HIST H108 (5927) Prof. Michael Snodgrass
Fall 2007 Cavanaugh 503S 278-7761
CA 229 Office hours: M 3-4, W 4-5
M/W 1:30-2:45 E-mail:
PERSPECTIVES ON THE WORLD TO 1800
Course objectives:
While the media recently discovered the issue of globalization, world history is in fact marked by ever more intensive stages of contact and exchange between different global communities. This course introduces students to the political, economic, cultural and technological factors that made those encounters possible from the 1200s to the early l800s. Lectures, readings, and exams will focus on two interrelated themes: 1) the rise and decline of regional and then global empires and 2) the patterns of interaction among and between the peoples of Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas, including military conquest, religious missions, trade, and human migrations.
Perspectives on the World introduces students to the common features and key distinctions between the histories and cultures of world regions. Consistent with IUPUI’s Principles of Undergraduate Learning (see this course is also designed to develop student skills of critical and comparative analysis, improve writing proficiency, and enhance one’s capacity to organize and express his or her thoughts. Students will sharpen these skills through a variety of assignments: analyzing historical documents, writing essays, engaging in classroom discussions, and preparing for quizzes and examinations.
This syllabus, class announcements, discussion questions, lecture outlines, assignments, and grades will be posted to the Oncourse system.
Required readings (available at IUPUI Bookstore & Indy’s College Bookstore, 601 W. 11th St)
1) Richard Bulliet, et. al., The Earth and Its Peoples: Vol. B, 1200 to 1870 (3nd ed.)
2) Bartolomé de las Casas, A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies (original l542)
3) Olaudah Equiano, The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano (original 1791)
4) Online documents: these historical documents are available online at the web addresses listed or as links through the class syllabus posted at Oncourse or the History Department website: Students should print these documents today to avoid future difficulties accessing them.
Course requirements and grading (based upon 1,000 total points):
Two exams = 500 points; one essay = 250 points; four quizzes = 100 points; map assignment/quiz = 50 points; and, class participation = 100 points.
Assignments:
Exams involve multiple choice questions, matching, essays, and identification terms.
Essays will address specific issues related to either the Las Casas or the Equiano books. Students may choose to write on either book; assignments due on either 10/10 or 10/29.
Five unannounced quizzes will be given during the semester - your four highest scores count
toward the final grade. Quizzes may involve multiple choice questions, matching, and short essays and cover the readings assigned for that day only. Be prepared.
Class participation grades are not a reward for attendance, although absenteeism obviously undermines one’s capacity to engage in discussions. The grade of A will go to those students who eagerly participate and demonstrate consistent preparation; occasional participation and steady attendance will earn one a B; a consistent but otherwise silent presence in the classroom earns a C; and poor attendance results in a grade of D or lower.
Final grade scores: A+ (1,000-980), A(979-930), A- (929-900), B+ (899-880), B (879-830), B- (829-800), C+ (799-780), C (779-730), C- (729-700), D (699-600), F (599 or less).
Remember...
...that all late assignments will be penalized as follows: one grade (B to C) for assignments not turned in on due date, and two full grades (B to D) for assignments turned in more than one week late. ASSIGNMENTS MORE THAN TWO WEEKS LATE ARE NOT ACCEPTED.
...the attendance policy: history tells us that persistent absenteeism results in lower grades. That is especially the case for this class since students will take five unannounced quizzes during the semester and no makeup quizzes are given except in documented emergencies, in accordance with IUPUI policy.
...to save all papers on your hard drive and a diskette and to retain graded assignments. (Do this for all classes at IUPUI.)
...to check the Oncourse grade book to ensure your grades are recorded correctly.
...that all students are expected to take notes on the lectures as a means of remaining focused and preparing for the exams. Note taking advice is available from the professor during office hours. Students will not read newspapers, balance checkbooks, do crosswords or puzzles, use cell phones, or employ laptops for anything other than note taking. Student who violate these rules will see their final grade penalized by 20 points.
...that plagiarism and cheating will be punished in accordance with IUPUI’s Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct (see the IUPUI Campus Bulletin, 2004-2006, p.36). For example, any student found to have submitted work taken from an Internet site will receive zero points for the assignment (and not just an F grade) and be subjected to full disciplinary procedures as administered by the School of Liberal Arts Dean of Student Affairs, or by officials in whichever school the student may be enrolled. The School of Liberal Arts’ policy states that:
“Plagiarism is the use of the work of others without properly crediting the actual source of the ideas, words, sentences, paragraphs, entire articles, music or pictures. Using other students’ work (with or without their permission) is still plagiarism if you don’t indicate who initially did the work. Plagiarism, a form of cheating, is a serious offense and will be severely punished...The penalties for plagiarism include reprimands, being failed for a particular take-home exam, paper, project or the entire course, disciplinary probation, or dismissal.”
COURSE SCHEDULE
The Rise and Fall of the Mongol Empire
Aug. 22Empires in World History
Aug. 27Conquest, commerce, and empire in Western Eurasia
The Earth and Its Peoples, 336-51
Aug. 29Consequences and Decline of Mongol Rule in China
The Earth and Its Peoples, 351-64
Map assignment due
Sep. 5NO CLASS - Prof. Snodgrass at Latin American Studies conference
The Islamic World to l500
Sep. 10Conquest, commerce and the spread of Islam
Sep. 12Islamic Empires in Africa and India
The Earth and Its Peoples, chapter 14
The Atlantic World before 1492
Sep. 17The Aztec and Inca Empires
The Earth and Its Peoples, chapter 12
A Spanish conquistador describes the Aztec capital (today’s Mexico City):
Sep. 19Countryside and city in pre-industrial Europe
The Earth and Its Peoples, chapter 15
Sep. 24The Reconquest of Iberia
A first-hand account of the Jews’ expulsion from Spain (l492):
Sep. 26The Maritime Revolution
The Earth and Its Peoples, pp. 417-31
Oct. 1Europe’s Commercial Encounters with Africa and Asia
The Earth and Its Peoples, 431-35
A captain’s log of Portuguese encounters and plundering along eastern coast of Africa (c.l500):
Oct. 3Examination #1
Colonialism in the Americas
Oct. 8Conquest and colonization
The Earth and Its Peoples, pp. 435-37, 440-41
Oct. 10Spaniards and Indians
Las Casas, A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies
Essay on Las Casas due today at start of class
Oct. 15Spanish America
The Earth and Its Peoples, pp. 473-88
Oct. 17British America
The Earth and Its Peoples, pp. 488-98
Oct. 22French America
Oct. 24Colonizing the Caribbean
The Earth and Its Peoples, chapter 19
Oct. 29Africa and the Slave Trade
Equiano, The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano
Essay on Equiano due today at start of class
Oct. 31Slave Life in the Americas
Eastern Empires and Challenges from the West
Nov. 5Ottoman and Persian Empires
The Earth and Its Peoples, 526-41
Nov. 7India’s Mughal Empire
The Earth and Its Peoples, 541-48
Nov. 12Missionaries, Merchants, and Cultural Exchange
The Earth and Its Peoples, chapter 17
Lizzie Collingham, Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors, pp. 47-73 (available as electronic resource at University Library Course Reserves or access at the NetLibrary through IUCAT)
Nov. 14From Mughal to British Rule in India
The Earth and Its Peoples, 673-88
British colonial policy on education of Indian subjects:
Indian elite discusses merits/shortcomings of British rule in India (l870s):
Nov. 19Imperial China and the Opium War
The Earth and Its Peoples, 550-65
China’s Emperor rejects trade with Britain (l793):
China protests against influx of British opium merchants (l839):
Nov. 26Peter the Great’s Russian Empire
The Earth and Its Peoples, 565-73
The Age of Revolution in the Atlantic World
Nov. 28Seeds of Democracy
The Earth and Its Peoples, 580-87
Dec. 3The French Revolution
The Earth and Its Peoples, 592-606
Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789):
Legacies of the French Revolution:
Dec. 5Independence in the Americas
The Earth and Its Peoples, 587-91, 633-38
Dec. 10Examination #2