H106: U.S. History 1865-PresentH106: U.S. History 1865-Present

INSTRUCTOR: JAMIE WARREN TIME: MW, 3:00-4:15OFFICE HOURS: Mon, 1:30-2:30 PLACE: Cavanaugh 215 jawarren@indiana.edu

Welcome to H106! This course begins in 1865 with Reconstruction and ends in the modern era. We will cover such topics as: Reconstruction, The Progressive Era, The New Deal, WWII, The Cold War, The Civil Rights Movement, and more. This course is designed to introduce students to major themes of U.S. history, with a focus on understanding the competing narratives of the American past. By reading and listening to the scholarship of many different historians, we will learn about the past and the practice of history. You might find the goals and requirements of this class different from what you may have encountered in high school history courses, which often focus on memorizing facts, names, and dates. In this class you will be encouraged to move beyond “facts,” and learn to think about the historical practice of interpretation and analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To introduce students to central themes in U.S. History To analyze secondary sources and place primary source

materials in historical context. To actively discuss American history in an academic setting. To make connections between economic, social, cultural, and

political changes.

HOW THIS COURSE WILL HELP YOU LEARN THESE THINGS Through reading, class

lectures, and class discussion, we will survey American history.

We will examine primary sources in class and work on building critical reading skills and how to use sources to interpret events and the past.

In homework assignments you will practice reading and analyzing documents and essays.

ASSIGNMENTS/ GRADE BREAK-DOWN: Exams: You will take three in-class exams. These exams will be based

on readings and lectures. The Final Exam is NOT cumulative. There will be no make-up exams, except in the case of extreme, documented emergencies. Each exam is worth 80-120 points, totaling 300 possible points for your overall grade. Your first exam is worth 80 points, the second exam is worth 100 points, and your final exam is worth 120 points. The exams are not cumulative.

Podcast Quizzes: You will take three quizzes online using Oncourse. These quizzes will be based on podcasts also posted on Oncourse. Quizzes must be submitted online by the deadline. All three quizzes will account for a total of 75 points of your overall grade.

In-Class Writings: You will complete 6 in-class writing assignments based on your assigned readings. You can prepare by using the study questions provided for you. Each writing assignment will count for 20 points, for a total of 100 points of your overall grade (one is dropped). You should be prepared for these assignments every time you have a reading due. You cannot make-up any missed writing assignments. But I will drop your lowest score, so if you miss one, it will not hurt your grade.

Attendance and Participation: Regular attendance and participation in class discussion is expected and required for success in this class. We will cover topics in lecture and discussion that are not covered by your texts. Please make every effort to attend each class. If for some reason you have to miss class, it is your responsibility to get notes from another classmate. You will receive 1 point for each class that you attend and participate,* for a maximum

of 25 points. (There are a total of 27 possible attendance/participation points. So you can miss two classes and still earn all 25 points.)

*A note on participation: In my course participating in class means the following: 1) Showing up to class on time 2) Remaining awake and engaged in class lecture, discussion, and activities 3) Being respectful of the instructor and your fellow classmates (This means turning off your cell phone, refraining from discussion with others, etc.) 4) Asking questions 5) Joining in class discussionsTherefore, if you disrupt the class by chatting with friends, texting, sleeping, or other disruptions, you will be considered to be not participating, and you will not receive your point for that class meeting. Meaning, if you are texting, sleeping, etc., I will cross your name off the attendance sheet for that day.

Extra credit: You will have one extra credit option, worth a possible bonus of 15 points. To be discussed in class.

Makeup examinations are strongly discouraged. No makeup exam will be given without documentation proving an extreme emergency. Documentation includes doctors’ forms, funeral notices, accident reports, and similar verifiable papers. The instructor reserves the right to refuse to grant a makeup exam if the documentation is not presented or is deemed invalid. If a makeup exam is approved it must be completed within one week of the original exam.

GRADING SCALE: (including the standard plus/minus scale)

A (450-500 pts.): Thorough knowledge of the material; polished and creative essays; critical analysis of readings in discussions.

B (400-449 pts.): Thorough knowledge of the material; well-written essays; regular participation in discussion.

C (350-399 pts.): Basic knowledge and understanding of the material; occasional participation.

D (300-349 pts): Limited or mistaken knowledge of the material; unorganized essays; little participation.

F (250-299 pts): Lacking knowledge of the material; assignments incomplete; no participation.

Note on Plagiarism:According to the IU Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct, Part III, Student Misconduct, Academic Misconduct:

“A student must not adopt or reproduce ideas, words, or statements of another person without appropriate acknowledgment. A student must give credit to the originality of others and acknowledge an indebtedness whenever he or she does any of the following: ▪ Quotes another person's actual words, either oral or written; ▪ Paraphrases another person's words, either oral or written; ▪ Uses another person's idea, opinion, or theory; or▪ Borrow facts, statistics, or other illustrative material, unless the information is common knowledge.”

CLASSROOM ETIQUETTE:This should go without saying, but just in case…Please make sure you are in class on time ready to start. Do not pack up to go early while class is in session. And above all, DO NOT engage in discussion with classmates during class. This is very distracting to those around you, and to the instructor as well. These are all just matters of politeness and respect.

Laptops are not permitted in my class. You may only use a laptop if you have a need/requirement for this technology. And, in these cases, you must sit in the front row of the class.

I hold the right to make changes to this syllabus as needed throughout the semester. But I will inform you of any changes made in advance.

READINGS:The Following texts need to be purchased for this class:Major Problems in American History, Volume 2: Since 1865

Other assigned readings will be available via Oncourse.

DAILY SCHEDULE

Jan. 11th

Introduction to Class

Jan. 13th

Reconstruction

Jan. 18th NO CLASS

Jan. 20th

Reconstruction Cont.

READINGS DUEPrimary Documents:

Louisiana Black Codes, 5 President Andrew Johnson Denounces Changes to

Reconstruction, 6 Thaddeus Stevens Demands Radical Reconstruction, 7 Jubal Early Memorializes “Lost Cause,” 9

Essays: Steven Hahn “Continuing the War” 15-25 David Blight “Ending the War” 25-32

FIRST PODCAST QUIZ DUE SATURDAY JAN. 23, BY 2:00 PM. --The Significance of Reconstruction, by Eric Foner

Jan. 25th

The Western “Frontier”

Jan. 27th

The American West, Continued

READINGS DUEPrimary Documents:

Katie Bighead Remembers Custer, 39 Wyoming Gunfight: An Attack on Chinatown, 41

Essay: Patricia Nelson Limerick “The Frontier as a Place of Conquest

and Conflict” 50-59

Feb. 1st

America’s Gilded Age

Feb. 3rd

American Imperialism

READINGS DUEPrimary Documents:

Theodore Roosevelt Praises Manly Virtues of Imperialism, 90 A Soldier Criticizes American Racism in the Philippines, 93 The Roosevelt Corollary, 94

Essays: Gail Bederman “Gendering Imperialism” 96-103 Anders Stephanson “Global Competition and Manifest Destiny”

103-109

Feb. 8th

EXAM I

Feb. 10th

NO CLASS

Feb. 15th

The Progressive Era

Feb. 17th

World War I

READINGS DUEEssays:

Walter McDougall, “Woodrow Wilson: Egocentric Crusader.” 148-154

Robert Pastor, “Woodrow Wilson: Father of the Future.” 154-161

Feb 22nd

The New “Americanism”

Feb. 24th

American Culture in 1920s

READINGS DUEPrimary Documents:

Reverend Amzi Clarence Dixon on the Evils of Darwinism, 164 Clarence Darrow Interrogates William Jennings Bryan, 167 The KKK Defines Americanism, 170

Essay: Edward J. Larson, “Religious Traditionalists Battle Modernism

in the Roaring Twenties.” 182-191

Mar.1st

The Great Depression

Mar. 3rd

The New Deal and American Liberalism

Mar. 8th

The New Deal Continued

READING DUEEssay:

Ira Katznelson “Welfare in Black and White” (Available via Oncourse)

Mar. 10th

EXAM II

SPRING BREAK

Mar. 22nd

World War II

Mar. 24th

World War II Continued

READINGS DUEPrimary Documents:

Hitler Links Race and Nationality, 224 Roosevelt Identifies Four Freedoms, 228 A Japanese American Recalls the Effects of Internment, 230 An African American Soldier Notes “Strange Paradox,” 234

Essay: Alan Brinkley, “American Liberals: Fighting for a Better World”

245-252

Mar. 29th

The Origins of the Cold War

Mar. 31st

In Class Film, The Fog of War

Apr. 5th

An Affluent Society

OPTIONAL EXTRA CREDIT ESSAY DUE IN CLASS TODAY

Apr. 7th

Consensus and Conflict of the 1950s

READINGS DUEEssays:

Joanne Meyerowitz, “Beyond the Feminine Mystique: A Reassessment of Postwar Mass Culture 1946-1958.” (Available via Oncourse)

Stephanie Coontz “Families in the Fifties: The Way We Never Were.” 304-312

Apr. 12th

The Civil Rights Movement

Apr. 14th

The Civil Rights Movement, Cont.

Readings DuePrimary Documents:

The Supreme Court Rules on Brown V. Board, 1954. 316 Malcolm X Warns: The Ballot or the Bullet, 321 President Johnson’s Address to Howard University, “To Fulfill

These Rights” (Available via Oncourse)

SECOND PODCAST QUIZ DUE BY MONDAY APRIL 19TH BY 2:00PM --The Political and Social Legacies of the 1960s by Michael Flamm

Apr. 19th

America in the1960s

Apr. 21st

The Vietnam War

READINGS DUEPrimary Documents:

Young Americans for Freedom Draft a Conservative Manifesto, 346

Students for A Democratic Society Advance a Reform Agenda, 349

Johnson Declares a Federal War on Poverty, 351 A Protester at Columbia University Defends Long Hair and

Revolution, 353Essays:

Kenneth Cmiel, “Triumph of the Left” 356-364 Dan T. Carter, “Triumph of the Right” 365-374

Apr. 26th

Rise of American Conservatism

Apr. 28th

The Triumph of Conservatism

READING DUEExcerpts from Joseph Crespino’s In Search of Another Country. (Available via Oncourse.)

May 3rd

America in a Global Age

THIRD PODCAST DUE MAY 3RD BY 2:00 PM-- American History and the World by Thomas Bender

FINAL EXAM MAY 7th 3:30-5:30Absolutely no make-ups for final exam