¾«¶«´«Ã½app

UniSQ Logo
The current and official versions of the course specifications are available on the web at .
Please consult the web for updates that may occur during the year.

HIS3005 Europe: History of an Idea

Semester 1, 2022 Toowoomba On-campus
Units : 1
Faculty or Section : Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts
School or Department : School of Humanities & Communication
Grading basis : Graded
Course fee schedule : /current-students/administration/fees/fee-schedules

Staffing

Examiner:

Requisites

Pre-requisite: Any First Year History Course

Overview

The ‘idea’ of Europe was slow to emerge in early modern and modern European history. It is, however, a useful concept for exploring the rapid change facing the peoples of Europe and the way they responded to such change politically, socially and culturally. This course is punctuated by four major themes that interconnect in order to allow students to engage with the collective unifying and fragmenting natures of the history of Europe and Europeans.

This course engages with questions about the `idea' of Europe and Europeans. It introduces students to modern European history by examining some of the forces and trends that influenced developments between the Black Death (1348) and the rise of nationalism after the French Revolution of 1789 and through industrialisation. By focussing on significant turning-points and some of the colourful players in this historic age, students analyse features of political, social and cultural change. In particular, the course allows students to engage with critical issues to do with Europe's hegemonic transformations and responses to the ideas emerging over the period with an emphasis on primary source analysis. Content and assessment items in this course lead to an appreciation not only of the relevance of the rise of nation states, but also the significance of Enlightenment ideas for our current times.

Course learning outcomes

On completion of this course students should be able to:

  1. identify and develop a critical awareness of the major events, forces and figures influencing political, social and cultural change in European history between the fourteenth and nineteenth centuries;
  2. engage critically with the significance of power, gender, class and/or racial paradigms as exemplified in specific European countries or regions throughout the period;
  3. participate in and contribute to group discussion in meaningful ways in tutorials and/or online;
  4. analyse critically and interpret both primary and secondary sources within the context of providing a coherent argument;
  5. demonstrate competency in written expression and scholarly research relevant to the discipline of history on selected topics.

Topics

Description Weighting(%)
1. Europe in transformation: introduction: the 'idea' of Europe; backdrop to the modern Age and interpreting the black death; Europe in Renaissance, the Medici of Florence and Niccolo Machiavelli 25.00
2. Europe divided: the Holy Roman Empire and Martin Luther’s Reformation; witchcraft persecution; the French Wars of Religion and the Thirty Years War 25.00
3. Foundations of the modern state: absolutism and the Sun King, Louis XIV, the French Enlightenment, Russia's Emergence and Catherine the Great 25.00
4. Revolution and nationalism: the French Revolution; Napoleon Bonaparte and his European Empire; the Industrial Revolution; the Concert of Europe and Prince von Metternich; Italy and the idea of Europe; course overview and exam review 25.00

Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed

Machiavelli, N 2012, The prince, T, Parks (trans) edn, Penguin Books, London.
Perry, J (ed) 2017, Sources for Europe in the Modern World, Oxford ¾«¶«´«Ã½app Press, Oxford.

Student workload expectations

To do well in this subject, students are expected to commit approximately 10 hours per week including class contact hours, independent study, and all assessment tasks. If you are undertaking additional activities, which may include placements and residential schools, the weekly workload hours may vary.

Assessment details

Description Weighting (%)
DOCUMENT ANALYSIS 1000 WORDS 15
CONTEXT ANALYSIS 1000 WORDS 15
MAJOR ESSAY 2000 WORDS 40
ONLINE EXAMINATION 30
Date printed 10 February 2023