Designed for non-history majors, this course introduces students to the historical craft through a series of short lecture sequences that focus on specific events, ideas, and individuals that changed the course of world history.

This course traces the emergence of industrial societies and welfare states from old regime Europe to the present. The course surveys major developments, including the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, the Great War, the Russian Revolution and the Soviet experiment, colonialism, fascism, Nazism, World War II, the Cold War, decolonization, the collapse of communism, and the future of Europe. 

Throughout the semester, you will learn about the basic events and concepts that have shaped the modern history of the West. At the same time, we will seek to understand how historians develop these events and concepts into an interpretation of history—in short, how historians write a history from a series of facts. Two questions direct this course: How have Europeans balanced individual liberties and the desire for social unity? And, how have modern social and economic transformations affected this balance? This course will introduce major questions of historical process and emphasize chronological, comparative, and contextual reasoning and the construction of original arguments grounded in historical evidence.

This class surveys European history from 1900 to 1945, a period rife with ideological conflict and mass politics. The course seeks to explore the forces behind these extremes, with a particular focus on changing tides in culture and politics in the decades preceding two cataclysmic world wars. The course also addresses the relationship between Europe and other continents.

This course is concerned both with the theoretical paradigm and historical realities of totalitarianism in its Communist and Fascist/National Socialist varieties. Combining a chronological survey with direct comparison of key elements defining the Soviet, Italian, and German totalitarian regimes alike, particular attention is given to the “cult of leadership,” territorial expansion and war, life under totalitarian rule, propaganda and communication, genocide and mass murder, and the role of terror, coercion, and popular support. From their ideological origins to their dramatic and violent collapse, we will trace the convoluted path of these groups in order to explain the domestic and foreign impact of their totalitarian rule and to understand how so many Europeans came to accept and follow these destructive regimes. Through an examination of material from a wide variety of primary sources, including political speeches, private letters and journals entries, newspaper accounts, magazine articles, memoirs, propaganda films, and  documentaries, this course showcases social, cultural, political, economic, gender, military, and psycho-social history in ways that will encourage  students to draw their own conclusions as to the true nature of these totalitarian movements and regimes, their legacies, and the  individual experience of dictatorship and war. 

The purpose of this course is to provide a broad view and comprehensive understanding of World War II. It deals with the war’s causes, conduct, and consequences, and consider the perspective of all the major belligerents, Axis and Allied. As a global history, this course covers all military theaters, devoting time to operations in Europe and the Pacific. It also examines the war’s impact on civilian populations and the manner in which the conflict transformed the economic, social, and political realities of domestic life. Starting with a broad examination of the causes and events that led to the outbreak of war, critical themes discussed include interwar military and political developments, war ideologies, fascism, blitzkrieg, life under occupation, women, home front, ethnic minority soldiers, strategic bombing, internment, ethnic cleansing and the Holocaust, nuclear weapons, peace and justice, and war legacies.

This faculty-led study abroad program is an in-depth exploration of World War II and its legacies, with particular focus on the involvement and experiences of American soldiers fighting in western Europe. For the classroom component, we take a broad view and obtain a comprehensive understanding of the war, dealing with its causes, conduct, and consequences. We consider the perspective of all the major belligerents, Axis and Allied. We also examine the war’s impact on civilian populations and the manner in which the conflict transformed the economic, social, and political realities of domestic life. Much attention is given to historical memory and how WWII has impacted the national narrative of the United States and the identity of its citizens.

For the integrated study aboard component, we travel to England and France for nine days to explore some of the key battle sites and memorials of the war. We gain insight not only into the dilemmas faced and subsequent decisions made by the Allied and German leaderships, but to all people affected by the war.

This course examines the history of political and social radicalism in Europe during the era of the world worlds, as expressed in the form of dictatorship. The twentieth century has at different times been characterized as an age of totalitarianism, an age of democracy, and an "age of extremes." Through the focal cases of Bolshevik (Leninist and Stalinist) Russia, Fascist Italy, and Nazi Germany, we will explore how we arrived at and transitioned between the “extremes” of the age and learn about the iconic historical moments and regimes that shape our understanding of dictatorship, democracy, and politics at large today. We will pay special attention to the relationship between individuals and the state, both in terms of how dictatorial and democratic regimes make themselves present in the lives of the individual and how individuals make sense of their lives under the regimes. 

This course analyzes the cataclysmic history of modern Germany, with a principal focus on the period between unification (1871) and reunification (1990). Emphasis will be placed on the social upheavals accompanying the two world wars and their influence on the development of German national identity in successive regimes. Themes to be explored include: the Napoleonic Wars, 1848 Revolutions, Bismarckian Germany; imperialism and colonialism; the impact of the Great War on German society and politics; the crises of the Weimar Republic; the character of the Nazi “seizure” of power; Nazi ideology, politics, and social policy; WWII and the Holocaust; and postwar destruction, defeat, and reconstruction. We seek to understand past accounts of German history in terms of the ideologies and insecurities of the post-WWII period. In this spirit, a central focus will be the contextualization of the National Socialist past and the Holocaust and various ways in which Germany’s past still haunts the present.

The rise and fall of National Socialism in Germany is one of the most intensely-studied topics in history. Nevertheless, after more than seventy years, popular views of Nazism in the media and among the public remain simplistic and driven by equal parts horror and fascination. Adolf Hitler, for instance, is often portrayed as an evil genius of supernatural ability; the Nazi state is similarly imagined as having held absolute power over every aspect of its subjects’ lives. This class peels away at the popular image of Nazism by investigating National Socialism as a political, social, and cultural phenomenon, and by placing its development firmly within the larger framework of German and European history. About a third of the class addresses the perpetration of the Holocaust, the nadir of western civilization. We grapple with how the roots of the Holocaust can not only be found in prejudice and in ideology, but in the mundane practices of modern life.

Prof. Jody Manning (lead instructor): More than seventy years after its defeat, Nazi Germany remains a touchstone in debates about democracy, human rights, and historical memory around the world. This course sets the history of National Socialist Germany (1933-45) in its European and global contexts, focusing largely on the events and remembrance of the Holocaust – its victims, perpetrators, collaborators, and bystanders. Exploring the political, social, and cultural history of the Nazi dictatorship, this Spring 2022 program is concerned with major events, overarching themes, and narratives related to political and social radicalism; propaganda and education; gender and sexuality; art and culture; antisemitism; genocide; and memorialization. As a study aboard course, we will be able to visit numerous historical sites, unpack how people and communities succumbed to radical movements, and follow Germany down a dark path towards violence, war, and genocide. 

Since this course spans many centuries and covers the continent of Europe and beyond, we will examine what the Holocaust means within historical context at our first few meetings on campus. We will also discuss language and culture to learn helpful key terms, phrases, and cuisine to get by in the various countries we will visit. We will then travel on to Europe. While this intensive course is organized thematically with focus on local, regional, and international spheres, we will move beyond the parameters of the Holocaust period with ample discussion of the aftermath and representations of this period and genocide in general - which continues to have ramifications for contemporary global society. 

This will be a rigorous and active course. We will be busy throughout the day on most days, and participation in all activities is critical. You will have several afternoons or evenings free, and during this free time you are encouraged to explore and enjoy all the many opportunities our destinations have to offer (or write in your journal). Also of great importance to bear in mind: You are an ambassador of Rowan and America! Get out! Meet locals! 

This course assesses the dramatic political, cultural, and societal transformations that Germany undertook in the period after 1945. Through in-class lectures and discussions of selected historical and cultural sources, we examine the ways in which Germans embraced a new future while coming to terms with the devastation and moral legacy of the Third Reich and the Holocaust. Topics include the Allied occupation, denazification, the territorially division of the country, the Berlin Wall, the Cold War, secret police, memory and national identity, immigration, art and consumerism, and revolution and unification.

This course examines the theories and practices of fascist movements and regimes in the twentieth century using a comparative approach. Its principal focus is Europe during the so-called “age of fascism” (1920s-1940s), but case studies from Asia, South America, and North America are also explored. Furthermore, we examine contemporary far-right ideas and movements, especially in the United States. Students learn about the economic, political, and cultural circumstances from which fascism emerged, and we consider the fascist obsession with national, sexual, and racial identity. In this course, we seek to uncover the political, cultural, and social dimensions of fascism, to better understand its nature, but also to equip ourselves for engagement with and opposition to right-wing extremism in the world today.

The course explores twentieth-century war crimes and international law, emphasizing historical precedents, legal concepts, and enforcement mechanisms for prevention and punishment. Using insights from history, law, political science, and sociology, we discuss the chief problems that have emerged from ongoing efforts to define, prevent, and punish genocidal killings, war crimes, and state-sponsored torture. Emphasis is placed on case studies from the Holocaust, the Cambodian genocide, acts of ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia, and contemporary conflicts in the Middle East and Africa. At its core, this module encourages research-based historical analysis and interpretation of international law and justice in the modern era and seeks a better understanding human violence, justice, commemoration, and memory.

The capstone course for history majors allows a senior student to demonstrate the skills they have acquired during the study for a baccalaureate degree. These include an understanding of the ideas of history and the nature of historical study, and an ability to gather material from a variety of sources, to examine and analyze the findings in an appropriate historical context, to organize them in a coherent manner, and to present the results in effective oral and written form. 

The theme for this seminar will be: Postwar Europe. Was there really a “zero hour” in Europe at the end of World War II? How did European societies go about rebuilding—culturally, politically, and socially—the fabric of daily life and national belonging in the wake of unparalleled death and destruction? This seminar discusses politics, society, and culture in Europe during the immediate post-WWII years. Its focus is military occupation, population transfer, violence, and civil war, as well as reconstruction and revival.

This course concentrates on a research paper of substantial length based upon primary as well as secondary sources. The course also requires critical analysis and discussion of the papers by seminar participants. Required of History majors during their senior year.

The theme for this seminar is “Global Europe.” Students have the opportunity to choose their own research topics within the broad framework of modern transnational European history, subject to completing certain preliminary steps required of all papers and the approval of the instructor. Students are strongly encouraged to choose topics within twentieth-century European history or European-North American relations, because of the expertise of the instructor and the difficulty of finding sufficient sources. A host of paper topics are possible that you can use both to develop your own individual interests from the last few years as well as explore new perspectives.

This seminar investigates key controversies within the German historical profession since the end of WWII. The aim of the course is to familiarize students with central questions in German history while exploring issues and approaches in historical method. Beyond an examination of the specific historiographical questions at stake in these debates and a re-consideration of the texts that ignited the controversies, the seminar will provide students with a broad framework to track and analyze the shifting place of National Socialism and the Holocaust within German historiography. 

This course offers intensive training in the techniques of historical research and analysis of historical writing and is required of History majors as prerequisite for other upper-level courses. It also fulfills the Writing Intensive requirement. The course is designed to investigate the discipline of history and provide practical experience in historical research. Students will learn about historiography and the range of possible interpretations and theoretical approaches in history. They will learn how to read secondary sources critically and evaluate online sources, analyze various types of primary sources, learn how to use sources ethically. Students will discuss the nature of historical research, from scrutinizing evidence, to forming a thesis, making an argument, and writing a research paper. A primary goal of the course is for students to acquire skills to do advanced historical research and demonstrate competency by researching and writing a history paper (10-15 pages) based on primary and secondary sources.