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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2021/2022

Information in the Degree Programme Tables may still be subject to change in response to Covid-19

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of History, Classics and Archaeology : History

Undergraduate Course: Atlantic Slavery (HIST10410)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of History, Classics and Archaeology CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThis course explores the history of Atlantic slave societies from the origins of the Atlantic slave in c.1500 to the abolition of slavery in the Atlantic world in the nineteenth century.
Course description Between c. 1500 and 1900, around 11 million Africans were forcibly taken from their places of birth and brought across the Atlantic to the Americas as captives. This forced migration had enormous economic, social, cultural, ideological and political consequences. It played a major role in the constitution of the modern world. This course introduces the history of Atlantic Slavery from its establishment until its abolition. It considers the diversity of African societies caught up in the Atlantic slave trade, the nature and impact of slavery in the American colonies and later independent states, and the consequences of slavery for European societies. It also provides students with the opportunity to explore the political and cultural significance of Atlantic slavery for our own times.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements A pass or passes in 40 credits of first level historical courses or equivalent and a pass or passes in 40 credits of second level historical courses or equivalent.
Before enrolling students on this course, PTs are asked to contact the History Honours Admission Administrator to ensure that a place is available (Tel: 504030).
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesVisiting students should have at least 3 History courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this). We will only consider University/College level courses.
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. demonstrate command of the body of knowledge considered in the course
  2. demonstrate an ability to read, analyse and reflect critically upon relevant scholarship;
  3. demonstrate an ability to understand, evaluate and utilise a variety of primary source material;
  4. demonstrate the ability to develop and sustain scholarly arguments in oral and written form, by formulating appropriate questions and utilising relevant evidence;
  5. demonstrate independence of mind and initiative; intellectual integrity and maturity; an ability to evaluate the work of others, including peers.
Reading List
Blackburn, Robin. The American Crucible: Slavery, Emancipation, and Human Rights. New York: Verso, 2011.
Davis, David Brion. Inhuman Bondage: The Rise and Fall of Slavery in the New World. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Engerman, Stanley, Seymour Drescher and Robert Paquette eds. Slavery (Oxford Readers). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Gomez, Michael. Reversing Sail: A History of the African Diaspora. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Kolchin, Peter. American Slavery 1619-1877. New York: Hill and Wang, 1994.
Lindsay, Lisa. Captives as Commodities: The Transatlantic Slave Trade. Prentice Hall, 2007.
Morgan, Kenneth. Slavery and the British Empire: From Africa to America. New York: Oxford University Press US, 2007.
Stilwell, Sean. Slavery and Slaving in African History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014.
Turley, David. Slavery. Oxford: Blackwell, 2000.
Walvin, James. Black Ivory: Slavery in the British Empire. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2001.
Wood, Betty. Slavery in Colonial America, 1619-1776. Lanham, MD: Roman and Littlefield, 2005.
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills This course will help students develop a range of transferable skills, including:
- the ability to manage one's time effectively, work to deadlines, and perform effectively under pressure;
- the ability to gather, sift, organise and evaluate large quantities of textual evidence;
- the ability to marshal argument in both written and oral form;
- the ability to work independently and as part of a pair or larger group.
KeywordsNot entered
Contacts
Course organiserProf Diana Paton
Tel: (0131 6)50 4578
Email: Diana.Paton@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMiss Sara Dennison
Tel: (0131 6)50 2501
Email: Sara.Dennison@ed.ac.uk
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