In addition to meeting the degree requirements of their respective departments, Contemporary History Institute students take four core courses in contemporary history. Three of these courses are seminars offered consecutively during the fall, winter, and spring quarters of the Ohio University academic year. The fourth course is an individual tutorial, internship, or elective. By catalog number, the four core courses are:

CH 601
Introduction to Contemporary History
This seminar investigates the nature of contemporary history, major philosophical and conceptual approaches, interpretive trends and methodologies, and opportunities for interdisciplinary analysis. Recent texts have included: Stephen Jay Gould, Time’s Arrow/Time’s Cycle; James Gleick, Chaos: Making a New Science; David Hackett Fischer, Historians’ Fallacies; Joyce Appleby, Lynn Hunt, and Margar et Jacob, Telling the Truth About History; and Joan Wallach Scott, Feminism and History. (Click here for current syllabus)

CH 602
Themes in Contemporary History
The CH 602 seminar examines major forces that have shaped the contemporary world: nationalism, revolution, democratization, globalization, ethnic and racial conflict, etc. Recent texts have included: Edward Said, Culture and Imperialism; Peter Burke, History and Social Theory; Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order; and David Williams, Japan: Beyond the Edge of History. (Click here for current syllabus)

CH 603
Issues in Contemporary History
The CH 603 seminar focuses on contemporary issues with policy implications. Students apply the conceptual and methodological approaches encountered in CH 601 and 602 to selected problems facing current decision-makers. Recent texts have included: Ernest R. May and Richard E. Neustadt, Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision-makers; Stephen Carter, The Culture of Disbelief; Christopher Lasch, The Revolt of the Elites; Thomas Sowell, Race and Culture; and Catherine MacKinnon, Only Words. (Click here for current syllabus)

CH 604
Special Project in Contemporary History
This course provides an opportunity for individualized study in the field in which the student’s thesis or dissertation is to be written. It usually takes the form of a one-to-one tutorial with an expert outside Ohio University, but internships and even enrollment in courses at other universities can be used to meet this requirement. The Institute covers transportation and living expenses for students doing tutorials. Tutors have included: Umberto Eco, Paul Fussell, Melvyn Leffler, Robert McMahon, John Mearsheimer, Robert Pastor, and Michael Walzer.

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