History 106 World History

Course Description

This course follows up on History 105, offered Winter quarter. It is not necessary, however, to have taken 105 to enroll and do well in this course. History 106 will examine key developments in world history by analyzing several different parts of the world. The course begins in the late 1700s. The first half of the course focuses primarily on the period prior to World War I. The second half of the course covers the post WW I period to the present.

Although one of the major themes will be the impact of the West (Europe and the United States) on the non-western world, our primary focus will be on these non-western parts of the world. This course does not intend to be comprehensive in the sense of covering all parts of the world over more than two centuries of history. Instead, our approach will be to take different parts of the world as cases illustrating key developments. In the first part of the course, we will be mostly concerned with western imperialism and responses to it. In the second part of the course, we will consider the themes of revolution, independence, and world crisis in the twentieth century.

This is a very demanding course. We will be talking about many different civilizations and peoples over a long period of time. There will be a lot of material to absorb. In addition to learning basic facts and concepts, you will need to think about what you're learning in order to begin grasping the "big picture" (or at least parts of the "big picture.") To do well in this course, then, it is important that you devote yourself to regular study of the materials of the course. This means that it is particularly important to attend lectures regularly (even if we do get lucky and have a day or two of sun). It is also important that you keep up with the reading. Equally as important is attendance and participation in the weekly discussion section. The discussion sections are particularly important because you will be able to focus intensively on particular readings as well as review some of the more general themes of the course.

Course Policies

A mid-term exam to be held in class on May 7. (worth 20% of the grade).

A short paper (4-6 pp.) based on the readings for the course, due on Friday, May 25. You will be provided with detailed instructions for this paper after the mid-term. (worth 25% of the grade).

A final exam to be held on Wed., June 13, at 10:15 a.m. (worth 30% of the grade).

Attendance and participation in discussion section (worth 25% of the grade). GTFs will provide further information about the requirements for discussion sections. Important note: The GTFs will penalize students who fail to meet attendance requirements up to one full grade beyond the 25 percent.

Required Texts

Richard Bulliet, et. al., The Earth and Its Peoples: AGlobal History (Volume C: Since 1750)
Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto
Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart
Avi Shlaim, War and Peace in the Middle East
A documents packet

Course Schedule