Students entering the minor after April 5, 2022 or matriculating Fall 2022 or later
will follow the requirements below. Students matriculating prior to April 5, 2022
will follow the requirements outlined further down ("Old Minor").
The minor, which requires 21 credits, consists of a two-course Introductory survey
in a student's particular geographic and/or temporal area of interest, followed by
four courses in a Thematic area of history chosen from one of the clusters noted below.
A final course can be used either to deepen a particular area of interest or explore
a new subject. No grade lower than "C" may be applied to the minor and at least twelve
of the 21 credits must be taken at Stony Brook.
Two Courses in any survey sequence at the 100 or 200 level
Four Courses in one of the following Thematic clusters (minimum of two courses at the 300 level):
Art, ideas, and culture are human products, things and activities created and practiced
at specific historical times and places. Culture does not merely reflect human sentiments;
it has the capacity to shape and influence history. Courses in this concentration
focus on the ways in which cultural things, ideas, and practices reflect and contribute
to the societies in which they emerge; examine processes of cultural and ideological
exchange across regional and national boundaries; and explore the political, economic,
and social meanings given to ideas and culture by people engaged in their production
and consumption.
For much of human history, empires have been the primary form for organizing and controlling
territory, peoples, and cultures through violence. Empires played a key role in the
creation of hegemonic networks for the circulation of commodities, the diffusion of
ideas, and the mobility of cultures and peoples. Courses in this concentration examine
empires in terms of mechanisms of domination, resistance, and negotiation; explore
concepts of authority, social and political organization, sovereignty and citizenship;
and investigate the ways in which conquest, ideology, and migration have fostered
global connections that continue to shape society, politics, and culture.
Pandemics, climate change, and toxic environments are among the greatest challenges
that face humankind today. Without understanding their historical origins, we cannot
devise viable and just responses to them. Courses in this concentration explore how
understandings of our bodies and the natural worlds we inhabit have evolved over time
in different parts of the globe; examine how economic, scientific and technological
changes have helped to make the “modern” world; and consider how these changes have
transformed not only forms of knowledge but entire environments as well.
People have fought for social justice, rights and equality in both the past and present.
Struggles for social justice have produced some of the world’s most historic changes—from
the toppling of empires to challenging systems of white supremacy and patriarchies.
Historical investigation of this theme encompasses the study of institutions, law
and power, on the one hand, and the struggles that people wage against social, political,
economic, racial, sexual, and gender exclusions, on the other. Courses in this concentration
explore the ways that institutions reinforce inequalities; consider how the law has
evolved over time in connection with the values and characteristics of societies; and
examine the development of social welfare policies, changing ideas of citizenship,
and social movements for civil and human rights.
The way humans identify and define themselves and others has changed over time. Race/ethnicity,
religion, gender, and sexuality are among the most important categories into which
people sort themselves; they can offer great collective and individual fulfilment,
but also serve as tools of discrimination and sources of conflict. Courses in this
concentration invite students to examine the various meanings assigned to race, religion,
gender, and sexuality throughout history; to interrogate the complex processes that
go into shaping them; and to explore how such identities have functioned in different
historical circumstances.
One Course in any area at the 300 level or above
For a listing of which courses align with each Thematic cluster see here. For a complete listing of History courses see the Undergraduate Bulletin.
History of Health, Science, and the Environment Minor Requirements
Completion of the minor requires 21 credits. At least nine of the 21 credits must
be taken at Stony Brook, with three of the courses at the upper-division level. The
specific distribution of the credits should be determined in consultation with the
director of undergraduate studies. An example of an acceptable distribution would
be the following:
Three Courses in the student's interest at the 100 or 200 level selected from the
list below (9 credits).
Four courses in the student's interest at the 300 or 400 level selected from the list
below (12 credits) (Note: HIS 447, 487, 488, or 495-496 may not be applied to the
minor.)
HIS 111: Environmental History of America.
HIS 237: Science, Technology, and Medicine in Western Civilization I.
HIS 238: Science, Technology, and Medicine in Western Civilization II.
HIS 286: The Global History of Human Health.
HIS 302: Environmental History in Global Perspective.
HIS 321: Humans and Animals in the Modern World.
HIS 329: History of Industrial Hazards.
HIS 352: Environmental History of China.
HIS 293: Disease in American History.
HIS 365: Environmental History of North America.
HIS 368: Health and Disease in African History.
HIS 386: The Maya.
HIS 398: Topics in the History of Science, Technology and Medicine.
History of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.
History of the American Mental Hospital.
Other courses that count towards the minor include:
AFS 374: Environment and Development in African History.