History, Classics, & Philosophy   

Before the Battle of the Bulge in World War II, General George Patton told his Third Army troops, "Everyone in this army must understand that we are not fighting this battle in any half-cocked manner. It’s either root hog or die!" The phrase "root hog or die" is an idiomatic expression meaning self-reliance or simply, "We are on our own!" For Patton and the Allies at the time, the Bulge was a potential "last stand," and if not checked, might have resulted in a German victory that could have prolonged the war. History is replete with other "last stands." They conjure up romantic images of courage, desperation, and heroism. We will examine in this course five of these "last stands" and identify their historical contexts, differences and similarities, importance, and legacies.

Lincoln’s assassination was more than just a tale of John Wilkes Booth killing Lincoln in a theater. This course will cover the extent of hatred of Lincoln prior to his inauguration and the backgrounds of Booth and his alleged conspirators and their various plots and preparations. The course will also discuss Lincoln's death watch and funeral, the conspirators' trial and results, and whether the punished and unpunished deserved their fates. Finally, many myths and falsehoods surrounding the assassination will be dispelled.

The nations (and/or regions) historically speaking a Celtic language responded to modernization and perceived political subordination and cultural suppression with wide-ranging movements in literature, arts, crafts, dancing, and sports. The Celtic languages featured prominently at the heart of this revival—or did they? To what extent were “traditional” activities revived, modernized, or simply invented? This course will explore all these issues, and more.

This course examines the origins and evolution of America’s so-called “forgotten war,” a conflict that involved Korea, America, China, and the Soviet Union in ways that constantly threatened to tip the Cold War into a hot world war. We will also explore the development of Russia’s nuclear program and America’s development of the hydrogen bomb, the “Super,” and the ways that each introduced whole new levels of uncertainty and instability into the first decade of the Cold War. We will examine figures such as Douglas MacArthur, Mao Tse-tung, Dean Acheson, Kim Il-Sung , Edward Teller, and Joe McCarthy.

Beginning even before Madame Curie, women of science have been emerging into what was once a man's world. This course includes discussions of Wang Zhenyi, Elizabeth Blackwell, Maria G. Mayer, Rita Levi-Montalcini, Barbara McClintock, Mae Jemison, Josephine Baker, Jane Cook Wright, San Lan Wu, and Katherine Freese. These women span many disciplines and several centuries, and a few even won Nobel Prizes. Each class will shine a light on two of them for their inspiring work, which was often overlooked because they are women.

While 50% of adult Americans believe the Holocaust could happen again, 10% claim to have never heard of the Holocaust, and 40% could not name a concentration camp or ghetto. Last year saw a two-thirds increase in antisemitic incidents, and many Jews do not feel safe today. Is history repeating itself? Using pictorial evidence of events and videos of survivor testimonies, this course will explore the human attitudes and behaviors that not only led to the murder of 6 million Jews but are still evident today. The instructor will share the challenges his parents faced and what it was like growing up as a child of survivors. Using lessons learned, we will look at our own attitudes and behaviors toward others, and what we can do to help fulfill the promise of "Never Again."

In this significant year, the revolutions which shook Europe would send refugees to United States, some of whom would help to shape American politics for three decades or more. The conclusion of the war with Mexico would dramatically reshape the geography and population of the country. The presidential election was a three-way race, foreshadowing changes in politics. And a group of women followed the advice of Abigail Adams to foment their own revolution as they met at Seneca Falls.

This class will examine major turning points in American women's history from the time of European contact to the late 20th century. Topics include women's changing economic role, family life, legal and political rights, race relations, and the impact of wars on women's lives. This class will include famous women such as Abigail Adams, Harriet Tubman, and Margaret Sanger, and less well-known figures including Sarah Hale, Susie King Taylor, and Luisa Morena.

Part II of this course will continue to examine the significance of the Vietnam Era and the Vietnam War in the context of the recent history of the United States. Although the conflict is almost fifty years old, its legacy has loomed over American foreign policy, American consciousness, and the American psyche since it occurred. For an entire generation of Americans and Vietnamese, the Vietnam War was the defining event of their lives. Individuals who experienced “Vietnam” still deal with the subliminal aspects of it. Recent scholarship has characterized the Vietnam War as an extremely complex phenomenon in which a struggle for decolonization and self-determination became enmeshed in Cold War politics.

NOTE: Vietnam Era: Part I is recommended, but not a prerequisite for this course.

 

This course will look at the past, present, and future of unions and work. In the late 19th century, unions established a presence despite regular violence and opposition. Workers organized on an unprecedented scale in the 1930s, leading to a period of prosperity and labor peace in the post WWII era.  In the late 1970s and 1980s the business community launched an assault on union influence that has reduced American union workers from 35% to 10%. Finally, the course will focus on today’s increasingly precarious conditions at work, the gig economy, some of the new forms of organizing, and whether organized labor can address income inequality and global corporate power.