HIST 223The Holocaust in History
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Arts
- Subject
- History
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 2 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
An examination of the Holocaust in the context of the history of modern racism. Study topics will include historic anti-Judaism, scientific racism and the development of modern antisemitism, Nazi "race" ideology, wartime policies from ghetto to genocide, resistance movements, Nuremberg trials, Holocaust denial, and universal lessons from the Holocaust.
Prerequisites
None listed.
Antirequisites
None listed.
Leads to
No course lists it as a requisite.
Reviewed on UW Flow
92% liked it70% easy80% useful
From 13 ratings and 2 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
Very interesting course, but depending what T.A unfortunately marks your essays, you're either screwed or set for life
Nov 2015 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
I found this course incredibly fascinating in a horrible way. It was interesting to learn about how an organized mass genocide was able to occur in such recent history
Nov 2012 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
6 posts and comments in 5 threads mention HIST 223, December 2011 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Fall 2015
What's a good course that is really worth taking regardless of the major? 17 points, 45 comments
“Anything that was fun, even those smaller classes that allow for more interaction between classmates.”
u/DiblertMelendez: “HIST 223 is an awesome class I took this semester. It's with Gary Bruce and he may actually be the greatest lecturer I've had so far in university. If I miss one of his classes I genuinely feel bad and like I'm missing out.”
u/annihilatron: “I took 'canada in world war 2' which was a massive joke for me because I was already a bit of a buff with that. I just kind of showed up, slept, wrote a few essays, did some exams. The lecturers are really good, I feel bad for birding through it. …”
Spring 2015
If you could take any class at the university what would it be? 3 points, 16 comments
“I'm a grad student that has to be full-time in the fall term but I only have one requirement to fill. I have to take 2 more classes, but they can be anything. …”
u/DiblertMelendez: “There's a class on the history of the Holocaust which I thought was awesome and really interesting. HIST 223 by Gary Bruce.”
Winter 2015
What is a good HIST course to take based on how interesting it is, its evaluations, and workload. 7 points, 14 comments
“So far, I am interested in HIST 262. Any comments on that course?”
u/T3hHippie: “Vietnam War (Hist 220) with Andrew Hunt and Holocaust in History (Hist 223) with Gary Bruce were awesome. Both involved many short novels and few essays in each but the stuff you learn is worth it.”
TST slot blocking course enrolment on Quest 2 points, 4 comments
u/synthlove: “I'm trying to swap ENGL 208B with HIST 223, however when I try to do so it says that my MATH 239 course has a TST slot in the same timeslot for the HIST course. Is there any way to get around this?”
Fall 2011
What's your most/least favourite course? 12 points, 77 comments
“Favourite: Algebra. MATH 135. Least Favourite: Linear Algebra. MATH 136. Frigging hate matrices. Tell us what your favourite/least favourite courses are and why! …”
u/korkesh: “For this Term: Most: HIST 223 (Holocaust in History, an overall well taught course with great discussions) Least: CS 245 (... This is self explanatory for anyone else taking this)”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them