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History of the United
States, 1865-2000 Fall 2008 History 206-015 Univ. of Delaware David Suisman Office: Munroe 118 Email: dsuisman at udel.edu Office hours: Mondays 2.30-3.30, Wednesdays 12-1, and by appointment Teaching Assistant: Nate Wiewora Email: wiewora at udel.edu Office: Munroe 128 Office hours: Fridays 10-12 |
 (Photo by William Eggleston) For easy reference, BOOKMARK this webpage |
Course Description President Bush has said repeatedly that terrorists hate the United States because "they hate our freedom." It is not clear, however, exactly what that means, because there is no one single definition of freedom. In the course of the nation's history no concept has been so central--and so contested--as freedom. There have been many ideas and definitions of freedom in the United States, some of which have been directly at odds with each other. We will explore how ideas of freedom have changed over time and will seek to gain greater perspective on what freedom means in the present. The primary tool we will employ in this study is critical thinking. A great deal of our work will involve analysis and interpretation of historical sources. You will not simply be reading history; you yourselves will become historians when you read letters, advertisements, speeches and other documents from the past and learn to make inferences and draw significant historical conclusions. Interpreting evidence is the basic work that historians do, and it is the key to understanding how the past was both like and unlike the world we know today. Graded assignments * Dates quiz - 5% of final grade - in lecture, Monday, Sep. 8, in class * Paper 1 - 15% - due Monday, Sep. 22, in lecture - Description of the assignment here * Paper 2 - 20% - due Monday, Dec. 8 Description of the assignment here * Final exam - 30% - Friday, Dec. 12 * Attendance and active participation in section and lecture - 10% PARTICIPATION A word about participation: Learning is an active process, not a passive one. If you don't understand something in lecture or discussion, ask! It is expected that every student will engage with the course materials and will participate intelligently in discussion sections. On a much cruder level, talking, text-messaging, and falling asleep, in class will NOT be tolerated; it is rude and distracting to those around you. HANDING IN PAPERS / LATE PAPERS All papers must be handed in at the beginning of class on the day they are due. Late papers will be penalized one whole letter grade the first day they are late and one third of a letter grade for every day after that. No papers will be accepted more than two weeks after the due date. All papers must be handed in on paper, unless you have made special arrangements with your instructor or TA to accept a version as an email attachment. Under no circumstances will a paper be accepted if it is pasted into the body of an email.  Alfred R. Waud. "The First Vote." From Harper's Weekly, November 16, 1867 Policies: Email, Grading, and Plagiarism Email
A word about email etiquette. When you email your friends, you can be as informal as you like. When you email a professor or a TA, however, it is a good idea to be polite and to present yourself well. "Hey" might be fine in the subject line to a friend; it's not in the subject line to a professor. Your friends might not care if you don't capitalize when you write them, but to your TA, it might look like you just don't care enough to write properly or don't know better. I may communicate with the class--occasionally--via email. You will be responsible for reading and responding accordingly to these emails. If you have questions about them (or any other aspect of the course) it is your responsibility to ask. (Some of you may prefer to use outside email accounts--hotmail or whatever--instead of your UD address. However, because I will be emailing the class only through the UD email addresses, you will need to insure that your UD email is forwarded to whatever account you use. Instructions for email forwarding can be found here.) Attendance
Attendance is required in both lecture and discussion section. If you miss class, you are responsible for you miss. I will not provide notes or Power Point slides to those who are absent. The main purpose of the sections is to give you the opportunity to engage with the course material more actively and directly than is possible in lecture. This is an essential part of the class, which depends on you--your mind as well as your body--coming to section and being ready to participate. If you are forced to miss section because of illness or other short-term emergency, please contact your section leader (either me or your TA) before the section meets. For longer term absences, you will have to get documentation from the Assistant Dean's Office. Grading
Grades will be awarded according to the following scale. A - Superb work: ideas and opinions are supported by thorough and persuasive use of evidence - lucid, polished writing (well-organized, with clear transitions, free of grammatical, syntactical and typographic errors) - thoughtful, original thinking - sophisticated appreciation of complexities and ambiguities in evidence and analysis - no factual errors B - Good work: clear ideas, supported by appropriate evidence - solid writing skills, with few grammatical, syntactical or typographical errors - generally accurate command of factual material - reasonable analysis and interpretation - competent grasp of historical context and conceptual frameworks C - Acceptable but undistinguished work: writing contains significant factual errors and/or lacks a clear argument - weak or shallow grasp of historical context and/or conceptual frameworks - written work reflects superficial or spotty reading - ideas are unclear, contradictory, inaccurate, obvious - arguments inadequately supported by evidence - weak writing skills (including poor organization, awkward or nonexistent transitions, serious or recurring errors in grammar, syntax, or spelling) D / F - Unacceptable work: fails to fulfill the assignment in significant ways - total absence of evidence to support arguments - major and/or recurring factual errors - insufficient grasp of historical context and/or conceptual frameworks - serious reading problems or comprehension of sources - too short - poor organization of writing - no transitions between ideas - severe problems with language skills (syntax, grammar, spelling) - sloppy, overrun with typographical errors Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of presenting someone else's work as your own. It is a form of dishonesty--a form of cheating, in fact--and will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Plagiarism is not limited to using another person's exact words; using someone else's ideas without attribution is also a form of plagiarism. The amount you plagiarize doesn't matter: cheating is cheating. The good news about plagiarism is that it is easily avoided by clearly citing your sources. If you do, you can safely sidestep even the hint of improper usage of someone else's work. Any student found to have plagiarized on any assignment will not be permitted to pass the course. If you have any questions about plagiarism, do not hesitate to ask. Readings The following books have been ordered at the UD bookstore:
* Some study tips on getting the most out of the reading: here Film Screenings There will be two required film screenings. Please mark your calendars. Mon., Oct. 13, 7pm - The Devil and Miss Jones (dir. Sam Wood, 1941) - Purnell 233B Mon., Nov. 17, 7pm - Hearts and Minds (dir. Peter Davis, 1974) - TBA |
Course schedule Week of Sep. 3 Introduction Week of Sep. 8 Capital and Labor Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 16 2. Documents:
Optional:
In lecture, Sep. 8: DATES QUIZ |
 Horatio Alger, Jr., From Farm Boy to Senator: Being the History of the Boyhood and Manhood of Daniel Webster (1882) |
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Week of Sep. 15
Freedom's Borders Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 17 2. Documents:
Optional: Booker T. Washington Delivers the 1895 Atlanta Compromise Speech - here The Fighte Begins at Home: Jewett Defends Asian Immigrants - here |
 Sheet music cover: Charles Coleman, "The Charge of the Roosevelt Rough Riders" click here for more sheet music from the Spanish-American War |
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| Week of Sep. 22 Progressivism and the Managerial Revolution Paper 1 due in lecture, Monday, Sep. 22 Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 18 2. Documents:
Optional:
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Week of Sep. 29
Reading:
World War I 1. Foner, ch. 19 2. Documents:
Week of Oct. 6 American Modernity Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 20 2. Documents:
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Lt. James Reese Europe
with the 369th Regiment Military Band (the "Harlem Hellfighters") Paris, 1917  |
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Week of Oct. 13 The Great Depression Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 21 (Because of the film screening, there are no additional documents to read this week.) Film Screening: Mon., Oct. 13, 7pm - The Devil and Miss Jones (dir. Sam Wood, 1941) - TBA |
 A 1942 photo by the Office of War Information, which gave it this caption: "Painting the American insignia on airplane wings is a job that Mrs. Irma Lee McElroy, a former office worker, does with precision and patriotic zeal." (Photographer: Howard Hollem) |
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| Week
of Oct. 20 World War II Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 22 (Because of the exam, there are no additional documents to read this week.) Midterm exam, Monday, Oct. 20 |
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| Week
of Oct. 27 The Cold War Danny
Lyon, Two SNCC Workers, Selma, 1963
 Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 23 2. Documents:
Week of Nov. 3 The Anxiety of Affluence Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 24 2. Documents:
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Week of Nov. 10 Freedom When? Reading: James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time - all To listen to James Baldwin interviewed by Studs Terkel, a well known radio disc jockey, in 1961, click here Week of Nov. 17 The Sixties: Freedom's Insurgencies  Reading: 1. Foner, ch. 25 (Because of the film screening, there are no additional documents to read this week.) Film screening: Mon., Nov. 17, 7pm - Hearts and Minds (dir. Peter Davis, 1974) - Purnell 233B Week of Nov. 24 Running out of gas? Deindustrialization, the energy crisis, and the environment Reading: Steven Stoll, U.S. Environmentalism since 1945 - page numbers TBA Note: Discussion sections will not meet this week Week of Dec. 1 The Resurgent Right, from Goldwater to Reagan Reading: 1. Foner, ch 26 2. Documents: here Week of Dec. 8 Globalization and Its Discontents Reading: Foner, ch. 27 Paper 2 due in lecture, Monday, Dec. 8 A memo about the IDs that will be on exam and the slight change in format - here Thurs., Dec. 11 There will be a review session: 1:30pm in KRB 005 FINAL EXAM Friday, Dec. 12, 1-3pm - in PRN 233B |
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