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Course Question & AnswerReadings
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1.2.2.1 Reading: University of Florida: Professor Robert H. Hatch’s “The Scientific Revolution: Definition, Concept, and History”
Link: University of Florida: Professor Robert H. Hatch’s “The Scientific Revolution: Definition, Concept, and History” (HTML)
Instructions: This course and Professor O’Brien’s lecture to which you listened in sub-subunit 1.2.1 focus primarily on political revolutions, but it is important to be aware that there are other types of revolutionary change. There was, for example, the “Scientific Revolution,” the “Industrial Revolution,” the so-called “Revolt against positivism,” in Europe’s arts and philosophy at the end of the nineteenth century, and we are now in the midst of what many call the “Environmental Revolution,” or intensified efforts to make economic growth sustainable. The reading in this sub-subunit is a brief conceptual definition of the Scientific Revolution. Please read this text in its entirety, focusing on any similarities you perceive between political and scientific revolutionary change.
This reading will take you approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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1.2.2.3 Reading: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Modern European History: “Lecture 27: The Revolt Against the Western Intellectual Tradition: Friedrich Nietzsche and the Birth of Modernism”
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Modern European History: “Lecture 27: The Revolt Against the Western Intellectual Tradition: Friedrich Nietzsche and the Birth of Modernism” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this lecture in its entirety. What were the most important characteristics of the late nineteenth-century rebellion against the established traditions and conventions of Western thought? Do you think it useful to compare intellectual and political moments of revolutionary change? Why, or why not?
This reading and these questions should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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1.4.1 Reading: Politics and Metapolitics: Arya Rejaee’s “Arendt’s On Revolution and Its Implications for Political Science”
Link: Politics and Metapolitics: Arya Rejaee’s “Arendt’s On Revolution and Its Implications for Political Science” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire article. Rejaee presents a short review of political theorist Hannah Arendt’s book On Revolution. In this book, Arendt argues that political revolutions are a necessary part of fostering liberty and a sense of freedom and equality in modern societies. Rajaee critiques Arendt’s ideas and asserts that she fails to account for non-altruistic motivations in her arguments about the origins and causes of revolutions. What do you think are the most important factors that motivate individuals to participate in revolutionary events?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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1.4.2 Reading: The New York Review of Books: Timothy Garton Ash’s “Velvet Revolution, The Prospects”
Link: The New York Review of Books: Timothy Garton Ash’s “Velvet Revolution, The Prospects” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this article in its entirety, focusing on the similarities and differences between violent and nonviolent revolutions. What definitions of revolutions do you find in this article? How do these compare to the definitions provided by Professor O’Brien?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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2.1.1.2 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress’s “Creating French Culture: Treasures from the Bibliothéque Nationale de France:” “The Rise and Fall of the Absolute Monarchy”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress’s “Creating French Culture: Treasures from the Bibliothéque Nationale de France:” “The Rise and Fall of the Absolute Monarchy” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this brief text to better understand the political structure of pre-revolutionary France. Examine the portraits and pictures of French kings to understand how power was represented at this time.
This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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2.1.1.3 Reading: Rutgers University: Professor Eugene N. White’s “France's Slow Transition from Privatized to Government-Administered Tax Collection: Tax Farming in the Eighteenth Century”
Link: Rutgers University: Professor Eugene N. White’s “France's Slow Transition from Privatized to Government-Administered Tax Collection: Tax Farming in the Eighteenth Century” (PDF)
Instructions: Click on the hyperlink at the bottom of the page to download the PDF file. Read this paper in its entirety (26 pages) to understand the practice of “tax farming” in France.
This reading should take you approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete.
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2.1.2.2 Reading: Union County College: Dr. Harold Damerow’s “England in the 17th Century”
Link: Union County College: Dr. Harold Damerow’s “England in the 17th Century” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this brief essay to get an overview of the conflicts between religion and the English state before the English Civil War.
This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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2.2.2.1 Reading: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Jean Jacques Rousseau’s “The Social Contract” Excerpts
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Jean Jacques Rousseau’s “The Social Contract” Excerpts (HTML)
Instructions: In “The Social Contract” Rousseau articulated the concept of the ‘general will,’ an idea which was often evoked by revolutionaries in France and in later eras. Read this selection of excerpts from Rousseau’s influential text to understand what he meant by the concept of the general will.
This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.
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2.2.2.2 Reading: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Immanuel Kant’s 1784 Essay “What Is Enlightenment?”
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Immanuel Kant’s 1784 Essay “What Is Enlightenment?” (HTML)
Instructions: This is one of the most important texts of the European Enlightenment. As you read it, ask yourself: what does Kant mean by “emergence from self-incurred immaturity?” What is the relationship between thinking for oneself and obedience to political authority? What do you think is revolutionary about this text?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete.
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2.2.2.3 Reading: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Condorcet’s 1794 Essay “The Future Progress of the Human Mind”
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Condorcet’s 1794 Essay “The Future Progress of the Human Mind” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this entire text and analyze its tone. As you read, ask yourself why Condorcet is so unshakably convinced of the necessity of progress? What does he mean by progress? What is his understanding of history?
This reading should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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2.3.1 Reading: Kazys Varnelis’s “Modernity and History”
Link: Kazys Varnelis’s “Modernity and History” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this text, paying particular attention to how the author characterizes modernity and how he distinguishes between traditional modes of life and the modern era.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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2.3.2 Reading: Learn Sociology’s “Modernization Theory”
Link: Learn Sociology’s “Modernization Theory” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this article carefully. Note how it characterizes modernity and modernization. What does modernization theory say about the relationship between Europe and the rest of the world? What are some alternative ways of configuring this relationship? Compare this article to the article on “Modernity and History,” which you read in sub-subunit 2.3.1. What are the features of modernity suggested by these two readings?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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2.3.3 Reading: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Stefan Gosepath’s “Equality”
Link: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Stefan Gosepath’s “Equality” (HTML)
Instructions: Various notions of equality and inequality are essential in discussions of both revolutions and modernity. Study this article carefully, focusing on distinctions between formal and substantive equality and their various meanings in different socio-political contexts.
This reading should take approximately 2 hours to complete.
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2.3.4 Reading: Matheiu Delfem’s Classical Sociological Theory: A Review of Themes, Concepts, and Perspectives: “Max Weber (1864-1920): The Rationalization of Society”
Link: Matheiu Delfem’s Classical Sociological Theory: A Review of Themes, Concepts, and Perspectives: “Max Weber (1864-1920): The Rationalization of Society” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the final section of this essay “Part C. State, Bureaucracy, and Law in the Age of Modernity,” focusing on how Weber defined the relationship between violence and the modern state.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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3.2.1 Reading: Union County College: Dr. Harold Damerow’s “Glorious Revolution”
Link: Union County College: Dr. Harold Damerow’s “Glorious Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this essay and the chronology on the webpage linked above. Make your own list of events which were most important.
This reading and list should take approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete.
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3.2.2 Reading: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European History: “Lecture 7: The English Civil War”
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European History: “Lecture 7: The English Civil War” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this lecture in its entirety. What were the most important sources of conflict between the Parliament and the Monarchy? What were the most important turning points of the English Civil War?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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3.2.3 Reading: University of Wisconsin: Professor Johann Sommerville’s “The Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell, 1653-8” and University of Virginia: Kevin A. Creed’s “The Pamphleteers Protestant Champion: Viewing Oliver Cromwell Through the Media of his Day”
Links: University of Wisconsin: Professor Johann Sommerville’s “The Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell, 1653-8” and University of Virginia: Kevin A. Creed’s “The Pamphleteers Protestant Champion: Viewing Oliver Cromwell Through the Media of his Day”
Instructions: Please read both webpages in their entirety. The first one provides a chronological overview of the Protectorate, while the second one analyzes Oliver Cromwell’s leadership in its historical context. After you finish reading write a paragraph that summarizes Kevin A. Creed’s argument, and provides your evaluation of his essay. You may wish to consider the following questions: do you find the argument compelling? What evidence is used in this essay? How does this essay help you better understand Cromwell’s role in seventeenth-century English history?
These readings and questions should take approximately 1.5 hours to complete.
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3.2.4 Reading: BBC’s British History In-depth: Dr. Edward Vallance’s “The Glorious Revolution”
Link: BBC’s British History In-depth: Dr. Edward Vallance’s “The Glorious Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this document in its entirety to better understand the causes and consequences of the so-called “Glorious Revolution.”
This reading should take you approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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3.3.1 Reading: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s The Avalon Project: “The English Bill of Rights of 1689”
Link: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s The Avalon Project: “The English Bill of Rights of 1689” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document in its entirety, focusing on the kinds of rights guaranteed for the citizens. Write a paragraph about ways in which this document helps to explain the difference between a traditional monarchy and a constitutional monarchy.
This reading and paragraph should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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3.3.2 Reading: University of Chicago’s version of John Locke’s “A Letter Concerning Toleration” (1689)
Link: University of Chicago’s version of John Locke’s “A Letter Concerning Toleration” (1689) (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document to understand how Locke sees the relationship between politics and religion. Where does he draw the boundaries of tolerance? How does he justify this choice?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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3.4.1 Reading: Reviews in History: Keith Lindley’s Review of John Coffey’s “Persecution and Toleration in Protestant England 1558-1689”
Link: Reviews in History: Keith Lindley’s Review of John Coffey’s “Persecution and Toleration in Protestant England 1558-1689” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this essay in its entirety. What interpretations of the relationship between religion and the English state does the article describe? Do you find its argument convincing? Why, or why not?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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3.4.2 Reading: The Marxists Archive: Christopher Hill’s “The English Revolution 1640”
Link: The Marxists Archive: Christopher Hill’s “The English Revolution 1640” (HTML)
Instruction: Please read this essay in its entirety. As you read focus on the following questions: what are the most important features of a Marxist interpretation of revolutionary change? How does Christopher Hill characterize the causes and the outcomes of the English Revolution?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 2 hours to complete.
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3.4.3 Reading: Global Dialog Project: “The Importance of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights”
Link: Global Dialog Project: “The Importance of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights”
Instructions: Please read this essay in its entirety – it analyzes the various traditions that influenced the writing of the US Constitution, and the English Bill of Rights is among the most important documents it mentions. How does the analysis provided here compare with your own reading of the English Bill of Rights? What are the most important ways in which this document paved the way for the Constitution of the United States?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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4.2 Reading: Academic American: Henry J. Sage’s “The Era of the American Revolution 1763-1800”
Link: Academic American: Henry J. Sage’s “The Era of the American Revolution 1763-1800” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire text, which provides an overview of the Revolutionary Era. Before delving into the dynamics and ideals of the American Revolution, it is important to have a basic understanding of its chronology and historical context. The readings in this subunit will help you understand the timeline of the most important events. As you read, identify the most important themes and questions concerning the American Revolution.
This reading and identifying themes should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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4.2 Reading: Independence Hall Association’s “Timeline of the Revolutionary War”
Link: Independence Hall Association’s “Timeline of the Revolutionary War” (HTML)
Instructions: Study the timeline of the American Revolution carefully. If there are any events with which you are unfamiliar, click on the relevant link to read additional information about them.
You should spend approximately 1 hour studying this timeline and click on the links to read any additional material.
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4.3.2 Reading: Library 4 History: Charles M. Andrews’ “History of England:” “British Policy toward the American Colonies (1760-1774)”
Link: Library 4 History: Charles M. Andrews’ “History of England:” “British Policy toward the American Colonies (1760-1774)” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay carefully to understand the logic of the changes in British policy toward the American Colonies in the aftermath of the Seven Years’ War.
This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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4.4 Reading: BBC’s British History In-depth: Professor Francis D. Cogliano’s “Was the American Revolution Inevitable?”
Link: BBC’s British History In-depth: Professor Francis D. Cogliano’s “Was the American Revolution Inevitable?” (HTML)
Instructions: Study this article and its analysis of the American Revolution. Compare this text with Professor Freeman’s lecture about the logic of the Colonists’ resistance against England. Ask yourself whether you think the Revolution was inevitable? If so, why? If not, what other scenarios do you think might have taken place?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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4.5 Reading: Academic American: Henry J. Sage’s “The American Revolution 1775-1777” and “The American Revolution 1778-1783”
Links: Academic American: Henry J. Sage’s “The American Revolution 1775-1777” and “The American Revolution 1778-1783” (HTML)
Instructions: Study these narrations of the Revolutionary War carefully, and write a paragraph, describing the most important turning points in the conflict.
This reading and paragraph should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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4.6 Reading: Academic American: Henry J. Sage’s “Constitutional Government:” “Keys to Understanding the Constitution: Important Points to Remember”
Link: Academic American: Henry J. Sage’s “Constitutional Government:” “Keys to Understanding the Constitution: Important Points to Remember” (HTML)
Instructions: The American Constitution was the outcome of much debate between statesmen with competing visions of the new American state. Study this text carefully to understand how the Constitution was created and what compromises had to be made to reach agreement about the structure of American government.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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4.7.1 Reading: Bartleby.com: Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense”
Link: Bartleby.com: Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” (HTML)
Instructions: This is one of the most important pamphlets of the American Revolution. Read the “Introduction” and “Parts I-IV” in their entirety. Pay particular attention to how Paine argues for independence from Britain. What are his most important claims? What does he say about religious diversity in the new nation? How does he envision equal representation?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 4.5 hours. Dedicate about 15 minutes to the Introduction and 1 hour for each part (Parts I-IV). Take about 15 minutes to answer the questions above.
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4.7.2 Reading: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s Avalon Project: “The Declaration of Independence”
Link: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s Avalon Project: “The Declaration of Independence” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document in its entirety, and examine how it shows the “logic of resistance,” which Professor Freeman discussed in the lecture you studied in subunit 4.4. In addition, refer back to the various meanings of equality which you studied in sub-subunit 2.3.3, in order to analyze how the “Declaration of Independence” defines and envisions equality. Which groups of citizens were included in its vision of equality? Who was excluded and how?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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4.7.3 Reading: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s Avalon Project: “Constitution of the United States: Bill of Rights”
Link: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s Avalon Project: “Constitution of the United States: Bill of Rights” (HTML)
Instructions: Read the American Bill of Rights, and compare it with the English Bill of Rights you studied in sub-subunit 3.3.1. What are the most important differences between the two documents? What do you think accounts for them?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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4.8 Reading: Academic Earth: Yale University: Professor Joanne Freeman’s “Being an American: The Legacy of the Revolution” Lecture
Link: Academic Earth: Yale University: Professor Joanne Freeman’s “Being an American: The Legacy of the Revolution” Lecture (YouTube)
Instructions: Please view this lecture in its entirety (41 minutes). How does Professor Freeman define a revolution? What does it take for a revolution to end? What are the most important legacies of the American Revolution?
This video lecture and questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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5.1.1 Reading: Mount Holyoke College: Mr. Schwartz’s “Modern and Contemporary European History:” “The French Revolution: Causes, Outcomes, Conflicting Interpretations”
Link: Mount Holyoke College: Mr. Schwartz’s “Modern and Contemporary European History:” “The French Revolution: Causes, Outcomes, Conflicting Interpretations” (HTML)
Instructions: Study this text to gain a basic understanding of the most important causes of the French Revolution. As you read, write a paragraph on the distinctions between economic, political, cultural, and sociological causes of revolutionary change.
This reading and paragraph should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.1.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Social Causes of the Revolution”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Social Causes of the Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: This essay provides a thorough overview of French society on the eve of the revolution. It also outlines how various social groups participated in the earliest phase of revolutionary events. Read it carefully in its entirety (4 pages), focusing on understanding the stratification of French society and the claims and needs of the different social groups in Paris and in the countryside. To access each page, click on arrow key, or the page number, at the bottom of the text.
This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.1.2 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Enlightenment and Human Rights”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Enlightenment and Human Rights” (HTML)
Instructions: One of the most intensely debated questions in the historiography of the French Revolution is the problem of the relationship between Enlightenment ideas and revolutionary events. For over two centuries, historians have been asking how eighteenth-century and earlier philosophical analyses of freedom, rights, and equality influenced the French revolutionaries. The readings in this subunit present several viewpoints about this connection.
Read this essay in its entirety (4 pages), paying particular attention to how it makes connections between the French Revolution, French Enlightenment thinkers, and seventeenth-century English political thought. Write a paragraph that compares these different types of political thought. To access each page, click on arrow key, or the page number, at the bottom of the text.
This reading and paragraph should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.1.2 Reading: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European Intellectual History: “Lecture 11: The Origins of the French Revolution”
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’sThe History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European Intellectual History: “Lecture 11: The Origins of the French Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this entire lecture and focus on the relationships among the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, democracy, and totalitarian political systems. Do you agree with the argument presented in the lecture? Why, or why not?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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5.1.2 Reading: 18th Century History: Rick Brainard’s “The Influence of the Enlightenment on the French Revolution”
Link: 18th Century History: Rick Brainard’s “The Influence of the Enlightenment on the French Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: This text contrasts a view which favors gradual change (Edmund Burke’s) against one which supports a revolutionary break with the past (Thomas Paine’s). What arguments are presented in favor of each of these viewpoints?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.2 Reading: Marxists Internet Archive’s “Principal Dates and Time Line of the French Revolution”
Link: Marxists Internet Archive’s “Principal Dates and Time Line of the French Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Study this chronology of French Revolution carefully. As you study, create your own shorter chronology, selecting the events that seem most important to you. After listening to the lectures and reading the texts assigned in this unit, you will have a chance to return to your chronology and modify and extend it.
Reviewing this chronology and developing your own should take approximately 1 hour.
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5.3.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Monarchy Embattled”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Monarchy Embattled” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay to understand the political and economic situation of the French monarchy in the years leading up to the Revolution. Make sure to read all four pages of the essay, clicking on the arrow key or page number at the bottom of each page.
This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.3.2 Reading: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s Avalon Project: “The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen”
Link: Yale University: Lillian Goldman Law Library’s Avalon Project: “The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document carefully, and compare it with the English Bill of Rights and the American Bill of Rights. What common ideas do you notice? What are the most important differences between these documents?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.3.2 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Admission of Jews to Rights of Citizenship, 27 September 1791” and Olympe de Gouges’ “The Declaration of the Rights of Woman (September 1791)”
Links: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Admission of Jews to Rights of Citizenship, 27 September 1791” (HTML) and Olympe de Gouges’ “The Declaration of the Rights of Woman (September 1791)” (HTML)
Instructions: Read the first document carefully to understand what rights were extended to individual Jews in 1791. What is the most important distinction between individual rights and communal rights? Compare this document with de Gouges’ argument for extending women’s rights. What arguments does she use? Where does she focus on gender equality and where on gender differences?
These readings and questions should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.4.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Paris and the Politics of Revolution” and “The Monarchy Falls”
Links: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Paris and the Politics of Revolution” (HTML) and “The Monarchy Falls” (HTML)
Instructions: Read both of these essays in their entirety to understand the political changes in France between 1791 and 1795. Make sure to read all four pages of each essay by clicking on the arrow key or page numbers at the bottom of each page.
These readings should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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5.4.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Constitution of 1793”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Constitution of 1793” (HTML)
Instructions: This is the constitution of the first French Republic. Study it carefully and compare it to the American Declaration of Independence. What similarities and differences do you perceive between the two documents? How do these reflect the different social and historical contexts of the American and the French Revolutions?
This reading and these questions should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.4.2 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “War, Terror, and Resistance”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “War, Terror, and Resistance” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay in its entirety to understand how fears of counter-revolution fueled revolutionary violence. Make sure to read all five pages of the essay by clicking on the arrow keys or page number at the bottom of the text. Please note that this reading also contains information you will need to know for sub-subunit 5.4.3.
This reading should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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5.4.3 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “The Eleventh of Thermidor”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “The Eleventh of Thermidor” (HTML)
Instructions: This sub-subunit is covered by reading assigned in sub-subunit 5.4.2. In addition, please read the primary document linked above. Read this essay in its entirety to understand how fears of counter-revolution fueled revolutionary violence.
This reading should take less than 15 minutes to complete.
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5.5.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Brumaire: Bonaparte’s Justification” and “The Napoleonic Experience”
Links: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Brumaire: Bonaparte’s Justification” (HTML) and “The Napoleonic Experience” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read Napoleon’s justification of his coup d’etat, focusing on the ways in which he describes his relationship to the revolution. Then, read the essays about the Napoleonic era to understand how French political life changed after Napoleon came to power. Make sure to read all four pages of “The Napoleonic Experience” essay by clicking on the arrows or page numbers at the bottom of the text.
These readings should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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5.5.2.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Legacies of the Revolution”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Legacies of the Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay in its entirety (4 pages). Make sure to click on the arrow key or page number at the bottom of the text to move on to each subsequent page. Compare this essay to the final section of Professor O’Brien’s lecture, where he discusses the outcomes of the French Revolution. Compare the social and political outcomes of the French Revolution to the outcomes of the American Revolution. How would you account for both the similarities and the differences?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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5.5.2.2 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “The French Civil Code (1804)”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “The French Civil Code (1804)” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this brief text. These excerpts from the French Civil Code focus on the private sphere. How do they represent the relationship between men and women? How does this compare to the vision of women’s rights proposed by Olympia de Gauges in her “Declaration of the Rights of Woman?”
This reading and these questions should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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5.5.3.3 Reading: Marxists Internet Archive’s “History of the Paris Commune”
Link: Marxists Internet Archive’s “History of the Paris Commune” (HTML)
Instructions: This is a learning module, which contains the timeline and documents of the Paris Commune. First, click on the “Timeline of Events” link, and review the entire timeline. Then, click on “Documents of the Commune,” and select two or three of the primary sources provided to understand the political program of the Communards.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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5.5.4 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Slavery and the Haitian Revolution”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity – Exploring the French Revolution: “Slavery and the Haitian Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this entire text (2 pages). Make sure to click on the arrow key or page number at the bottom of the text to move on to the second page. These excerpts from the French Civil Code focus on the private sphere. How do they represent the relationship between men and women? How does this compare to the vision of women’s rights proposed by Olympia de Gauges in her “Declaration of the Rights of Woman?”
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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6.1.2 Reading: Dickinson College: Professor Marcelo J. Borges’ “Independence in Latin America - A Chronology”
Link: Dickinson College: Professor Marcelo J. Borges’ “Independence in Latin America - A Chronology” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this chronology in its entirety. What relationships do you notice between developments in Europe and those in South America?
This reading and question should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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6.1.3 Reading: Hispanic Division of the Library of Congress: The World of 1898: “The Spanish-American War: Introduction”
Link: Hispanic Division of the Library of Congress: The World of 1898: “The Spanish American War: Introduction” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this text in its entirety to learn about the Spanish-American War and the end of the Spanish Empire. Click on any embedded links in the text for more information.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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6.2.2 Reading: University of Manchester Department of Social Anthropology and the ERA Consortium’s Peasant Social Worlds and Their Transformations: “The Mexican Revolution”
Link: University of Manchester Department of Social Anthropology and the ERA Consortium’s Peasant Social Worlds and Their Transformations: “The Mexican Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay in its entirety to understand how the political transformations of the nineteenth century affected Mexican peasants, most of whom belonged to the indigenous population of the area.
This reading should take approximately 2 hours to complete.
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6.2.3 Reading: The Historical Text Archive: Jamie O. Rodríguez’s “Down from Colonialism: Mexico's 19th Century Crisis”
Link: The Historical Text Archive: Jamie O. Rodríguez’s “Down from Colonialism: Mexico's 19th Century Crisis” (HTML)
Instructions: Study this essay to understand how industrialization proceeded in Mexico and how it changed the structure of society.
This reading should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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6.3.2 Reading: MexicanHistory.org’s “Mexican Revolution Timeline 1910-1920”
Link: MexicanHistory.org’s “Mexican Revolution Timeline 1910-1920” (HTML)
Instructions: This is a detailed chronology of the Mexican Revolution. Read it in its entirety and make a shorter timeline of the most important events after you have listened to Professor O’Brien’s lecture.
This reading and creating your own timeline should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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6.4.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Revolution 1910-1920”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Revolution 1910-1920” (HTML)
Instructions: Study this text in its entirety to understand how the transfer of power took place in 1911.
This reading should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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6.4.1 Reading: The Historical Text Archive: Rosa Maria Stoops’ “Madero, Francisco I”
Link: The Historical Text Archive: Rosa Maria Stoops’ “Madero, Francisco I” (HTML)
Instructions: Study this text to better understand Francisco Madero’s background, his political goals, and his vision of the Mexican state.
This reading should take approximately 25 minutes to complete.
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6.4.2 Reading: The Historical Text Archive: Joseph Judge’s analysis of the “Plan of Ayala”
Link: The Historical Text Archive: Joseph Judge’s analysis of the “Plan of Ayala” (HTML)
Instructions: This is a study of Emiliano Zapata’s “Plan of Ayala.” Read it carefully to understand the historical context in which the document was written.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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6.4.2 Reading: The Historical Text Archive’s Version of Emiliano Zapata’s “Plan of Ayala” (November 28, 1911)
Link: The Historical Text Archive’s Version of Emiliano Zapata’s “Plan of Ayala” (November 28, 1911) (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document in its entirety, focusing on how it represents the Mexican population, how it delineates the needs and rights of peasants, and how it criticizes Madero’s government.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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6.5.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “Huerta’s Dictatorship”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “Huerta’s Dictatorship” (HTML)
Instructions: Please study this text to obtain a basic outline of Huerta’s coup.
This reading should take you less than 10 minutes.
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6.5.1 Reading: The Historical Text Archive: Josh Burnham’s “Huerta, Victoriano: Excellent General or Terrible Tyrant?”
Link: The Historical Text Archive: Josh Burnham’s “Huerta, Victoriano: Excellent General or Terrible Tyrant?” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this text in its entirety to understand competing interpretations of the Huerta regime.
This reading should take you approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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6.6.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Constitution of 1917” and “Carranza’s Presidency”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Constitution of 1917” (HTML) and “Carranza’s Presidency” (HTML)
Instructions: Read both of these texts in their entirety, focusing on the debates about the Mexican Constitution. Write a brief paragraph summarizing this debate.
This reading and paragraph should take approximately 30 minutes.
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6.6.2 Reading: The Historical Text Archive: Mexico: 1917 Constitution (Becker version): “Title 1, Chapter 1: Individual Guarantees”
Link: The Historical Text Archive: Mexico: 1917 Constitution (Becker version): “Title 1, Chapter 1: Individual Guarantees” (HTML)
Instructions: Read Articles 1–26 of this Chapter of the Mexican Constitution. Compare them with the Bill of Rights in the American Constitution and with the French Declaration of the Rights of Man. What are the unique elements of the “Individual Guarantees” of the Mexican Constitution? What do these guarantees share with earlier revolutionary documents?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 2 hours to complete.
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6.6.3 Reading: The Historical Text Archive: Mexico: 1917 Constitution (Becker version): “Title VI: Labor and Social Security”
Link: The Historical Text Archive: Mexico: 1917 Constitution (Becker version): “Title VI: Labor and Social Security” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read “Title VI” of Mexico’s Constitution of 1917. How does this document specify the rights of workers? Why were the rights of workers so important in the Mexican Revolution? In what ways was this different from attitudes toward labor in the American Revolution?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
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6.6.4 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Obregón Presidency, 1920-24”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Obregón Presidency, 1920-24” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this text in its entirety and note the ways in which President Obregón sought to enact the political changes contained in the 1917 Constitution.
This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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6.7 Reading: Kellogg Institute for International Studies: Professor Robert Curley’s “Political Catholicism in Revolutionary Mexico, 1900-1926”
Link: Kellogg Institute for International Studies: Professor Robert Curley’s “Political Catholicism in Revolutionary Mexico, 1900-1926” (PDF)
Instructions: Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find this article, and select the “Political Catholicism in Revolutionary Mexico” hyperlink to download the PDF file. Read the text in its entirety (64 pages), focusing on the following questions: what is Professor Curley’s most important claim about the role of Catholicism in the Mexican Revolution? What evidence does he use to support this argument?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 3 hours to complete.
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6.8.2 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Calles Presidency, 1924-48,” “The Maximato,” “Cardenismo and the Revolution Rekindled” and “Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI)”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Tim L. Merrill and Ramón Miró’s (eds.) Mexico: A Country Study: “The Calles Presidency, 1924-48,” (HTML) “The Maximato,” “Cardenismo and the Revolution Rekindled” (HTML) and “Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI)” (HTML)
Instructions: Read these texts in their entirety to understand the reasons why they Institutional Revolutionary Party became so influential in Mexican politics in the twentieth century.
These readings should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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6.8.3 Reading: International World History Project: Peter N. Stearns, Michael Adas, and Stuart B. Schwartz’s “Mexican Revolution and the Great War”
Reading: International World History Project: Peter N. Stearns, Michael Adas, and Stuart B. Schwartz’s “Mexican Revolution and the Great War” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this text in its entirety. It provides an overview of the Mexican Revolution and identifies they ways in which both the Revolution and the First World War influenced the history of twentieth-century Latin America.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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6.8.4 Reading: Arizona State University: Dr. Celestino Fernández’s “Documenting the Revolution – Casasola and Corrido”
Link: Arizona State University: Dr. Celestino Fernández’s“Documenting the Revolution – Casasola and Corrido” (Flash or iTunes)
Instructions: Please view this lecture in its entirety (20 minutes) to understand how a new genre of political songs arose in the Mexican Revolution. You may also read the transcript of the lecture.
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7.1.2 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: Transformation of Russia in the Nineteenth Century
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: Transformation of Russia in the Nineteenth Century (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the following sections: “Economic Developments,” “Reforms and Their Limits, 1855-92,” and “Witte and Accelerated Industrialization.” Note that you will need to scroll almost to the bottom of the page to find the last text. As you read, keep the following questions in mind: How did industrialization affect the Russian population in the latter part of the nineteenth century? Which social groups benefited? Which were subject to exploitation? Please note that these texts also contain information you will need for sub-subunit 7.1.3.
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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7.1.4 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “The Russian Orthodox Church”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “The Russian Orthodox Church” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this essay in its entirety, focusing on the reasons why an over the course of Russian history an unusually close relationship developed between the Orthodox Church and the Russian state.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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7.1.5 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: Transformation of Russia in the Nineteenth Century
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: Transformation of Russia in the Nineteenth Century (HTML)
Instructions: Please only read the section titled “Foreign Affairs after the Crimean War.” You will need to scroll down the page to find it. As you read, keep the following questions in mind: How did the Crimean War change Russia’s relationship to the European powers? How did Russia’s political alliances shift between 1856 and the 1890s?
This reading and questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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7.1.6 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: Transformation of Russia in the Nineteenth Century
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: Transformation of Russia in the Nineteenth Century (HTML)
Instructions: Please only read the section titled “Imperialism in Asia and the Russo-Japanese War.” You will need to scroll down to the bottom of the page to find it. As you read, keep the following questions in mind: why did Russia seek influence in Asia? What did the Japanese victory in 1905 signal about Russia’s political power in Europe?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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7.1.7 Reading: University of Arizona: Professor David Ortiz, Jr.’s “Chronology of Russian Revolution”
Link: University of Arizona: Professor David Ortiz, Jr.’s “Chronology of Russian Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: This is a comprehensive chronology which shows key nineteenth-century developments in Russia’s politics, as well as the revolutionary events of 1905 and 1917. Study it carefully to get an overview of the various phases of the revolution. Take about 15-20 minutes to study this chronology.
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7.2 Reading: Marxists Internet Archive: Samuel Moore and Frederick Engels’s 1888 version of the “Manifesto of the Communist Party:” “Preamble and Chapter I: Bourgeois and Proleterians”
Links: Marxists Internet Archive: Samuel Moore and Frederick Engels’ 1888 translation of Marx and Engels’ “Manifesto of the Communist Party:” “Preamble and Chapter I: Bourgeois and Proletarians” (HTML)
Instructions: This is an authoritative English translation of Marx and Engels’ “Communist Manifesto.” It was originally published in German in London, in 1848, shortly before a wave of revolutions swept through Europe. Marxist theory was fundamentally important for Lenin and other Russian Revolutionaries and reading the Manifesto will give you insights into some of the key claims, problems, and contradictions that characterize Marxist theory. Read both the “Preamble” and “Chapter I: Bourgeois and Proletarians,” focusing on the following questions: how do the authors characterize these social classes? What do they claim is the role of the bourgeoisie in world history? What role do the proletarians play? Does individual human will matter in history? Can one predict a socio-political system’s future?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete.
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7.3.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “The Last Years of the Autocracy”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “The Last Years of the Autocracy” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this text to get a more extensive understanding of the Revolution of 1905 and of the ways in which it affected the tsarist regime in the years leading up to the First World War. Focus especially on the question of authority: who had the authority to govern? Could the Duma carry out reforms? Note that this reading also covers information you will need to know for sub-subunit 7.3.4.
This reading and these questions should take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
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7.3.2 Reading: The Marxists Archive: Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party Second Congress’ “Programme of the Social-Democratic Workers’ Party” and “The Menshevik Party”
Links: The Marxists Archive: Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party Second Congress’ “Programme of the Social-Democratic Workers’ Party” (HTML) and “The Menshevik Party” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the program of the Bolshevik party carefully; as you read, take notes on their most important claims and demands. Then read the document describing the Menshevik Party, the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, the Bolshevik party, and reformism. After completing the reading, write a brief paragraph describing the most important differences between the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks.
Completing these readings with the writing activity should take approximately 30 minutes.
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7.3.3 Reading: Durham University: Russian History Home Page: Russian History 1905-1930: “Manifesto of 17 October 1905”
Link: Durham University: Russian History Home Page: Russian History 1905-1930: “Manifesto of 17 October 1905” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this brief text. This is the Manifesto issued by Tsar Nicholas II in response to the demands put forward by the revolutionary coalition. Compare it with the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen” put forward by the French revolutionaries in 1789. What are the most important similarities and differences between the two documents?
This reading and questions should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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7.4.1 Reading: YouTube: UCLA’s “Modern Civilization 1750-Present, Lecture 12”
Link: YouTube: UCLA’s “Modern Civilization 1750-Present, Lecture 12” (YouTube)
Instructions: Please view this lecture in its entirety (1 hour and 13 minutes). Focus on understanding the transitions between the different phases of the revolution and the goals of the competing parties in February 1917. Note that this lecture also contains information you will need to know in sub-subunits 7.4.2 through 7.4.6.
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7.4.2 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “Revolutions and Civil War”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “Revolutions and Civil War” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the following sections in this article: “February Revolution” and “The Period of Dual Power.” You will need to scroll down the page to find the second reading. Please read the assigned text with the following question in mind: what were the competing visions of the Russian state which emerged during this time?
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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7.4.2 Reading: The Marxist Internet Archive’s version of V.I. Lenin’s “April Theses”
Link: The Marxist Internet Archive’s version of V.I. Lenin’s “April Theses” (HTML)
Instructions: Lenin’s “April Theses” was a crucially important document that outlined the aspirations of the Bolshevik Party. Please read it in its entirety, and compare it to the Communist Manifesto which you studied in subunit 7.2. What are the most important ways in which Lenin departs from the Communist Manifesto?
This reading, comparison, and question should take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
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7.4.3 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “Revolutions and Civil War”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “Revolutions and Civil War” (HTML)
Instructions: Please scroll down the page to find the section called “The Bolshevik Revolution.” Study the text carefully to understand how the Bolsheviks came to power in Saint Petersburg.
This reading should take approximately 10 minutes to complete.
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7.4.3 Reading: Durham University: Russian History Home Page: Russian History 1905-1930: “Declaration of the Rights of the Toiling and Exploited Peoples”
Link: Durham University: Russian History Home Page: Russian History 1905-1930: “Declaration of the Rights of the Toiling and Exploited Peoples” (HTML)
Instructions: Read the entire text. This declaration, published in January 1918, outlines the key rights which are to obtain in the new Soviet state. Compare it with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, the English Bill of Rights, and the American Bill of Rights. What common themes and values do you notice? What is unique about this document when compared to earlier revolutionary declarations?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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7.4.4 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “Revolutions and Civil War”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “Revolutions and Civil War” (HTML)
Instructions: Please scroll down the page to find the section called “Civil War and War Communism.” Study the text carefully to understand how the outbreak of the Civil War changed the actions and ideological commitments of the revolutionary leaders. What was the effect of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on the Russian Revolution?
This reading and question should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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7.4.5 Reading: Durham University: Russian History Home Page: Russian History 1905-1930: Vladmir Illyich Lenin (1870-1924): “On the Organization of and Extraordinary Commission to Fight Counter Revolution, Letter to Dzerzhinskii, December 19, 1917”
Link: Durham University: Russian History Home Page: Russian History 1905-1930: Vladmir Illyich Lenin (1870-1924): “On the Organization of and Extraordinary Commission to Fight Counter Revolution, Letter to Dzerzhinskii, December 19, 1917” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document, and compare counter-revolutionary measures in 1917 Russia with those in Paris during the Jacobin Republic.
This reading and comparison should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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7.4.5 Reading: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Vladimir Illyich Lenin’s “The State and Revolution” Excerpts
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Vladimir Illyich Lenin’s “The State and Revolution” Excerpts (HTML)
Instruction: Please read this entire crucial, revolutionary text from 1918. What does Lenin mean by the “withering away of the state” and the “dictatorship of the proletariat?”
This reading and question should take approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete.
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7.4.6 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “The Era of the New Economic Policy”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Glenn E. Curtis’s (ed.) Russia: A Country Study: “The Era of the New Economic Policy” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this entire essay, and compare its analysis of the emergence of the Soviet Union with the analysis provided in the lecture you studied in subunit 7.4.1.
This reading and comparison should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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7.5.5 Reading: The University of Kansas: Dr. Anna M. Cienciala’s Nationalism and Communism in East Central Europe: Lecture 17: “Eastern Europe 1945-56 and Czechoslovakia 1968”
Link: The University of Kansas: Dr. Anna M. Cienciala’s Nationalism and Communism in East Central Europe: Lecture 17: “Eastern Europe 1945-56 and Czechoslovakia 1968” (HTML)
Instructions: Read the first part of this lecture (17A), Parts I through III. Focus on the creation of the Soviet Bloc and the ways in which the Soviet Union controlled Eastern European politics and economies. Please note that these sections of the lecture also contain information which you will need in sub-subunit 7.5.6.
This reading should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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7.5.6 Reading: The Atomic Archive’s “Cold War: A Brief History”
Link: The Atomic Archive’s “Cold War: A Brief History” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this presentation in its entirety (27 slides) to better understand the history of the nuclear arms race and the Soviet-American rivalry, which developed after 1945.
This presentation should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.1 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Introduction to China’s Modern History”
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Introduction to China’s Modern History” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this page in its entirety, and carefully study the chronology at the bottom of the page.
This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.2 Reading: Harvard Extension School Open Learning Initiative: Chinese Studies Online Courses: Traditions and Transformations. Dr. Peter K. Bol and William C. Kirby’s Lecture 26: “Foreign Models for a Chinese Republic”
Link: Harvard Extension School Open Learning Initiative: Chinese Studies Online Courses: Traditions and Transformations. Dr. Peter K. Bol and William C. Kirby’s Lecture 26: “Foreign Models for a Chinese Republic” (Flash)
Instructions: Scroll down about 2/3 of the page until you find this “Foreign Models for a Chinese Republic” on the list. Open the lecture in a format compatible with the capabilities of your computer. View the lecture in its entirety (approximately 52 minutes) to understand what models of government were of interest to Chinese politicians and political activists in the early twentieth century. Note that this lecture contains information which you will also need for subunit 8.3.
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8.2.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The Republican Revolution of 1911” and “Republican China”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The Republican Revolution of 1911” (HTML) and “Republican China” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read both texts from the U.S. Library of Congress’s Country Studies series. These readings should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.2.2 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “Nationalism and Communism”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “Nationalism and Communism” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this text in its entirety to better understand the conflicts between the communists and the nationalists. This reading should take you approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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8.2.2 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ version of Sun Yat-sen’s “Selections from A Program of National Reconstruction:” "The Three Stages of Revolution” (1918)
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ version of Sun Yat-sen’s “Selections from A Program of National Reconstruction:” "The Three Stages of Revolution” (1918) (HTML and PDF)
Instructions: Scroll down to the “Government and Administration” section and find the “Rebuilding China” subsection. Download the PDF file of Sun Yat-sen’s text, read the introduction and the “Longer Selection” part starting on p.3. How does Sun Yat-sen define various stages of a revolution?
This reading and question should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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8.2.3 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Before and After the May Fourth Movement”
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Before and After the May Fourth Movement” (HTML and PDF)
Instructions: Read both the introduction and the primary texts provided on this page. What were the most important goals and ideals of the cultural movement that came in the wake of the failed liberal revolution?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.2.4 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “The Long March (1934-1936)”
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “The Long March (1934-1936)” (HTML)
Instructions: Read both the introduction and the primary texts provided on this page. What do these texts tell you about the experiences and mentality of Chinese Communists?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.2.5 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “Anti-Japanese War”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “Anti-Japanese War” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document to supplement the description of the Japanese Invasion provided in Professor O’Brien’s lecture, which you studied in subunit 8.2.
This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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8.2.6 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “Return to Civil War”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “Return to Civil War” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document to supplement the analysis of the final phase of hostilities between the Nationalists and the Communists, which was provided in Professor O’Brien’s lecture, studied in subunit 8.2. This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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8.3.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The People’s Republic of China” and “The Transition to Socialism, 1953-57”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The People’s Republic of China” (HTML) and “The Transition to Socialism, 1953-57” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read these two texts in their entirety. They provide the historical context of the establishment of the People’s Republic of China and describe its early years.
These readings should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.3.2 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Mao Zedong: Biographical and Political Profile”
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Mao Zedong: Biographical and Political Profile” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this text in its entirety to better understand Mao Zedong’s personal background and his most important political goals.
This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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8.3.2 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Commonly Read Speeches and Writings of Mao Zedong (1927-1945)”
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “Commonly Read Speeches and Writings of Mao Zedong (1927-1945)” (HTML and PDF)
Instructions: Read the four selections from Mao Zedong’s writings provided on this page. How do the values in these texts compare with values expressed in Marxist texts you read while studying the Russian Revolution in Unit 7?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.3.3 Reading: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “20th Century: Communism and Internal Challenges to Tradition”
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators’ “20th Century: Communism and Internal Challenges to Tradition” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this page in its entirety, focusing on the ways in which religious and secular worldviews came into conflict during the Chinese Revolution.
This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
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8.4.1 Reading: Princeton University Press: Lorenz M. Lüthi’s The Sino-Soviet Split: Cold War in the Communist World: “Introduction”
Link: Princeton University Press: Lorenz M. Lüthi’s The Sino-Soviet Split: Cold War in the Communist World: “Introduction” (HTML and PDF)
Instructions: Please read this essay in its entirety. What is the main argument proposed here regarding the breakdown of Soviet and Chinese in 1966? What historical sources does the author analyze to support his argument?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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8.4.2 Reading: Radio86.com: All About China: “The Cultural Revolution Series – An Overview”
Link: Radio86.com: All About China: “The Cultural Revolution Series – An Overview” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this interview in its entirety. How was violence used by the Chinese government? How did Mao Zedong justify the use of violence against the Chinese people? How was his justification of violence different from that of other revolutionaries you studied in this course?
This reading and questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.4.3 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The Great Leap Forward, 1958-60”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The Great Leap Forward, 1958-60” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this text in its entirety. What differences and similarities do you perceive between Chinese and Soviet versions of planned economy?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.4.4 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The Cultural Revolution 1966-1976”
Link: U.S. Library of Congress: Robert L. Worden, Andrea Matles Savada, and Ronald E. Dolan’s (eds.): China: A Country Study: “The Cultural Revolution 1966-1976” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this text in its entirety to better understand how Communism came into conflict with traditional Chinese culture.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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8.4.5 Reading: Mount Holyoke College: Dr. Satya J. Gabriel’s “Capitalism, Socialism, and the 1949 Chinese Revolution: What Was the Cold War All about?”
Link: Mount Holyoke College: Dr. Satya J. Gabriel’s “Capitalism, Socialism, and the 1949 Chinese Revolution: What Was the Cold War All about?” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this article in its entirety. What is its main argument? What evidence is offered in support of this argument? Do you find the argument convincing?
This reading and these questions should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.
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9.1.1 Reading: iTunes U: Columbia University: Richard Bulliet’s W3719 History of the Modern Middle East: “Lecture 23: Iran under the Shahs”
Link: iTunes U: Columbia University: Richard Bulliet’s W3719 History of the Modern Middle East: “Lecture 23: Iran under the Shahs” (iTunes U Audio)
Instructions: On the webpage linked above, scroll down to the lecture titled “Iran under the Shahs.” Click on the “View in iTunes” link to launch the video lecture. Please listen to the entire lecture (1 hour and 18 minutes), and focus on the following questions: how does Professor Bulliet situate Iran in the Middle East? How does he characterize the commonalities between Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan? Why are these commonalities important in understanding the Iranian Revolution in the broader regional context?
This video lecture and these questions should take approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete.
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9.1.2 Reading: Religious Studies and Baha’i Studies: Dr. Moojan Momen’s “The Religious Background of the 1979 Revolution in Iran”
Link: Religious Studies and Baha’i Studies: Dr. Moojan Momen’s “The Religious Background of the 1979 Revolution in Iran” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay in its entirety, focusing on the tensions between religion and politics in the years leading up to 1979.
This reading should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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9.1.3 Reading: Mount Holyoke College: Satya J. Gabriel’s “Class Analysis of the Iranian Revolution of 1979”
Link: Mount Holyoke College: Satya J. Gabriel’s “Class Analysis of the Iranian Revolution of 1979” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this essay in its entirety and focus on the following questions: what was the structure of Iranian society in the decades leading up to the revolution? How did tensions among social groups contribute to the eruption of the revolution?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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9.2 Reading: University of Notre Dame: Professor A. Rashied Omar’s Islamic Ethics of War and Peace: Lecture 1: “Islamic Worldview”
Link: University of Notre Dame: Professor A. Rashied Omar’s Islamic Ethics of War and Peace: Lecture 1: “Islamic Worldview” (HTML)
Instructions: Shi’a Islam in Iran is only one among many currents in the Muslim world, and it is essential to understand it in a broader context. Study the lecture notes above to understand the diversity of Muslim beliefs and religious practices. Follow the hyper-linked terms to understand their meanings, focus especially on the “Eight Major Islamic Tendencies” and explore how they differ from one another.
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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9.3.1 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “The Coming of the Revolution” and “The Bakhtiar Government”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “The Coming of the Revolution” (HTML) and “The Bakhtiar Government” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read these essays in their entirety, focusing on the different groups who participated in the revolution.
This reading should take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
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9.3.2 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “The Revolution,” “The New Constitution,” and “The Bani Sadr Presidency”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “The Revolution” (HTML), “The New Constitution” (HTML), and “The Bani Sadr Presidency” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read these essays in their entirety, focusing on the process whereby power passed into the hands of Ayatollah Khomeini and the Revolutionary Council.
These readings should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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9.3.3 Reading: U.S. Library of Congress: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “Terror and Repression” and “Consolidation of the Revolution”
Links: U.S. Library of Congress: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “Terror and Repression” (HTML) and “Consolidation of the Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read these essays in their entirety. Were there similarities between the use of violence in revolutionary Iran and during the French and Bolshevik Revolutions? How was the use of violence justified in each case?
These readings and questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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9.4.1 Reading: Iran Chamber Society’s version of Ayatullah Ruhallah Khomeini’s Islamic Government: “The Form of Islamic Government”
Link: Iran Chamber Society’s version of Ayatullah Ruhallah Khomeini’s Islamic Government: “The Form of Islamic Government” (HTML)
Instructions: Scroll to the bottom of the page, click on the link titled “Governance of Jurist (Velayat-e Faqeeh) / Islamic Government” to download the PDF file, and read pages 29 through 35 from “The Form of Islamic Government.” How does the vision of government presented here differ from that advocated by the French and the American Revolutionaries?
This reading and question should take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
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9.4.2 Reading: Iran Chamber Society’s “The Position of Women from the Viewpoint of Imam Khomeini”
Link: Iran Chamber Society’s “The Position of Women from the Viewpoint of Imam Khomeini” (HTML)
Instructions: Scroll to the bottom of the page, click on the link titled “The Position of Women from the Viewpoint of Imam Khomeini” to download the PDF, and read pages 33-37. How does Khomeini describe women in relation to men? How does he define their rights?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
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10.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Origins of Change in Eastern Europe”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Origins of Change in Eastern Europe” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire document. Then, write a paragraph that identifies the four factors the author sees as crucial in ending the Cold War.
This reading and paragraph should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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10.1 Reading: American.gov Archive: The Berlin Wall: 20 Years Later: “Introduction” and “Paths to 1989”
Links: American.gov Archive: The Berlin Wall: 20 Years Later: “Introduction” and “Paths to 1989” (PDF)
Instructions: Click on the “View PDF” hyperlink in the middle of the webpage to open the PDF file, and read the “Introduction” (pp. 2-4) and Michael Jay Friedman’s “Paths to 1989” (pp. 5-12).
This reading should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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10.2.1 Reading: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European Intellectual History: “Lecture 16: 1989: The Walls Came Tumbling Down”
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European Intellectual History: “Lecture 16: 1989: The Walls Came Tumbling Down” (HTML)
Instructions: Read the first part of this lecture (up to and including the paragraph which starts with the words “By early May 1992…”) to understand how the Soviet Union was changing in the post-Stalin era. Click on all the hyper-linked names of communist officials and dissidents to learn more about their role in Soviet politics.
This resource should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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10.3.1 Reading: University of Kansas: Dr. Anna M. Cienciala’s Nationalism and Communism in East Central Europe: Lecture 19B: “The Collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe, 1989”
Link: University of Kansas: Dr. Anna M. Cienciala’s Nationalism and Communism in East Central Europe: Lecture 19B: “The Collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe, 1989” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this lecture in its entirety. Focus on the following questions: why did communist authorities decide to negotiate with the dissidents in various Eastern Bloc states in 1989 and 1990? What were the most important aims of the dissidents? Which aims were shared across the Soviet Bloc and which aims were specific to each country? Why did the revolution turn violent in Romania and not elsewhere in the region?
This lecture and these questions should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
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10.3.2.1 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Geremek on Solidarity’s Strategy of Restraint in the Spring of 1989”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Geremek on Solidarity’s Strategy of Restraint in the Spring of 1989” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this interview in its entirety. Focus on the reasons why Solidarity sought to avoid a violent confrontation with the communist regime.
This reading should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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10.3.2.2 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989:: “Record of Conversation between Representative of the Opposition Roundtable and Boris Stukalin”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Record of Conversation between Representative of the Opposition Roundtable and Boris Stukalin” (HTML)
Instructions: After reading the description of this document, scroll to the bottom of the page, click on the “Hungarian Roundtable” link to download the PDF file of the conversation between Viktor Orban and Boris Stukalin, and read the entire document (3 pages). What are Orban’s most important claims about the possibility of a stable transition away from Communism?
This reading and question should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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10.3.2.3 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Bonn Embassy Cable, The German Question and Reunification”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Bonn Embassy Cable, The German Question and Reunification” (HTML)
Instructions: Read the excerpts of the Bonn Embassy cable reprinted on this page, focusing on the way in which this document envisions the process of reunifying Germany.
This reading should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
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10.3.2.3 Reading: American.gov Archive: The Berlin Wall: 20 Years Later: Adam Michnik’s “I Will Remember That Day All My Life”
Link: American.gov Archive: The Berlin Wall: 20 Years Later: Adam Michnik’s “I Will Remember That Day All My Life” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this document in its entirety, paying attention to the values and ideals implicit in Michnik’s statements. What connections do you see between these and the values of the American and the French Revolutionaries?
This reading and question should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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10.3.2.4 Reading: George Mason University: Vaclav Havel’s First New Year’s Presidential Address to the Nation – January 1, 1990
Link: George Mason University: Vaclav Havel’s New Year’s Presidential Address to the Nation – January 1, 1990 (PDF)
Instructions: After reading the description of this document, scroll down to the bottom of the page, click on the “Havel Speech” link to download the PDF file, and read Havel’s New Year’s Presidential Address in its entirety (7 pages). As you read, consider the following questions: how does Havel assess the effects of communist rule on Czechoslovak society? What does he see as the most important tasks ahead?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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10.3.2.5 Reading: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Romania – Letter of the Six, March 1989”
Link: George Mason University: Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media’s Making the History of 1989: “Romania - Letter of the Six, March 1989” (HTML)
Instructions: This letter was written by Romanian Communist party members to Nicolae Ceau?escu. Please read it in its entirety, and consider the following questions: how does their dissent differ from liberal democratic dissent? What similarities do you notice?
This reading and these questions should take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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10.4 Reading: University of Kansas: Dr. Anna M. Cienciala’s Nationalism and Communism in East Central Europe: Lecture 20A: “Central and Eastern Europe since the Fall of Communism”
Link: University of Kansas: Dr. Anna M. Cienciala’s Nationalism and Communism in East Central Europe: Lecture 20A: “Central and Eastern Europe since the Fall of Communism” (HTML)
Instructions: Read this lecture in its entirety. Focus on the following questions: what were the most important problems of making the transition from communism to democracy? What policies did the new governments implement to enable the transition from planned to market economy? What were the most important social problems in the aftermath of 1989? What difference did it make that the 1989 Revolutions were nonviolent? To answer this last question, compare the outcomes of 1989 to outcomes of the French Revolution of 1789 and the Russian Revolution of 1917.
This reading and these questions should take approximately 2 hours to complete.
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Reading: The Saylor Foundation’s “Unit 11 Quiz: Revolutions in Perspective” and “Unit 11 Quiz – Guide to Responding”
Link: The Saylor Foundation’s “Unit 11 Quiz: Revolutions in Perspective” (PDF) and “Unit 11 Quiz – Guide to Responding” (PDF)
Instructions: Please open the “Unit 11 Quiz” first and work through all the questions. Instructions for how to take the quiz and how to time it appear at the top of the page. Please time yourself, and take no more than 45 minutes to complete the quiz. Once you have completed the quiz, please open “Unit 11 Quiz – Guide to Responding” and follow the instructions at the top of the page to evaluate your answers.
This assessment and evaluation of your responses should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.See a broken link? Please let us know!
