This course explores the leading theoretical and methodological approaches to studying China’s interaction with the international system since 1949. Readings include books and articles that integrate the study of China’s foreign policy with the field of international relations.

This course will conduct a comparative study of the grand strategies of the great powers (Britain, France, Germany and Russia) competing for mastery of Europe from the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. Grand strategy is the collection of political and military means and ends with which a state attempts to achieve security. We will examine strategic developments in the years preceding World Wars I and II, and how those developments played themselves out in these wars. The following questions will guide the inquiry: What is grand strategy and what are its critical aspects? What recurring factors have exerted the greatest influence on the strategies of the states selected for study? How may the quality of a grand strategy be judged? What consequences seem to follow from grand strategies of different types? A second theme of the course is methodological. We will pay close attention to how comparative historical case studies are conducted.

This class, required of all Master of Architecture students, presents a critical review of works, theories, and polemics in architecture in the aftermath of World War II. The aim is to present a historical understanding of the period, and to develop a meaningful framework to assess contemporary issues in architecture. Special attention will be paid to historiographic questions of how architects construe the terms of their “present.”

UC Berkeley Professor of Government, Ernst B. Haas, discusses his life, his work and his most recent book, "Nationalism, Liberalism, and Progress, When Knowledge is Power" with Harry Kreisler. (52 min)

Democracy in difference: Debating key terms of gender, sexuality, race and identity focuses on concepts and analytical frames we use when discussing how marginalised identities navigate their place in an assumed common culture.

This ebook offers a path for exploring how we might build a shared vocabulary when working through the muddle of public debates like identity politics, political correctness, pronouns and what constitutes racism. Democracy in Difference is an unconventional interdisciplinary guide to key concepts, which borrows from decolonial methodologies, Marxism, feminism, queer theory and deconstruction.

Key terms are illustrated through written text, La Trobe Art Institute artworks (centering Indigenous artists), poetry, comedy and song, and customised animations which make difficult terms accessible.

This text is published by the La Trobe eBureau.

This course provides an introduction to the field of comparative politics. Readings include both classic and recent materials. Discussions include research design and research methods, in addition to topics such as political culture, social cleavages, the state, and democratic institutions. The emphasis on each issue depends in part on the interests of the students.

This course seeks to examine how people experience gender - what it means to be a man or a woman - and sexuality in a variety of historical and cultural contexts. We will explore how gender and sexuality relate to other categories of social identity and difference, such as race and ethnicity, economic and social standing, urban or rural life, etc. One goal of the class is to learn how to critically assess media and other popular representations of gender roles and stereotypes. Another is to gain a greater sense of the diversity of human social practices and beliefs in the United States and around the world.

This course explores stereotypes associated with Asian women in colonial, nationalist, state-authoritarian, and global/diasporic narratives about gender and power. Students will read ethnography, cultural studies, and history, and view films to examine the politics and circumstances that create and perpetuate the representation of Asian women as dragon ladies, lotus blossoms, despotic tyrants, desexualized servants, and docile subordinates. Students are introduced to the debates about Orientalism, gender, and power.

This course explores how and why Japan, a late-comer to modernization, emerged as an industrial power and the world’s second-richest nation, notwithstanding its recent difficulties. We are particularly concerned with the historical development of technology in Japan especially after 1945, giving particular attention to the interplays between business, ideology, technology, and culture. We will discuss key historical phenomena that symbolize modern Japan as a technological power in the world; specific examples to be discussed in class include kamikaze aircraft, the Shinkansen high-speed bullet train, Godzilla, and anime.

This course approaches the idea and practice of World History through the lens of commodities and consumption. Over the course of the semester it will consider the last 1000 years of world history by examining the global production, circulation, and consumption of goods. In addition to its focus on the role of commodities in shaping local and global histories, the class will focus on several central themes: mass migrations of people; colonialism and imperialism; the global formation of capitalist economies and industrialization; the emergence of modern states; nationalism; and the rise of consumer societies.

This course is an introductory survey of world history. It will offer a historical overview of major processes and interactions in the development of human society since the emergence in Africa of Homo sapiens, or modern humans, some 200,000 years ago. The course should enable students to treat world history as an approach to the past that addresses large-scale patterns as well as local narratives, and though which they can pursue their interest in various types of knowledge.The course is intended for undergraduate students in all majors. For this wide range of students, the course not only provides background on globalization today, but reveals the contrasting processes of large-scale social interaction which take place rapidly (such as technology) as compared with those that take place slowly (such as social values). For majors in History, the course will provide an initial step in the interactive and interdisciplinary study of the past that they will explore in more detail at advanced undergraduate levels. For those considering a career in teaching, this course provides strong background for the world-history curriculum that is now taught in most secondary schools.

This course addresses the several ways in which historians approach the process of globalization, its periodizations, and origins. Out of the many possibilities, the course concentrates on the last 250 years. The historical analysis of globalization is based on the interplay between four main variables - economic globalization, hegemonic world order, political regimes, and social inequality - and their articulation into a synthetic overview.

This course looks at the “big picture” of United States history. This course explores the ways in which Americans created their highly original society and culture, the stunning geographical changes that marked the early decades of our new nation, documents that reveal the evolution of key American concepts as well as the many controversies that characterized the second half of US history. One of the goals of this course is for students to come to understand the practice of historical thinking: a form of "reading" the past that you can also apply to any number of other aspects of your college work.

This is an upper level college survey course with the purpose to provide an introductory overview of the black experience in Africa and its global Diaspora, using a comparative perspective. The course proceeds chronologically from the ancient Nile River Valley civilizations to the present, and is divided into four units of study: (a) Ancient Africa: From Antiquity to the Medieval Period; (b) The Era of the Transatlantic Slave Trade and Slavery in the Americas; (c) Emancipation and Abolition in the Nineteenth Century; and (d) The Age of Nationalism in the Twentieth Century: Colonialism/Anti-Colonialism; Imperialism/Anti-Imperialism; Pan-Africanism and Independence; Black Power and Civil Rights. Topics to be examined include ancient state building; slavery; resistance movements; the role of women, religion and other cultural formations in the modern African Diaspora; and a comparison of the development of modern, organized political movements and intellectual currents in black communities worldwide with some emphasis on the historical context for contemporary issues such as globalization and reparations.

This course is designed to acquaint beginning students with some of the fundamental principles of international relations such as realism and idealism. Realism, for example is based on the assumption that the state constitutes the most important actor in the international system. The course will also explore the nature of idealism, which emphasizes the role of international norms and ethics, such as the preservation of human rights, as a means of realizing international justice. The course will also analyze international political economy and various theories ranging from mercantilism to dependency theory.

International Women’s Voices has several objectives. It introduces students to a variety of works by contemporary women writers from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and North America. The emphasis is on non-western writers. The readings are chosen to encourage students to think about how each author’s work reflects a distinct cultural heritage and to what extent, if any, we can identify a female voice that transcends national cultures. In lectures and readings distributed in class, students learn about the history and culture of each of the countries these authors represent. The way in which colonialism, religion, nation formation and language influence each writer is a major concern of this course. In addition, students examine the patterns of socialization of women in patriarchal cultures, and how, in the imaginary world, authors resolve or understand the relationship of the characters to love, work, identity, sex roles, marriage, and politics.

This collection uses primary sources to explore Jacksonian democracy. Digital Public Library of America Primary Source Sets are designed to help students develop their critical thinking skills and draw diverse material from libraries, archives, and museums across the United States. Each set includes an overview, ten to fifteen primary sources, links to related resources, and a teaching guide. These sets were created and reviewed by the teachers on the DPLA's Education Advisory Committee.

This course is designed for students seeking a fundamental understanding of Japanese history, politics, culture, and the economy. “Raw Fish 101” (as it is often labeled) combines lectures, seminar discussion, small-team case studies, and Web page construction exercises, all designed to shed light on contemporary Japan.

This is a short lesson on what are the four MAIN causes of World War I.  MAIN stands for militarism, alliance, imperialism, and nationalism.

Survey of Indian civilization from 2500 BC to present-day. Traces major political events as well as economic, social, ecological, and cultural developments. Primary and secondary readings enhance understanding of this unique civilization, and shape and improve understanding in analyzing and interpreting historical data. Examines major thematic debates in Indian history through class discussion.