Examine Western and American civilization from Genesis through the Cold War through contextualized primary documents, classroom lectures, and discussions that place thinkers such as Aristotle and Tocqueville within a broad historical narrative.
Understand the broad development of Western and American civilization from Genesis through the Cold War.
Analyze primary documents within the historical contexts supplied by the course lectures and discussions.
Compare perspectives represented by influential thinkers, including Aristotle and Tocqueville, across the course’s historical narrative.
Evaluate how a professor’s organizing narrative and stated viewpoint can shape the presentation of primary-source evidence.
June 11, 2018
Dear Tom Woods/Liberty Classroom Member!
Greetings from southern Michigan. For nineteen years, I have had the privilege of teaching core courses to freshmen and sophomores on the history and heritage of Western and American civilization. Each course is based strictly on primary documents, thus covering Genesis to the Cold War in two semesters.
As we use only primary sources in the Hillsdale College Department of History, we do our best to limit the biases that so pervade the current and shoddy state of academia. And, in true liberal (liberal, properly understood—to be liberated from the things of this world; not as in the modern definition—to be a wishy-washy socialist without any real convictions) fashion, we have our students talk with Aristotle as well as with Tocqueville. I, as professor, certainly have my views, and I create the narrative, but the very use of primary sources attenuates the possible tyranny of Birzer snobbishness.
Over the next year—with mighty Tom’s gracious permission—I will be adding to these lectures. The set now presented comes from the 2006-2007 school year. At that time, I was teaching a “celebrity” who only attended class via these recordings. Thus, I had to make sure that he knew the context, even though he wasn’t present in class. You might figure out who it is over time, though I would rather not advertise his name blatantly. Needless to write, he was a great student, despite the logistics.
Please know that:
Regardless, thank you for supporting Liberty Classroom. Ave, Tom Woods!
Yours, Brad Birzer
Professor of History · Hillsdale College
Bradley J. Birzer is a historian, author, and the Russell Amos Kirk Chair in American Studies at Hillsdale College.
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