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MHIS2000 – A History of Terrorism

2023 – Session 1, Online-flexible

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Mark Hearn
mark.hearn@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
40cp at 1000 level or above OR (10cp in HIST or MHIS or MHIX units)
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Few issues demand as much attention, in the military, political, and media spheres, as terrorist attacks. Each new attack unleashes a torrent of questions: how can attacks be prevented, who is responsible? Since the French Revolution terrorism has shadowed the unfolding of the modern world. Developing political and economic systems have generated violent reactions; regimes have resorted to terror as instruments of suppression and control. Terrorists have struck in the name of nationalism, religion and anarchy. In this course, we will examine terrorism historically as a form of insurgency that allowed violent extremists a low-cost route to political influence. We will address the historic evolution of terrorism since the nineteenth century, and governments' efforts to counteract it. The modern world cannot be understood without exploring the nature of terrorism, and the unit will examine manifestations of terrorism in western and non-western contexts, from the Jacobins to Islamic State.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Analyse the nature of terrorism in the modern period of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
  • ULO2: Apply key scholarly and historiographical concepts related to an understanding of modern terrorism in assessment tasks.
  • ULO3: Interpret relevant primary sources and secondary materials relevant to the history of terrorism.
  • ULO4: Construct evidence based arguments about the history of terrorism in written and oral, visual or digital forms.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty:   Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue.   

This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings etc). Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs etc) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application. Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic.

IMPORTANT NOTE ON MARKS: Grading decisions for each assessment task will be moderated against the set criteria and standards before task results are released.

 

Critical Analysis (Historiography) Assignment (1000 words)

Students are required to provide a critical analysis of the historical perspectives on terrorism in the two readings below, both available from the week one topic readings. How effectively do they explain the historical development of state and anti-state terrorism in the modern world?

Roger Griffin, ‘Modernity and Terrorism’, in The Routledge History of Terrorism, 2015.

Brenda J. Lutz, ‘Historical Approaches to Terrorism’, in The Oxford Handbook of Terrorism, 2019.

Note: Although you are only required to consult these two readings, please remember to footnote your assignment, and consult the Critical Analysis Assignment rubric.

 

Research Essay (2000 words) The research essay is an exercise in critical analysis of the issues, events and the relevant scholarship - either from historians or other relevant academic scholars - not simply a description of events or factors. Students are required to analyse and discuss at least eight scholarly books or journal articles relevant to the essay question. Web sites may be cited in addition to the minimum eight scholarly texts; avoid citing encyclopedia sources.

Instructions: Select one of the essay questions options below. NOTE: students are required to choose an essay topic different from their chosen presentation topic.

Did the French Revolution generate a new form of terrorism?

How have gender constructions shaped responses to terrorism?

How have scholars explained manifestations of terrorism in the Cultural Sixties?

Have historical factors shaped Australia’s response to the war on terror?

How did mid twentieth century totalitarian states in Europe use terror to control and discipline their populations? 

How have scholars assessed the role of terrorism in post World War Two anti-colonial struggles? What factors have contributed to the rise of white nationalist terror in the United States since the Vietnam War?

How have historical factors contributed to the emergence of Islamist terrorism?

How have scholars assessed the nature of post-Cold War terror in the Russian Federation? Referencing: Students must properly cite sources as footnotes, as per the guidelines found in the Department of Modern History referencing guide. A PDF of this guide is available in the MHIS2000 iLearn Assessments section.

Footnotes should be confined to citation details. Do not include text of the essay argument in the footnotes. Footnotes and the bibliography will not be counted in the research essay word limit. Please number the pages of your essay, and write out the essay question precisely at the beginning of your essay. Submitting your essay: Please submit your essay via Turnitin.

 

Participation

Participation is an active, engaged process of respectful in-class discussion. Students will be assessed on their participation in weekly topic discussions, analysing primary and secondary source issues and developing your communication skills.

Your preparation for each week will consist of three things:

 1. Listen to the lecture

2. Do the compulsory readings (in Leganto link)

3. Participate in discussion with your tutor and peers.

Participation means that you engage with the readings and the questions and discussions as they arise each week. In marking participation we are interested in the quality of your contributions. We are looking for the following things:

Engagement with the unit content, the readings and your peers.

Respectful discussion and interaction with peers and tutor.

Interaction with peers (asking questions, querying answers, responding, etc).

Sustained presence in seminars and the online learning space.

 

Presentation

The presentation task is designed to assess your communication skills, and your ability to interpret and summarise topic readings. At the beginning of semester, students will select a tutorial presentation topic from the various weekly unit topics. You will lead in-class or online discussion, using the topic reading texts, stimulus material or activities to engage your audience. An important aspect of the exercise is to encourage participation by other students. 

External students participating online will submit their presentations via the iLearn weekly discussion forum.

You will be assessed on five criteria:

Preparation

Organization

Content

Creativity

Engagement

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Participation 20% No Across semester
Historiography Assignment 25% No 17 March 2023
Research Essay 40% No 5 May 2023
Presentation 15% No Across semester

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 18 hours
Due: Across semester
Weighting: 20%

 

Students will be assessed on their participation in weekly discussion forums analysing primary and secondary source issues and developing their oral communication skills.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the nature of terrorism in the modern period of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
  • Interpret relevant primary sources and secondary materials relevant to the history of terrorism.
  • Construct evidence based arguments about the history of terrorism in written and oral, visual or digital forms.

Historiography Assignment

Assessment Type 1: Literature review
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: 17 March 2023
Weighting: 25%

 

Students are required to write a critical appraisal of historian’s perspectives on terrorism, based on an analysis of key themes and issues covered in two book chapters or scholarly journal articles.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the nature of terrorism in the modern period of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
  • Apply key scholarly and historiographical concepts related to an understanding of modern terrorism in assessment tasks.
  • Interpret relevant primary sources and secondary materials relevant to the history of terrorism.

Research Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 36 hours
Due: 5 May 2023
Weighting: 40%

 

The research essay forms the major assessment task of the course and requires a high degree of thought, effort and preparation. The research essay questions related to each of the weekly course topics. Students are required to analyse and discuss at least eight scholarly books or journal articles relevant to the essay question. Web sites may be cited in addition to the minimum eight scholarly texts.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the nature of terrorism in the modern period of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
  • Apply key scholarly and historiographical concepts related to an understanding of modern terrorism in assessment tasks.
  • Interpret relevant primary sources and secondary materials relevant to the history of terrorism.

Presentation

Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours
Due: Across semester
Weighting: 15%

 

The presentation task is designed to assess oral communication skills and grasp of the issues under discussion. Presentations are in-class for internal students, and online presentations via iLearn for external and OUA students.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the nature of terrorism in the modern period of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
  • Apply key scholarly and historiographical concepts related to an understanding of modern terrorism in assessment tasks.
  • Construct evidence based arguments about the history of terrorism in written and oral, visual or digital forms.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Writing your history essay

The Department of Modern History has an essay writing and

referencing guide available on iLearn. Please read it before you embark on your assessment

tasks!

Participation

Active participation in in-class or online seminars is an essential component of the

course and three or more absences from the seminars without prior notification and adequate

explanation may mean you fail this unit.

Examination

There is no examination for MHIS2000 but all assignments need to be

submitted if you wish to pass the unit.

Assignment submission

Please submit all assignments via Turnitin on iLearn. Assignments

must include a heading that identifies the question chosen and a bibliography.

Special Consideration

Please note that requests for special consideration are not granted

automatically, and are reserved for unforeseen and serious circumstances such as prolonged

illness, hospitalisation or bereavement in your immediate family.

Unit Schedule

Week 1 (20 February): Introduction – Defining Terrorism and Overview

Week 2 (27 February): Virtue and Terror: Terrorism from 1789 to 1871

Week 3 (6 March): Fin de Siècle Terror, 1880-1914

Week 4 (13 March): Regime Terror, 1922-1945

Week 5 (20 March): Anti-Colonial Terrorism, 1945-1962

Week 6 (27 March): Terror in the Cultural Sixties

Week 7 (3 April): Revolutionary and Nationalist Terror in the 1970s

Mid Semester Break: 10 April - 23 April

Week 8 (24 April): Post Cold War Terror

Week 9 (1 May): Research Essay non-teaching week

Week 10 (8 May): Islamist Terrorism

Week 11 (15 May): Australia and the War on Terror

Week 12 (22 May): Radical Right Violence in the USA

Week 13 (29 May): China: Terror and Sovereignty

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2023.01 of the Handbook