Week I: Introduction

Sep 5: How do we view Modern Britain and the British?
Sep 7: British society at the beginning of the nineteenth century

Reading:
Wilson, 1-23

Week II: Peace Restored; Empire and Reform

Sep 10: Peace restored and the expansion of the British Empire
Sep 12: Reform and revolution, 1815-1848
Sep 14: Discussion

Reading:
Brendon, 97-118
Wilson, 34-73, 108-120

Documents:
The People's Petition (1838)
Samuel Bamford, "Passages in the Life of a Radical" (1819)
T.B. Macauley, Speech on the Reform Bill of 1832
Lin Tse Hsü (Zexu), Letter to Queen Victoria (1839)

Week III: Industry, Economy, and Social Upheaval

Sep 17: The industrial economy and the rise of a class society
Sep 19: Ireland: politics, famine, and emigration
Sep 21: Discussion

Reading:
Arnstein, 154-168
Brendon, 63-96, 119-140
Wilson, 74-83

Documents:
Daniel O'Connell, "Justice for Ireland" (speech to the House Commons) (1836)
"Summer of Sorrows" from Gerald Keegan's Diary (1847)
William Bennett, "Narrative of a recent journey in Ireland" (1847)
Parliamentary Proceedings, "The state of famine and disease in Ireland" (1846)
Cork Reporter, "The apprehended scarcity" (1846)
Times of London, "The Irish question" (1846)

Music:
Sinéad O'Connor, "Skibbereen"

Week IV: The Victorian Age, Part I: Order and Society

Sep 24: Victoria and her realm: the social order examined
Sep 26: Inside the Victorian underworld: crime, policing, and prisons
Sep 28: Discussion

Reading:
Wilson, 24-33, 441-450
David Campion, "Policing the Peelers: Parliament, the Public, and the Metropolitan Police" in M. Cragoe and A. Taylor (eds.) London Politics, 1760-1914

Documents:
Henry Mayhew and John Binny, The Criminal Prisons of London and Scenes of Prison Life (1862)
[excerpts: 1 and 2]
The Ripper Files (from the records of the Metropolitan Police)
"Jack the Ripper", Letters and Postcards (1888-90)

Visual:
Queen Victoria: Images of her World

Suggested films: The Elephant Man (1980), Mrs. Brown (1997), From Hell (2001),
Young Victoria (2009)

Week V: The Victorian Age, Part II: Faith, Intellect, and Creativity

Oct 1: Science and religion: Darwinism and the Evangelical and Catholic revivals
Oct 3: The Victorian style: architecture, literature, and music
Oct 5: Discussion

Reading:
Arnstein, 197-222
Wilson, 93-107, 123-150, 224-234, 365-384

Music:
Gilbert and Sullivan, "He is an Englishman!" [from HMS Pinafore] (1878)
Edward Elgar, "Enigma Variations" (1899), "Pageant of Empire" (1924),
"Imperial March, op. 32" (1924)

Suggested films: Wilde (1997), Topsy-Turvy (2000)

Week VI: The Victorian Age, Part III: Government and Empire

Oct 8: Gladstone, Disraeli, and the origins of mass politics
Oct 10: Empire and the British national identity, 1885-1914
Oct 12: FALL BREAK (NO CLASS)

Reading:
Arnstein, 223-236, 263-280
Brendon, 141-183
Wilson, 201-223, 343-364, 385-408, 478-485

Suggested films: Mountains of the Moon (1990), Khartoum (1966)
Zulu (1964), The Chess Players (1977)

Week VII: A Place at the Table

Oct 15: Trouble next door: The Irish question
Oct 17: The Suffragettes and the emancipation of women
Oct 19: Discussion

Reading:
Arnstein, 169-196, 243-261
Brendon, 184-218
Wilson, 437-440, 451-477, 486-520, 530-536

Week VIII: The Edwardian Interlude

Oct 22: The South African War at home and abroad, 1899-1902
Oct 24: The fall of the Liberals and the rise of Labour
Oct 26: MIDTERM EXAMINATION

Reading:
Arnstein, 281-305
Brendon, 219-253
Clarke, 7-76
Wilson, 539-547, 572-620

Suggested films: Breaker Morant (1980), The Shooting Party (1985), The Lost Prince (2003)

Week IX: Britain in the Great War

Oct 29: The Western Front and the Home Front, 1914-1918
Oct 31: Counting the cost: War and British society
Nov 2: Discussion

Reading:
Arnstein, 307-330
Brendon, 254-293
Clarke, 77-110
Orwell, Coming Up for Air (first half)

Documents:
Rupert Brooke and Wilfred Owen, Selected poems (1915-17)
Proclamation of the Irish Republic (1916)

Music:
Cecil Spring-Rice "I Vow to Thee, My Country"
Brian Warfield, "A Soldier's Return"
Eric Bogle, "No Man's Land"

Memorials:
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Somme Heritage Centre of Northern Ireland
ANZAC Commemorative Site (Government of Australia)

Suggested films: The Battle of the Somme (1916), King and Country (1964), Gallipoli (1981),
Michael Collins (1996), Regeneration (1998), The Wind that Shakes the Barley (2006)

Week X: The Crisis Years

Nov 5: The highs and lows of interwar Britain, 1919-1939
Nov 7: Diplomacy, appeasement, and rearmament
Nov 9: Discussion: Orwell, Coming Up for Air

Reading:
Arnstein, 331-351, 354-376
Brendon, 334-355
Clarke, 111-143
Orwell, Coming Up for Air (second half)

Audio:
Neville Chamberlain, "Peace for Our Time" (1938) and "We are at War" (1939)
H.M. George VI, Speech upon declaration of War (1939)

Suggested films: Liam (2000), Brideshead Revisited (1981), Churchill: The Wilderness Years (1981)
Chariots of Fire (1981), Edward & Mrs. Simpson (1981), A Handful of Dust (1988)

Week XI: Britain's Dark Days

Nov 12: "Their Finest Hour" Britain at war, 1939-1945
Nov 13: Film: The Remains of the Day: 7-10 PM, Miller 102
Nov 14: Britain's postwar crises, 1945-1951
Nov 16: Discussion

Reading:
Arnstein, 376-378, 382-386
Brendon, 379-420, 466-486
Clarke, 144-215

Audio:
Winston Churchill, "Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat" (1940),
"Their Finest Hour" (1940), "The Sinews of Peace" (1946)

Music:
Benjamin Britten, War Requiem (selections) (1962)
Vera Lynn, "We'll Meet Again" (1939), "There'll Always be an England" (1941),
"The White Cliffs of Dover" (1942), "When the Lights Go On Again" (1942)

Images: British Wartime Propaganda Posters

Suggested films: Hope and Glory (1987), Battle of Britain (1969), The Cazalets (2001)
In Which We Serve (1942), Brief Encounter (1945), The Dam Busters (1954),
Dark Blue World (2001), Island at War (2004), The King's Speech (2010)

Week XII: The Challenges of Postwar Britain

Nov 19: The "New Jerusalem": building the welfare state
Nov 21: Dismantling the British Empire
Nov 23: THANKSGIVING (NO CLASS)

Reading:
Arnstein, 351-353, 379-381, 387-403, 411-425
Brendon, 444-465, 487-515, 551-574
Clarke, 216-282

Video and Audio:
BBC Radio Archive, Jawaharlal Nehru's speech "A tryst with destiny" (1947)
BBC Radio Archive, Muhammad Ali Jinnah's address on Pakistan's independence (1947)
BBC Film Archive, Lord Mountbatten reads address by King George VI on Indian independence (1947)

Suggested films: Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1961), The Jewel in the Crown (1984)
84 Charing Cross Road (1987), Cambridge Spies (2003), Vera Drake (2004)
The War Game (1965), Shadowlands (1993), Room at the Top (1959)

Week XIII: The Transformation of British Politics

Nov 26: Nationalism, regionalism, and conflict: Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland
Nov 28: Thatcherism, "New Labour," and the new British politics
Nov 30: Discussion

Reading:
Arstein, 427-444
Clarke, 283-400
Margaret Thatcher, The Downing Street Years, 3-59

Documents:
BBC "In Depth", Statistics for the Thatcher Years

Video:
BBC News, Bobby Sands elected MP for Fermanagh/South Tyrone (1981)
BBC Panorama, Falklands War Outbreak (1982)
Margaret Thatcher, Speech to the House of Commons on the European Council (1990)
Tony Blair, Final Statement as Prime Minister (2007)

Suggested films: House of Cards (1990), Bloody Sunday (2003), Some Mother's Son (1996)
The Boxer (1998), Omagh (2004), In the Name of the Father (1993), Ratcatcher (1998)
Four Days in July (1985), Riff Raff (1990), Hidden Agenda (1990)

Week XIV: The Transformation of British Society

Dec 3: Popular culture, immigration, and the making of multicultural Britain
Dec 5: The Windsors: family, monarchy, and nation
Dec 7: Discussion

Reading:
Arnstein, 403-411
Brendon, 633-662
Clarke, 401-439
David Cannadine, "Diana, Princess of Wales" in History in Our Time
Salman Rushdie, "The New Empire within Britain" in Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism

Music:
The Beatles, "Penny Lane" (1966)
The Kinks, "Dedicated Follower of Fashion" (1966), "Shangri-La" (1969)
The Sex Pistols, "God Save the Queen" (1977), "Anarchy in the UK" (1976)
The Clash, "London Calling" (1979), "The Guns of Brixton" (1979)

Video:
Alexandra Palace Television Society, The Coronation of Elizabeth II (1953)
The Beatles, First Appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show (1964)
First Edition (TV), The Battle for Brixton (1981) [five parts]
H.M. Elizabeth II, Statement on the Death of Princess Diana (1997) and Speech at the State Opening of Parliament (2012) [full video with live commentary]

Suggested films: Scandal (1989), A Hard Day's Night (1964), My Son the Fanatic (1997)
Made in Britain (1982), Trainspotting (1996), Ae Fond Kiss (2004), The Jury (2003)
A Clockwork Orange (1971), Dirty Pretty Things (2002), The Queen (2006)

Week XV: Britain: Present and Future

Dec 10: Conclusion: The future of Britain and the British
Dec 12: Discussion

Reading:
Clarke, 440-443
Bagehot, "The Tiger under the Table" in The Economist, 5 Dec 2009