History, Philosophy & Religious Studies

We ask questions. We challenge assumptions. We seek justice and joy in our learning.

With the teaching and learning that takes place in our classrooms, the instructors in the History, Philosophy & Religious Studies Department aim to develop an appreciation of the past through multiple perspectives, to increase knowledge of our interdependent and complex world, to emphasize the value of engaging in open-minded dialogue and discussion, and to foster an understanding of foundational terms and ideas defining history, philosophy, and religious studies. By challenging traditional narratives, by valuing original ideas, and by introducing students to a range of human societies, beliefs, and experiences through time and space, we prepare students to do meaningful and substantive work in the present, in college, and beyond.

Key Highlights:

Our faculty members — many of whom have taught at the school for more than ten years — are devoted to blending traditional methods of teaching and learning with new, innovative approaches in ways that best serve our students.
As scholars and teachers, our faculty continually pursue professional development opportunities, both to stay informed in their respective disciplines and to hone their teaching skills.
We offer numerous history electives, including offerings at the advanced and/or college level
Students have a range of choices for philosophy and religious studies courses, and must receive credit for at least one term course from these subjects.

Featured Courses

Religion, Gender, and Sexuality

This course examines the various ways in which religion, gender, and sexuality intersect across different cultures and historical time periods. Students analyze theologies, texts, and communities of religions using a comparative approach to gain insights into their concepts of gender and sexuality. Topics are covered in a case-study format by comparing two or more sources in these religions: the Abrahamic faiths, Buddhism, Hinduism, and spiritual traditions of Indigenous peoples in the United States. Sample topics include:

The Divine: Is the primary deity of this religion viewed as male, female, or beyond gender distinctions?
Creation myths: What do the creation myths of various religions tell us about gender roles and sexuality?
Authority: Are the primary religious leaders for this religion of a particular gender? Which religions have allowed women to also begin to step forward as spiritual leaders?
Society: How do the key religious texts refer to people in society, and do they foster gender equality or inequality? What do the religious texts prescribe regarding gender roles in the home and in society?
Rites and Rituals: Which religious practices are differentiated on the basis of gender in religious texts and practices?
Regulating bodies: What do various religious traditions say about modesty, dress, and reproductive rights?
Empowerment: How have people marginalized for their gender found empowerment within various religions?
LGBTQ+: To what extent have those in the LGBTQ+ communities been embraced or excluded by various religions? How and why is sexuality a central area of religious attention, in both the past and present?
Popular conceptions: How do religious conceptions of gender and sexuality spill over into culture?

Germany and the Holocaust

This course investigates the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi state, the implementation of the Holocaust and its aftermath. To understand the roots of antisemitism, the course begins with a look at Europe’s Jewish population over the past five centuries, and continues with a serious examination of the political, social, and economic factors following World War I that made Hitler’s rise to power possible. The course analyzes Nazi racial and political policies, Germany’s involvement in World War II, and the mass annihilation of Jews and others. Students examine the role of bystanders and rescuers, resistance movements, the aftermath at Nuremberg, and the lasting legacies of the Holocaust today.

Modern African History: Riot, Rebellion, and Freedom

No single course can cover more than a sliver of the complexity and variety of a continent as diverse as Africa. This course will examine the development of outbreaks of violence in Africa in the movement toward independence and freedom in the post-colonial period (1950s to 1980s). Through learning about some of the economic, social, religious, and political roots of these disturbances, students will in turn garner a better understanding of the continent today. Topics of study may include Hutu extremism and the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, the Suez Canal crisis in Egypt, and apartheid in South Africa. Focusing on these events and others will unravel the complex and challenging, yet vibrant and resilient, history of this continent.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the graduation requirements for the department?
What opportunities do students have to complete research?

What are the graduation requirements for the department?

Students are required to take two years of history: a world history course during either the freshman or sophomore year, and one year of United States history preferably during the junior year.

Students are also required to take at least two term courses in either philosophy, psychology, or religious studies (found across the departments of History, Philosophy & Religious Studies, and Social Sciences); one of these courses must be taken during the junior or senior year, and at least one of these must be from philosophy or religious studies.

What opportunities do students have to complete research?

Through the CL Guided Humanities Research Seminar, selected seniors are provided with the structure and flexibility needed to complete an undergraduate-level research project in the humanities. Students will engage in sustained, significant, mentored research that draws on their work in previous academic courses as well as their involvement in various on-campus initiatives. Students can also contribute to our ongoing institutional history project called Slavery and Loomis Chaffee: An Ethical History Project.