History 102: Modern Europe, Spring 2008

Professor Horodowich (lizh@nmsu.edu)

Hardman 104, TTH 8:55-10:10 (section 4)

Office Hours: Breland 246, W 10-12 and by appointment, 646-1515

(NOTE: it is much easier to catch me or get me a message by e-mail rather than phone!)

GA Michael Barnhardt (barney@nmsu.edu), Breland 256, 646-3378, hours TBA

This course will introduce students to the political, social, and cultural developments that took place in Western Europe from 1650 through 1945. Some of the events and topics we will cover include: the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, Napoleon, industrialization, nationalism, colonialism, and the twentieth-century European wars. In addition to regular textbook readings, students will learn how to analyze the significance of events, people, and historical ideas through reading and interpreting original historical documents. This course will combine lectures and classroom discussion, and will make regular use of visual materials such as paintings, photographs, and film.

Course Outcomes—Students will learn to:

1) Define, explain, and analyze the major political, social and cultural transformations of medieval and early modern Europe

2) Critically read and evaluate historical evidence with the goal of forming an argument about historical evidence

3) Communicate a historical argument logically, clearly, and effectively in writing

Class attendance is mandatory; attendance is taken every day at the beginning of class and more than three unexcused absences will result in the lowering of your grade. Excessive absences and failure to hand in written work will result in your being dropped from the course. Six 2-page response papers will be due during the course of the semester (see p. 3 for instructions about papers). There will also be occasional quizzes based on the reading. These quizzes are not meant to try to trick you, but simply to see whether or not you have completed the reading. Quiz material and questions are taken from weekly study questions, included here at the end of the syllabus. Note that while there will not be many quizzes, these quizzes make up a substantial portion of your grade; they will be given at the start of class and cannot be made up. All assigned reading should be completed before the week’s lectures. Please bring your assigned reading to class every day. Assignments and grading will involve:

Quizzes: 20%

Papers 30%

Two Midterms: 15% each

Final: 20%

**there is NO extra credit

Please collect and hold on to ALL completed/graded work until the end of the semester grades are computed in case you have a grade question/dispute.

Required Texts:

Spielvogel, Western Civilization, A Brief History, Vol. II: Since 1500, 4th ed.

Kendrick et. al., Documents of Western Civilization, Vol. II: 1550 to Present

**Claire de Duras, Ourika

**Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist Manifesto (also available on-line)

**Elie Wiesel, Night

Additional on-line readings are also occasionally assigned, see class schedule

**Readings available on reserve in the Zuhl library

If you need help or have difficulties with reading or assignments, in addition to seeing our GA, and me you should consult the following services:

Student Support Services, Garcia Annex, 646-1336—Provides tutorials, either free or for a minimal fee. Call to make an appointment

Writing Center, English Department, English Building room 102, 646-5297—Provides Free one-hour tutorials either by drop-in or advance appointment.

Center for Learning Assistance, Hardman Hall 210, 646-3136—Provides general help on academic survival skills such as how to read, prepare for exams, take notes, etc. Call to schedule 1/2 hour appointment, or to hear workshop schedules.

DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE END OF THE SEMESTER TO LET ME KNOW THAT YOU ARE HAVING DIFFICULTIES OR CONCERNS WITH READING, WRITING, OR NOTE-TAKING…I am happy to help you, but can only do so if you COME SEE ME EARLY ON!

Students with Disabilities: If you have (or believe you have) a disability and would benefit from classroom accommodation(s), please contact the Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) Office located at Corbett 244. Phone: 646-6840.

Guidelines for History 102 Writing Assignments

Students in History 102 are required to complete six short response papers: three in the first half of the course and three in the second. These papers are designed to teach you how to read and think critically about primary sources---documents written by historical actors themselves. These papers will require you to synthesize material from primary and secondary reading and lectures. Papers will also serve as a springboard for class discussion.

The subject of these papers is found in the study questions distributed weekly. You will see that one question, each week, is in bold; this is the question you should answer. Your papers should not be a simple free-flow of ideas/narration/re-telling of the story, but instead should always make an argument; you should pick one side of the assigned question and make a case for why that is your answer. Underline your argument/thesis. This argument should then be supported with evidence drawn from the primary sources you have read, and lecture material, including visual sources. Papers that cite the textbook passages primarily (Spielvogel) will not get a good grade; you must focus on anaylzing the primary sources. You cannot get a good grade if you do not cite reading/lectures directly (see citation method below). You should express your ideas in clear and grammatically correct writing, using your own words and correct spelling and making sure to edit and proofread. Do not use the first person; use the past tense; and remember that a paragraph must be composed of at least 4-5 sentences. You do not need to write a conclusion for these papers; instead, use as much space as possible for discussion and analysis of the texts.

All papers must be typed, double-spaced, size 12 font, with one-inch margins on all sides, and stapled. Essays should be 2 pages in length. Papers will be graded out of ten points, and papers involving no apparent effort will be handed back with a zero. References to the texts should be made in the body of your paper using the abbreviation DWC for Documents of Western Civilization, and the page number (DWC, 102), or the last name of the author and the page number (Spielvogel, 102; Duras, 33). For on-line sources, again, cite the author and the page (Marx, 3); do not cite the entire website. A correct citation is as follows: “Adultery is extremely rare,” (DWC, 22)). Note the punctuation.

These papers are due in class on Thursdays the week the question is assigned. For instance, you must hand in a paper about Napoleon the week that we are studying Napoleon. There are NO late papers; for example, you cannot hand in a paper with a topic from week 3 in weeks 4 or 5. So if you are doing a paper assignment, you must either hand it in the Thursday that that topic is being discussed, or skip that week and hand in a paper another week. You must hand in three papers by February 28th or you will be dropped from the class. Your lowest paper grade will be dropped at the end of the semester, but you still must hand in a total of 6 papers. If you only hand in 5, we will then average 6 papers for your grade. No papers by attachment. NOTE that in examination weeks, there are no paper assignments, so plan ahead as to when you will hand in your three papers.

See the grading rubrick on page 4 for how paper grades are calculated.

Plagiarism Policy--I take plagiarism very seriously. Plagiarism is defined as representing someone else’s work as your own. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, submitting examinations, papers, or reports that have been prepared by someone else, copied from someone else (including books, encyclopedias, and websites), or downloaded from the Internet, in part or in whole. Any student found guilty of plagiarism will, at a minimum, receive in an F on the assignment and may be expelled from the course (with a grade of F). In the event that you are expelled from the course for plagiarism, I will send a letter documenting your academic misconduct to the dean of student affairs for your college. You may also be subjected to further disciplinary action under the Student Code of Conduct in the NMSU Student Handbook. If you are unclear as to what constitutes plagiarism, or how to avoid it, see: http://gervaseprograms.georgetown.edu/hc/plagiarism.html

History 101/102 Grading Rubric

The type of writing that historians use in their discipline is called (in English 111 terms) Documented Argument; the goal of these papers is to make an ARGUMENT about the topic at hand. Paper grades are based on the following elements. An A paper achieves all of these goals successfully, and weaknesses in the paper will sometimes be indicated in the margins with the following letters:

A Argument: Does the paper state a clear argument at the beginning that takes a side

or distinctly states what it will prove? Does the paper substantiate this same

argument throughout the paper? Does the paper simply narrate or tell a story

rather than prove an argument?

E Evidence: Does the paper use evidence to prove the argument successfully? Is the

evidence varied enough, or does the author repeat the same piece of evidence?

Does the paper primarily use primary sources, or fail to argue from primary

sources (i.e. does the paper make an argument based mostly on the textbook?)

Does the paper make use of both citations and citations with direct quotations?

Does the paper make statements or generalizations that remain unsubstantiated?

Does the paper not only offer evidence, but also discuss it in a way that

demonstrates how the evidence is linked to and proves the argument, or does the

paper simply list evidence with no discussion in the author’s voice? Is the

evidence strong, or does it appear unrelated to the argument at hand? Does the

author pick the strongest evidence to prove the argument? Does the author use

evidence not to narrate, but to prove an argument?

0 Organization: Is the information and evidence organized into logical groups. Does each paragraph focus on one main topic, or does discussion jump around so much within a paragraph that the paragraph loses its focus? Do paragraphs contain enough information and discussion to stand on their own as paragraphs, or are they too short/need to be merged with other information? Does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence that explicitly states what that paragraph will demonstrate and argue…a topic sentence that is declarative and not narrative?

W Writing: Is the writing clear and lucid? Does the author use correct grammar,

punctuation, and syntax? Does the author pick the most appropriate words,

including verbs? Does the author use the correct citation method, including

punctuation? Are sentences too long and wordy? Is the paper formatted

correctly? Has the author proofread for spelling, typos, and other mistakes? Has

the author maintained the same verb tense throughout the paper?

D Development: Is the paper sufficiently long, i.e. sufficiently developed, to solidly

make a point? While papers should not include extra words just to make them

long enough, a paper must achieve a certain critical mass/length in order to

successfully answer the question. For History 101 papers, this is approximately

two full pages.
Class Schedule

Week 1 January 17 Introduction

Week 2 January 22 Building the Modern State: The Sun King

Spielvogel 283-96; Documents of Western Civilization

(=DWC) 8-21, 25 (“The Petition of Right”) and 27-29 (“Death

Warrant of Charles I” and “The Act Abolishing the Office of

King”)

January 24 The Enlightenment

Spielvogel 319-32; DWC 33 (“Two Treatises on Civil

Government”), 35-37 (“Leviathan), and 54-74

Week 3 January 29 18^th Century Culture: Coffee-Houses and Enlightened Despotism

Spielvogel 336-51; DWC 75-83 (review 62-4 on women)

January 31 The Drama of the French Revolution

Spielvogel 354-66, DWC 90-105

Week 4 February 5 The French Revolution: Goals and Results

Claire de Duras, Ourika

February 7 Napoleon

Spielvogel, 366-72, DWC 105-107

The Age of Napoleon

http://edweb.tusd.k12.az.us/uhs/website/courses/WC/Historiography/age_of_napoleon.htm

Week 5 February 12 European Conservatism: Metternich’s Europe

Spielvogel 392-98; DWC 122-129

Metternich, Political Confessions of Faith

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1820metternich.html

Carlsbad Resolutions

http://history.hanover.edu/texts/carlsbad.htm

February 14 Industrialization I

Spielvogel 374-90; DWC 108-121

Week 6 February 19 Film/review

February 21 Midterm Examination #1

Week 7 February 26 Nationalism, Liberalism, and Romanticism

Spielvogel 398-401, 405-8, DWC 129-140

February 28 The Revolutions of 1830-48

Spielvogel 401-5

Lamartine, History of the Revolution of 1848 in France

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1848lamartine.html

Documents of the Revolution of 1848 in France

http://history.hanover.edu/texts/fr1848.html

**GET STARTED READING MARX AND ENGELS!!

**NOTE—YOU MUST HAVE HANDED IN THREE

PAPERS BY TODAY OR YOU WILL BE DROPPED

FROM CLASS

Week 8 March 4 Communism and National Unification

Spielvogel 411-24; Marx and Engels, The Communist Manifesto

(hard copy from bookstore, or also available on-line at:

http://www.anu.edu.au/polsci/marx/classics/manifesto.html)

March 6 19^th Century Art

Spielvogel 427-8, 454-55

(NOTE: Monday, March 10^th is the last day you can drop this class with a W)

Week 9 March 11 Fin-de-Siècle Europe: Progress and Anxiety

Spielvogel 425-44, 451-54; DWC 145-164

March 13 Imperialism

Spielvogel 462-68, DWC 173-177

Week 10 March 18 World War I: Crisis and Battle

Spielvogel 457-62, 468-83

Fraser, War Diary

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1918fraser.html

March 20 World War I: Revolution and Resolution

Spielvogel 483-91; DWC 178-185

Lenin, Call to Power

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1917lenin1.html

Week 11 April 1 Film/review

April 3 Midterm Examination #2

Week 12 April 11 Interwar Culture

Spielvogel 507-11

April 13 The European Economy, 1919-1939

Spielvogel 494-99, Kroner in DWC, 190-91

Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1920keynes.html

Orwell, The Road to Wigan Pier

http://www.cooper.edu/humanities/core/hss3/g_orwell.html

Week 13 April 15 Fascism in the Soviet Union and Italy

Spielvogel 499-500, 504-507

Mussolini, What is Fascism?

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/mussolini-fascism.html

Stalin, Industrialization of the Country,

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1928stalin.html

Dizzy with Success: Concerning Questions of the Collective-

Farm Movement

http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/

1930/03/02.htm

(note: you must cut and paste, or type, the above website: it will not hyperlink!)

Stalin’s Purges

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1936purges.html

April 17 Fascism in Germany: Hitler and the Nazi Party

Spielvogel 500-504; DWC 186-201

Week 14 April 22 Documentary, Blind Spot: Hitler’s Secretary

April 24 World War II

Spielvogel 514-524; DWC 202-208

Week 15 April 29 The Holocaust

Spielvogel 524-534, DWC 208-221

May 1 Film, Night and Fog

Elie Wiesel, Night

Final Examination: Thursday, May 10, 8-10 AM

*note: the final exam date and time is not flexible, so if you

cannot make this date or time you must let me know in the first week of class

How do I do the reading for this class?

The assigned readings are due for the day they are assigned. Meaning, you should do them BEFORE the class on that day. The reading may sometimes at first seem confusing; it is from the distant past, translated from another language, or the authors use antiquated terms or means of writing. However, it is important to grasp the readings as best as possible for class, quizzes (which are based on the reading, can happen any day, and make up %20 of your grade!), and exams. Exams will always ask you to identify quotations from the readings and determine who the author was. The best way to approach the reading is to 1) read the study questions below for that topic before you do the reading. If you can answer the questions, you have understood what you need to from the reading, and 2) keep a separate page in your notebook where you record, for each primary source reading, how you take it APART, especially for the readings we discuss at length in class:

A=author

P=place and time

A=audience (optional)

R=reason the author wrote

T=the main idea

If you make an entry for each of the primary source readings that briefly lists these terms (which only takes a minute for each source), you will be well prepared for class and to study for all the exams!

Weekly Study Questions, Potential Quiz Questions, and Essay Topics

NOTE: Questions for weekly paper assignments are noted in bold. You MUST answer the bold question for the essay…not any of the other questions!

Week 2: The Modern State/The Enlightenment

According to Bossuet (DWC 16-17), what was absolutism? How did the bible justify absolutism? What biblical king does Bossuet use as an example?
What was life like in France prior to absolutist kings? Why might absolutism have seemed attractive to many people in France?
What was the Edict of Nantes, and why did Louis XIV revoke it?
What was the most important advice Cardinal Richelieu gave to kings (DWC 13)? How should kings treat nobles?
How would you describe life at the court of Versailles, according to St. Simon (DWC 20)?
How, exactly, did early modern kings increase their power? What specific things did they do? Considering all the primary sources available (i.e. DWC 8-26, as well as Spielvogel 281), what do you think the most important component in developing absolutist rule was? The control of religion and spirituality (consider the Edict of Nantes), the control of the aristocracy, the army and war, taxation/money/the economy, or something else? Pick ONE and make an argument for it. Remember to UNDERLINE your thesis and cite specific page numbers to support your argument.
Where else did absolutism develop besides France? Under what rulers? How was the case of England different? How did the English treat the monarchy compared to the French?
What is meant by the Age of Enlightenment? Where did it begin, and why did it start? What ideas did pre-enlightenment thinkers like Hobbes and Locke contribute, and what was the Leviathan? Who were the leading intellectual figures of the Enlightenment and what did they write/say? What, for instance, was the point of Voltaire’s Candide? Of Rousseau’s Social Contract?
How did Christianity come under attack by Enlightenment thinkers? How did the traditional state also come under attack?
Were the philosophes “democratic” thinkers?

Week 3: 18^th Century Culture/The Drama of the French Revolution

What new forms of social organization arose in the 18^th century and why were they so important/influential? How were the social organizations and meeting places of “civil society” different than forms of social organization that came before them?
Who was the most famous voice of the enlightenment, the author of the book Candide?
What were the views of the philosophes, such as Voltaire (i.e. DWC p. 62-4) on women? Did women have an Enlightenment? If so, what role did they play in the Enlightenment?
What were the major military conflicts of the 18^th century?
What do we mean by the terms enlightened absolutism? Did enlightened despots make use of Enlightenment principles? Were Frederick and Catherine “GREAT”? Meaning, did these “enlightened” rulers really employ the terms of the Enlightenment or not? Pick one side--that they were enlightened or that they were not-- and using ideas from reading and lecture, make an argument for it. Remember to UNDERLINE your thesis and cite specific page numbers to support your argument.
The course of European history witnessed repeated revolts and “revolutions”. How was the French Revolution so radical? Why do we cite it as a turning point that introduces the “modern” world? What factors help explain why the revolution occurred in France, one of the most prosperous and powerful nations of Europe?
How can we explain the origins of the French Revolution? Why did it happen at the moment it did? What grievances did people have about the state of politics and life in 18^th century France?
What were the main events on the timeline of the French Revolution? (See handout)
Did the bourgeoisie (the businessmen of commerce and industry) create the French Revolution or did the French Revolution create the bourgeoisie? Or in other terms, was this a social revolution with political consequences or a political revolution with social consequences?

Week 4: The French Revolution, Goals and Results/Napoleon

Why did the revolution take a more radical direction after 1792?
What were the main problems that revolutionaries had to address, both before, during, and after the terror?
Did Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety betray the goals of the revolution?
What was the legacy of the French Revolution for Women? Was this a “feminist” revolution or not?
Many reforms were gained as a result of the revolution, but what was lost?
How do “traditional” historians describe the revolution, compared to “revisionist” or new approaches?
Who is the author of Ourika? Where is she originally from, and from where and when does she tell her story? Who does she fall in love with? What is her main problem, that causes her so much misery?
How does the story of Ourika reflect the successes and failures of the revolution? According to Duras’ text, did the Enlightenment and the ideals of the French revolution work in reality? Yes or no? Pick ONE side and make an argument for it. Remember to UNDERLINE your thesis and cite specific page numbers to support your argument.
How did Napoleon come to power?
Considering the Napoleonic Code—and other sources--did Napoleon continue the direction of the revolution or stop its flow? Was he a liberal or a conservative? Meaning, did he preserve or destroy the achievements of the French Revolution?
Where were Napoleon’s major military campaigns? Where was he successful, and where was he defeated?
What was the continental system and what did it aim to do?
Did the position of women improve or decline with Napoleon?
What were the major effects of Napoleonic rule and French Revolution on the rest of Europe? How did Europeans and the French view Napoleon after his death? How have historians viewed him?

Week 5: Metternich’s Conservative Europe/Industrialization

1) What did the Congress of Vienna hope to achieve? What were its goals? How successful were they in achieving these goals? Who was the leader of this congress?

2) Who were “conservatives” in the age following the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars and what did they believe? How did Metternich think that governments should be formed and why?

3) How did events in Europe and the Americas influence one another? Name a few examples….

4) Compare the conservative ideas of Metternich (Spielvogel p. 378/Political Confessions of Faith/Carlsbad Resolutions), Edmunde Burke (DWC 122-127) and Joseph de Maistre (DWC 127-129). Who do you think is the most conservative? Which program do you think would best work, if at all, to combat the evils of the liberal French Revolution?

5) Why did the Industrial Revolution happen first in Britain? What were its basic features/first inventions?

6) How did it affect urban/social/family life?

7) What were working conditions like, and what attempts were made to improve them?

8) Was industrialization a blessing or a disaster for 19^th century Europeans?

In addition to lecture and Spievgogel’s general text, consider: Spielvogel p.

361, 364, 367, 372, and all the readings in DWC 108-121. Pick ONE side—blessing or disaster--and make an argument for it. Remember to UNDERLINE your thesis and cite specific page numbers to support your argument.

Week 6: Midterm review and examination #1=no essay due

Week 7: Nationalism/Liberalism/Romanticism/The Revolutions of 1848

**NOTE—YOU MUST HAVE HANDED IN THREE PAPERS BY THIS WEEK OR YOU WILL BE DROPPED FROM CLASS

1) We have seen that the forces of conservatism/Metternich were on the rise after 1815; how did the ideologies of Nationalism and Liberalism oppose conservatism? How would you define these terms? Who were the main proponents of liberalism and what did they say? What did liberals and nationalists want to achieve?

2) What people became liberals? Why was liberalism appealing to the middle class?

3) How did romanticism challenge the beliefs of the enlightenment? How would you define this term? Who were its main proponents in art, music, and literature?

4) What were the main causes of the revolutions of 1848? What were its principal stages?

5) Who became the leader of France after the revolutions of 1848?

6) Is nationalism ultimately a liberal or conservative ideology?

7) We typically consider the revolutions of 1848 as “failures.” Did they enact permanent changes did they in Europe, or did they result in a return to absolutism as usual? What is the historical significance of revolutions in which the revolutionaries are defeated? Did the revolutions of 1848 fail or not?

8) Where in Europe did no revolutions occur and why?

9) Consider the demands of the Chartists. How would Metternich have responded?

10) What do you think was the better way of confronting and dealing with changes in Western Civilization that had been occurring since 1750, liberalism/nationalism or conservatism? Europe had been in turmoil for decades; who had the better solution to Europe’s problems and a better plan for peace? Consider the following: all the reading about Metternich’s conservative Europe (see week 5 above) and this week’s reading about liberals and nationals (esp. DWC 129-137). Pick ONE side—liberalism/nationalism or conservatism—and make an argument for it. Remember to UNDERLINE your thesis and cite specific page numbers to support your argument.

Week 8: Communism, National Unification/19^th Century Art

1) How do Marx and Engels explain the unfolding of history? How does history happen? Or, how did 19^th century Europe arrive at the place where it was? Consider all the detailed steps, including the rise of the bourgeoisie and the rise of the proletariat. What would ultimately happen to society? What state were the forces of history leading towards? Or what would class struggle eventually result in?

1) How would you describe the writing style of the Manifesto? What year was it published?

2) How and why is the French Revolution significant to Marx and Engels? 1848?

3) What do they think of the Middle Class?

4) What is the difference between socialism and communism?

5) Why did Marx and Engels write this text?

6) What do they say was the main source of conflict throughout history?

7) Why is capitalism evil?

8) How is Marx and Engel’s system faulty? Why doesn’t it work, or what did they fail to take into account when they constructed their worldview?

9) Marx describes life up until the revolution…what do you think society would look like afterwards, based on the text?

10) According to the way Marx and Engels describe “the bourgeoisie” and “the proletariat”, which group do you think YOUR family belongs to and why? Remember, you can’t just generalize; using specific citations, describe how The Communist Manifesto defines these terms (bourgeoisie and proletariat) and then argue how/why your family fits into one of these categories. Remember to pick one side, underline your thesis, and cite specific passages from the text.

11) Which two European countries experienced national unification in the mid-nineteenth century? What leaders were responsible for this unification?

12) How did art change and evolve during the course of the 19^th century? What new subjects did artist begin to paint after 1850? How did they start to actually paint differently? Who were the impressionists? How do you think all these changes were related to political changes we have already studied?

Week 9: Progress and Anxiety/Imperialism

1) What exactly did Darwin argue? What did he mean by ideas like “survival of the fittest” and “natural selection”? How would you compare the ideas of Darwin to Marx/Engels? Who would welcome the ideas of Darwin, and who would fear them?

2) How was Freud a product of his age? What was his main contribution to intellectual life (i.e. how did he believe that memories and emotions worked?), and how were his ideas a reaction to his age? For Freud, what are dreams?

3) How and why were 19^th century cities transformed? Who did these transformations benefit or threaten?

4) How did the industrial revolution progress in the second half of the 19^th century? What new industrial developments and inventions happen?

5) What motives explain the dramatic expansion of European powers around the globe at the end of the 19^th century? How was imperialism both economically and politically motivated? Where, exactly (into what continents and countries) did Europeans expand?

6) What does Kipling mean by “white man’s burden” (DWC 173-4/Spielvogel 443)?

7) According to Hobson (DWC 174-77), what drove imperialism and why was imperialism hypocritical?

8) How are nationalism and imperialism inherently connected? The ideology of nationalism was once inherently connected to liberalism (i.e. opposed to conservatism). What has happened to the ideology of nationalism by now? Would you say it is more liberal or conservative?

9) What were the immediate and long-term results of colonialism? How did the colonial experience affect both natives and Europeans?

10) We tend to think of history as “progress”—that things are always getting better, and people are always learning from their predecessors. Considering any/all of the reading/lecture material for this week, do you believe that Europeans living around the turn of the 20^th century were living in an age of human progress? Consider as possible subject matter: developments in science, art, women’s rights (or lack thereof), imperialism, political systems, and war. You may discuss any topic(s), but remember to pick one side, underline your thesis, and cite specific passages from the text.

Week 10: World War I—NO PAPER DUE THIS WEEK

1) What was the Bismarckian system of alliances, and how successful was it at keeping European peace?

2) What problems were mounting in Europe that led to the outbreak of World War I?

3) What were the most immediate and more long-range causes of World War I?

4) What were people’s expectations of the war, and how did reality differ?

5) What characterized the fighting that took place during this war?

6) Where did the most significant revolution occur during WWI? What was the name of its leader?

7) What was trench warfare like, especially according to Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front, and Donald Fraser’s 1915-16 Journal? Why were people willing to sacrifice so much for such small advances?

8) Who was the leader that more than anyone else, defined the peace settlement following WWI? Where was this peace drawn up, that gave the peace its name? What did the Germans think of this treaty?

9) Where di the most significant revolution occur during World War I? What did Lenin call for, specifically, in his “Call to Power”?

Week 11: Midterm review and examination #2

Week 12: Interwar Culture/The European Economy

1) What were some of the predominant cultural trends in Europe after WWI? How were such trends reflected in both art and in ideas about gender, i.e. about men and women and their roles in society?

2) What happened to the European economy in the interwar period? How did various countries react to their respective economic crises?

3) Orwell’s account describes the life of coalminers in the interwar period. What does he tell us? What do you think the point of his narrative is?

4) Look back and consider any/all sources we have read on WWI and its aftermath, and most importantly for this paper, “The Treaty of Versailles” (DWC 180-83); “German Observations” (DWC 183-185); Keynes’ “Economic Consequences of the Peace” and Orwell’s “Road to Wigan Pier” (on-line). Do you think the Allies should have punished the Germans so harshly? Why or why not?

Week 13: Fascism

1) What is fascism exactly? (=historians have long debated the meaning of this term!) How did Mussolini define it? What were the characteristics of totalitarian states, and to what degree were they present in Italy, Germany, and Russia?

2) How would you describe Stalin’s rule of Russia in the interwar period? How did he industrialize the country? What was involved in his five-year plans? What was it like to work on a collective farm? Why was it important to industrialize so quickly?

3) What was the Weimar republic? What specific conditions led to the rise of fascism in Germany? Why would fascism have been appealing to Germans in the 1930’s? To what groups in particular, and why?

4) How was race central to Nazi ideology, and to Hitler himself? How did Germans/Hitler depict both the Germans and the Jews? According to Geist, who were the SA and the Gestapo and what did they do?

5) Considering carefully all the reading from both Spielvogel and DWC, what do you think was the most important factor in the Nazi’s coming to power? Armed force? Elections? Their views on race? The economy/depression? Other factors? What was the most important reason why this political party came to dominate Germany politics?

Week 14: Fascist Propaganda/WWII

1) What types of arguments do films like Triumph of the Will and The Eternal Jew make? Why do you think it was important for the Nazi’s to produce films like these?

2) What were Hitler’s goals, both in terms of racial policy, domestic policy, and foreign policy, and how did he try to achieve them? What were the major steps taken by Hitler between 1933-39 that ultimately led to war? Could Hitler have been prevented from plunging Europe into war? If so, how?

3) How did WWII begin? Why did Britain and France declare war on Germany? What had Germany been doing that was politically unacceptable? What Asian country first declared war on the German side? What were the main events and characteristics of the war? How did WWII affect civilian life differently than WWI?

4) How do you account for the early successes of the Germans from 1939-1941? To what degree did Blitzkrieg play a role in these successes? When and why did the initiative in World War II pass out of Germany’s hands?

5) How were the fighting fronts different from World War I?

6) Compare the responses of Churchill and Chamberlain to the Munich Conference appeasement agreement (Spielvogel p. 491). Why did they disagree so much? Considering any/all the primary sources we have read up until now, what side would you take and why?

7) Why did Germany lose the war? Was this a foregone conclusion?

8) What characterized American foreign policy after World War II?

Week 15: The Holocaust

1) What did the Nuremberg laws discuss/address? Besides the Jews, what other “undesirables” did the Nazi’s seek to eliminate?

2) What did the word Night symbolize for Wiesel? Why do you think he entitled his book Night? How does he describe the nighttime, and how does it compare to “day”? Look carefully at all the ways/places in the text that this word is used, and decide what you think the most important meaning of this word/symbol is. Remember to form your argument by citing and discussing specific examples from the text.