Course Description
Examination of the shared history of Europe, Africa, and the Americas during the period of colonization and globalization. Between the era of exploration and the age of revolutions, these civilizations interacted through conquest, trade, emigration, and cultural exchange, giving rise to a distinctly Atlantic world.
Athena Title
The Atlantic World I
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in HIST 4710, HIST 6710
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
This course is designed to introduce students to the growing field of Atlantic World studies. Combining traditional approaches in history with new perspectives that transcend previous divisions between European, American, and Latin American history, this course examines conflict and exchange in the colonial period. The Atlantic World, 1500-1800 is intended to complement and further the students' knowledge of early modern Europe and colonial America by comparing contemporary developments in these contexts. A principal objective of the course is to teach students to think critically for themselves about the relationships between the past and the present, to learn to ask questions of the past that enable them to understand the present and mold the future, and to become attuned to both the limitations and possibilities of change. The course seeks to acquaint students with the ways in which past societies and peoples have defined the elationships between community and individual needs and goals, and between ethical norms and decision-making. In general students will be expected to: 1. read a wide range of primary and secondary sources critically. 2. polish skills in critical thinking, including the ability to recognize the difference between opinion and evidence, and the ability to evaluate--and support or refute--arguments effectively. 3. write stylistically appropriate and mature papers and essays using processes that include discovering ideas and evidence, organizing that material, and revising, editing, and polishing the finished papers.
Topical Outline
This course is divided into three sections: Section One examines the state of the Atlantic World on the eve of contact, comparing Renaissance Europe to pre-Columbian America and Africa before 1500. Readings include The Broken Spears and selections from John Thornton, Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1800. Section Two turns to the European colonial powers of the early modern period, from Spain and Portugal to England, France, and the Dutch Republic. Readings include Colin Calloway, New Worlds for All: Indians, Europeans, and the Remaking of Early America. Section Three addresses topics that span the era, such as slavery, Atlantic exchanges, the counter-plantation zone, and religion. Readings include Philip Curtin,The Rise and Fall of the Plantation Complex: Essays in Atlantic History.