HIST 125: Introduction to Global History

HIST 125-004: Introduction to World History
(Fall 2022)

10:30 AM to 11:45 AM TR

Krug Hall 210

Section Information for Fall 2022

This course offers an introduction to global history with a focus on 1600 to the present.  The emphasis will be on the development of critical thinking skills to answer questions about the past and ask what history can tell us about the current global environment.  In addition to the “facts” of history, this course will also examine how history is constructed and what this means for our understanding of it.  We will learn about the importance of narrative in constructing history and the importance of the sources we use and the questions we ask of them.  We will learn about the contested nature of history.  How and why do people of different backgrounds come to different conclusions about history?  What impact does the way we think about history have on our appreciation of the world?  Crucially, we will examine why it is so necessary to understand the past.  We study the past not just because it is interesting, nor because we want to avoid similar mistakes in the future.  Studying the past hones critical thinking skills and forces us to engage with different perspectives and ways of understanding.  As active citizens, it is crucial that you engage knowledgably and responsibly with other peoples within the global environment.  The level of sophistication we display in examining global history has a direct impact on our ability to comprehend the challenges of the twenty-first century world. 

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Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

By focusing on historical experiences that reflect the diversity of Mason’s student body, students will be able to see how their families and communities fit within, and contribute to, global history from the pre-modern period to our present day. This course offers a long-term historical perspective on structural issues challenging our world today, including demographic and environmental changes, national and global inequalities, and the underrepresentation of marginalized groups. Students will gain an understanding of how interconnections and inter-dependencies have been forged through the global movement of people, pathogens, goods, and ideas. Limited to three attempts.
Mason Core: Global History
Schedule Type: Lecture, Recitation
Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

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