HIS 122: Western Civilization 2

Course Description

This course will focus on western civilization from the Renaissance to the present. Through the use of primary and secondary materials, the course explores the political, social, economic, intellectual, and cultural history of the West to examine the achievements of modern Western Civilization, and their impact throughout the world. Course topics include the Age of Exploration, the Reformation, Absolutism, the Enlightenment, the French Revolution and Napoleon, the Industrial Revolution, Imperialism, World War I, World War II, the Cold War, and the European Union.

Recommended Prerequisite

  • HIS 121: Western Civilization 1

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  1. Identify the significant political, socioeconomic, and cultural developments in modern Western Civilization.
  2. Examine the major events and figures in the history of the Western world from the Reformation through the Present.
  3. Discuss the importance of historical sources within historical context to draw inferences about the events in that shape the Reformation to the present.
  4. Explain the differences in the various eras of European history.
  5. Identify and describe the differences between the ideals that shaped the Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment. 
  6. Evaluate the impact of the various intellectual, political, and social movements.

Course Activities and Grading

AssignmentsWeight

Discussions (Weeks 1-8)

35%

Quizzes (Weeks 1-8)

20%

Avatar Blogs (Weeks 1-7)

20%

Final Exam (Week 8)

25%

Total

100%

Required Textbooks

Available through Charter Oak State College's Book Bundle

  • Hunt, Lynn. Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures, Volume 2. 7th ed. Bedford Books, 2022. ISBN-10: 1-319-33154-8 or ISBN-13: 978-1-319-33154-2

Course Schedule

Week

SLOs

Readings and Exercises

Assignments

1

1,2,3

Topics: Review of the Renaissance, the Rise of Global Encounters, & the Reformation

Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapters 14 & 15
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website)
    • Luther, Freedom of a Christian
    • Calvin, Articles Concerning Predestination/The Necessity of Reforming the Church
    • Saint Ignatius of Loyola, A New Kind of Catholicism
    • Montaigne, Of Cannibals
    • The Witch Trial of Suzanne Gaudry
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lectures
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Create Avatar for Avatar blogs

2

1,2,3,6

Topics: Absolutism, Constitutionalism, and the Search for Order (1640-1700)

Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 16 &17
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website
    • Colbert, Instructions/A Royal Ordinance
    • The Trial of Charles I
    • Hobbes, Leviathan
    • Locke, The Second Treatise of Government
    • The Revolt of Stenka Razin
    • The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano Written by Himself
    • A Brief Description of the Excellent Vertues [sic] of That Sober and Wholesome Drink, Called "Coffee"
    • Voltaire, Letters Concerning the English Nation
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Complete Avatar blog entry 1

3

3,5,6

Topic: The Promise of Enlightenment and the Cataclysm of Revolution (1750-1799)

Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 18 & 19
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website
    • Rousseau, Discourse on the Origin and Foundations of the Inequality among Men
    • Beccaria, On Crimes and Punishments
    • Smith, Wealth of NationsDecree of General Liberty
    • Frederick II, Political Testament
    • Sieyes, What is the Third Estate?
    • Political Cartoon
    • Declaration of the Rights of Man
    • De Gouges, Declaration of the Rights of Women
    • Robespierre, Report on the Principles of Political Morality
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Complete Avatar blog entry 2

4

1,4,5,6

Topics: Napoleon and the Revolutionary Legacy, Industrialization, and Social Ferment (1800-1850)

Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 20 and 21
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website
    • Metternich, Results of the Congress at Laybach
    • Kakhovsky, The Decembrist Insurrection in Russia
    • Reviews of Beethoven’s Works
    • Ellis, Characteristics of the Women of England
    • Testimony Gathered by Ashley’s Mines Commission/Punch Magazine
    • Engels, Draft of a Communist Confession of Faith
    • Lin, Letter to Queen Victoria
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Complete Avatar blog entry 3

5

1,2,6

Topics: Politics and Culture of the Nation-State, Empire, Industry, and Everyday Life (1850-1890)

 Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 22 and 23
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website
    • Kropotkin, Memoirs of a Revolutionist
    • Cavour, Letter to King Victor Emmanuel
    • Von Ihering, Two Letters
    • Spencer, Progress: Its Law and Cause
    • Darwin, The Descent of Man
    • Ferry, Speech before the French National Assembly
    • Kumalo, His Story
    • Williams, Made in Germany
    • Bondfield, A Life’s Work
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Complete Avatar blog entry 4

6

2,3,6

Topics: Modernity, World War I, and Its Aftermath (1890-1929)

 Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 24 and 25
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website)
    • Illustration from Eugenics Education Society of London
    • Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams
    • Zola, “J’accuse!”
    • Pankhurst, Speech from the Dock
    • Kipling, The White Man’s Burden/Editorial
    • Von Treitschke, Place of Warfare in the State/Massis, The Young People of Today
    • Franke and Sassoon, Two Soldiers’ Views
    • Lenin, The State and Revolution
    • Mussolini, The Doctrine of Fascism
    • Hitler, Mein Kampf
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Complete Avatar blog entry 5

7

1,2,3

Topics: The Great Depression, World War II, the Cold War, and the remaking of Europe (1929-1970s)

 Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 26 and 27
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website)
    • Chamberlain, Speech on the Munich Crisis
    • Bankhalter, Kibort, Memories of the Holocaust
    • Hachiya, Hiroshima Diary
    • Ho Chi Minh, Declaration of Independence of the Republic of Vietnam
    • Beauvoir, The Second Sex
    • “How You Can Survive Fallout,” Life Magazine/Letter from President Kennedy
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Quiz
  • Complete Avatar blog entry 6

8

1-6

Topics: The End of the Cold War and a New Globalism (1970s-Present)

Readings:

  • TMOTW: Chapter 28 and 29
  • Primary Sources (available via Launchpad Companion website)
    • Student Voices of Protest
    • Chirac, New French Antiterrorist Laws
    • Nath, EU Membership Prospect Cartoon
  • Read assigned material
  • Review PowerPoint lecture
  • Participate in discussions
  • Complete Final Exam
  • Complete course evaluation

FINAL EXAM
Chapters 14 - 29
SLOs 1-6

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