This course explores the last 500ish or so years of human histories. In examining this large expanse of time and geography, we focus on four closely related themes:

• the emergence and effects of modern identities--notably racial, ethnic, national, and gender identities 

• the emergence and effects of modern states 

• the emergence and effects of capitalism, industrialization, and globalization

• the importance of the circulation of culture and the interaction of social groupings in the shaping of these histories