HIST 388: Topics in European History

HIST 388-001: True Crime in Early Modern Europe
(Fall 2023)

03:00 PM to 04:15 PM MW

Horizon Hall 3008

Section Information for Fall 2023

True crime documentaries, podcasts, books, and television shows are a wildly popular modern genre selling in the tens of millions and attracting a large audience. But what you may not know is that it was also a bestselling genre in early modern Europe. Tales of serial killers, werewolves, bandits, and murderous nuns were wildly popular and helped sell chapbooks, broadsheets, and popularize murder ballads, in addition to providing material for moral panics and justification for the criminal justice system. By looking at primary sources, this course will examine true crime and popular culture in early modern Europe as a precursor to the genre today. We will produce a few episodes of a true crime podcast as a class as the final outcome of the course.

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Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

Study of historical topics or periods of special interest. Notes: Topics announced in advance. May be repeated for credit when topic is different. May be repeated within the term.
Specialized Designation: Topic Varies
Schedule Type: Lec/Sem #1, Lec/Sem #2, Lec/Sem #3, Lec/Sem #4, Lec/Sem #5, Lec/Sem #6, Lec/Sem #7, Lec/Sem #8, Lec/Sem #9, Lecture, Sem/Lec #10, Sem/Lec #11, Sem/Lec #12, Sem/Lec #13, Sem/Lec #14, Sem/Lec #15, Sem/Lec #16, Sem/Lec #17, Sem/Lec #18
Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

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