Territorial Expansion: America West and Russia East
REVISED
Winter 2016 quarter
Taught by
This program will simultaneously examine the expansion of two empires into remote regions, regions that over time became integral components of the United States and Russia. European Americans expanded into the western territories of North America not long after European Russians expanded into the eastern territories of North Asia. Washington State today is as much a part of the United States as Siberia is a part of Russia. These are recent historical events, however, for indigenous non-European peoples have lived in Siberia and North America at least twenty times longer than have the now dominant Europeans. We will therefore investigate the historical, environmental and geographical conditions that led to the territorial and political expansion by Europeans into these “new” lands. We will explore how European methods of land acquisition redefined territory by using mathematical constructs to create new and clearly defined political spaces, some of which (like Alaska) Russia sold to the United States. Because territorial expansion into what became the western United States and eastern Russia also played a significant role in nation-building and national self-perception, students will also examine differing concepts of nations and nationalism.
The program will include lectures, book seminars, field trips, and film analyses. Students will have the opportunity to earn credit in the following fields: history, environmental history, geography, writing, and film analysis.
Program Details
Fields of Study
Preparatory for studies or careers in
Location and Schedule
Campus location
Olympia
Schedule
Offered during: Day
Advertised schedule: First winter class meeting : Monday, January 4 at 9am (Sem II D3109)
Books
Online Learning
Required Fees
Revisions
Date | Revision |
---|---|
December 30th, 2015 | Tom Rainey and Geoff Cunningham join the teaching team. |
November 16th, 2015 | Martha Henderson has left the teaching team. |
October 29th, 2015 | New winter opportunity added. |