HST 385:  EUROPE 1900-1945
PROFESSOR FRANCES KELLEHER
Spring 2001

Office:      1125 AuSable Hall
Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays 10:30-11:15 and by appointment
Telephone: (616) 895-3134
email:  kellehef@gvsu.edu
web site: http://www.gvsu.edu/~kellehef/homepage.htm

Course Description:

HST 385 provides an in-depth study of European history from 1900 through 1945, with emphasis on Britain, France, Germany, and Russia.  Topics include Belle Epoque politics, society, and culture; the Great War of 1914; the politics of peace-making and the Treaty of Versailles; the 1917 revolutions in Russia, the civil war, and Stalin's Revolution; inter-war culture and society; the depression of 1929; fascism, with special emphasis on the Nazi movement in Germany; the diplomacy of the 1930s; and the Second World War.  Class sessions will include both lecture and discussion.  Students ought read the assigned material before each class so as to be able to participate in class activities.

PLEASE NOTE:  HST 385 is a Supplemental Writing Skills course.  Completion of ENG 150 or ENG 170 with a grade of C or better (not C-) is the prerequisite for receiving SWS credit for this course.  Any student who has not fulfilled the prerequisite will not receive SWS credit.  SWS courses adhere to certain guidelines.  Students submit a total of at least 3000 words of writing during the term.  Part of that may be essay exams, but a substantial amount of it is made up of finished essays, reports, or research papers.  The instructor works with students on revising drafts of their papers, rather than simply grading the finished piece of writing.  At least one-third of the grade in an SWS course is based on the writing assignments.

Syllabus:

May 7:  Introduction: Europe in 1900
  Europe and the World in 1900
  Modernism

May 9:  Belle Epoque Politics and Society
  Alliances and Nationalism
  Suffragettes
  Labor and Socialism

May 14: GB Shaw: Major Barbara
  The Crises of 1914
  Read: Major Barbara

May 16: The Great War: Battlefronts and Home Fronts
  Read: TS Eliot, The Wasteland
   Perrot, The Old Eve and the New Adam (available in History office)

May 21: The Russian Revolution and the Civil War
  Read: Fitzpatrick, Chapters 1, 2,3
  First Essay due

May 23: The Politics of Peacemaking and the 1920s
  Read: Keylor, Selections in sections I, II, III

May 28: Memorial Day: No Class

May 30: The Depression
  The Rise of Fascism
  Kershaw, Essays 1 and 2

June 4: Bolshevik Russia
  Fitzpatrick, Chapters 4,5,6

June 6: Nazi Germany
  The Road to War
  Kershaw, Essays 3,4,6,7

June 11: World War II
  Second Essay due

June 13: The Holocaust
  Kershaw, Essays 5,8,9

June 18: Europe in 1945
  Final Essay due

June 20: Final Examination

Required Texts:

GB Shaw, Major Barbara
Sheila Fitzpatrick, The Russian Revolution
TS Eliot, The Wasteland
William Keylor, The Legacy of the First World War
Ian Kershaw, The Nazi Dictatorship

Recommended Texts:

Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front
George Orwell, Down and Out in Paris and London
Elie Wiesel, Night

REQUIREMENTS:

1. Regular preparation, attendance, and participation are prerequisites for success in this course.  Students are expected to attend all classes, are responsible for all material discussed and/or distributed in class, and any announcements made during class periods.  ABSENCES AND/OR FAILURE TO COMPLETE ASSIGNED READING WILL ADVERSELY AFFECT YOUR FINAL GRADE.

2. Final examination in two parts—a take-home essay due on June 18 and an in class exam on the June 20.  FAILURE TO APPEAR FOR A SCHEDULED EXAMINATION WILL RESULT IN FAILURE ON THAT EXAM AND NO CREDIT TOWARD THE FINAL GRADE.

3. Two analytic essays of three to five pages each, written in response to a question or issue posed during a preceding class session.  Due dates are noted on the syllabus.   LATE ESSAYS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AND WILL RECEIVE NO CREDIT TOWARD THE FINAL GRADE.

GRADING

Criteria used in grading written assignments will include:  the analytic focus of the essay; articulation and presentation of the argument; research on which the conclusions are based; coherence of the essay; grammatical correctness and form; correct use of citation and bibliography.

Plagiarism, the use of someone else's words or ideas as if they are your own, is an academic crime akin to theft.  Any paper found to be plagiarized in whole or in part will receive a grade of F.  Such a paper cannot be rewritten for a higher grade.

 Grades will be calculated using the following formula:

 Two essays:       25 points each
 Final Essay:      20 points
 Final Exam:      20 points
 Preparation, Attendance, Participation:  10 points

 Total:                100 points

 90-100 points:  A- to A
 80-89 points:   B- to B+
 70-79 points:   C- to C+*
 60-69 points:   D  to D+
 Fewer than 60 points: F

*74 points required to receive a grade of C which will give eligible students SWS credit for this course.