INTRODUCTION TO CARIBBEAN HISTORY
LAH 3470, Section 6296,
~ Spr 2002 ~

 
Dr. David Geggus
office hours: T 3-6pm
T 1.55-2.45, R 1.55-3.50 
 or by appointment
TUR 2319
 Grinter 333
E-mail: dgeggus@history.ufl.edu
 tel. 392 6543 (w)

This course introduces students to some of the main issues and debates in Caribbean history from the time of Columbus to the mid-twentieth century.  Approximately equal attention is given to Spanish-, English-, and French-speaking regions, and to political, cultural, and economic developments.  No other part of the world has been shaped so completely as the Caribbean by the two institutions of European colonialism and plantation slavery.  Their rise and fall in the region, and the role they played in shaping the contemporary Caribbean constitute the dominant themes of this course.

The principal mode of instruction will be lecturing, supplemented by occasional class discussion and required readings.  Several video excerpts will be shown, which should be considered integral parts of the course material.  Regular attendance and good note-taking are essential to passing the exams. Students are expected to attend all classes, having read carefully the reading assignments for that session


Course objectives: 1) to provide an understanding of the making of the modern Caribbean, and to familiarize students with the main topics and debates in the region's history  2) to develop students’ ability to analyze critically historical problems and to debate the causes of historical change  3) to improve students’ writing skills.

Course texts:
    1) J. Rogozinski, Brief History of the Caribbean, S. Mintz, S. Price, Caribbean Contours, available from local bookshops. These provide background reading to complement lectures for respectively the first and second halves of the course.
    2) Photocopied package, from Target Copy, 13th St, opposite Holiday Inn.   This contains readings on the Amerindian genocide (Las Casas); a plantation manager’s view (Thistlewood) and a slave’s view (Montejo) of slavery; and the Cuban Revolution (Ruiz).  Each will be discussed in class and is to be read before the assigned date.  The second will be the subject of a brief analytical essay.

Requirements:
1. Essay, due Feb. 7, on the Thistlewood reading (3<4pp.).  This must be submitted on time.
2. Mid-Term exam, Feb. 28.
3. Map Quiz, Apr. 11
4. Final exam, Apr. 29
5. Term paper (click), due Apr. 26.  Late submissions will be penalized.

These account respectively for 20%, 20%, 10%, 25%, and 25% of the final grade.  Students will need to produce a medical certificate to be allowed to make up missed work.  Exams should be written in ink, in bluebooks, please.

Grades:
A portion of the marks for the essays is allotted to correct word-usage, grammar, spelling, and punctuation.


Other: Students are expected to familiarize themselves with the University’s honesty policy regarding cheating and use of copyrighted materials.  Those requesting classroom accommodation due to a disability must register with the Dean of Students Office and should see me at the beginning of semester.

COURSE OUTLINE
(subject to change)

  1  Introductory  (Rogozinski ch 1; M&P intro)

  2  The Sixteenth Century: Genocide & Empire  (R ch 1-4; Las Casas)

  3  Tobacco, Indenture, & Buccaneers  (R ch 5-8)

  4  The Sugar Revolution  (R ch 6 & 9)

  5  Plantation Life  (R ch 10; Thistlewood)                             Thistlewood essay due Feb 7

  6  Maroons & Rebels  (R ch 12)

  7  Impact of the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions (R ch 12)

  8  Emancipation & its Aftermath (R ch 13; M&P ch 4) )                   MIDTERM  Feb 28

SPRING BREAK, March 4-8

  9  Spanish Caribbean in the 19th Century  (R ch 14 & 15; Montejo)

10 The 20th Century: Dependency and Independence  (R ch 16 & 17; M&P ch 3)

11/12 Caribbean Culture: Race, Religion, Music (M&P ch 2, 5, 6)

13 The U.S. and the Caribbean  (Ruiz; R ch 16 & 17)                        MAP QUIZ  Apr 12

14 Caribbean Societies (M&P ch 1)

15 The Contemporary Caribbean  (R ch 18; M&P ch 7)

TERM PAPER due Apr 26.
In the interest of fairness, late submissions will be penalized (everyone could use more time)

FINAL EXAM Apr 29, 3pm

RETURN to Homepage.