History Major

History Major

IN THIS SECTION

Expand your perspective.

The history major provides you with a solid foundation in the discipline of history, with a strong emphasis on hands-on, active learning. You will develop a strong foundation in historical thinking and research skills and methods, and you will expand your capacity to contribute to our increasingly global society as a well-informed citizen. In lively, interactive classroom exchanges, you will analyze the meaning of past events and acquire an informed perspective on your own history and the history of people around the world. Our diverse curriculum covers a broad range of topics in American history as well as all areas of world history—Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America. A special track for educators provides those planning to teach K-12 in Massachusetts with a solid foundation to teach the Commonwealth’s social studies curriculum.

WHAT YOU WILL DO

  • Explore the particularity of past lives and understand the scale of human experience
  • Learn how to collect, sift, organize, question, synthesize, and interpret complex material
  • Learn about the past from multiple perspectives
  • Develop the skills of history through doing: designing research projects, engaging in research, reading primary sources, and developing interpretations
  • Craft well-constructed arguments that draw from a range of evidence
  • Gain breadth of understanding while following your own interests and passions on particular eras, places, and questions

Program Options in History

Explore sample courses in this program.

HI-103 Connecting Ancient Worlds: World History to 1500

Surveys economic, social, political, and intellectual developments of global societies and their inter-relationship from ancient times to 1500.
3 credits

HI-104 Age of Empires: World History 1500 to the Present

Surveys economic, social, political, and intellectual development of global societies, world civilizations, and their inter-relationship from 1500 to the present.
3 credits

HI-105 Modern World History

Surveys economic, social, political, and intellectual development of global societies and their inter-relationship from 1914 to the present.
3 credits

HI-111 US History to 1877

From colonization through the Civil War era. A study of politics, society, economy, diplomacy, and culture in that period.
3 credits

HI-112 US History 1865 to the Present

From the Civil War era to the present. Topics include politics, society, economy, diplomacy, and culture in modern America.
3 credits

HI-200 The Historian’s Craft

A methods course providing hands-on exploration of history as both a professional field and a scholarly discipline.
4 credits

HI-201 International Relations Theory

Theory and practice of international security (realism and internationalism) and international political economy (liberalism and protectionism) in their historical context.
3 credits

HI-202 Globalization

The promise and problems of globalization (spread of free market capitalism and political democracy).
3 credits

HI-203 The United States Since 1945

Explains the history and culture of the United States since 1945.
3 credits

HI-204 History of Science and Technology

Progress of science since the Enlightenment, including applied science or technology from the 19th century.
3 credits

HI-205 Native America

This survey covers the broad sweep of Native American history and focuses on the encounter between American and European civilizations and how Native culture has adapted through the centuries.
3 credits

HI-206 A History of Warfare

An examination of the role of war in conflict resolution, great battles that changed history, and the impact of technology on war.
3 credits

HI-207 American West: Myth and Reality

The historic development of the West, its impact on the American character, and a study of how myths became accepted “fact.”
3 credits

HI-208 American Immigrant History

Survey of immigration. Topics such as old-world background, impact on the United States, nativism, cultural pluralism, religion, mobility, family, and politics.
3 credits

HI-211 History of US Foreign Policy I

Colonial origins to the era of the Spanish American War. The sources and developments of United States foreign policy in that period.
3 credits

HI-212 History of US Foreign Policy II

From 1900 to recent times: United States foreign policy traditions and the challenges of great power status.
3 credits

HI-213 Colonial Latin America

The people of Latin America from pre-Columbian societies to the wars for independence, focusing on race, sex, and power.
3 credits

HI-214 Modern Latin America

The people of Latin America from independence to the present, focusing on race, sex, and power.
3 credits

HI-215 History of American Thought

Explores the history of ideas in the United States, including major intellectual movements, thinkers, and texts.
3 credits

HI-216 Economic History of the US

An introduction to United States economic development; particular attention is paid to industrialization and the labor force.
3 credits

HI-217 US Social History

Survey of social and cultural history. Topics such as family, religion, education, popular literature, architecture, transportation, and reform.
3 credits

HI-220 American Military History

An overview of American military history from colonial times to the present. Students develop a conceptual and methodological framework for studying the American military system and how it has changed over time and how it has shaped, and been shaped by, both US and global history.
3 credits

HI-221 African-American History I

The people of African descent from the emergence of the slave trade to the Civil War, focusing on race, gender, and power.
3 credits

HI-222 African-American History II

The people of African descent from the end of the Civil War through the 20th century, focusing on race, class, gender, and power.
3 credits

HI-223 History of France I

Social, cultural, and military developments of France during the Middle Ages and the Capetian, Valois, and Bourbon periods to 1750.
3 credits

HI-224 English History I

English history from earliest settlement to the reign of Elizabeth I. Origins of the common law, Parliament, and English liberty.
3 credits

HI-225 English History II

English history through the English Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, the British Empire, the World Wars, and decline.
3 credits

HI-226 Latin American History Through Film

This course explores how filmmakers have portrayed Latin American history in their movies.
3 credits

HI-230 Nicaragua, the US, and the World

The course examines the impact of globalization and imperialism on the lives of Nicaraguans at home and in their diasporic communities.
3 credits

HI-232 European Intellectual History II

The main theoretical works, philosophic, psychological, and scientific, of the 19th and 20th centuries.
3 credits

HI-233 History of Latin America

The Spanish conquest, colonial institutions, wars of independence, and development of Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina.
3 credits

HI-234 Russian History I

A study of major political, economic, social, intellectual, and diplomatic currents in Russia, from the Kievan era to Stalin.
3 credits

HI-236 Modern Far East History I

The cultural, political, and economic roots of modern East Asia, focusing on China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.
3 credits

HI-240 American Popular Culture

This course is an introduction and survey of the multi-disciplinary field of American popular culture, analyzing popular or non-elite culture in the United States from the colonial era to the present.
3 credits

HI-241 English Constitutional History

The development of English Constitution from the Magna Carta through revolution, supremacy of Parliament, reform acts, entry into European Union, and devolution.
3 credits

HI-244 American Urban History

The process of accelerating urbanization in America since the 19th century: cultural, social, economic, and political aspects of urban life.
3 credits

HI-245 History of Modern Germany I

The origins and growth of Brandenburg-Prussia; their impact on the rest of Germany from the foundation of the Holy Roman Empire to the emergence of the Second Reich in 1871.
3 credits

HI-247 Central America and the Caribbean

This survey examines the political, cultural, and social history of Central America and the Caribbean from pre-Columbian times to the present with an emphasis on the 20th century.
3 credits

HI-248 Seminar on Globalization and Human Rights

A.I.D. program participants in their sophomore year explore globalization and human rights and issues of personal growth and academic development.
3 credits

HI-249 US Labor History I

The relationship between workers, their employers, and the surrounding community between 1815 and World War II.
3 credits

HI-251 Roots of China’s Rise: Reform, Revolution, and Reinvention

Examines the modern historical roots of China’s rise as an international power, from the decline of its last imperial dynasty through the tumults of 20th-century social movements to its recent emergence as a global economic power.
3 credits

HI-257 Political Terrorism in Historical Perspective

A comparative approach to the terrorist movements of the 19th and 20th centuries, concentrating on the European groups.
3 credits

HI-258 Russia Since the Stalin Era

An analysis of the major political, economic, and diplomatic developments in the (former) Soviet Union since the death of Stalin; the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
3 credits

HI-261 Middle East History I

The rise and expansion of Islam; the Caliphate; Muslim religion, civilization and its impact on the West, decline of medieval Islam.
3 credits

HI-262 Middle East History Il: The Ottoman Empire, 1289-1920

The Ottoman Empire: expansion, institutions, impact on Europe, decline of the Empire.
3 credits

HI-263 US-Middle East Relations

Course discusses the influence the Middle East has had on United States policy since United States independence to the present.
3 credits

HI-267 US-Latin American Relations

This course analyzes the political, economic, social, and cultural impact of the interactions between and among the governments and people of the US and Latin America.
3 credits

HI-274 The History of Gender and Sexuality in America

The history of sexuality and gender in America. Includes investigations of lesbian and gay histories; transgender histories; attempts to regulate and define sexuality; practices of birth control; the intersections of race, class, and gender; the social construction of gender; and the challenges of doing hidden histories.
3 credits

HI-275 The History of Childhood

The central focus of this course is to determine how children were regarded and treated by adults during the 16th through 19th centuries.
3 credits

HI-276 Jewish History I

This course constitutes a systematic introduction to the biblical history of the Jewish people down to the 12th century.
3 credits

HI-278 African History I: Before 1800

An introduction to the history of societies and cultures of Africa up to 1800. Students consider such topics as Nubian queens in Egypt, the diffusion of Bantu languages, transcontinental trade networks, the spread of Islam and Christianity, the rise of West African empires, and the transatlantic slave trade.
3 credits

HI-279 African History II: Since 1800

An introduction to the history of groups and countries within Africa from 1800 to the early 21st century. Like the rest of the world, Africa was also changing rapidly during these centuries. Topics include the extraction of wealth, European colonial rule, independence and development during the Cold War, and Africa today.
3 credits

HI-280 Introduction to African Diaspora History

Students learn about the development of the African diaspora and how it has shaped the world since antiquity. They consider the movements, experiences, and exploits of ordinary people and celebrated figures of African descent through such topics as imperial expansion; slavery, resistance, and freedom; nationalism and the civil rights movement; and current global issues.
3 credits

HI-301 Research and Writing of History

The history of history. A study of historiography, theory of history, and practice of historical research and writing. Continues from Historian’s Craft and lays the foundation for capstone-level work.
4 credits

HI-302 Medieval History

Cultural, social, and diplomatic European history of the Middle Ages from fall of the Roman Empire until the rise of the Renaissance.
3 credits

HI-306 Renaissance and Reformation

Intellectual and cultural history of Europe from the middle of the 13th to the middle of the 16th century.
3 credits

HI-316 American-Russian Relations 1781-Present

An analysis of American-Russian relations from their inception to the present, stressing the period since 1917.
3 credits

HI-321 Museums and Society

Course on the history of museums and their development as a major space for public history and memory.
3 credits

HI-322 Nationalism

Examines the theories of nationalism and the development of the modern nation-state and its effect on global politics.
3 credits

HI-375 Popular Music and Performance in Modern Africa

This course looks at changes in popular music in Africa since the late 19th century. Instead of studying the practice of traditional or art music in Africa, students gain a stronger understanding of the significance of global connections between Africa and other parts of the world by examining the performance of popular music in a variety of spaces, including streets, nightclubs, and ceremonies.
3 credits

HI-380 American Foreign Policy Since the Cold War

Instruments of American foreign policy; major foreign policy developments since 1989.
3 credits