Course Description
The much-debated and highly publicized June 2016 “Brexit” referendum, in which a narrow majority of British citizens voted to leave the European Union, made newly apparent what has, in fact, been a centuries-old dynamic between the British Isles (England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales) and the European continent. This messy divorce, now nearing its tenth anniversary, has also revealed tensions within the UK itself, such as the uneasy question of Scottish independence from England, and anxiety over Northern Ireland’s position in the UK. Other divisions abound too, typified by “Megxit” and the near breakup of the beloved English Premier League a few years back. Add into the mix racial, class and religious tensions; a weakened Labour Party; and concern about the vaunted, beloved National Health Service (NHS) as it continues to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic: everywhere you look, divisive challenge abounds. Can the United Kingdom hold itself together? And as always, what exactly does the centuries-long tumult between England and Ireland, London and Dublin mean today, in 2026—now 100+ years after Irish Independence.
Honors College students enrolling in the UK program will have the opportunity to answer this question first-hand. In the spring semester, in IDH 4007, we will emphasize both coherence plus unity, and division and tension, as we study the dual strands of English and Irish history, culture, religion, literature and art, and advances in science, technology, medicine and engineering from the pre-Roman and Roman eras, through the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Restoration and Enlightenment, Industrial Revolution, Victorian and Edwardian ages, the World Wars of the last century, and right up to the present. This learning about the United Kingdom and too Ireland will then be tested and extended in situ, as participants travel in the summer, under the IDH 4008 rubric, observing first-hand, in London and Dublin, Cornwall and Westminster, if despair and dismay over Brexit and Megxit is real, or not. “United we stand. Divided we fall”: does Churchill’s famous formulation, spoken in June 1941, still apply in speaking of the UK, and Ireland, today?
In this, the sixth year of this Study Abroad program, we will begin our travels in London and the southeast, for our first fortnight (15 days). Then, over two more weeks, we will journey first to the Republic of Ireland, and then to the far southwestern tip of England. Thus, from the London metropolis, we will fly to the west of Ireland, where we will spend a few days first in the tiny fishing village of Dingle and its surrounding peninsulas, then north to Galway and Connemara. From there, we will head to the Irish capital, Dublin, for a weekend rich in exploration and experience of this thriving city on the Liffey. From Dublin, we will embark, again by plane, to Cornwall and Devon, the rugged picturesque counties at the far southwestern tip of England. The entire trip will end in the bustling port city of Bristol, with a day trip to nearby Bath.
There is too much in London and the whole of the UK and Ireland to ever encompass it “all” in the space of just one month; that said, your travels in London and the southeast, and then in Ireland, Cornwall and Devon should provide you an excellent introduction to the UK, vastly deepening your understanding of this fabled nation-state and its current position in the world.
For more information on the travel portion of the two-semester program, please refer to its Study Abroad page.