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Fire in the Republic: American Society on the Brink of Civil War, 1848-1861
Fire in the Republic: American Society on the Brink of Civil War, 1848-1861
Fire in the Republic: American Society on the Brink of Civil War, 1848-1861
- Dates: Mondays, June 8, 15, 22 & 29
- Time: 10:30 - Noon ET
- This lecture series explores the turbulent 1850s, when deepening sectional divisions began to unravel the nation’s social fabric. We will trace the rise of abolitionism and the hardening of attitudes toward slavery, while examining how the contested western frontier shaped Americans’ visions of their future—and the future of the nation itself. The course highlights the powerful voices that shaped public opinion, from newspaper editors like Horace Greeley to writers such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederick Douglass and Mark Twain, as well as the often-overlooked role of women (both black and white), many of whom linked the struggle against slavery to their own demands for equality. We will also confront the era’s growing climate of fear and hostility, marked by partisan demonization and outbreaks of violence in events like “Bleeding Kansas” and the raid on Harpers Ferry. Finally, we will examine how religious institutions in both North and South, far from easing tensions, became central actors in intensifying the sectional crisis.
Fire in the Republic: American Society on the Brink of Civil War, 1848-1861
Fire in the Republic: American Society on the Brink of Civil War, 1848-1861
- Dates: Fridays, June 5, 12, 19 & 26
- Time: 10:30 - Noon ET
- In the mid-19th century, workers, peasants, students, and intellectuals challenged monarchies, industrial capitalism, and traditional elites, giving rise to a powerful range of radical movements and ideologies. This dynamic set of four lectures explores the turbulent rise of the radical left in 19th-century Europe. We will examine the ideas and influence of major thinkers such as Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Charles Fourier, Henri de Saint-Simon, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, and Mikhail Bakunin, along with the activists and revolutionaries who carried their ideas into Europe’s streets, factories, and barricades. The course will trace the development of communism, socialism, anarchism, syndicalism, and utopian reform movements while exploring how industrialization, urban poverty, and class conflict fueled their growth in countries such as France, Germany, Italy, Austria, and Russia. Fears of revolution transformed governments, strengthened police states, and contributed to an increasingly volatile political climate across Europe. By the end of the 19th century, these movements had permanently reshaped European politics and laid the foundations for many of the defining political struggles of the modern era.
- Dates: Thursdays, June 4, 11, 18 & 25
- Time: 1:00 - 2:30pm ET
- This special four-lecture series explores the dramatic history of modern Sub-Saharan Africa from the age of powerful kingdoms to the challenges and opportunities of the twenty-first century. Moving across five major historical eras, we will examine the rise of African empires, the transatlantic slave economy, European colonial conquest, post-colonial independence movements, and the modern search for stability, prosperity, and global influence. The course places special emphasis on Nigeria, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa, and Angola while also exploring developments across the wider Sub-Saharan world. Along the way, we will discuss geography, climate, religion, economics, urbanization, ethnic diversity, natural resources, and the lasting effects of colonialism and globalization. We will also encounter many of the remarkable leaders, revolutionaries, writers, and intellectuals who shaped modern African history, including Queen Nzinga, Yaa Asantewaa, Haile Selassie, Jomo Kenyatta, Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba, Chinua Achebe, and Nelson Mandela. Above all, the course highlights not only the immense hardships the region has faced, but also the resilience, creativity, and cultural vitality that continue to define one of the world’s most dynamic regions.
- Dates: Mondays, June 8, 15, 22 & 29
- Time: 1:00 - 2:00PM ET
- This lecture series traces the rise of the American musical from its Broadway origins to its golden age in Hollywood, highlighting the evolution of the “book musical” and its integration of story, song, and dance. Beginning with the pioneering work of figures such as George Gershwin and the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, the series follows how these innovations migrated to film and were transformed by the studio system, particularly in the lavish productions of MGM. It explores the creative impact of major visionaries—including Florenz Ziegfeld, Busby Berkeley, Arthur Freed, and Mark Sandrich —while also examining the continued influence of Broadway through the work of Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden, Jerome Robbins and Adolph Green in productions such as On the Town and West Side Story. Special attention is given to the growing centrality of dance, especially through choreographers like Michael Kidd, and to how the Hollywood musical emerged as a distinctive and influential American art form between the 1930s thru the early 2000s.