Course information

This module applies historical methods to understand the intertwined historical processes that have shaped the modern world and the existential challenges confronting humanity in the 21st century. Over the course of ten thematic sessions, the module explores how global interconnections, economic systems, and cultural transformations have evolved over the past five hundred years. The module begins with an introduction to historical method, providing the general tools necessary to explore the existential challenges of the modern era as historical developments rather than seeing these challenges as isolated to our own times. The module will examine, in the first half of the module, the broader economic, labour and political problems that have emerged directly from the shaping of the world into global systems. These include the emergence of Western global maritime power in pursuit of trade while other regions, such as China, remained inward-looking, the Industrial Revolution and shifts from slavery to wage work, and the global demarcation of states that accompanied imperial expansion. Coverage will include examples of how documentaries and other popular media informs contemporary audiences about these developments, followed by an introduction to how documentaries about the history of contemporary global problems are made. The second half of the module directs attention to how contemporary global problems have been experienced by communities historically, at the local level. These include the air pollution and climate change resulting from the Industrial Revolution. The demographic revolution highlights the impact of changing birthrates, disease, and population growth on social and economic structures. Themes of consumption and cultural transformation will reveal how global markets and social norms shaped identities and inequalities, warfare, revolutions, human rights, and migration, and how these are reflected in local experience, shifting the focus onto how these broad developments have manifested within their own communities, using local case studies to reflect on global interdependence and difference. All of these developments will help to shed light on the cumulative Great Acceleration – the rapid intensification of human impact on Earth in the 20th and 21st centuries. By examining these interconnected topics, we want to empower you. Someone taking the module will be less likely to be swayed by faulty rhetoric and better equipped in everyday life as a citizen of the world.