HIST 312 Beginnings of American Society: Colonial and Revolutionary History
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, American Indians, European settlers and African slaves forged a new society. Emphasizing experiences of accommodation and conflict among diverse peoples in early North America, this course offers a multicultural perspective on the colonial era. The course explores the expansion of European settlers into North America; the comparative development of French, Spanish and British societies; diplomacy and war among Europeans and American Indians; the origins of slavery; and the impact of gender in colonial society.
Prerequisites
4 Undergraduate credits
Effective August 1, 1998 to present
Meets graduation requirements for
Learning outcomes
General
- Understand Indian/white relations, the establishment of European settlement and the political and social development of the colonies, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
- Understand regional, racial and ethnic diversity in the context of early North American history, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
- Understand the history of slavery, work and labor in the Atlantic economy, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
- Understand the political, economic, social and cultural factors that led to the onset of the colonial resistance to British imperial rule, the outbreak of the revolutionary war and the creation of the United States of America, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
Minnesota Transfer Curriculum
Goal 5: History and the Social and Behavioral Sciences
- Employ the methods and data that historians and social and behavioral scientists use to investigate the human condition.
- Examine social institutions and processes across a range of historical periods and cultures.
- Use and critique alternative explanatory systems or theories.
- Develop and communicate alternative explanations or solutions for contemporary social issues.
Goal 7: Human Diversity
- Understand the development of and the changing meanings of group identities in the United States' history and culture.
- Demonstrate an awareness of the individual and institutional dynamics of unequal power relations between groups in contemporary society.
- Analyze their own attitudes, behaviors, concepts and beliefs regarding diversity, racism, and bigotry.
- Describe and discuss the experience and contributions (political, social, economic, etc.) of the many groups that shape American society and culture, in particular those groups that have suffered discrimination and exclusion.
- Demonstrate communication skills necessary for living and working effectively in a society with great population diversity.
Fall 2025
| Section | Title | Instructor | books | eservices |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Beginnings of American Society: Colonial and Revolutionary History | Craddick, Jordan Lee | Books for HIST-312-21 Fall 2025 | Course details for HIST-312-21 Fall 2025 |