Conquest, Colonization, and Captivity: A Cultural History of the Americas from 1441 to 1888

The aim of this course is to explore how conquest, colonization, and human captivity shaped the history, cultural values, and social ethics that brought together the European, African, and Indigenous civilizations in the Americas.  As this course is taught in Peru, we will balance covering the broad history of the Americas with specific readings and materials dealing with Peru.  In the first part of the course, we examine the process whereby the Incas constructed the largest and one of the most sophisticated empires in the Americas.  Utilizing primary sources from the era and analysis by historians, we will examine what historical values and social ethics guided the Incas actions and their belief systems.  In the second part of the course, we utilize primary and secondary sources to examine in detail the new cultures born out of the processes of Spanish conquest and  colonization through creating new religious values, political rights, and social ethics. Collectively, through  course materials and on-site experiential learning in Peru, HIST 110 contextualizes the beliefs and values of the conquerors that forged the colonial order, and probes the moral and ideological responses of the colonized as they struggled to assert their own rights in constructing a new society.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of History 110, students will be able to:  

1. Demonstrate knowledge of the principles of historical thinking to understand human societies, specifically through examining the roles conquest, colonization, and human captivity played in shaping the history of the Americas from 1441 to 1888.  
2. Define and summarize major events, developments, and themes related to the conquest of indigenous civilizations, construction of European colonies in the Americas, and the institution of human captivity through the enslavement of the African and Indigenous populations.
3. Evaluate significant themes, issues, or eras in the history of the Americas from 1441 to 1888.
4. Demonstrate basic skills in the comprehension and analysis of selected sources and their relevance in the context of historical knowledge.
5. Demonstrate ability to recognize the differences between original historical source material (primary sources) and later scholarly interpretations of those sources (secondary sources).
6. Demonstrate the ability to develop interpretive historical arguments drawing on primary and/or secondary sources.
7. Identify the sources and functions of values that guided human practices in conquering, colonizing, and enslaving in the Americas.
8. Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of ethics, values, and social responsibility in the history of colonization for the self, individuals, and societies in waging wars of conquests and human captivity that continue to shape contemporary society in the present.
9. Demonstrate the ability to reflect on how values shaped personal and community ethics and decision making in the context of conquest, colonization, and human captivity.