History 573 – The
United States, 1877-1929
Syllabus and Survival
Guide
Fall 2011
Thursday 7:00 pm –
9:45 pm, Sierra Hall 207
Instructor
Dr.
Thomas W. Devine
Phone:
(818) 677-3550 Email
Office
Hours:
Sierra Tower 624, Wednesdays 4:00 – 6:00 pm; Thursdays 5:00 – 6:00 pm, and by
appointment gladly given.
The following books –
listed in the order in which we will read them – are available at the Matador
Bookstore (with the exception of those marked with an * which are out of
print). All other readings will be
provided in class. 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.campusi.com
• Richard White, Railroaded: The Transcontinentals
and the Making of Modern America, Norton, 2011.
• Mark Wahlgren Summers, Party Games: Getting, Keeping, and
Using Power in Gilded Age Politics, North Carolina, 2004.
• Thomas Kessner, Capital City: New York City and the Men Behind
America's Rise to Economic Dominance, 1860-1900, Simon and
Schuster, 2003.
• Thomas Bell, Outt of this Furnace: A Novel of Immigrant Labor
in America, Pittsburgh, 1976.
• Charles Postel, The Populist
Vision, Oxford, 2007.
• Robert L. Beisner, From the Old Diplomacy to the New, 1865-1900 2nd edition, Harlan Davidson,
1986.
• Joshua David
Hawley, Theodore Roosevelt: Preacher of Righteousness, Yale, 2008.
• Jonathan M. Hansen,
The Lost Promise of Patriotism: Debating
American Identity, 1890-1920, Chicago, 2003.
• Michael McGerr, A Fierce
Discontent: The Rise and Fall of the Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920,
Oxford, 2005.
• Emily Rosenberg, Financial
Missionaries to the World: The Politics and Culture of Dollar Diplomacy,
1900-1930, Duke, 2007.
• Christopher Capozzola, Uncle Sam Wants You: World War I and the
Making of the Modern American Citizen, Oxford, 2008.
• Edward J. Larson, Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and
America's Continuing Debate Over Science and Religion, Basic Books. 2006
Spirit
of the Course
This course will
offer an interpretive survey of political, economic, cultural, and social
trends in the United States from approximately 1877 to 1929. If all goes according to plan, you will leave
in December with a broader and deeper knowledge of the events of this period
and their significance in shaping what we call “modern”
I have made a special effort to assign readings that
represent the latest (if not always the most widely held) views on various
topics, though I have also included a few “old chestnuts” that have stood the
test of time. You will notice that the
readings throughout the course come from various ideological and methodological
perspectives. I encourage you to be
critical of both the readings and what I say in class when you find the
arguments expressed to be unpersuasive. (More often than not, what I’m saying
is meant to provoke a critical rejoinder and I will eagerly defend the most
outrageous positions just for the joy of playing devil’s advocate.)
Themes
Though
we will be covering a wide variety of topics, there are certain themes that we
will be revisiting throughout the course of the semester:
You
will also have the opportunity to follow the historiography that has developed
around the topics we will explore.
Though the emphasis of the course will not be on historiographical
issues, I will introduce and we will all discuss scholarly controversies where
appropriate.
Grading
Class
Participation --30%
Oral
Presentation --10%
Analytical
Essay 1 --15%
[Option
A due Oct. 2]
[Option
B due Oct. 30]
Analytical
Essay 2 [Due Dec. 4] --15%
Semester
Project [Due Nov. 20] --30%
[Drafts
accepted until one week before the deadline.]
Explanation
of Requirements
Completing the
There’s no getting
around it – this class requires a lot of reading. But, as a Masters level seminar, it is
supposed to. To succeed in this course,
you will need to complete the reading, but you will also need to have given it
some thought. Read with a pencil in hand
– take notes in the margins. Record
terms that are unfamiliar to you or that you don’t understand, points that you
find interesting or surprising, arguments with which you strongly agree or
disagree, methods of research or analysis that seem especially creative or
insightful (or misguided and unpersuasive), or ideas that connect to things
we’ve talked about in previous classes.
Also, read smart – don’t read every single word of the first 4 chapters
and nothing thereafter because you ran out of time. If you catch the argument
the author is making, don’t sweat all the details or supporting examples – skim
over them and get on to the next major point.
It is more important to have gotten the gist of an entire book than to master
every aspect of the first one-third of it.
Participation in Discussion
This is a
seminar-style course in which active participation in the weekly discussions is
crucial to the class’s success. Our
meetings will be conversations – free, open, and informal exchanges of ideas
based on the assigned readings – and I expect everyone to take
part. I will do my best to insure each
student has ample opportunity to contribute, but, ultimately, it will be
up to you to make certain that you remain an active participant rather than a
passive observer. At the mid-point of
the semester, I will provide each student with a brief, written evaluation of
his or her class participation.
Leading Discussion
One person will be
responsible for leading the discussion each week. That person will compose a list of 8
questions that address the major themes and issues raised in the reading. Each
discussion leader should meet with me briefly to go over his or her questions. (If
need be, this exchange can be done over email.) Optimally, the discussion
leader will have finished writing the questions at least 24 hours before the
seminar so I can distribute them to everyone via email attachment. If you
have not led a discussion before, I recommend setting up an appointment with me
so we can discuss some strategies for leading effective discussions. Your
leading of discussion will not receive a grade per se, but will be taken
into account in the calculation of your participation grade.
Précis
One person will be
responsible for producing a single-spaced 2-page précis of the readings
for each week. This assignment is meant
to be a summary rather than a review. The person who writes the précis should email
it to me as an attachment at least 24 hours before the seminar so I can
proofread it and make copies for the rest of the class. This assignment, too,
will not receive a grade per se, though in calculating your
participation grade, I will take into account the quality of and amount of
effort you appear to have put in to your précis.
Oral Presentation
One
person will be responsible for giving a 15
minute oral presentation each week. I will not allow you to go beyond 20
minutes, so be sure you know ahead of time how long your presentation will
run. The presentation should elaborate on or critique the week's
readings. You may want to focus exclusively on a particular theme or argument, the book’s take on a specific historiographical
controversy, or compare/contrast the author’s work to others who have written
on the topic. Alternatively, you might want to look at some primary
sources and see if they lead you to the same kinds of interpretations that the
author offers. If your topic lends itself to doing so, your oral presentation
can feature a short audio-visual component. At some point during
class, usually right after the break, you will have the floor to give your
oral presentation and to field questions from the class. At the
end of class, please provide me with a copy of your presentation notes.
Analytical Essays
These
two 1500-word assignments will give you the opportunity to respond to a
specific question in a concise, tightly argued essay. You will have several
topics from which to choose. I will distribute the topics ten days before the
paper is due. If you wish, you may do both
first paper options and I will count the higher grade.
Semester Project
Select a topic
from the period covered in the course that you find to be of interest and do
some outside reading on it. I recommend
drawing on a variety of books, book chapters, and journal articles. Your choice of focus need not be directly
related to the material covered in the course.
Indeed, this is your opportunity to investigate a subject area that the
course may neglect. After your reading
has made you an “expert” on your topic, compose a 10-12 page essay assessing the various sources you have consulted
and offer and defend your own thesis pertaining to your topic. If you wish, you
may submit a complete
draft up to one week before the deadline and I will give you feedback.
Bringing
Food
On
one occasion during the semester, each person will bring a snack for the entire
class to enjoy at the break. Optimally, your culinary contribution will be
related in some clever way to the week’s discussion topic. I can refrigerate or
store the food for you if you need me to -- just give me advance notice. Creativity and imagination in the selection
of what to bring will be duly noted.
Surviving
History 573…
Attendance
It is important, and
it is expected, that you will attend every session. Inevitably, an occasion may arise when you
are unable to attend. Out of fairness to
your classmates who do attend every week, however, each absence past the first
two will bring down your final grade.
Any absences beyond four will put you in jeopardy of failing the course.
Also, given the heavy weight placed on in-class discussion, any absence is
likely to detract from your participation grade. To make up for a missed
class, you may turn in a précis of no more than 1500 words summarizing the
reading for the class you missed.
Problems
I appreciate that
most CSUN graduate students are stretching themselves quite thin, often working
full time while taking classes at night.
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. You will find that as long
as you keep me up to speed, I will be very sympathetic.
Discussion Topics and Assignments
Schedule
1.
Sept. 1 Introduction:
An explanation of course objectives, mechanics, and procedures.
2.
Sept. 8 Rethinking
the Railroads: The Economic Consequences
of Rapid Expansion
Reading: Richard White, Railroaded
3.
Sept. 15
“The Era of Good Stealings”
– Politics and Politicians in the Gilded Age
Reading: Mark Summers, Party
Games
4. Sept. 22 “If
I Can Make it There…” – New York City and the Rise of Corporate Capitalism
Reading: Thomas Kessner, Capital City
5.
Sept. 29 “From
the Boat to the Mills:” Immigrant Workers’ Experiences
Reading:
Thomas Bell, Out of this Furnace
6.
Oct. 6 An Alternative
America: The Populist Response to
Industrialization
Reading: Charles Postel, The
Populist Vision
7.
Oct. 13 Aggressive Imperialism or Ambivalent
Expansionism? – U.S. Foreign Policy at the Turn of the 20th Century
Reading: Robert Beisner, From
the Old Diplomacy to the New
[In addition to Beisner, this week’s reading will include three articles
that I will distribute in class.]
8.
Oct. 20 Race, Reform, and Righteousness: Theodore
Roosevelt and the Progressive Impulse
Reading: Joshua
David Hawley, Theodore Roosevelt
9.
Oct 27 Democracy for Whom? – Reconsidering
Citizenship in the Progressive Era
Reading: Jonathan M. Hansen, The Lost Promise of Patriotism
10. Nov 3 Progress for
Whom? – The Search for Order and its Discontents
Reading: Michael McGerr,
A Fierce Discontent
11. Nov 10 “We’re Here to
Help”: Imperialism, American Style
Reading:
Emily S. Rosenberg, Financial Missionaries to the
World
12. Nov. 17 “Making
Democracy Safe for the World” – World War I and the Liberal Order
Reading: Christopher Capozzola,
Uncle Sam Wants You
13. Nov. 24 THANKSGIVING
14. Dec. 1 “Trial of
the Century” – Cultural Conflict in the 1920s
Reading: Edward J. Larson, Summer for the Gods
15. Dec. 9 Taking Stock
– Summary and Conclusions