The
Honors History 371 – Fall 2010
Monday/Wednesday 12:30 – 1:45 pm, Sierra Hall
186
History, as nearly no one seems
to know, is not merely something
to be read. And it does not refer
merely, or even principally, to the
past. On the contrary, the great
force of history comes from the fact
that we carry it within us, are
unconsciously controlled by it in
many ways, and history is literally
present in all that we do. It could
scarcely be otherwise, since it is to
history that we owe our frames
of reference, our identities, and
our aspirations.
– JAMES BALDWIN
Instructor
Dr.
Thomas W. Devine
Office
Hours:
Email: tom.devine@csun.edu Phone: (818)
677-3550
Teaching Assistant: Shirley Buchanan Email: leliazar@sbcglobal.net
Spirit of the Course
Someone,
probably a frustrated student, once complained, “History is just one damn thing
after another.” Unfortunately, many
history courses are taught in such a way that one can easily reach this grim
conclusion. In this class, however, you will not simply be memorizing
a series of facts and regurgitating them for exams. Rather
than emphasize “coverage” (i.e. what
happened), we will focus on why
specific events and trends took on larger significance over time (i.e. so what?) We will be trying to make
sense of what has occurred and determine how, in James Baldwin’s words,
history creates our frames of reference, our identities, and our aspirations.
Specifically, we will be addressing many of the issues that have vexed
Americans since the Civil War. Some that we will discuss are rooted in specific
time periods, but you will find that many of these controversies continue to
resonate within our society today.
Beyond
making sense of recent American history, the course will encourage you to
develop your analytical skills – skills that are invaluable if you are to
succeed in any number of career paths.
Throughout the semester you will be critically examining historical
sources – both primary (produced at the time of the historical event in
question) and secondary (produced after the fact). Using these sources, you will formulate
arguments for a particular point of view and evaluate the strength of others’
arguments based on the same evidence. In
short, you will be doing what good historians and journalists, and lawyers, and
businessmen, and advertising and public relations executives, and marketing
researchers, do.
In
addition, the course will provide you with ample opportunities to improve your
writing. We will be working on how to write a coherent, logical essay that
takes a particular point of view and makes a persuasive case for it – another
skill that will serve you well in the world beyond History 371. In fact, it is
no coincidence that many employers say they like to hire History majors with
MBAs; they know that History students have been trained to think critically,
analyze data effectively, argue persuasively, and write clearly – all skills in
high demand (and low supply) in today’s job market.
Finally,
as someone who believes an informed citizenry is vital to sustaining the health
of a democracy, I hope that by studying the unfolding of American history since
the Civil War, you will leave this course a more informed citizen than when you
entered. Today, Americans are seen as astonishingly ignorant of their own nation’s
history and even more clueless about the world around them. This is not only
embarrassing but unfortunate, for as George Orwell reminds us in his novel1984,
those who have no knowledge of the past are not only powerless, they inevitably are dominated by those who do possess such
knowledge – something to think about as we begin the semester.
Themes and Questions
One
way of making sense of a large amount of material is to identify major themes that recur
throughout this period of our country’s history. By looking at a series of events through the
lens of a theme, a coherent “big picture” begins to emerge. We discern
connections between the past and the present that we might not have seen
otherwise – the origins of depression of 1893 and the economic crisis of 2008,
for example. Likewise, we can learn to
frame questions that may help us engage contemporary problems in a thoughtful
and informed manner – for example, Why do social programs that promise to
produce a more humane society often have unintended (and unwanted)
consequences? Though there are obviously
many themes and questions from which one could choose,
I have structured the course around four in particular:
1. The expanding role of
government in citizens’ lives.
How and
under what circumstances should government exercise its coercive power in order
to address social problems?
2.
The persistence of tensions between the various groups
that make up American society.
What determines and who decides who gets
rich and who stays poor? In a country of different races, languages, and
ethnicities, what does it mean to be American? (Or, for that
matter, “Un-American”?)
3. The
To what
extent should the
4.
The continuing conflict over what constitutes a “good
society.”
How does one strike a balance between liberty and equality
– the two seemingly contradictory principles upon which the nation was founded?
These questions have no simple answers, though today
one hears no end of simple-minded ones. To grapple thoughtfully with these
pressing issues, one needs more than a 20-second sound bite, a five word
slogan, or 400 twitter characters. One needs to exercise one’s brain.
Accordingly, in this class, we will try to do the serious thinking that our
culture does its best to discourage, lest the average person become too
inquisitive or informed.
The
following books – listed in the order in which we will read them – are
available at the Matador Bookstore. All
other readings will be provided in class or made available on the web
syllabus. The Bookstore sends back all
books after week four of the semester, so if you plan to buy your books there,
you should purchase all of them by the end of September.
• James Welch, Fools
Crow
• Mark Twain, Pudd’nhead
• Kevin Boyle, Arc
of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights, and Murder in the Jazz Age
• Paul Fussell, Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the
Second World War
• Sloan Wilson, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit
• Alice Echols, Scars
of Sweet
• Michael Patrick
MacDonald, All Souls: A Family Story from Southie
To
subvert the system and to save yourself some money, you should consider buying used
copies of the books. You are likely to
find used or discounted copies at significantly lower prices at the following
websites.
www.bookfinder.com; www.half.com; www.amazon.com; www.abebooks.com
Requirements & Grading
Class Participation, Quizzes, and
Short Writing Assignments 20%
First Paper (Options
A, B, or C)
15%
CLICK HERE
FOR PAPER #1 OPTION A
CLICK HERE FOR
PAPER #1 OPTION B
CLICK HERE FOR
PAPER #1 OPTION C
Second Paper (Options
A, B, or C) 15%
CLICK HERE
FOR PAPER #2 OPTION A
CLICK HERE
FOR PAPER #2 OPTION B
CLICK HERE
FOR PAPER #2 OPTION C
Primary Source
Assignment (Due November 6th) 5%
CLICK
HERE FOR PRIMARY SOURCE ASSIGNMENT
Midterm Examination 20%
CLICK HERE FOR
MIDTERM STUDY GUIDE
Final
Examination [December 13, 2010 12:45 PM - 2:45 PM] 25%
CLICK HERE FOR FINAL EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
• All grading is based on 100 points
and will be done on the +/ – system.
• You must write 2
papers. For each, you will have options on when you submit it and on what topic
you write. If you more than one of the
options, I will count only the highest grade.
• Late papers will be
penalized. Any paper turned in more than a week late will not be accepted.
• Any assignment not turned in or not accepted
will receive a grade of ZERO in the calculation of the final grade.
Explanation of
Requirements
Quizzes, Short Writing
Assignments, and Class Participation
Though this course will include some
lectures, it is not a “lecture course” – the emphasis will be on discussion and
classroom interaction rather than listening to the professor. Class participation is important and will
count heavily in your final grade. Have
the reading done BEFORE you come to
class and be ready to comment on it – simply being “present” will not earn you
a high participation grade. Since not everyone is comfortable speaking in front
of others, your performance on the quizzes and other short writing assignments
will also be considered in calculating your participation grade. A missed quiz
will count as a zero.
Midterm
and Final Examinations
The Midterm and Final Examinations will consist
of 5-7 short essay questions and one or more long essays. You will have a choice of topics for the long
essays. A week or so before each exam, I
will distribute review questions that will help you study for the exams. You
are responsible for bringing an unmarked
blue book to the midterm and the final.
Paper Assignments
The
two paper assignments will focus on the assigned books. There will be a choice of paper topics, which
will be handed out well before the due date.
You will write your first paper based on Fools Crow, Pudd’nhead Wilson, or Arc of Justice. You will write your second paper based on Man
in the Gray Flannel Suit, Scars of Sweet Paradise, or All Souls. If you wish, you may do more than one of the
first paper options and I will count the highest grade. Likewise, you may do more than one of the
second paper options and I will again count the higher grade.
Primary Source
Assignment
Since
this course fills the General Education requirement for “Information
Competency” (that means locating and, in some way using the on campus Library)
you will do a short assignment involving a trip to the Library to browse
through some old magazines from the World War II era. Details will follow later
in the semester.
Surviving History
371…
Doing Well
You have chosen to pursue a college degree,
and therefore – at least in this course – you will have to do college level
work if you expect to pass. Given that you are eligible for an Honors section,
I will assume that you take your studies seriously and that you are capable of
doing college level work. That said,
History 371 is a GE course, it isn’t Rocket Science. As one student evaluation
put it, “If you do the reading, study for the tests, and pay attention in
class, it’s pretty easy to do well. On
the other hand, if you don’t do the reading, don’t come to class, and don’t
study, you’ll probably fail.” That pretty much sums it up.
Attendance
Since active student participation is crucial
to the class’s success, you
are expected to be at every meeting. I do take attendance. Frequent absences will dramatically
lower your course grade. If you are a person
who rarely attends class and relies on copying notes from a friend, you would
be best served by registering for another section of History 371. Or, perhaps more to the point, you might
reconsider why you are in college in the first place.
Writing Tutorials
Most
CSUN students lack college level writing skills. To address this problem, I
will schedule two hour-long writing tutorials over the course of the semester.
I urge you to attend one of them, and, as an incentive, will give you extra
credit for doing so.
Problems
If
you are feeling overwhelmed, find yourself falling behind, or are having any
problems outside of class that are adversely affecting your performance in
class, be sure to let me know. Do not
wait until the end of the semester when it will be too late. I am more than willing to work with you to
insure you “survive,” but I need to know you are having difficulties. Come to see me or send an email as soon as a
problem arises and we can work something out.
If you are struggling academically, I will gladly give you extra
help. The TA is also available in the
same capacity.
Getting Help
Contrary
to what you may have heard about professors in large state universities, I go
out of my way to be available for students on a one-on-one basis, so if you
need advice or help – even if your problem is not directly related to this
course – do not hesitate to email me, come to my office hours, or set up an
appointment. Students
who make the effort to get to know their professors end up getting far more
from their college education than those who don’t. Professors are paid to help you (and you pay – more each year! – to benefit from our help.)
Get your money’s worth.
Common Courtesy or
“How not to be Rude”
You
are at a university among professional people. Act like you belong here. Do not
embarrass yourself by acting rudely. Please turn off and put away all cell
phones and other electronic gadgets while you are in class. Texting during
class is rude and people who do it are advertising to those around them that
they don’t know how to behave in a professional environment. Just because I may
choose to ignore your rude behavior doesn’t mean I’m not noticing it (and
making a judgment about you). Please arrive on time and do not walk out in the
middle of class unless it is an emergency or you have spoken to me about it
ahead of time. Do not talk, listen to music, or surf the internet in class. Do
not begin gathering up your things before the end of the class period. This kind of rude and disruptive behavior
reflects poorly on you and leaves the impression that you are not the kind of
person who belongs on a university campus. It also distracts your classmates
who are paying good money to be here. If you are acting rudely, don’t be
surprised if I ask you to leave the room.
Save yourself the embarrassment – act courteously and professionally. Show some class. It’s part of being an educated person.
Academic Honesty
Do
not lie to me about why you missed class or failed to turn in an assignment. It
is unnecessary and it insults my intelligence.
Do not cheat on quizzes or tests.
I will catch you and you will receive an automatic zero for the
assignment. Do not plagiarize from
written sources or from the web. Since
plagiarism is always obvious
and easily caught (I know how to use google too), it
is better to hand in your own work and get a C- than someone else’s and get an
F. If you have plagiarized in the past
and gotten away with it, it was not because the professor didn’t know what you
were doing. Rather, the professor did not think you were worth the effort of
pursuing it. Be advised: I do think you are worth the effort. Any and
all plagiarized assignments will receive a grade of zero and put you in
jeopardy of failing the course. Your name will be reported to the Office of
Student Affairs and will also be circulated among other faculty as someone who
lacks integrity. Good luck getting a reference or letter of recommendation if
you are on this list. If you are unsure what plagiarism is, please consult with
me or the teaching assistant BEFORE you hand in an assignment.
Schedule of Topics
& Assignments
(The
reading assignment listed for each day should be completed BEFORE you arrive at
class.)
Mon. 23 Aug. Introduction: An explanation of course
objectives, mechanics, and procedures.
Wed. 25 Aug. “Restoring the
STUDY QUESTIONS ON
RECONSTRUCTION
Mon. 30 Aug. “The Iron Horse:” Railroads as the Herald of the
Industrial Age”
Burton W. Folsom, Jr., “James J. Hill and the
Transcontinental Railroads”
STUDY
QUESTIONS/WRITING ASSIGNMENT #1
Wed. 1 Sept. “Competition, Cooperation, Consolidation, and
Centralization: The Structural Development of Big Business”
STUDY GUIDE FOR
INDUSTRIALIZATION
Mon. 6 Sept. LABOR DAY
Wed. 8 Sept. “Culture Clash: Lone Eaters and Napikwans”
MAP OF INDIAN RESERVATIONS AND PUBLIC
LANDS
Mon. 13 Sept. “That’s Life in the
IMMIGRATION AND
URBANIZATION STUDY QUESTIONS
Wed. 15 Sept. “Separate but Equal?” – Segregation in the New South
Optional
Eric J. Sundquist,
“Mark Twain and Homer Plessy”
Mon. 20 Sept. “Who
is White? Who is Black? And who decides?” – The Social Construction of Race
STUDY GUIDE FOR PUDD’NHEAD WILSON
“SMARTEXT” FOR PUDD’NHEAD WILSON
(This link
allows you to search the text of the novel for keywords and quotes based on
themes. It should be very helpful in locating pertinent quotes as you write
your paper.)
Browse through some of the
contemporary reviews of Pudd’nhead Wilson HERE
For
articles on the continuing legacy of the “one drop” rule, click HERE and HERE
For links to further information on
Mark Twain, click HERE
Wed. 22 Sept. “The Four D’s: Duty,
Destiny, Defense, Dollars: Explaining American
Imperialism”
STUDY QUESTIONS ON
THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR
Mon. 27 Sept. “Rebellion Against
Victorianism: The Rise of a New Mass Culture”
Film: “
Wed. 29 Sept. “The Search for Order: The Progressives’ Response to
Industrialism”
Mon. 4 Oct. “Over There” – The
Wed. 6 Oct. “The Seminal Catastrophe of the
Twentieth Century”
Randolph Bourne, “The War Diary”
John Steele Gordon, “What We Lost in the Great War”
Mon. 11 Oct. “Jazz Age
Justice” – The Great Migration, The Talented Tenth,
and the Saga of Ossian Sweet
STUDY GUIDE AND CHAPTER SUMMARIES
Wed. 13 Oct. “The
Roaring Twenties” – Prelude to the Culture Wars? “
Mon. 18 Oct. MIDTERM
EXAMINATION
Wed. 20 Oct. “From Harding to Hard Times: The
Origins of the Great Depression”
CAUSES
OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Mon. 25 Oct. “Franklin D. Roosevelt: From Dr. New Deal to Dr. Win the War”
Wed. 27 Oct. “The Good
War?” -- A
Soldier’s Perspective
Mon. 1 Nov. The Origins and Course of World War II
Tues. 2 Nov. MICHAEL
PATRICK MacDONALD TALK – 6pm OVIATT LIBRARY
PRESENTATION ROOM
Wed. 3 Nov. “The Four A’s” –
“4 A’s” POWERPOINT PRESENTATION
Mon. 8 Nov. “Out of the Army and Into the
Rat Race” – Adjusting to the Postwar World
Wed. 10 Nov. Continue Discussion, The Man in the
Gray Flannel Suit
Mon.
15 Nov. “A
Promising Time” – John F. Kennedy and the Promise(s) of the 1960s
Wed.
17 Nov. “Can the Center Hold?” – The “Hard
Year” of 1968
“THE HARD YEAR” POWERPOINT
PRESENTATION
Mon.
22 Nov. Janis Joplin – New Woman of the
1960s?
Reading: Alice Echols, Scars of Sweet
Paradise
[Skip pp. 59-67, 132-160, 190-210, 312-316]
Wed. 24 Nov. Continue Discussion, Scars of Sweet
Paradise
Mon. 29 Nov. The Limits of
Liberalism and the Rise of Ronald Reagan
Wed. 1 Dec. “Southie:
The Greatest Place in the World”: Gangs and Urban Poverty, 1965-80
Mon. 6 Dec. “How Great the Cost?”
– Market Economy vs Market Society
Reading: Tony Judt, Ill
Fares the Land
Chapter 1 “The Way We Live
Now”
Michael Sandel, “Morality and the Free
Market” [Video Clip]
Wed. 8 Dec. “The Zeros” – America
Enters a New Century
Final Examination [December
13, 2010 12:45 PM - 2:45 PM]