The Department of History is seeking to fill Course Assistant positions for the following courses this Fall. 

History of East Asia to 1600.

• Prof. Masato Hasegawa
• Tuesdays and Thursdays
• 2pm-3:15pm.

Course description:  This course is both an introductory survey of the history of East Asia from antiquity to 1600 and an introduction to historical analysis. It aims to provide a fundamental grounding in the histories of China, Korea, and Japan in the early and formative period of cultures and identities in the East Asian region. We will not only study the distinctive features of national histories in East Asia but also examine the cross-regional qualities of traditions and contestations in the region. As an introductory course in historical analysis, this course emphasizes the importance of critically assessing historical evidence in both reading and writing. We will read selections from historical surveys and an anthology of primary materials in English translation, which will be supplemented by visual materials and film screenings. Readings will also include literary works, travelogues, and selected basic texts in Confucianism and Buddhism, both of which played a profound role in the early development of intellectual thought in East Asia. The structure of this course combines lecture and discussion. Approximately half of class time will be devoted to lectures and discussion of historical context. We will use the second half of class time to discuss assigned primary source readings. The course is open to all students and assumes no prior knowledge of the course material.

HIST-UA.43: World War I

• Prof. Andrew Lee
• Wednesdays
• 9:30am-12:15pm.

Course description: The First World War (1914-1918) is an introductory course to the conflict once called “The War to End All Wars.” Students are not expected to have any prior knowledge of the war.Topics covered include not only the battles and experience of combat, but also the home front, economy, science and technology, the state, gender, culture, anti–war activism, revolutions, etc. As an introductory course we will not be examining these at any profound depth but students will have the opportunity to examine topics of their choice. Despite being originally known in library subject headings as “The European War,” we will be looking at Africa, the Americas, and Asia as well as Europe. The course will be divided into three parts. The first portion of the course we will spend setting the war in its geographical and historical context. The second section will be the years 1914-1918 and constitutes the core of the course. The final portion of the course will examine both the short and long term impact of the war.

HIST-UA.94 Espionage & the International History of the Modern Era

• Prof. Timothy Naftali
• Tuesdays and Thursdays
• 11am-12:15pm.

Course description: Wikileaks and Edward Snowden reveal the dark side of the secret world just as the actions of Vladimir Putin in Ukraine remind us of why we need good intelligence. Since World War II ushered in the modern espionage era, secret intelligence and intelligence services have shaped the course of international history. This course introduces the student to the great sweep of world history from 1939 to 2014 through the lens of the role played by spies, code-breakers, saboteurs, intelligence analysts and the organizations for which they worked. How much did all of this secret stuff matter? Why did countries set up organizations to undertake spying and covert action? Have these activities made them, especially the US, more or less secure? And what has been the cost to private individuals of these activities? Although the focus will mainly be on the activities of US, Russian (Soviet) and British intelligence, the class will also explore cases involving Chinese, Cuban, French, German, Iranian, Israeli, Jordanian, Saudi and Vietnamese intelligence.

 
If interested in this position, please contact Isaac Amad and Alyson Lounsbury at alyson.lounsbury@nyu.edu directly.