Guilford College

Cynthia M. Nearman, Assistant Professor and Director of Writing
Alvis Dunn, Assistant Professor

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES (HP:) This course focuses on historical change and how individuals and groups both initiate change and respond to social, economic and political forces. Historical Perspectives courses link with College Reading and Writing in a two-semester first-year writing sequence. Course focuses include critical and research writing and responsible use of the Internet. Historical Perspectives courses are indicated with the letters “HP” at the beginning of the course title. Courses without this designation will not satisfy this requirement. This course may not double-count with Breadth, but can double-count with Critical Perspectives.

BIOL 151 Evolution:An Historical Perspective. Credits – 4. An examination of the views of species origins prior to Darwin, Darwin’s theories and those of his contemporaries and the history of evolutionary theory in modern times. One of the weekly class periods will be used to give students practical experience in the methods of evolutionary study, such as techniques for determining protein all types, and examining species relationships through DNA analysis. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

ENGL 151 HP:Title Varies. Credits – 4. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

GEOL 151 HP:Climate and History. Credits – 4. Explores the roles of global climate and climate change in the evolution and development of human beings and their cultures. Topics include climate-driven migration, effects of ice ages, climate change during the last two millennia and their effects on subsistence, war, commerce and exploration and what to expect in next century.  Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 101 HP:The Medieval Web. Credits – 4. This course examines the development of the medieval idea of a “Christian Empire” from the time of Charlemagne to the mid‑15th century. Through a close reading of contemporary texts of law, literature, religion and biography, students will explore such topics as the Papacy, Crusades, feudalism, scholasticism and medieval art. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 102 HP:The Web of Europe since 1400. Credits – 4. This course investigates the genesis and movements of the modern period, from the Renaissance to the fall of the Iron Curtain. On the basis of contemporary documents, students will discuss such issues as nationalism, the Reformation, absolutism, religion in the Age of Reason, egalitarianism and totalitarianism. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 103 HP:U.S. Origins: From Pre-Colonial Times to 1877. Credits – 4. This course begins by studying Native American cultures before European contact as well as emerging tensions as European populations migrated westward. Students analyze why the colonists revolted against Britain, how new democratic political institutions evolved, the complex place of African enslavement and how Reconstruction-era politics and reform traditions fostered a new industrialized nation state. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 104 HP:Modern Times:The U.S. from 1877 to the Present. Credits – 4. This course analyzes how the United States became a mature industrialized consumer society, a haven for peoples from around the world, a welfare state and a global superpower. Studying both the benefits and costs of 20th-century U.S. political and economic success enables students to understand some of the reasons why diverse social groups challenged the economic and political order. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 205 HP:American Imperialism, American Progressive. Credits – 4. The years 1890-1925 witnessed tremendous upheavals as America became a world power abroad while at home, reform movements flourished alongside anti-immigrant campaigns, the lynching and disfranchisement of African-Americans, a widening gap between rich and poor and a Red Scare. Students engage in a semester-long project to define this crucial era through the public writings of those who shaped it. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 212 HP:American Frontiers. Credits – 4. Defining frontiers as contested places where people met and struggled over control of natural resources, the labor necessary to exploit those resources and the right to define the boundaries of society, the course examines various frontier regions across North America from the late eighteenth century through the early twentieth. The course also focuses on the importance of the mythology of the frontier in American society up to the present. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 221 HP:North Carolina: Demographic History. Credits – 4. Explores the demographic history of North Carolina from before the European invasion to the present, grappling with the idea and definition of immigrant, foreigner and outsider, as well as with issues involving regionalism, race, class, gender, religious difference and ethnicity.  Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 237 HP:Europe in Revolution, 1789-1918. Credits – 4. A study of the main issues in 19th-century Western Europe—industrialization, shift from monarchy to constitutional government, growth of nationalism, socialism and imperialism—and their impact on Europe by the eve of the war in 1914. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

HIST 238 HP:War and Peace: 20th-Century Europe, 1914-present. Credits – 4. Compares different European countries and examines their relations with each other in a very ideologically driven century. While the course emphasizes politics and diplomacy, peace, war and socio-economic developments, it will also consider the history of the arts, science and technology, women, the environment, business, religion, ideas, law, culture and biography. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

MUS 119 HP:Music and Social Conflict. Credits – 4. Examines a period of history that includes both the continuation of Classical/Romantic traditions and the dramatic and sometimes sudden shifts in Western musical style directly affected by world crisis. The music studied will include works from the various movements of Modernism, Neoclassicism and specific works inspired by the Holocaust. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

MUS 152 HP:America and Its Musicals: 1900-1975 (THEA 152). Credits – 4. Traces development of the American musical theatre from 1900 to 1975 with a primary focus on the years of significant transformation that begin in 1940. Studies the art from sociological, political, cultural, economic, artistic and historic perspectives. Analyzes individual artists and productions that have influenced and been influenced by the evolving American national identity. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

REL 283 HP:Religions of the Minorities of Southwest China. Credits – 4. Studies the religious traditions of the Naxi, Tibetans, Yi, Lisu, Moso, & Bai peoples of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. The Chinese “Cultural Revolution” (1966-1976), which systematically devastated the religious lives of these peoples, serves as the courses central historical focus. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

SOAN 216 HP:The Anthropology of Colonialism. Credits – 4. Introduces historical anthropology by exploring the socio-cultural dimensions of European colonialism from the late 15th century to the post-colonial period. The course focuses on the colonial experience in Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East, particularly from the point of view of the colonized. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

SPST 247 Historical and Philosophical Perspectives on Sport. Credits – 4. A study of the American sporting heritage and significant historical influences on it from other cultures. “Sport” in this course is used to include amateur, professional and school sports, fitness, recreation and dance. Emphasis on sport leaders and the innovations that have shaped American sport. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

THEA 151 HP:The Birth of the Avant-Garde (ENGL 151). Credits – 4. Traces the evolution of literary and performance styles from realism/naturalism to the avant-garde movements at the turn of 20th-century Europe: symbolism, futurism, dadaism, surrealism and expressionism. Links each style to social forces, music, art, important people, ideas and watershed events. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.

THEA 152 HP:America and Its Musicals: 1900-1975 (MUS 152). Credits – 4. Traces development of the American musical theatre from 1900 to 1975 with a primary focus on the years of significant transformation that begin in 1940. Studies the art from sociological, political, cultural, economic, artistic and historic perspectives. Analyzes individual artists and productions that have influenced and been influenced by the evolving American national identity. Prerequisite: ENGL 102. Fulfills historical perspectives requirement.