Revised 5/2013

HIS 242 - History of Russia II (3 CR.)

Course Description

Surveys the history of Russia from earliest times to the present. Includes political, economic, multi-national, social, and cultural aspects of Russian and Soviet history. Part II of II. Lecture 3 hours per week.

General Course Purpose

This course reviews the history of Russia from about 1900 to the present and introduces students to the developments of Soviet and post-Soviet Russia. Students will examine the major themes and issues that have defined Russia's recent past and also study some Russian cultural achievements in areas such as art, architecture, music, theater, dance, literature and philosophy.

Course Prerequisites/Corequisites

It is preferable but not mandatory that the student successfully complete a history survey course, such as HIS 102, HIS 112 or HIS 135 before enrolling.

Course Objectives

Upon completing the course the student will be able to:

  • Establish a chronology of historical events in Russia since 1900. (Addresses general education objectives C and D under information literacy.)
  • Obtain a knowledge of the historical geography of Russia since 1900. (Addresses general education objective A and E under culture and social understanding.)
  • Define the importance of key individuals and developments in Russian history since 1900. (Addresses general education objective C and D under information literacy.)
  • Identify the social, economic and political forces at work in the historical development of late imperial, Soviet and post-Soviet Russia. (Addresses general education objectives A and E under cultural and social understanding.)
  • Recognize and describe the significance of some of the cultural achievements of late imperial, Soviet and post-Soviet Russia. (Addresses general education objective C under culture and social understanding.)
  • Analyze complex Russian historical sources and materials and reach conclusions based on interpretations of those materials. (Addresses general education objectives A and B under communication and objective D under critical thinking.)

Major Topics to Be Included

  • Nicholas II
  • Russia and World War I
  • The 1917 revolutions and civil war
  • Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky
  • The Great Terror
  • World War II
  • Khrushchev
  • Brezhnev
  • Andropov, Chernenko and Gorbachev
  • The end of the Soviet Union
  • Yeltsin, Putin and Post-Soviet Russia
  • Twentieth-century Russian cultural achievements