The New Imperialism

So far we've taken a bird's eye view of the New Imperialism, as well as a comparative analysis of imperialism in Africa and Asia. We've examined literary aspects of imperialism with "The White Man's Burden," "The Black Man's Burden," and an advertisement.


We will now turn to politcal cartoons and geography.


Below you will see three political cartoons about imperialism. Analyze and discuss on your own sheet of paper. Read more here about the political cartoon immediately below, and the bottom cartoon depicts British financial magnate Cecil Rhodes, about whom you can find out more here.

The final part of the assignment is to complete this module about imperialism. Answer all questions on your own sheet of paper. Be prepared to discuss in class.

Looking for Lincoln

Here's a link to what appears to be a fantastic documentary on Abraham Lincoln. I'm watching it right now. So far, so good.

Herny Louis Gates of Harvard is the main host, and he interviews many of the leading scholars of Lincoln. Also, there's a section of the documentary in which Gates sits in a Chicago high school classroom and discusses Lincoln with AP U.S. history students.

Brushing Up on the Past: Understanding Romantic and Realist Art

While I'll resist making a pun by saying that I love Romantic art, I will provide links to the paintings several artists.



Take a look at the paintings, and brush up on the basic biographical details of the painters' lives; we will need this information as we canvass the history of Romantic art.



[For the first three links, find Romanticism on Mark Harden's homepage, click, and find the painters and their paintings here.] In addition to some of the artwork featured in your book, there are some arresting landscapes from John Constanble. Check out the work of French artist Theodore Gericault, and the German painter Caspar David Friedrich. And finally here is an assortment of paintings for your viewing and analysis. You should also read more about Realism, and see examples of some realist artwork here and here.




The assignment: pick one artist, and one painting by that artist. On Thursday you will discuss basic biographical details (birth, death, education, influence, importance, etc.), and then using the SMARTboard to display images of your artist's painting(s), analyze the paintings in class. The aim of this assignment is to better understand Romantic and Realist art.






[Photo credit here and here.]

Ideologies of Change: Marxism

Today we will take a of the life and influence of Karl Marx, and watch this to see how Marxian analysis influences American pop culture.

Find out more "below":

Read more about Marxism and compare Marxism and socialism here. There are scholars and citizens who call themselves "non-Marxist socialists," while others employ the term "democratic socialist."

Fitting the Pieces Together: The Industrial Revolution

Visit this site that deals with inventors and inventions related to the Industrial Revoltion to complete blog assignment.

On Monday we will travel back in time to expand our horizions and read some about the travels of Muhammad As-Saffar, a Moroccan who visited France during the Industrial Revolution. Read selections from the book here.

MLK Day

MLK day in 2009 takes on a new significance (read about the history of MLK day here), particularly with inaugural activities underway as tomorrow the United States will welcome its first African American President.

MLK day in is also called "Martin Luther King, Jr., Day of Service." How will you serve your neighbor today, or welcome the stranger, or exhibit hospitality? How will you give back?

And since most newsclips and news footage of MLK on MLK day nearly always features snippets from his famous "I Have a Dream Speech" in Washington, D.C. in 1963, his post-1963 speeches deserve attention as well, the national and international "radical" phase Harvard Sitkoff captures in his recent book.

Important moments during this period include his Nobel Prize Speech (December 1964)--since this is a European history class I should mention that he delivered this speech in Oslo, Norway--his Mountaintop Speech (April 1968), his Vietnam War speech (April 1967), and the God is Marching On address (March 1965).

What Are You Reading?

There's been some attention lately to Presidential reading habits.



In a December Wall Street Journal article, former Bush political advisor Karl Rove told of a competition he and the President had to see who could read the most books in a year. It offers a revealing look at what George Bush has been reading the last few years.

Most recently, President-elect Barack Obama's reading list has received some press. An NPR radio story last week commented on his reading habits and book interests. An author himself, Obama can appreciate a good book.


Since we read and discussed both of these authors in class, you may be interested to note that Obama has recently read one of Thomas Friedman's books. And, as you can see from the picture, the President-elect has also recently read the work of Fareed Zakaria.

In what is similar to the economic effects of Oprah's Book Club, these stories note that when a President is photographed with a book, or it becomes know what book the President is reading, sales of that book jump dramatically.



Now, if only I can figure out a way to get Holy Mavericks: Evangelical Innovators and the Spiritual Marketplace in Obama's hands....







[I thank my friend and fellow historian and blogger John Fea for the article leads and inspiration for this post.]