Democracy and History: Thinking Beyond the Self

Catalog description

What is the best way to run a country? What is the worst? Democracy has been called both the best and worst form of government. Either way, as almost all countries in the world claim to be a democracy, chances are you come from one of them. What does it mean to live in a democracy? In essence, it means thinking beyond the self and from the perspectives of other people. It means looking for facts but being open to different interpretations. And it means taking responsibility to think critically and independently. These traits are also necessary for understanding history. This course will train you in the skillset and mindset of a historian so you can act democratically. You will learn to tell historical facts from opinions and to see from various angles. The course will also push you to think for yourself, and to argue persuasively for your own position. These skills of thinking historically are useful not just for school or work, but they are also indispensable to a democratic society. Democracy is chosen as the course theme because it is a feature that sets humans apart from other organisms. Knowing the history of democracy is thus knowing what it means to be human, which is the essence of the humanities. Our investigation will begin with ancient Rome and continue to revolutionary France, Weimar Germany, modern Japan, the Chinese nation, and the Iranian nation. At the end of our journey, you will have gained a basic appreciation of the philosophical appeal and practical challenges of democracy, so that you will be able to decide for yourself what role democracy should play in your life and vice versa. This course meets the Dietrich Gen Ed "Humanities" requirement. P.S.: None of the content of this course was created by AI.