Introduction

We study history in order to learn more about society and ourselves. History cannot tell us where we are going, but it is essential for understanding where and who we are today. Since 1865 American peoples have struggled over issues including racial equality, poverty, immigration, the role of the U.S. government at home and abroad, as well as questions of personal identity. This course offers a survey of America’s history since 1865 through such themes as America’s role as a world power, the economic and social role of the government, race relations, labor, gender, and the rise of popular culture. We will shift back and forth between the general and the particular, the "big picture" and specific historical actors. Classes will consist of lectures twice a week as well as a weekly discussion section. They will incorporate a variety of primary sources including two memoirs, music, and the occasional film as well as a standard textbook.

Survey courses are notoriously difficult because they cover so much material. Don’t let the amount of history we cover get you down; you will have to study hard but if you keep up with the work you should succeed. My goals are to: 1) introduce students to the main issues, events, and people that have shaped America and Americans since 1865; 2) show how historians analyze primary sources and how that skill is relevant to us all; and 3) help students communicate effectively orally and on paper. The point of this class is to give you a working familiarity with the period, to engage you in the process of historical and critical analysis, and to get you thinking and writing clearly.

Books – you should own a copy of the following:

Faragher, et al, Out of Many: A History of the American People, brief third edition, volume II (hereafter referred to as "text")

Wheeler and Becker, Discovering the American Past, 4^th edition, volume II (hereafter referred to as "W&B")

John G. Neihardt, Black Elk Speaks (1932)

Hettie Jones, How I Became Hettie Jones (1990)

Three written exams, given during a lecture period, each consisting of an essay asking you to incorporate course material into larger themes. You will have a short list of potential essay questions a week in advance of each exam and we will go over how to write a strong essay exam in discussion section. (20% each)

Three quizzes, administered in discussion section, that will include short answer questions from Wheeler and Becker and the outside reading, plus identifications from the text and lectures. You will compile a list of identification terms from each lecture and we will go over how to succeed on these quizzes before the first one. Your two best scores will count. (15% each, 30% total) Note: there will be no make-up quizzes.

Active participation in discussion sections and general signs of life. This is an integral part of this course as well as the process of learning, and will be weighted accordingly. It will include discussion of the W&B text and outside readings, as well as short miscellaneous assignments required for section. Your grade for participation will depend more on the quality and consistency of your contributions to our discussion than on their mere frequency. If you are painfully shy, come see me and I can give you some helpful hints. (10%)

Attendance. Faithful attendance is vital to your success in this course and is required for discussion sections as well as lectures. An attendance list will be circulated at some point during each class, and if you miss signing in due to lateness or an early departure, you will be counted as absent for the day. Since emergencies plague even the most diligent, however, you may miss up to four classes without penalty, no questions asked or excuses required. *For each and every class missed past four, your final course grade will be dropped by one-third of a letter grade (so if you have a B+ average but missed 6 classes, you will wind up with a B- for your final course grade). If you maintain an excellent attendance record for the semester, you can count on good karma when we compute final grades, which often demand rounding up or down according to how much it seems the student has invested in the course.

The success of our class discussions depends upon students keeping up with the reading. If you choose not to attend class regularly or keep up with the reading, classes will be less interesting and your own grades will reflect your behavior. I expect you to meet deadlines and due dates. There will be no make up reading quizzes. If you have an unresolvable conflict with an exam, you must come talk to me or Heather BEFORE the exam, otherwise I will need documentation of illness or other emergency. If you miss an exam you will receive a zero for the exam, which usually results in failure of the course. Avoid intellectual dishonesty at all costs—plagiarism, cheating, and the like will result in a grade of zero on the work in question and perhaps disciplinary action from the university. (See the Indiana University Academic Handbook, p. 123 or come see me if you have questions.) Do come see or email either me or Heather if you have questions, need help, or want to talk about the class.

*Note: bring your Wheeler and Becker (W&B) text or whatever outside reading is due with you to discussion section, along with your notes and ideas on it, of course.

Jan. 9 Introduction

Jan. 11 Reconstruction (text ch. 17 due for class)

Sections: introduction to section

Jan. 16 The American West (text, ch. 18)

Jan. 18 Environment, Region, and Industrialization

Sections: read and discuss W&B chapter 2—identify the main question of the chapter and be able to summarize the strategy put forth by one of the four people in the evidence section

Jan 22 Indian Wars

Jan 24 Race, Labor, and Industrialization (text ch. 19)

Sections: Read and discuss Black Elk Speaks (discussion questions available on Oncourse)

Jan. 30 Industrialization from the Top Down

Feb. 1 Workers and Labor

Sections: read and discuss W&B chapter 3—choose 2 advertisements and be able to explain why that ad and/or product would be appealing to contemporary readers

Feb. 6 Politics of the People (text ch. 20)

Feb 8 American Imperialism (W&B chapter 4)

Sections: first QUIZ and prep for first exam

Feb. 13 First Exam

Feb. 15 Progressivism (text ch. 21)

Sections: course feedback, review, questions

Feb. 20 National Progressivism and WWI

Feb. 22 World War I (text ch. 22)

Sections: read and discuss W&B chapter 5—be able to explain how examples from the evidence section used views of either a) gender or b) race/national identity to generate support for the war effort

Feb. 27 The 1920s (text ch. 23)

Mar. 1 Into the Great Depression

Sections: read and discuss W&B chapter 6—compare the message of a fiction source (1 or 2) to that of a non-fiction source (4 or 5). How do their messages relate to each other? How do they relate to the message of source(s) 6?

Mar. 6 The Dust Bowl

Mar. 8 The New Deal (text ch. 24)

Sections: read and discuss W&B chapter 7—answer the questions to consider

Mar. 13 Spring Break

Mar. 15 Spring Break

Mar. 20 Into World War II (text ch. 25)

Mar. 22 World War II – The Home Front

Sections: second QUIZ

Mar. 27 Second Exam

Mar. 29 The Cold War (text ch. 26)

Sections: questions, review, feedback

Apr. 3 Containment Culture (text ch. 27)

Apr. 5 Race and Rebellion in the 1950s

Sections: read and discuss How I Became Hettie Jones –discussion questions available on Oncourse

Apr. 10 Civil Rights (text, ch. 28)

Apr. 12 American Society and Liberal Consensus

Sections: Read and discuss W&B chapter 9—assignment TBA

Apr. 17 Vietnam (text, ch. 29)

Apr. 19 1968 and the Legacy of Civil Rights

Sections: read and discuss W&B chapter 10—use the evidence provided to answer the main question from the chapter (NOTE: you DO NOT need to do your own interview)

Apr. 24 The 1970s: An Era of Limits (text ch. 30)

Apr. 26 The 1980s and Course Conclusions

Sections: third QUIZ

May 3 Third Exam 1-3:00pm (in LE101, as usual)