Second Year elective modules, Semester 2 2020-21

National University of Ireland, MaynoothDEPARTMENT OF HISTORY FLYERS FOR OPTIONAL MODULES PLEASE NOTE Flyers provide information supplementary to that available in module descriptors, wh

National University of Ireland, Maynooth

DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY FLYERS FOR OPTIONAL MODULES

PLEASE NOTE

Flyers provide information supplementary to that available in module descriptors, which may be viewed on the university database at www.maynoothuniversity.ie/courses

Students are expected to consult both flyers and module

descriptors in advance of registration.

S ECOND S EMESTER

Module Co-ordinator

DR ANN MARIE O’BRIEN

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two

Module title:

IRELAND AND THE WIDER WORLD IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

Module content

This module examines Ireland’s diplomatic relations with the wider world from the establishment

of the First Dáil Éireann in 1919 until the signing of the Anglo-Irish Agreement in 1985 It will explore a range of bilateral and multilateral relations including Ireland’s pursuit for sovereignty in the early years of Irish foreign affairs, Ireland’s admission to the League of Nations in 1923, Anglo-Irish relations within and without the British Commonwealth, Ireland’s diplomatic relations with the United States and on continental Europe, membership of the United Nations from 1955, admission to the EEC in 1973, Irish relations with the Third World and the Department of Foreign Affairs response to the outbreak of ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland

Lectures will be delivered in accordance with the University’s

guidelines for a safe campus Should the need arise, this module might have to move to online delivery Due notice will be given if this

is the case.

Module aim

This module aims to provide students with an understanding of the complexity of Irish foreign policy in the twentieth century Students will evaluate Irish diplomatic historiography and locate the direction of Ireland’s foreign policy in wider contexts They will engage in independent and group learning through lecture and seminar settings and through an engagement with a wide range

of primary and secondary sources Upon completion of this module students will have developed their critical thinking and analytical skills

Form of assessment

Mid-term presentation (1000 words) based on selected document(s) 25%

Essay of 3,500 words based on primary research and on a

topic to be agreed with course director 75%

Deadline for submission of essay: Monday, 10 May 2021

S ECOND S EMESTER

Module Co-ordinator

DR BRENDAN SCOTT Credits 5 Lecture hours per weekTwo

Module title:

LATE MEDIEVAL IRELAND

Module Overview

This module examines a very

important and formative period of

Irish history It covers the period

spanning from Brian Boru and the

Battle of Clontarf in 1014 to the

reign of Richard II, who lost his

English crown while attempting

to settle Ireland These 300 or so

years witnessed the

Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland, the

advent of the Black Death, the

reorganisation of the Church and

the Bruce Invasion, all of which

shaped the island and its people

for centuries to come

Module aim

The aim of this course is to introduce students to the period in Ireland spanning the Battle of Clontarf in the eleventh century to the decline of the English colony in Ireland in the fourteenth century Students should acquire an understanding of the background to the events of this period as well as a knowledge of their course and consequences It is also expected that participants in the course will develop an appreciation of how the subsequent divide between Gaelic and Anglo-Irish has left its mark on the historiography of the period

Lectures will be delivered in accordance with the University’s

guidelines for a safe campus Should the need arise, this module might have to move to online delivery Due notice will be given if this

is the case.

Form of assessment

Mid-term assignment (1500 words) based on selected document(s) 30%

Essay of 3,500 words based on primary research and on a

topic to be agreed with course director 70%

Deadline for submission of essay is Monday, 10 May 2021

S ECOND S EMESTER

Module Co-ordinator

DR JOHN PAUL NEWMAN

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two *

Module title:

THE BIRTH AND DEATH OF YUGOSLAVIA

Module content

On this module we will look at one of the great state experiments of the twentieth century We will look at the way Yugoslavia was formed in the aftermath of the First World War, its difficult

existence in the interwar period, occupation and civil war during the Second World War, the socialist period under Marshall ‘Tito’, and the country’s eventual demise in civil war during the 1990s Due attention will be played to the unusual position of Yugoslavia in the global order, particularly during the Cold War, the changing nature of the multi-national state, and the role of conflict in both the making and the breaking of Yugoslavia Our ultimate question is an important one: is/was such a state, composed of differing nations, cultures, and histories, feasible in the era

of the nation-state?

Form of assessment

Second Essay (deadline 4 May 2021), 2,500 words 50%

* Lectures will be delivered in accordance with the University’s guidelines for a safe campus Should the need arise, this module might have to move to online delivery Due notice will be given if this is the case.

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND, MAYNOOTH

DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY SECOND ARTS, 2020-21

S ECOND S EMESTER

Lecturer

DR DYMPNA MC LOUGHLIN

Module code

HY 230

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two

Module title

HISTORY OF HEALTH AND MEDICINE A

Overview

This module introduces the history of medicine The following themes will be covered:

- the structure and function of the medical profession, including doctors, surgeons and

apothecaries

- Quack and quackery

- The professionalization of nursing

- the main medical institutions of the nineteenth century, including the hospital

- the dispensary- a local model of healthcare

- the adulteration of food and its consequences on human health

- the complex issue of mental health and the treatment of the vulnerable in asylums

- Tuberculosis and its impact of the stigma of tuberculosis on sufferers and their family in twentieth century Ireland

- The Contagious Diseases Acts and the feminisation of venereal disease

- Eugenics

-LECTURES WILL BE DELIVERED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE UNIVERSITY’S

GUIDELINES FOR A SAFE CAMPUS SHOULD THE NEED ARISE, THIS MODULE MIGHT HAVE TO MOVE TO ONLINE DELIVERY DUE NOTICE WILL BE GIVEN IF THIS IS THE CASE

Aim

The aim of this module is to introduce students to the developing area of medical history

Form of Assessment

Two essays of 2,500 words each

Details of these essays will be provided in week one of class

S ECOND S EMESTER

Lecturer

DR DAVID LEDERER

Module code

HY 249

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two

Module title

THE HISTORY OF SUICIDE: A GLOBAL OUTLOOK

Module content

Ironically, before 1993, suicide was a crime inIreland However, across the centuries and throughout cultures, voluntary death has been perceived differently In classical antiquity, Lucretia’s death was interpreted as a defence of her virtue In 1963, Qang Duc, a buddhist monk, self-immolated to protest the Vietnam regime The Bushido code reserved seppuku for the samurai class, but it was re-defined when young Japanese pilots were coerced into kamikaze

service during the Second World War Since Emile Durkheim published Le Suicide (1897),

sociologists argued that voluntary death is a soluble social problem Enlightened physicians declared it an act of insanity; today, physicians struggle with the challenge of euthanasia

Over the course of the semester, we will consider the value of cultural history as a tool for understanding this global social phenomenon Students participate actively in a series of in-class discussions, presentations of historical documents and oral book reviews, posting to a group website and composing an essay for submission at the end of the semester

Lectures will be delivered in accordance with the University’s guidelines for a safe campus Should the need arise, this module might have to move to online delivery Due notice will be given if this is the case.

Form of assessment

3,000 word essay 60%

In-class assignments/tests 40%

Deadline for submission of essay is: Monday, 10 May 2021

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND, MAYNOOTH

DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY SECOND ARTS, 2020-21

S ECOND S EMESTER

Lecturer

DR SARAH RODDY

Module code

HY 273

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two

Module title

Modern Ireland History:

THE GREAT IRISH FAMINE

Module content

The Great Famine is arguably the most significant event in modern Irish history The sudden failure of the potato crop in the 1840s cost Ireland a quarter of its population and led to

fundamental social and economic shifts in Irish life Yet to be fully understood, the Famine’s global contexts and consequences need to be taken into consideration Therefore, this module will both conduct an in-depth exploration of the background, process and immediate impact of the Irish Famine, and assess its place on a broader transnational canvas

Lectures will be delivered in accordance with the University’s guidelines for a safe campus Should the need arise, this module might have to move to online delivery Due notice will be given if this is the case.

Form of assessment

Mid-term primary source essay (1500 words) 30%

Essay (3500 words) due by Monday, 10 May 2021 70%

S ECOND S EMESTER

Lecturer

DR ALISON FITZGERALD

Module code

HY 278

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two

Module title

DOMESTIC WORLDS: THE GEORGIANS AT HOME

Module content

Centuries before the concept of online shopping was dreamt up, catalogue shopping, must- have products, product branding and the widespread use of advertising, became staple features of the consumer culture of Georgian Britain and Ireland An unprecedented range of new commodities, from exotic imported porcelain and textiles, to ingenious mechanical furniture, fuelled fashions which were quickly, widely, and mercilessly commented on Depending on the author, and on his

or her biases, luxury and the impulse to keep up fashionable appearances, was celebrated or censored Fashion victims were fair game in the world of satirical print What was new? Who lead taste? How did new technology transform the sort of goods that people bought, used and coveted? Was there a clear distinction along gender lines in terms of fashionable commodities? Using a wide range of primary sources from diaries and letters, to account books and inventories (with excellent online databases of printed primary sources available via MU library) this module will consider the material culture of the Georgians at home

A site visit will be organised if restrictions permit.

No previous knowledge of the History of Art or design is required to take this module.

Lectures will be delivered in accordance with the University’s guidelines for a safe campus Should the need arise, this module might have to move to online delivery Due notice will be given if this is the case.

Assessment

In-class assessment: 30% Essay (3,000-3,500 words) 70%

Deadline for submission of essay: Monday, 10 May 2021

S ECOND S EMESTER

Lecturer

TBC

Module code

SG254

Credits

5

Lecture hours per week

Two

Module title

HISTORY 2 - LAW, SOCIETY AND LEARNED CLASSES IN EARLY

IRELAND

Information as on Course Finder

Overview

The early Irish law books, often known as the ‘Brehon laws’ provide a wealth of information about numerous aspects of medieval Irish society This module studies aspects of these law books, the learned classes that created them and the social institutions and practices they illuminate

Form of assessment

Continuous assessment 50%

One-hour examination at end of semester 50%

Special requirements (e.g field trips inc costs, special sessions)

None

Please note that SG254 is timetabled by Sean-Ghaeilge and may clash with core lectures in other subjects.

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND, MAYNOOTH

DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY SECOND ARTS, 2019-20

S ECOND S EMESTER

Co-ordinator

DR KIERAN MC GROARTY

Module code

GC224

Credits

5

Module title

UNDERSTANDING THUCYDIDES: THE FLOWERING OF GREEK

HISTORIOGRAPHY

Information as per Course Finder

Overview

Towards the end of the fifth-century BC the Greek world became embroiled in a conflict which lasted with little interruption for 27 years This module examines this conflict – the Peloponnesian War – and the parts played by the principal adversaries, Athens and Sparta Central to it is a close study of the Greek historian Thucydides’ account of this war In particular, we examine the principles of historiography that he employed On account of his methodology, Thucydides would acquire a reputation as the first scientific historian of the western world, a claim the module scrutinizes We also, briefly, makes use of other perspectives, such as those provided by the comic playwright Aristophanes, who enriches the picture, adding a cultural dimension by examining the impact that the war had on the general population, male and female, citizen and slave The module closes with an assessment of the legacy of Thucydides and his place in the Greek historiographical tradition

Form of assessment

Continuous assessment

Two written assignments, each weighted 50%

Teaching & learning methods

18 lectures, 3 labs/practicals

For further information please contact Ancient Classics Department

Please note that GC224 is timetabled by Ancient Classics and may clash with core

lectures in other subjects.