Individuals and Societies 103 Spring 2005

World History Since 1500

Instructor:
Professor Kevin Gosner
139A Social Sciences
621-1168
kgosner@u.arizona.edu

Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday 10:30-12:00 and by appointment

Required Texts:

William McNeill, Plagues and Peoples.
Ross Dunn, The Adventures of Ibn Battuta .
Joanna Waley-Cohen, The Sextants of Beijing.
John Thornton, Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World .
Michael Adas, Peter Stearns, and Stuart Schwartz, Turbulent Passage.

Requirements:

Attendance and Participation in Sections (30%; more than 3 unexcused absences will result in no credit).

Take-Home Essays: (except as noted, 4-5 pages, typed, double-spaced, 12 pt. font, with citations and footnotes).

1. Why have so many of the world's peoples been poor? (3 pages: ungraded, but you must complete this assignment). Due in sections, Friday, January 21.
2. What defines empire? (10%) Due in lecture, Monday, February 21.
3. How did the Industrial Revolution transform politics and government? (15%) Due in lecture, Monday, April 11.
4. Why have wars been commonplace in the modern period? (15%) Due in sections, Friday, April 29.
5. Why, today, are so many of the world's people poor? (20$) Due no later than Friday, May 13, 9:00 a.m.

Take-Home Map Work (10%: graded pass/fail): Download the outline map and locate the appropriate place name for each question. Completed map assignments are due no later than the dates indicated, but may be turned in earlier.

1. Eurasia before 1500 Locate: The Holy Roman Empire; the Ottoman Empire; Principalities of Russia; Kingdom of Naples; Republic of Venice; The Ming Empire; The Mughal Empire; Safavid Empire; Mongolia: FEBRUARY 4
2. The Islamic World Locate these cities: Locate these cities: Timbuktu; Tangier; Cairo; Jerusalem; Mecca; Aden: Mogadishu; Baghdad: Damascus; Constantinople; Delhi; Calicutta; Malacca FEBRUARY 18
3. The Indian Ocean Locate: Arabian Sea; Bay of Bengal; Sumatra; Java; Madagascar; Sri Lanka; India; Iran; Somalia; Yemen; Ethiopia; South Africa; Malaysia; Thailand; Australia; Maldives FEBRUARY 25
4. Africa in the 19 th Century Name all the countries: MARCH 4
5. Asia in the 19 th Century Name all the countries: MARCH 11
6. Latin America after Independence Name all the countries and capital cities: MARCH 25
7. Europe After World War I Name all the countries and capital cities: APRIL 15
8. The Middle East After 1948 Name all the countries and capital Cities: APRIL 22
9. South Asia Since World War II Name all the countries south of China and east of Afghanistan: MAY 4
10. Africa Today: Name all the countries:MAY 4

Late Assignment Policy

Unexcused late assignments will be penalized one letter grade; any individual requests for an extension or change of date or time for turning in an assignment should be directed at the teaching assistant and must be made prior to the due date for the assignment.)

Code of Academic Integrity:

Students are responsible for compliance with all University policies regarding academic integrity http://studpubs.web.arizona.edu/policies/cacaint.htm as well as with American Historical Association standards for historical scholarship http://www.historians.org/governance/pd/Curriculum/plagiarism_intro.htm

Schedule of Weekly Topics and Readings:

Jan. 12-14: How can we study world history?

Jan. 19-21: Do humans have a common history?

McNeill: 19-94.

Jan. 24-28: What is an empire? Waley-Cohen: 11-55.

Jan. 31-Feb. 4: How can we account for the spread of Islam? Dunn: 1-106.

Feb. 7-11: How did the Mongols shape medieval history? Dunn: 106-212.

Feb. 14-18: How did the Mongols shape modern history? McNeil: 161-207; Dunn: 213-265.

Feb. 21-25: How did global forces contribute to the rise of Europe? Thornton: 1-71; McNeill: 210-241.

Feb. 28-Mar. 4: What defines colonialism? Thornton: 72-182.

Mar. 7-11: What role did religion play in early modern global encounters? Waley-Cohen: 55-92; Thornton: 183-271.

Mar. 21-25: What defines modernity? Waley-Cohen: 92-128; McNeill: 242-295.

Mar. 28-Apr. 1: How can we understand the “Age of Revolution” as a global phenomenon? Thornton: 272-334; Waley-Cohen: 129-165.

Apr. 4-8: How did the Industrial Revolution contribute to the Rise of Modern States? Adas: 6-63; Waley-Cohen: 166-206.

Apr. 11-15: What Led to World War I? Adas: 64-123.

Apr. 18-22: How did the Great Depression transform the State? Adas: 124-179; Waley-Cohen: 207-246.

Apr. 26-29: What were the Origins of the Cold War? Adas: 180-269.

May 2-4: Who opposes globalization and why? Adas: 270-383; Waley-Cohen: 247-28