History 650 Prof.
Jack McKivigan
Fall 2000 Cavanaugh
531
Cavanaugh 537 Off.
Hrs. Wed. 3-4 PM
Wednesday
4:00-6:40 Off.
Ph. 274-5860
jmckivig@iupui.edu
COLLOQUIUM IN U.S. HISTORY
TOPIC: MOVEMENTS
FOR SOCIAL CHANGE IN U.S. HISTORY
Course
Description: History 650 is designed as a survey of key
scholarly literature on the history of popular movements for social change in
U.S. history. The course will present an
overview of the phenomena of protest and reform, and then single out a number
of cases for closer inspection. Among the topics for study are: temperance,
abolitionism, communitarianism, pacifism, labor rights, Populism, women=s rights, socialism, the Civil Rights movement, and
environmentalism. Emphasis will be
placed on: evaluating different approaches to the study of collective action;
understanding the social, political, and cultural contexts from which protest
developed; and uncovering what protest movements reveal about the nature of
American society and politics. Through reading, class discussion, and
preparation of reviews and a longer essay, students are expected to enhance
their knowledge of the historiography of this subject and to sharpen their
skills in evaluating those works. The
goal of the course is to prepare students for intensive research in the many
varied aspects of the history of social reform in the United States.
Nature
and Amount of Student Responsibilities: The success of this course
depends upon the completion of the reading assignments and participation in
colloquium discussion by the students.
If a student falls behind in his/her readings she/he will soon find it
difficult to follow the subject matter of the discussion or join in it. Students should feel free to ask questions
about unclear material at any time during the class. Students also should feel free to talk to the
instructor about any course‑related problems especially in cases when a
student believes that his/her assignment grades do not accurately reflect
her/his performance in the course.
There
will be five types of graded assignments for students in this course:
1)
Leading a Weekly Discussion. Each member of the course is expected to
assume responsibility for facilitating the colloquium discussion of one
assigned book. The first part of this
assignment is for the student to provide copies of a 5-6 typed page handout for
each member of the colloquium. This
handout should include such elements as a brief summary of the book's contents,
analysis of the author's methodological approach, and an overall appraisal of
the book's contribution to historical knowledge. The second part of the assignment is for the
student to initiate the class's discussion of the book. Typically, this will require the student to
present a 10-15 minute oral appraisal of the principal strengths and weaknesses
of the book, then to respond to comments and questions from other members of
the colloquium concerning both his/her written and oral reports, and, finally,
to pose questions designed to elicit the opinion of the other students
regarding the book. (This assignment
will count 15% toward the final course grade.)
2)
Preparing a Biographical Sketch of an Author. Each member of
the course is expected to prepare a written biographical sketch of the author
of one week's assigned reading. This
assignment will require the student to provide copies of a 2-3 typed page
handout for each member of the colloquium.
This handout should include information on the birthplace, family
background, education, academic career and honors, and the critical reception
of other works by the author. The
student will make an approximately 5 minute oral presentation of his/her
findings to the colloquium and then answer questions from other members of the
colloquium. (This assignment will count
10% toward the final course grade.)
3)
Prepare a Summary of a Book's Critical Reception. Each member of
the course is expected to prepare a written summary and analysis of the
critical reception of one week's assigned reading. This assignment will require the student to
provide copies of a 4-5 typed page handout for each member of the
colloquium. This handout should
summarize and also analyze the reviews and other forms of critical reception
that the book received. The student will
make an approximately 10 minute oral presentation of his/her findings to the
colloquium and then answer questions from other members of the colloquium. (This assignment will count 10% toward the
final course grade.)
4)
Preparing Book Reviews. Each student will be responsible for
preparing a written review of two books on reading lists prepared by the
instructor. These reviews should be 5-6
typed pages. The object of this assignment
is to prepare a concise written assessment of the thesis, specific findings,
organization, and documentation of the book.
It should be remembered that the desired goal of the review is an
evaluation, a critique, of the book, not a mere summary of its contents or an
outline of its major points. These
reviews also should contain brief accounts of the author=s background and the book=s critical reception.
Reviews are due on the day that the class discusses the book. (This assignment will count 30% toward the
final course grade; that is each review will count as 15%.)
5)
Preparing an Historiographical Essay. Each student will prepare a
review essay of approximately twenty typed pages. The essay should discuss at least four books,
including a minimum of one of the book's assigned for this course. The purpose of the assignment is to provide
the students with the opportunity to develop and exercise skills in
historiographical analysis and to synthesize their own thinking regarding
historical themes that interest them.
Students are encouraged to use this assignment to familiar themselves
with the historical literature on topics that they might someday research. In a relatively brief essay of this nature,
the student should be highly selective in choosing the criteria for comparison
of these works, e.g. originality and clarity of thesis, significance of author
biases, skill at exploiting primary and secondary sources, suitability of
methodology, strength of author's argument and evidence, etc. This assignment is due on the final meeting
of the class on December 3rd.
(This assignment will count 35% toward the final course grade.)
In
determining final course grades, elements such as effort, interest,
improvement, attendance, and participation in class discussion will be weighed
by the instructor in addition to the five assignments described above. Failure to turn in a written assignment by
the announced deadline, without prior permission from the instructor,
will automatically result in a penalty in grading.
Nature
and Amount of Instructor's Responsibilities: The
instructor's goal is keep atmosphere of the colloquium informal in order to
encourage general participation and a full variety of viewpoints. The instructor will make himself available
during office hours to offer students additional advice on preparing for
examinations. Students are encouraged
to take advantage of such assistance.
Grading is a necessary evil of the present academic system but the
instructor has an obligation to explain the reason for giving a grade to a
student and to suggest possible ways for improving performance on later
examinations.
The
instructor also will offer assistance to the students assigned to lead the
weekly discussion in the colloquium.
This assistance will include "pre-planning" with the
discussion leaders about the best ways to facilitate the discussion of each
particular book. Because members of the
colloquium possess different levels of experience in discussion leading, all
members should work to make the "novice" feel as comfortable as the
"veteran" when in the spotlight.
Course
Schedule: The following is a prospective schedule of
class topics and reading assignments:
Aug 27 Reform in American History
Read: Steven Mintz, Moralists & Modernizers: America’s Pre-Civil War Reformers (1995), Introduction
Steven
Mintz, Moralists & Modernizers: America’s Pre-Civil War Reformers (1995).
Sep 17 The War for Freedom
Stanley Harrold, American Abolitionists (2001)
Sep 24 Antislavery Tactics
Oct 01 Questioning Capitalism
Nick Salvatore, Eugene V.
Debs: Citizen and Soldier (1982)
Oct 08 Labor Rights & Utopianism
Oct 15 Status and Reform
Richard Hofstadter, The Age of
Reform (1955)
Oct 22 Populism & Progressivism
Oct 29 Civil Rights Movement
Manning
Marable, Race, Reform and Rebellion: 2nd Reconstruction in Black
America, 1945-2000 (3rd Revision, 2003)
Nov 05 Race and Reform in the 20th
Century
Nov 12 A Woman’s Place
Ruth
Rosen, The World Split Open: How the Modern Women’s Movement Changed America
(2000)
Nov 19 The Future of Reform in America
Nov 26 Thanksgiving Holiday Future of Reform
in America
Dec 03 Wrap-up Class
Historiographical
Essay Due.