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HIST 398 World War II: A Global History

This course offers students an overview of the World War II (1937-1945), emphasizing social and political history. This war was truly a global experience, and the European and Pacific theaters of the war are integrated into a world history perspective. Students learn about the causes and effects of the war, and come to understand the national, regional and global transformations that occurred during the course of the war itself. Military history is not emphasized, although some material in this vein is integrated into the larger perspective that students gain through a variety of reading and writing assignments.

Prerequisites

4 Undergraduate credits

Effective January 13, 2003 to present

Meets graduation requirements for

Learning outcomes

General

  • Can analyze the economic and geopolitical imperatives of grand strategy during World War II, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
  • Gains a comprehensive view of the basic facts of World War II, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
  • Understands how the war began and was conducted in the European, Soviet, North African, East Asian, and Pacific theaters, consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctively characteristic of upper-division courses completed at a comprehensive university.
  • Understands the importance of military technology, civilian and military leadership, social cohesion, and popular morale during the war, 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.