Shorter University history professors Dr. Terry Morris and Dr. Charles Carter have written a textbook about the history of the modern world.

Titled “The World Transformed: Modern Civilization Since 1648 (Preliminary Edition),” the text seeks to provide a solid balance of European and world history in the modern era.

“The World Transformed” helps to advance higher education by its global and multicultural focus, analysis of transformational events of the past and attention paid to the victims of history. Also, the textbook not only seeks to inform students about life in different places and times but also to inculcate in them a sense of empathy and concern for people across the globe, a goal in keeping with Christian ethics and principles, Carter added.

The pair’s goal for the textbook was to provide students with a good, well-rounded and inexpensive textbook that strongly fits with classroom topics of discussion, without having superfluous materials that gets in the way of the story the historian is trying to tell.

“We tried to be very up-to-date in our scholarship,” Morris said. “We tried to make it not out-of-date in terms of the interpretation, but we just felt that it ought to be much more of just straight history.”

Morris and Carter noted that Shorter’s modern civilization courses begin around 1648 AD, and they wanted a book that focused on their course’s time period.

“Most of the other textbooks on the market begin with the year 1500 AD or so, and thus students end up purchasing books with chapters in them that our class does not cover,” Carter said.

Morris added, “Our textbook is heavily weighted to the western world because the western world had the biggest impact in shaping the world as a whole.”

Although the book is new to the higher education market, Morris and Carter have begun to use the textbook in their own classrooms this semester.

“It’s nice to have what you’re telling the students and what they see in the book kind of go along together,” Morris said.

Morris has a member of Shorter’s faculty since 1965 with four years on leave to obtain his Ph.D. He received the Bachelor of Arts from Shorter College, Master of Arts from Emory University and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Georgia.

At Shorter, Morris has taught numerous classes including World Civilization since 1648, Classical Culture and The Middle Ages. Also, he has received honors and awards including the Shorter College Ty Cobb Education Scholarship and the Vulcan Materials Company Teaching Excellence Award.

Carter received the Associate of Arts from South Georgia College, Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts from the University of Georgia and Doctor of Philosophy from The Ohio State University. At Shorter, he has taught an array of classes including Diversity in America, Eastern European Studies, and History of Warfare.

Along with their textbook, Morris and Carter have written and published other scholarly works. Morris has published “Organizing the Firm: The Role of Science in Modern Management” and has four articles in the “Great Lives Series.”

Carter was the co-editor of “Pacts and Alliances in History: Diplomatic Strategy and the Politics of Coalitions” and wrote an article titled “The Evolution of U.S. Policy toward West German-Soviet Trade Relations, 1969-1989” in the “International History Review.”

“The World Transformed” is available from the Shorter University bookstore and will be available through cognella.com.

Prepared by student writer Caleb Britt

Founded in 1873, Shorter University is a Christ-centered, four-year liberal arts university committed to excellence in education. The Princeton Review annually includes Shorter on its list of best Southeastern Colleges. The university offers traditional bachelor’s degrees in 40 areas of study, online courses and degree programs, undergraduate programs for working adults, and four master’s programs. Learn more about Shorter at www.shorter.edu.

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