History

This course examines the history of European cultures, with a special focus on Spain, from pre-history to the present day. The second half of the course focuses on the Mediterranean world after Islamic expansion in North Africa, the conquest of Spain, and the domination of much of the Mediterranean.

This course offers a wide-ranging survey of Scandinavian history and culture from the Mesolithic (c. 8000 BC) to the Enlightenment (c. AD 1750) and beyond. It begins by defining and distinguishing the key concepts "Nordic" and "Scandinavian," the linguistic heritage of the regions concerned, and the core terminology used to compartmentalize and describe their past. It then moves on to the evolution of Scandinavian culture from earliest antiquity to the Iron Age, as a longitudinal introduction to our study of the Viking Age. The survey of Viking culture provides an overview of social structure, worldview, and belief, and examines different aspects of the Viking Expansion overseas. Students explore the discovery, settlement, and early society of Iceland, and also chart the rise and fall of the Danish Empires, the deep-reaching influence of the Hanseatic League, the profound impact the Protestant Reformation of the mid-16th Century on Nordic society, and the role of Sweden as an "Imperial power" in the 17th Century. The course concludes with an overview of the origins and ideals of the Enlightenment as experienced in the North.

This course explores the emergence of Zionism and the Israeli state from the late 19th century until today by looking at some of the foundational movements and moments in Israeli history. Themes include expressions of alienation and discrimination, the perceived ethnic gap, and schisms in Israeli society, including Jewish-Arab tensions. The course explores the broad range of influences that have shaped Israeli society and politics: European, Ottoman, Middle Eastern, Jewish, and Palestinian.