Fields of Concentration in History for the classes of 2013 and 2014

Each History major chooses a field of concentration, and within the concentration chooses a faculty adviser. The following brief descriptions of the History Department's six fields of concentration also indicate which professors might serve as advisers for each.

The Worlds, Empires, and Encounters concentration engages the regional and comparative histories that link and distinguish societies in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Topics covering the pre-modern to modern era show how historical developments are at once locally defined and globally relevant. Core courses in the concentration focusing on Africa, South and East Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America are supplemented by comparative courses on Europe, the Americas, or related themes.

The field adviser for 2013-2014 is Richard Elphick for Worlds, Empires, and Encounters.  Other historians who teach in this concentration are Professors: Castro-Ibaseta, Elphick, Johnston, Lennox, Masters, Pinch, Schwarcz, Smolkin, Twagira and Wightman.

The European History concentration embraces the long history of the European peoples from Classical Greece and Rome, through the Early and High Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Reformation, into Early Modern and Modern times. In the interests of cohesion and depth, students concentrating in European History are strongly urged to focus a number of their courses in the same epoch or the same region. European concentrators must take either HIST 201 and 202, or HIST 202 and 203.

The field adviser for 2013-2014 is Erik Grimmer-Solem   for European.  Other professors who teach in this concentration are Professors:  Castro-Ibaseta, Erickson, Greene, Grimmer-Solem, Holmes, Kleinberg, Miller, Nussdorfer, Pomper, Greene, Shaw, Teter, and Tucker.

The depth of Wesleyan's curricular offerings in this field reflects the crucial role that gender has come to play as a category of analysis for cross-cultural, comparative history. Prospective concentrators are expected to take a sophomore seminar on Gender and History or an adviser-approved substitute. A concentrator's program should be designed to include a History survey course, a History seminar, and a theory/methods course. Concentrators are expected to do their required research project within the concentration with the approval of the student's adviser.

The field advisers for 2013-2014 is Jennifer Tucker (Fall 2013) and Laurie Nussdorfer (Spring 2014) for Gender and History.  Other historians who teach in this concentration are Professors: Nussdorfer, Shaw, Tucker, Twagira and Wightman.

The Intellectual History concentration seeks to train students in many of the significant texts of the past, to examine the role of the intellectual in society, to pose questions regarding the philosophy of history, and to present alternative theories of reading texts. Concentrators in Intellectual History must take both courses in European sequence (HIST 215 and 216) and one non-European Intellectual History class.  In addition, three seminars in Intellectual History are required.

The field adviser for  2013-2014 is Paul Erickson for Intellectual History.  Other historians who teach in this concentration are Professors:  Erickson, Eudell, Holmes, Kleinberg, Miller, Schwarcz, Smolkin, Tucker and Wright.

The Religion and History concentration focuses on the historical and historiographical study of religion. The concentration cuts across traditional geographic regions, and includes select courses in medieval and modern Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia, and the Middle East. Each major in the concentration is required to have curricular exposure to the texts and history of at least two major world religions, and at least one course in the concentration must be in the pre-modern era. All concentrators must take the seminar HIST 323, Religion and History.

The field adviser for 2013-2014 is Magda Teter for Religion and History.  Other historians who teach in this concentration are Professors:  Elphick, Masters, Nussdorfer, Pinch, Schatz, Schwarcz, Shaw, Teter and Twagira.

The United States history concentration considers the global past of this country, from the early encounters between European colonists and indigenous North American peoples to its role today as the world's sole "superpower" and as a society constituted of people from every corner of the earth.  Concentrators in this field are required to take two courses from the three-semester sequence of foundation courses:  I.  Early America (HIST 237), II.  The Long Nineteenth Century (HIST 239), and III.  Modern U.S. History (HIST 240).  The remaining four courses in the concentration may be chosen from the array of sophomore seminars, specialized lecture courses, and advanced seminars in U.S. history.  At least one of the courses offered for the concentration must be a History seminar.  Ordinarily no more than one "related" (non-history) course may be counted toward the concentration.  Concentrators are expected to do their required research project within the concentration.

The field adviser for 2013-2014 is Ronald Schatz for United States. Other historians who teach in this concentration are Professors:  Erickson, Eudell, Fullilove, Lennox, Schatz and Wright.