Anne Virginia Koepp

Some of SDSU’s most common history courses are taught by Eve Fisher, an assistant professor who believes studying history is similar to studying a little bit of everything.

“I’m an extremely curious person,” said Fisher. “You name it, and I want to know about it.”

Fisher took history in college because of her fascination of how we came to be how we are. We will only be able to figure that out through history, said Fisher.

“There’s a history of medicine, of science, of ideas, of philosophy, of literature, as well as of wars, etc. So, basically, by studying history I could study everything and anything I wanted to,” Fisher said.

Fisher teaches World History, Western Civilization, Ancient and Modern Chinese History, Ancient and Modern Japanese History and Asian History. However, it is hard for Fisher to select a favorite topic in history.

“That depends on my mood and the day and what’s going on worldwide,” Fisher said.

When asked if she could name a specific thing that she enjoys most about history, Fisher’s passion for the subject shines.

“I love the Heian period in Japan, because it’s almost an alien planet. I’m fascinated by the Age of Imperialism, especially what happened in China, with the Opium Wars and subsequent events, and how that influenced Japan to become an imperialist military power itself,” Fisher said.

Fisher said she is passionate about all aspects of history. “I recently gave a paper at the World History Association on “Patterns of Influence: Missionaries in World History’ which went into the patterns of missionary behavior that have long-term consequences for world history,” Fisher said.

Brady Jackson, a junior civil engineering major from Tracy, Minn., enjoys history as well.

“History is an interesting subject to study because it is cool to see where we’ve been. History is fun,” said Jackson.

Fisher’s favorite part of teaching is the teaching itself. She loves being in the classroom and interacting with students. “My least favorite thing is exams. I hate writing them, and I hate grading them,” Fisher said.

Fisher expressed more interests in different subjects. “Currently I’m really interested in broad patterns in history … the forest, rather than the trees,” she said.

“I’m interested in the fact that all military cultures, from ancient Sparta to medieval Japan to 18th century Prussia, have remarkable similarities in structure and behavior,” Fisher said.

Fisher’s knowledge and interest passes to her students and is seen in her dedication.

“And then there are the people,” Fisher said, showing her excitement for the subject. “Karl Gutzlaff, Cao Cao, Murasaki Shikibu, Talleyrand, Alcibiades, Bohemond, John Donne, Rousseau … how much time/space do you have?”