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Instructor: Nick
Sarantakes
Location: SS 150
Time:
Phone Number: (903) 468-3262
Fax: (903) 468-3230
E-Mail: Nick_Sarantakes@tamu-commerce.edu
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Course Objective:
This “Themes in World History” course will focus on international affairs
in the 20th Century. The two major developments in world affairs
in this century are (1) decolonization and the fall of the European empires
and (2) the rise of the U.S. as a world power. The international
world of the late 1890s and early 1900s was a different time than today.
The course will start with examination of a time when the United Kingdom
did indeed rule the waves and the sun honestly never set on the British
empire. The Anglo-German rivalry in Europe, the Russo-Japanese rivalry
in northeastern Asia, the U.S.-Japanese rivalry in Asia and the Pacific,
and the global U.S.-Soviet rivalry will lead to an age in which the United
States is the only global superpower. This course will put events
into an international context to show how they lead to this state of affairs.
ExCET Exam:
This course will present material that will touch on to some degree
the following competencies on the ExCET Exam:
Competency 002
Relationships between geography and history. The history
teacher understands the relationship between geography and history, the
interaction of the physical environment with human societies, and the impact
of culture and society on the environment.
Competency 016
Liberalism, nationalism, and socialism. The history teacher
understands the emergency of liberalism, nationalism, and socialism, and
the impact of these political philosophies on world history.
Competency 017
Imperialism. The history teacher understands the origins
and development of imperialism and analyzes the consequences for both colonizers
and colonized.
Competency 018
Twentieth-century wars. The history teacher understands
the causes, events, and consequences of limited and unlimited wars in the
twentieth century.
Competency 020
Political, economic, and social developments since 1900.
The history teacher recognizes the major political developments, economic
trends, and social movements of the twentieth century, and applies this
knowledge to an analysis of contemporary issues among regions and nations.
Competency 030
The United States as a world power. The history teacher
understands the cause of the U.S. rise to world power and the effects of
this development on the economy, culture, and foreign policy of the United
States.
Competency 032
Major developments since World War II. The history teacher
recognizes the major political and military developments, economic trends,
and social movements in the United States since World War II, and applies
this knowledge to analyze contemporary national issues.
Exams
There will be three exams. Half of each test will be an objective
style test modeled after the ExCet exam. The second half of each
test will be an essay, which will be able to take home and write.
Each section of the test will be worth 50 percent.
Person of the Century Paper
Each student will write a paper in which they select one person who
had the most influence on developments in the Twentieth Century. The paper
explaining the reasons for the selection will be between 8-12 pages in
length. You should summarize the historical importance of this individual,
their legacy, and why they had the most important impact on the course
of human events. You should use the following criteria in making your selection:
Grading:
Each exam and the paper will be worth a fourth of the final grade.
The final grade will be the average of all four undertakings. There
will be no final comprehensive exam in this class. Final grades will
be determined on the following basis:
| (B) Barnhart, Michael. Japan and the World Since 1868
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 |
(FN) Fursenko, Alexandr A., and Naftali, Timothy. "One Hell of a
Gamble:" Krushchev, Castro, and Kennedy, 1958-1964.
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 |
(GMTU) Goff, Richard; Moss, Walter; Terry, Janice; and Upshur, Jiu-Hwa.
The Twentieth Century: A Brief Global History
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 |
(S) Said, Edward W. Culture and Imperialism
Publisher's Web site for the book |
Date Topic Reading Assignment
| Week of Jan. 17 | The Great Powers | S xi-31; GMTU 1-40 |
| Week of Jan. 24 | The Great Powers | S 31-62; GMTU 42-97; B 1-21 |
| Week of Jan. 31 | World War I
(Origins and Combat) |
S 62-191;GMTU 99-106; B 21-46 |
| Week of Feb.7 | World War I
(Battle of the Atlantic and U.S. entry) |
GMTU 108-120; B 47-72 |
| Week of Feb.14 | Versailles, the Russian Revolution
Test I (Feb. 18) |
GMTU 142-166 |
| Week of Feb.21 | Interwar Period and Origins of World War II | GMTU126-140 153-252; B 72-98 |
| Week of Feb.28 | World War II | GMTU 254-273 |
| Week of March 6 | World War II | B 101-140 |
| Week of March 13 | Spring Break | |
| Week of March 20 | World War II
Test II (March 24) |
B 141-150 |
| Week of March 27 | Fall of the Colonial Empires, and the Occupations | GMTU 280-279; 343-348; 353-359; 369-381; B 151-165 |
| Week of April 3 | Origins and Beginning of the Cold War | GMTU 303-326 |
| Week of April 10 | The Korean War and the Dangerous 1950s | GMTU 336-342; 348-353; 360-367; FN ix-76 |
| Week of April 17 | The Korean War and the Dangerous 1950s
Person of the Century Papers Due (April 17) |
GMTU 396-423 FN 77-239 |
| Week of April 24 | Vietnam | GMTU 441-476; FN 240-355 |
| Week of April 31 | End of the Cold War
Test III (May 5) |
GMTU 492-512 |