be under the influence of alcohol or intoxicating drugs, or who is abusive or violent will be referred to campus police immediately.

Firearms: All students must adhere to the College's policy on firearms and dangerous weapons and materials.  Students who violate this policy will be referred to campus police immediately.

Make-Ups: For exam sessions, make-ups will not be given other than in the case of a genuine emergency with appropriate documentation (ie, emergency room documents, court summons, etc.)  Missing class due to "not feeling well," not being able to get a ride, having to work, and the like are not genuine emergencies. Please plan ahead!

Accommodations: Students requiring special accommodations for assignments or exams should have the appropriate forms from the Disability Support Service (DSS).  Forms should be given to the instructor no fewer than 7 days before the date the assignment or exam requiring the accommodation is due, and preferably at the very beginning of the semester.


Guidelines for Written Work


Formatting: All written work should be double spaced, using 12 point Times New Roman font and one inch margins.  All papers must be word processed and submitted through Canvas as files in .doc, .odt, .pdf, or .rtf format (no .pages format files, please).  E-mail submissions will not be accepted.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded.

Style and Grammar: All of your work for this class must present a main argument or thesis which addresses the question(s) posed by the assignment, should support that argument with evidence, and should be written in grammatical and stylistically correct English.  Make sure to proofread and use spell-check. For information on writing papers for this class, make sure to read my Tips for History Papers page.  You also might want to consult the following handy websites:

        NVCC Loudoun's Writing Center       
        Patrick Rael, "Avoid Common Mistakes In Your History Paper"
        Steven Kreis, "Writing the Short Essay"



Citations:  You MUST include a formal citation any time you refer to a specific passage in a text, even if you do not quote the text directly.  The required method for citing sources in this class is the Chigago/Turabian format, which is the standard for the discipline of history.  According to this format, at the end of any sentence or paragraph drawn from a specific part of a source, you insert a footnote at the bottom of the page with the appropriate bibliographic information.  Consult the previous web link for more detailed information on citations in this format.  You can also check out sites like Citation Machine or EasyBib, which can help you format footnotes or entries for your bibliography pages. PAPERS SUBITTED WITHOUT FOOTNOTES OR USING SOME METHOD OF CITATION OTHER THAN CHICAGO-STYLE FOOTNOTES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

Plagiarism:  Any student caught plagiarizing or cheating in this course will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, including at a minimum no credit whatsoever for the assignment or exam in question (No exceptions!!!).  Please read the official NVCC statement on academic dishonesty .   Particularly flagrant instances of cheating or multiple instances of plagiarism will result in a grade of "F" for the course.

Please note that even copying a sentence or two from another source without citing it is enough to trigger a plagiarism penalty.  Likewise, changing a word here or there from content which you copy is still plagiarism.  Your work should be entirely in your own words except for the passages which you quote and appropriately cite.

For a bit more discussion on why you will probably get caught if you try to use the web to plagiarize, see "How Dumb Do They Think We Are?" by Jonathan Malesic.  All of your papers for the class will be checked for plagiarism by Turnitin software.

Late Work: Late required assignments will be accepted with a one letter grade penalty. Late extra credit paragraphs are not accepted.


Guidelines for E-Mail Communication


The easiest way to contact me outside of class is through e-mail.  In order to receive a response to your message, however, your e-mail must contain the following elements:


Messages sent using "text-ese" or rude or abusive language will be ignored (b/c it makes u look ignorant d00d)!


I have on average between 150-200 students a semester, so you need to provide me with as much information as possible if you want a timely answer to your message.  Please allow at least 48 hours before following up.  If you haven't received a response within a couple of days, however, feel free to nag me.

Description of Course Elements


Attendance and Participation


New Attendance and Participation Policies for Distance Learning Format After March 18:

As long as the College remains in a distance learning format as a result of the ongoing public health emergency, students will be asked to view various online video lectures and documentaries, and to participate in a series of online discussion boards. These activities are mandatory, and will take the place of the previous weekly tallies for in-person class attendance and participation.

There are complete descriptions of each of the discussion prompts in the Course Schedule, but each should be about half a page long, should present a main argument or thesis which addresses the question(s) posed by the prompts, should support that argument with evidence, and should be written in grammatical and stylistically correct English.  Your post must make it clear that you have watched the assigned video. Generally, you are also asked to respond to at least two of your classmates' posts within 24 hours of the due date for the initial post.  Your responses should contain some sort of substantial comment or follow up question relevant to the post in question (Simply responding "I agree!", "Me too", and the like do not count as substantial responses). Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class.

Discussion  Due Date
Great War Discussion Post March 22
Mao and Lenin Discussion Post  March 29
Nanking Massacre Discussion Post April 5
Nazism Discussion PostApril 12
Nuclear Weapons Discussion PostApril 19
Decolonization Discussion PostApril 26
Iran Discussion PostMay 3


Previous In-Person Attendance and Participation Policies:

Attendance: Given the fact that participation is part of your grade, your attendance is expected at every class meeting.  You are allowed one unexcused absence for the semester.  You will only receive credit for attending a class session if you are present when I take roll at the beginning of class.  More than one absence without a valid excuse will affect your grade for the course.  Students who miss more than 2 consecutive weeks of class without notifying the instructor with a valid and documented excuse will be administratively withdrawn from the course.

Preparedness: You should make sure that you have completed the assigned readings and any required assignments before you walk into the first class meeting that week.  You may be asked to discuss both readings and assignments, so you should have access to them during class either by bringing hard copies or through the use of any appropriate electronic device (NOTE: Smartphone screens are too small to really be useful for this purpose-- use a laptop or a tablet).

Participation: A portion of your grade will be determined by the degree to which you participate in the class discussions on the discussion readings (see Course Schedule).  You should come to class each session having completed all the required readings and ready to discuss them.  I reserve the right to give unannounced  quizzes on any reading material for the week.  Please make sure to adhere to the guidelines for class conduct. Behavior which distracts me and your classmates will count against your participation grade.



Haitian Revolution Paper


Read Toussaint Loverture's Saint-Domingue Constitution of 1801 and then write a paper at least two double-spaced pages long which answers the following questions: "What sort of relationship did the document establish between Saint-Domingue and France? What rights did it recognize for the workers and cultivators of Saint-Domingue? Did this Constitution provide the foundation for a more just society in Saint-Domingue? Why or why not?"  You should make sure to have a clear thesis statement, to refer to specific examples from the documents in order to support your arguments, and to cite them using Chicago-format footnotes. Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class, and make sure to check the "Tips for History Papers" page before turning in your final draft.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded. 



Imperialism Paper



Read the excerpts from F.D. Lugard's The Rise of Our East African Empire (1893) and Frantz Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth (1961) , and then write a paper at least two double-spaced pages long which answers the following questions: "According to Lugard, what were the main benefits of European imperialism in Africa, and who were its beneficiaries? How did Fanon believe that European imperialism worked and how did he think those living under colonial rule should respond?  How do you think Fanon would respond to Lugard's claims of European benevolence?"  You should make sure to have a clear thesis statement, to refer to specific examples from the documents in order to support your arguments, and to cite them using Chicago-format footnotes.  Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class, and make sure to check the "Tips for History Papers" page before turning in your final draft.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded.




Source Criticism Paper


You should select a website dealing with the topic you are using for your Research Paper and compare it to a scholarly article written within the past 50 years on the same basic subject  from a history-focused scholarly journal (see below for more detailed information on how to find a scholarly journal article).  Then in a 2 page, double-spaced paper write a comparative analysis of the two articles as sources of historical information.  Websites should contain original content, and cannot be primary source documents, encyclopedia/Wikipedia articles, or reprints of articles published elsewhere. These two sources must be approved by the professor before you can proceed any further with this assignment.  Your proposed sources for the Source Criticism Paper should be uploaded for approval using this form. Make sure to check the professor's feedback to see if your sources were approved, or if you need to resubmit the form.


Once your sources are approved, you should write a paper at least two double-spaced pages long with a main argument which answers this major question:  "Which of these sources is more useful to a scholar researching this particular subject?"  Your analysis also ought to address the following secondary questions:
You should mention the title of the website and the title of the article, the name of the journal, and the name of the author of the scholarly journal article in the introduction of your paper. You should also include the full bibliographic citations for each in a bibliography page.

Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class, and make sure to check the "Tips for History Papers" page before turning in your final draft.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded.




How To Find A Scholarly Journal Article:

A scholarly journal is a periodical which contains research-based articles and reviews by established scholars in a given field.  These sorts of journals are geared towards a professional or academic audience, and are intended to serve as an intellectual resource rather than to earn a profit for the publisher.  In order to have an article published in a scholarly journal, an author must submit it to the editorial board of the journal first.  The editors then will have the prospective article reviewed by other scholars in the field.  Only an article which passes through this process of evaluation by recognized experts ("peer review") can be published in a scholarly journal.  All scholarly journal articles meticulously document their sources of information and contain ample foot or endnotes.  While some scholarly journals make some or all of their content available on the web, a genuine scholarly journal is also always published in paper form so it can become part of the collections of research-oriented libraries.  Consult the NOVA Library's page on scholarly journal articles for more information on what distinguishes a scholarly journal from other sorts of periodicals.

Just a few examples of some of the most prominent scholarly journals dealing with modern world history include The American Historical ReviewThe Journal of World History,The Journal of African History, Modern Asian Studies, The Journal of Near Eastern Studies, The Journal of Latin American Studies, The Journal of Modern History, Central European History, The Russian Review, French Historical Studies, Historische Zeitschrift, Journal of British Studies, and Victorian Studies (This is not a complete list-- there are many, many more!).  Please note that magazines like History TodayNational Geographic Magazine, and American History certainly contain interesting material, they are intended for a popular audience rather than a professional academic one, and hence do not qualify as scholarly journals.

Not too terribly long ago, the only place one could go to access a scholarly journal was an academic library.  These days, however, many journals allow readers to access their contents online. The best place to start is JSTOR, a service which provides the full text of articles from several hundred different scholarly journals.  You can use JSTOR for free by accessing it through the NVCC Library's site.  

You can access JSTOR from the NOVA library's homepage.  Go to http://www.nvcc.edu/library/

Click on the "Articles" tab;
then click "Databases by Subject";
the click "History (HIS)";
then click "JSTOR" and login with the same id you would use to access My NOVA.

Once in JSTOR, you should select the "advanced search" option, scroll down to "Narrow by Item Type" and click the "Articles" box, and then scroll down again to "Narrow by discipline and/or publication title:" and click the "History" box.

Then plug in your search topic and see what comes up.


Book Review Paper


You should select a scholarly monograph (ie, a book written on a specialized topic by a recognized scholar) written within the past 50 years which deals with the topic you are researching for your Research Paper.  This book cannot be an encyclopedia, a sourcebook, a children's book, or a collection of essays or historical documents, nor can it deal primarily with US history.  The book you have chosen must be approved by the professor before you can proceed any further with this assignment.
 Your proposed sources for the Book Review Paper should be uploaded for approval using this form. Make sure to check the professor's feedback to see if your book was approved, or if you need to resubmit the form.


Once your scholarly monograph is approved, you should read it and then, in a paper at least two double-spaced pages long, write book review with a main argument which answers this major question:  "
How useful is this book to a scholar researching its subject matter?"  Your analysis also ought to address the following secondary questions:

Please note that you should definitely not comment on whether you found the book entertaining or boring.  I certainly hope you enjoyed the book, but whether you did or not is not actually relevant to a consideration of how useful the author's work might be to scholars and researchers.

The title of your paper should be the full bibliographic citation of the book you are reviewing (author, title, publisher, year, pages) in Chicago format. See the following links for more infromation on how to write a scholarly book review.

How to Write a History Book Review
Writing a Book Review

To find an appropriate scholarly mongraph, I would recommend that you consult the NOVA library's website.  You can easily order any book from any NOVA campus' library and have it delivered to the campus of your choice.  There are also quite a few books available as e-books as well.As a NOVA student you have borrowing privileges at GMU’s libraries.
To check items out you must have a valid NOVACard and a copy of your registration for the current semester. For more information, visit the GMU Circulation webpage.  Visit the GMU Library website to search for titles.  You also might want to consult the Research Guide for this class prepared by the College research librarians.


Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class, and make sure to check the "Tips for History Papers" page before turning in your final draft.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded.



Research Paper


As the capstone of your work in the course, you are asked to complete a Research Paper which is at least 4 double-spaced pages long, and which draws together all of the skills you have acquired over the course of the semester.


 Your paper should attempt to answer a specific question relevant to the subject matter of the course which deals with one or more  of the themes of the course (government, gender, race, and social class) and discuss how it/they have changed over time. Your topic cannot primarily deal with American history.

The themes themselves are too broad to be the focus or your paper, so your topic should narrow the focus down in some way (For example, the topic, "Gender in World History" is too broad).  Here are some sample research questions.  You are free to pick one of these, modify one of these to deal with another region, or to suggest your own.  Note that you should be thinking not just in terms of questions which interest you, but also about what sorts of sources you can find in languages which you read.  It's no good to come up with a fascinating topic on which you are unable to find evidence.

As with all of your written work in this course, your paper should paper should present a coherent argument or thesis, and then support that position with as much evidence as possible, especially primary source evidence.  In terms if evidence, you should feel free to draw from sources you have already considered for your other course work.  At a minimum, however, your paper must refer to and correctly cite:

For primary sources, you might consult the following resources (some of these sites also contain secondary sources as well):

Directory of World History Primary Sources


Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class, and make sure to check the "Tips for History Papers" page before turning in your final draft.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded.


Research Paper Element Description Points Due Date
Topic Proposal You should fill out and submit this form describing the research question which you would like to examine and which theme(s) you will be examining. 5 Points Feb. 23
Prospective Bibliography Submit a rough draft bibliography listing the complete bibliographic information for all of the sources you intend to use for your Research Paper. Your prospective bibliography should be divided into two sections, one for primary sources, and one for secondary sources, both in alphabetical order by author. You should include the scholarly journal article which you used for the Source Criticism Paper and the scholarly monograph you reviewed for the Book Review Paper in the list of secondary sources. Make sure to review the instructions for the Research Paper listed in the syllabus CAREFULLY before completing this assignment.
40 Points April 12
Thesis Statement Draft You should submit a draft of your thesis statement for the paper.  The statement should answer your research question and clearly state the main argument(s) which you intend to make in your research paper. 5 Points April 26
Finished Research Paper You should submit a final draft of at least 4 double-spaced pages which advances a clear main argument which answers your research question, and which supports that argument with specific, correctly cited evidence drawn from the primary and secondary sources listed in your bibliography. 150 Points May 3



Exams

There are two exams for this course which are each worth 10% of your total grade.  The Midterm Exam deals with material from the first half of the course and the Final Exam deals with material from the second half.  The midterm exam will feature a 10 item Map Quiz, 4 term identifications, and an essay.

You must bring a blue book (they can be purchased at the bookstore or the vending machines on campus) to the exam.


For the Map Quiz, you will be given a list of ten locations from the following list and asked to place them on a blank map of the World.

Ghana Amazon River St. Petersburg Peru Russia China
South Africa Manchuria Mexico Ganges River Mediterranean Sea Paris
Cairo Jerusalem India Pakistan Yangtze River Manchuria
Nairobi
Mecca Cuba London Berlin Spain
Ethiopia Congo River Japan Afghanistan Jakarta Korea
Iran Haiti Zimbabwe Czech Republic                 Poland Turkey
Istanbul Buenos Aires Indonesia Seoul Vietnam Kenya
Egypt Venezuela Canada Columbia Rhine River Sudan
Kinshasa Rwanda Havana Germany Moscow Shanghai
          
For the midterm exam's  term identifications, you will be given a list of 8 terms taken from the following list, and asked to write a paragraph identifying 4 of them, including their approximate timeframe and significance to understanding world history.

Zheng He Taino creoles Castas
encomiendas caudillos Ottoman Empire Devshirme
Tanzimat Janisarries Safavid Persia gunpowder empires
Simon Bolivar Atlantic System Saint Domingue Toussaint Louverture
Enlightenment Jean-Jacques Rousseau Napoleon Bonaparte absolutism
Romanticism spinning jenny steam engine liberalism
Karl Marx Mughal Dynasty British East India Company sepoys
Qing Dynasty Lin Zexu Taiping Rebellion Boxer Rebellion
Indian National Congress Treaty of Nanking Sun Yat-sen Meiji Restoration
Russo-Japanese War Cape Colony Boer War Mfecane
Cecil Rhodes Berlin Conference Congo Free State Leopold II



Online Final Exam


The exam will consist of two basic parts:

1)  5 Term Identifications. You will be given 5 pairs of terms drawn from the list below. For each pair, you should pick the ONE term you know the best and identify it as completely as you can in a paragraph which details the term’s approximate date, basic details, and significance to an understanding of history.

Black Hand Nationalism Fourteen Points Treaty of Versailles
Tsar Nicholas II
Russian Revolution of 1917 V. I. Lenin Five Year Plans
Joseph Stalin Fascism Jawaharlal Nehru National Socialism
Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact Taisho Democracy Manchuria Incident Rape of Nanjing
Manhattan Project Marshall Plan North Atlantic Treaty Breton Woods System
UN Security Council Chinag Kai-Shek Mao Zedong Great Leap Forward
Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution Taiwan Democratic People's Republic of Korea Mohammed Mossadegh
Iranian Revolution of 1979
Ho Chi Minh Dien Bien Phu Ngo Dinh Diem
Vietcong Khmer Rouge Fulgencio Batista Fidel Castro
Ernesto "Che" Guevara Cuban Missile Crisis Mohandas Gandhi Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Indian National Congress Indian Partition Kwame Nkrumah Apartheid
Winnie Mandela Umkhonto We Sizwe Rwandan Genocide Israel
Palestinian Liberation Organization Berlin Wall Detente Mikhail Gorbachev

2) Essay. You will be given a pair of essay questions. You should the pick the question you think can answer the best, and write an essay which answers it comprehensively, making sure to support your arguments with as many specific historical examples as possible.

You may use any notes, books, or online resources you like. Information drawn from your class notes may be included in your responses without a formal citation. Information from any other sources, including websites, however, MUST be accompanied by a citation (listing the bibliographic information or the web address for your source(s) at the end of your response is sufficient).

Spelling, grammar and style are not a part of your grade, although you should make sure that your points are clear and comprehensible.

The test will be timed. You will have 120 minutes to complete the exam once you start (If you have a DSS accommodation for extra time on exams, you must remind me at least 48 hours before you intend to take the exam). DO NOT BEGIN THE EXAM UNLESS YOU WILL HAVE TWO UNINTERRUPTED HOURS TO WORK ON IT.



Extra Credit Paragraphs


Over the course of the semester, you will have the opportunity to complete up to 7 short extra credit assignments.  You will receive up to 10 points for each one you complete.  Late Extra Credit Paragraphs are not accepted.


There are complete descriptions of each of the assignments in the Course Schedule, but each should be about 100 words long, should present a main argument or thesis which addresses the question(s) posed by the assignment, should support that argument with evidence, and should be written in grammatical and stylistically correct English.  Please follow the guidelines for written work in this class.  See this rubric for a more detailed description of how you will be graded.


Assignment Due Date
Sor Juana Paragraph January 26
Ottoman Paragraph February 2
Industrialization Paragraph February 16
Black Hand Paragraph March 22
Japanese Imperialism Paragraph April 5
India Paragraph April 26
Demir Paragraph May 10On

Course Schedule
NOTE: The assigned readings in Von Sivers, Desnoyers and Stow's Patterns Of World History are much heavier in the first half of the course than in the second half.  You should use the comparatively lighter load in the latter part of the course to work on your Research Paper.


Week 1. January 16:  So What and Who Cares?

Secondary Sources to Read or View: On Cognitive Biases: Confirmation Bias, The Backfire Effect (This contains salty language.  Feel free to read the classroom version if you prefer to avoid that), The Texas Sharpshooter Fallacy, The Dunning-Kruger Effect.

Kreis, "The Proper Attitude;" "Why Study History?;" "Taking Notes in Class; "
Damen, "History and What-Really-Happened."

Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 16
Assignments to Complete: Read through the entire syllabus, and submit the Introduction Assignment by 11:59 pm on January 19 using the appropriate link under "Assignments" in the class Canvas page. You must get a perfect score on this assignment, but you may take it as many times as you want. 


Week 2. January 23: The Beginning of the Modern Age

Primary Sources to Read: Bartolemé de Las Casas, Excerpt from A Brief Account of the Devastation of the Indies (1542)
Las Castas – Spanish Racial Classifications
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Selected Poems (It also will be helpful to read this brief encyclopedia entry for some context on Sor Juana's life)
Secondary Sources to Read or View: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 18;
Columbus, de Gama, and Zheng He! 15th Century Mariners. Crash Course: World History #21; The Columbian Exchange: Crash Course World History #23; The Atlantic Slave Trade: Crash Course World History #24
Assignments to Complete: Sor Juana Extra Credit Paragraph due by 11:59 pm, January 26: Read the selected poems of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, and then write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following questions:  "What do these poems reveal about reveal about gender and sexuality in colonial Latin America? Do you find it surprising that a Catholic nun living during the 1600s would write poems like these? Why or why not?" Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.


Week 3. January 30: An Age of Absolutism- the Gunpowder Empires

Primary Sources to Read: The Gülhane Decree and the Beginning of the Tanzimat Reform Era in the Ottoman Empire, 1839
Jamal al-Din Al-Afghani's Response to Renan's Critique of Islam, 1883.
Secondary Sources to Read or View: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 17, 20
The French Revolution: Crash Course World History #29.
Assignments to Complete: Ottoman Extra Credit Paragraph due by 11:59 pm, February 2:  After thoughtfully reading  The Gülhane Decree and the Beginning of the Tanzimat Reform Era in the Ottoman Empire write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following question: "According to this decree, what was the purpose of the reform laws being passed for the Ottoman Empire? What duties were the subjects of the Ottoman Sultan required to perform and what benefits did they receive in return?" Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.
Last day to withdraw with refund is January 31
 
Week 4. February 6: An Era of Revolutions (1)

Primary Sources to Read: Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Excerpts from The Social Contract (1762);
Toussaint Loverture's Saint-Domingue Constitution of 1801
Secondary Sources to Read or View: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 18, 22.
Haitian Revolutions: Crash Course World History #30; Latin American Revolutions: Crash Course World History #31.
Assignments to Complete: Haitian Revolution Paper due by 11:59 pm, February 9.


Week 5. February 13: The West Industrializes

Primary Sources to Read:  "The Life of the Industrial Worker in Nineteenth-Century England" (1832)
Women Miners in the English Coal Pits (1842).
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, excerpts from The Communist Manifesto  (1848).
Secondary Sources to Read or View:  Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 22, 26
Coal, Steam, and The Industrial Revolution: Crash Course World History #32; Capitalism and Socialism: Crash Course World History #33.
Assignments to Complete Industrialization Extra Credit Paragraph due by 11:59 pm, February 16: Read "The Life of the Industrial Worker in Nineteenth-Century England", and write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "Imagine you are one of the workers whose experience is recorded in these document.  How would you feel about life as a factory worker? How would you feel about the owner of the factory?  About industrialization in general? Why? " Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.
   
Week 6. February 20: Asia and the West

Primary Sources to Read: The Reception of the First English Ambassador to China, (1792)
Commissioner Lin Tse-Hsu, Letter to Queen Victoria, (1839)
Treaty of Nanking (1842)
Secondary Sources to Read or View: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 23, 24
Samurai, Daimyo, Matthew Perry, and Nationalism: Crash Course World History #34.
Assignments to Complete: Topic Proposal for the Research Paper due by 11:59 pm, February 23 using this form.  Make sure to check the professor's feedback on Canvas to see if your topic has been approved, or if you need to resubmit this assignment.


Week 7. February 27: Neo-Imperialism

Primary Sources to Read: Cecil Rhodes, "Confession of Faith" (1877);
F.D. Lugard, excerpts from The Rise of Our East African Empire (1893);
Frantz Fanon, excerpts from The Wretched of the Earth (1961)
Secondary Sources to Read or View: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 25, 27
Imperialism: Crash Course World History #35.
Assignments to Complete: Imperialism Paper due by 11 pm, March 1


Week 8. March 5: Nationalism/Midterm Exam

Primary Sources to Read: Constitution of the "Black Hand;"
Secondary Sources to Read or View: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 23
Assignments to Complete: Midterm Exam, March 5. You must bring a blue book (they can be purchased at the bookstore or the vending machines on campus), and a pencil to the exam.

Book Proposal for the Book Review Paper  due by 11:59 pm, March 8. You should enter the complete bibliographic information for the book you will read for this assignment using this form. Make sure to read the directions for the Book Review Paper in the syllabus CAREFULLY before filling out the form.




March  12: No Class Spring Break- Beginning of Distance Learning Format

Week 9. Week of March 22: The Great War

Primarys Sources to Read: Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points (1918)
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 28 (pp.848-867)
Videos to Watch: Green, "Archdukes, Cynicism, and World War I: Crash Course World History #36." (11:44)
What The $^#& Was Going On With World War I? (2020, 25:03 min.)
World War I: The Death of Glory (History Channel, 1997, 49:59, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Online Discussion Posts:Great War Discussion Post, Due by 11:59 pm  March 22. Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After watching the videos on World War I, how was World War I different from previous wars? Which of the causes of the war seemed to be the most important? Why did the war end up being so long and bloody?" Your post must make it clear that you have read the assigned sources and watched the assigned videos. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Source Proposal for the Source Criticism Paper  due by 11:59 pm, March 22. You should enter the complete bibliographic information for the sources for this assignment using this form. Make sure to read the directions for the Source Criticism Paper in the syllabus CAREFULLY before filling out the form. This video also walks through how to successfully search for a scholarly journal article step by step: "How to Find a Scholarly Journal Article."
Black Hand Extra Credit Paragraph due by 11:59 pm, March 22: Read the Constitution of the "Black Hand" and write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following question: "Do you think it would be fair to consider this organization a terrorist group?  Why or why not?  Do you think its members would have thought of themselves as terrorists or as freedom fighters ?Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.


Week 10. Week of March 29: An Era of Revolutions (2)

Primary Sources to Read: V.I. Lenin,  The Tasks of the Proletariat in the Present Revolution (a.k.a. The April Theses) (1917);
Mao Zedong, "What Is Guerilla Warfare?" and "The Political Problems of Guerilla Warfare" from On Guerilla Warfare (1937).
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 28 (pp.868-870)
Videos to Watch:Vladimir Lenin: Voice of Revolution (A&E, 1998, 44:11, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view);
1893-1945: Against the Tide-Mao's Early Years (Online Productions, 2005, 1:00:00, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Communists, Nationalists, and China's Revolutions: Crash Course World History #37 (12:11).
Campbell, "Was the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918 BS?" (15:44)
Online Discussion Posts:Mao and Lenin Discussion Post, Due by 11:59 pm  March 29. Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After reading the primary sources by Lenin and Mao, and watching the documentaries about them, how well do you think their respective Communist movements matched the ideas of Karl Marx which you learned about earlier in the semester? In what ways were Lenin and Mao's ideas similar? In what ways were they different?" Your post must make it clear that you have read the assigned sources and watched the assigned videos. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Source Criticism Paper due by 11:59 pm March 29  (Your sources MUST be approved by the instructor before you turn this in).

Last day to withdraw from the class without grade penalty is May 10. 



Week 11. Week of April 5: Totalitarianism

Primary Sources to Read: Documents on Japanese Imperialism (1882, 1890, 1921);
Louise Yim on the Japanese Occupation of Korea (1951)
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 28 (pp. 871-87).
Videos to Watch:Stalin: The Red God (Digital Classics, 1999, 1:04:51, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Road to War (MVD, 2005, 1:16:10, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Online Discussion Posts:Nanking Massacre Discussion Post, Due by 11:59 pm  April 5. Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After watching the "Road to War" video, what were Imperial Japan's foreign policy goals as it expanded its influence in the 1920s and 1930s? How did these goals contribute to Japan's invasion of China and its conduct on Nanking in 1937? " Your post must make it clear that you have read the assigned sources and watched the assigned videos. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Japanese Imperialism Extra Credit Paragraph due by 11:59 pm, April 5: Read Louise Yim on the Japanese Occupation of Korea and Okuma Shigenobu, "The Illusions of the White Race" (1921) in the Documents on Japanese Imperialism and write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following question: "According to Yim, how did the Japanese treat the people of Korea they ruled? How do you think she might have responded to Shigenobu's critique of Western imperialism? Why?" Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.


Week 12. Week of April 12: World War II

Primary Sources to Read: Hirsoshima Survivors' Testimonies: Hiroko Fukada, Akihiro Takahashi, Kinue Tomoyasu.
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 28 (pp. 888-903).
Videos to Watch:Campbell, "Is Modern Anti-Semitism BS?" (17:00)
Bucholz, Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany - 1922 – 36” (The Great Courses, 2006, 30:13, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Bucholz, The Holocaust - 1933 – 45” (The Great Courses, 2006, 30:41, requires MyNOVA login to view)
World War II (Reuters, 1990, 32:28, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Green, World War II: Crash Course World History #38 (13:12)
Online Discussion Posts:Due by 11:59 pm, April 12Nazism Discussion Post. Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After watching the videos and lectures for this week, what were the main features of Nazi ideology, and why might some Germans have found Hitler's message appealing? What was Nazi Germany's policy toward European Jews before 1939, and how did the outbreak of World War II radicalize those policies?" Your post must make it clear that you have read the assigned sources and watched the assigned videos. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Due by 11:59 pm, April 12: Prospective Bibliography for the Research Paper. Submit a rough draft bibliography listing the complete bibliographic information for all of the sources you intend to use for your Research Paper. Your prospective bibliography should be divided into two sections, one for primary sources, and one for secondary sources, both in alphabetical order by author. You should include the scholarly journal article which you used for the Source Criticism Paper and the scholarly monograph you reviewed for the Book Review Paper in the list of secondary sources. Make sure to review the instructions for the Research Paper listed in the syllabus CAREFULLY before completing this assignment.



Week 13. Week of April 19: The Cold War

Primary Sources to Read: Vietnamese Declaration of Independence (1945);
Fidel Castro, Second Declaration of Havana (1962)
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 29 (pp. 904-929).
Videos to Watch:The Bomb (PBS, 1:51:55, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Vietnam and the War (3DD, 43:22, requires MyNOVA login from the NOVA Library page to view)
Green, USA vs USSR Fight! The Cold War: Crash Course World History #39 (12:15)
Online Discussion Posts:Due by 11:59 pm April 19: Nuclear Weapons Discussion Post. Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After watching 'The Bomb,' how did the Cold War influence the development of nuclear weapons? Did nuclear weapons make the Cold War more dangerous, or might their destructive potential have helped keep the Cold War from going 'hot?'" Your post must make it clear that you have watched the assigned video. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Due by 11:59 pm April 19: Book Review Paper(Your sources MUST be approved by the instructor before you turn this in)


Week 14. Week of April 26Decolonization
Primary Sources to Read: Jawaharlal Nehru, "Marxism, Capitalism and Non-Alignment" (1941, 1956), Speech On the Granting of Indian Independence,  (1947);
Documents on Women's Lives in Modern India (1986, 1975);
Winnie Mandela, Speech In Response to the Government Massacre in Soweto (1976);
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, .Chapter 30 (pp. 924-937).
Videos to Watch:“Partition” (TVF International, 2018, 48:33, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Liulevicius “1972—China Enters the World Balance” (The Great Courses, 2016, 30:13, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Nelson Mandela: The History of a Struggle” (Reuters, 1990, 25:08, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Green, Decolonization and Nationalism Triumphant: Crash Course World History #40 (12:48)
Online Discussion Posts:Due by 11:59 pm April 26: Decolonization Discussion Post. Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After reading the documents and watching the videos on Vietnam, India, and South Africa assigned during the past two weeks, compare the approaches to national liberation of Ho Chi Minh, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Nelson Mandela. How were these figures similar and how were they different? What impact did the Cold War have on their respective struggles for national liberation?" Your post must make it clear that you have read the assigned sources and watched the assigned videos. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Due by 11:59 pm April 26: Thesis Statement Draft for the Research Paper

Due by 11:59 pm April 26: India Extra Credit Paragraph. Read the Documents on Women's Lives in Modern India (1986, 1975)and write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following question: "How were the challenges of life in modern India different for educated urban women and poorer rural women? Which group seemed to be faced with a more difficult set of circumstances?Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.


Week 15. Week of May 3The 20th Century Middle East

Primary Sources to Read: Bahithat al-Badiya, Excerpts from "A Lecture in the Club of the Umma Party, 1909;"
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Speech Denouncing American Influence in Iran (1964)
Demet Demir, Filipa de Souza Award Address (1997)
Secondary Sources to Read: Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 30 (pp. 938-959).
Videos to Watch:Campbell, "Was the Cold War B.S.?" (18:11)
"Iran: The Hundred-Year War" (ARTE France, 2008, 1:31:52, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Bivins, "Religious Violence in Israel" (The Great Courses, 2018, 31:00, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Green, Conflict in Israel and Palestine: Crash Course World History 223." (12:52)
Online Discussion Posts:Due by 11:59 pm, May 3: Iran Discussion Post.  Write a post of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "After reading Khomeini's Speech Denouncing American Influence in Iran and watching "Iran: The Hundred-Year War," what role did American policy from the 1950s to the 1970s in Iran play in inspiring the Islamic Revolution of 1979 in that country? How did the Cold War inspire those American policies?" Your post must make it clear that you have read the assigned source and watched the assigned video. Then you should also read all of the postings by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them in some substantial way.
Assignments to Complete: Due by 11:59 pm, May 3:Research Paper You should submit a final draft of at least 4 double-spaced pages which advances a clear main argument which answers your research question, and which supports that argument with specific, correctly cited evidence drawn from the primary and secondary sources listed in your bibliography.



Week 16. Week of May 10: Globalization

Primary Sources to Read:Demet Demir, Filipa de Souza Award Address (1997)
Secondary Sources to Read:Von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow, Chapter 31
Videos to Watch:Campbell, "Was the End of the Cold War B.S.?"(18:26)
Liulevicius, "1989—The Fall of the Berlin Wall" (The Great Courses, 2016, 30:22, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Liulevicius, "2004—The Rise of Social Media" (The Great Courses, 2016, 32:44, requires MyNOVA login to view)
Green, "Globalization I - The Upside: Crash Course World History #41" (11:50)
Green, "Globalization II - Good or Bad?: Crash Course World History #42; " (13:24)
Assignments to Complete: Due by 11:59 pm, May 10:Reflective Paragraph. Write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following questions: "Describe one thing that you think was helpful about the course, and one thing that you think could be improved.  Then describe one thing that you did well in your work for the class, and one thing about your work that you would like to improve in the future."
Due by 11:59 pm, May 10: Demir Extra Credit Paragraph Read Demet Demir's Filipa de Souza Award Address (1997)  and write a paragraph of at least 100 words answering the following question: "What types of challenges does Demir face as a transgender woman in modern Turkey? What relationship does she see between the struggle for LGBT rights and other political causes?Make sure that your paragraph begins with a sentence which clearly states your main argument, and that it refers to specific evidence from the sources in order to support that argument.
Due by 11:59 pm, May10: Online Final Exam.: