HI 503 Foundations of Historical Thought

A graduate-level introduction to the methodology of the historical discipline. Course readings and discussions will center around a particular broad theme that has long engaged examination by historians, such as liberty, justice, war, law, and power. By exploring this theme, students will learn to develop the habits of thinking by which the historian tries to recreate the world of the past and see those past worlds through the eyes of those who lived in it. It will also introduce students to unique research opportunities in the Washington, DC, area. (3)