History

This course aims to trace certain aspects of postwar Japan. It focuses on the quest for urban policy to tackle urban problems after World War II, particularly in the 1960s, an aspect of the underside of rapid economic growth.

This course explores cultural, economic, political, intellectual and religious movements in continental Europe from an urban perspective. Students examine patterns and ideas which have shaped the European cultural and historical inheritance that remain relevant today. Course topics include the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Church, the Monarchies, and Europe in the 1700s. 

This course offers a study of Spanish history from the start of the War of Independence in 1808 to the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939.

This course offers a study of modern philosophy including the main authors and philosophical movements, the fundamental works, and the concepts and problems of the era.

In this course, students examine Rome and the grandeur and diversity of its empire. Students explore Rome’s cosmopolitan, multi-lingual, and multi-ethnic mega-city and how this showcased Roman might, organizational efficiency, and cultural wealth through public works, monumental architecture, and consumer culture. By studying these topics, students learn the genealogy of Western urbanism and statecraft and how this empire became paradigmatic in Western Eurasia.

Modern Japanese society is said to have emerged during the Edo period, in the 17th to 19th centuries. This course introduces Japanese society in the Edo period, chronologically, categorically (politics, economy, society, culture, etc.), and historically. Finally, the course touches on the transition from the Edo period to modern times in the 19th to 20th centuries.  

This course examines how states have attempted to apply and develop surveillance technologies with ever greater accuracy, scale, and speed (as well as when and how they did not). Geographically, this course covers from South Asia to East Asia. It focuses on how colonial, national, and postcolonial governments have tried to control their subjects and foreigners within their territory, as well as how people have responded to these state initiatives. After introducing relevant theoretical frameworks, the course investigates specific technologies such as fingerprints, photographs, anthropometrics, and CCTV, examining their historical development and impact on individual lives in modern Asian societies. Students examine people’s responses to surveillance technologies in modern Asia, ranging from adherence to protest and appraise the use of surveillance in today’s Asian societies based on its historical trajectories.

The United Kingdom is not known for its great cuisines, despite this there is a rich and varied tradition of regional food, food that has been 'adopted' and adapted to the British palate. Food in the UK mirrors the history of colonialism, global trade, and immigration. There has been a rediscovery of local and regional foods with a renewed interest in the production of food, slow food, and a move against over processing. Preparation and consumption of food gives valuable insight into the local culture, history, and society.  
 

This survey course is an overview of American history from its origins to the present, with particular emphasis on the place of American history in modern history. This course helps students understand the outline and key concepts in the history and culture of the United States of America. 

In this course, student participants will analyze how ideas about gender and sexuality influenced left-wing revolutionary movements and right-wing military dictatorships in Latin America since 1959, considering both political history and the experiences lived by contemporary people in the cases of Cuba, Chile, Brazil, Mexico and Nicaragua, among others.