Emphasis will be given to the interrelationships among the commercial sector, the Roman Catholic Church, the military, and the state and the effects of this relationship on the development of society. An analysis of major events, social movements and ideas that have shaped the contemporary world. Emphasis on industrialization, nationalism, social upheaval, totalitarianism, anti-imperialism, and war. The political, economic, social, and environmental currents shaping the emergence of the modern African states. An examination of major forms of popular culture in the United States from colonial times to the present with emphasis on the twentieth century.
Analysis focuses on social class and ideology.
Popular culture will be compared and contrasted with traditional, official, high and mass culture. The United States labor movement and the U.S. worker from early national beginnings to the present, placed in a historigraphical framework. The establishment of beliefs, values, and experiences that defined the workers as a social class in the community and at the workplace is a major theme. An introduction to historical methodology designed to assist the student to think historically, to evaluate historical literature critically, and to draw on appropriate resources in analyzing historical events and trends. Emphasized is the development of intellectual and communicative skills that are applicable across all liberal arts disciplines.