Africa / African Diaspora

From the first shots of the First World War to the release of African POWs in Germany in 1945, this course will investigate how Europe's need for manpower and resources fettered Africans and at the same time opened up new opportunities for them to affect their interactions with colonialism and themselves. With forced agricultural production, commercial sex work, and young men sent to battlefronts in Africa and Europe, the World Wars changed Africa and Africans in numerous ways. While the course will address traditional aspects of military history, it will also investigate the social, cultural, and political changes that took place as intended and unintended outcomes on the part of European rulers as well as colonized Africans. May be taken for credit the Indigeneity, Race, and Ethnicity Studies major or minor. 

Prof. Woodfork, 4 credits, MWF 9-9:50 a.m.

• Fulfills Cultural Pluralism, Social Sciences, Global Cultures & Languages, Individual & Society, and/or Studying the Past distribution, as well as IRES elective. 
• History major: modern history; Empires & Colonialism; Revolution/War/Politics

This survey course provides an introduction to the history of Africa from its earliest days, to 1885. From this vast swath of time, select examples will be used to examine Africa's internal workings as well as its engagement with the wider world. Emphasizing continuity amidst change, the course's major themes include migration, trade systems, religious and cultural change, and the methods of studying the distant African past. The course is designed for first- and second-year students with no previous exposure to African history. Assignments include written examinations, short papers, and a map quiz. 

Prof. Woodfork, 4 credits, MWF 1-1:50 p.m.

• Fulfills Cultural Pluralism, Social Sciences, Global Cultures & Languages, and/or Studying the Past distribution, as well as IRES elective. 
• History major: premodern history; Cultures & Ideas; Before Modernity

This course will analyze the diversity of experiences of women in Africa, focusing on how religious practices, colonialism, work, and social class have impacted their lives. We will examine how people construct and reinforce notions of gender and how women function in social systems such as the family. We also will study issues concerning reproduction and the control of the bodies of women and girls. The goal is to restore women to the history of Africa, looking at them not as accessories to the historical process, but as veritable actors and agents of change. A research paper and its presentation to the class are required. 

Prof. Woodfork, 4 credits, TTh 1-2:20 p.m.

• Fulfills Cultural Pluralism, Social Sciences, Global Cultures & Languages, Individual & Society, and/or Studying the Past distribution, as well as Gender Studies and IRES electives.
• History major: modern history; Cultures & Ideas; Social Justice