Defining "The Nation"
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Fall 2009 |
Dr. Eric L. Goldstein Office: 122 Bowden Hall Phone: (404) 727-4470 E-mail: egoldst@emory.edu office hours: Tu, 12-1 |
Teaching assistant: |
Course Description:
This course explores U.S. history from 1877 to the present by examining
a series of debates and conversations regarding the meaning of America.
We will explore themes such as race and ethnicity and their relationship
to national identity; industrial capitalism and the role of government
in economic regulation; the notion of "exporting democracy"
and America's role in world affairs; and immigration, citizenship and
the role of national borders. The reading material will consist largely
of first-hand accounts-speeches, memoirs, Congressional reports and testimony,
newspaper accounts, letters, music, and artwork-which will present a variety
of positions on these themes.
Readings:
All readings for the class will be available on electronic reserve. For
your convenience, links to the readings are embedded in the web version
of this syllabus. When prompted, you must enter your username and password
for the library's e-reserves system in order to access the pdf file for
each reading.
Course Format and Requirements:
Class sessions will be a mixture of lecture and discussion, with occasional
sessions set aside for more in-depth analysis of primary sources. In addition
to the regular class meetings, there will also be a few films shown during
evening hours (see course schedule). These evening screenings are considered
class periods and attendance will be taken. If you are unable to come
for any reason you MUST discuss your conflict with the professor in advance.
In preparation for class discussion, students will be asked to answer
a thought question in no more than one paragraph before each session.
Please keep these responses in an ongoing journal (a spiral notebook works
best), and at a few points during the semester these journals will be
collected in order to gauge how well students are keeping up with the
reading and how thoughtfully they are responding to the questions. On
a few occasions, students will be asked to respond to the thought question
in the form of a longer (two-page) essay, which will also be collected.
There will be a midterm examination, which will be given in class, and
a final project, in which students will choose a contemporary debate regarding
American national identity and analyze it in light of historical events.
Class participation is an important part of your grade, so please arrive
ready to discuss and analyze the readings. Since we only meet twice a
week, regular attendance is crucial to success in the class. Students
will be allowed one unexcused absence, but the participation grade will
be reduced one-half a grade for each unexcused absence thereafter.
Grading:
Grades for the course will be determined as follows:
Midterm: 30%
Final paper: 35%
Responses to thought questions: 10%
short writing assignments: 10%
Attendance and participation: 15%
Honor Code:
All students are expected to abide by Emory University's honor code, which
prohibits all forms of academic dishonesty including cheating and plagiarism.
Plagiarism means submitting material from a book, a website, or any other
source without acknowledging that the words or the ideas are someone else's.
When in doubt about this matter, please ask the instructor to explain
further, or consult the Emory College Writing Center's "Avoiding
Plagiarism" webpage. I treat academic dishonesty as a serious offense
and, in accordance with the policies of Emory College, will immediately
report all violations of the honor code to the Honor Council.
Course Schedule and Readings:
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INTRODUCTION
Thursday, August 27 INTRODUCTION TO COURSE FORMAT, REVIEW OF SYLLABUS Tuesday, September 1 "NATION": A HISTORY OF THE TERM |
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PART I: "THE NATION" IN A RAPIDLY CHANGING
WORLD
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PART II: THE PROGRESSIVE IMPULSE Tuesday, September 29 |
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PART III: THE LOSS OF CONFIDENCE Tuesday, October 6
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PART IV: BECOMING A SUPERPOWER
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| PART V: AGE OF REBELLION Thursday, Novermber 12 FROM CIVIL RIGHTS TO BLACK POWER Martin Luther King, Jr., "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" (1963) Autobiography of Malcolm X, chap. 11 and chap. 14 (two separate pdf files - be sure to click on each of these two links) Thought question: How do MLK and Malcolm X understand the struggle of African Americans in the late twentieth century differently? How do their goals and methods differ? Are there any similarities in their worldviews? Tuesday, Novermber 17 HOW VIETNAM CHANGED AMERICA Lyndon Johnson's War (documents on Vietnam) Lyda Van Devanter, Home Before Morning (excerpts) Thought question: How do the Johnson administration memos suggest a new understanding of war and warfare introduced by the Vietnam conflict? Why was it so difficult to come to terms with these new realities? Likewise, how does the personal experience described by Lynda Van Devanter suggest a new relationship between war and American identity? Thursday, Novermber 19 FROM THE "GREAT SOCIETY" TO THE "REAGAN REVOLUTION" Lyndon Johnson, "Great Society" Speech (1964) Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address (1981) Thought question: What is the relationship between Johnson's Great Society speech and Reagan's first inaugural address? How do they differ? How do each of them understand the core meaning and values of "America"? |
| PART VI: "THE NATION"
TODAY Tuesday, Novermber 24 INTERNATIONAL LEADERSHIP IN A POST-COLD WAR WORLD The National Security Strategy of the United States of America (2002) Thought question: Compare the Bush administration's vision of America's role in global affairs with those of some of the previous administrations we have discussed (comment on at least two: for example, Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson). What are the similarities and differences? EXTRA CREDIT ASSIGNMENTS DUE IN CLASS (no emails) Thursday, Novermber 26 NO CLASS, THANKSGIVING BREAK Tuesday, December 1 BORDERS AND CITIZENSHIP IN THE CONTEMPORARY U.S. Arguing Immigration (excerpts) Thursday, December 3 RACE AND ETHNICITY IN THE AGE OF OBAMA Barack Obama, "A More Perfect Union" (2008) Tuesday, December. 8 THE RETURN OF KEYNES? Paul Krugman and John Taylor Debate the Stimulus and Health Care Plans (2009) Tuesday, December 15 FINAL PAPERS DUE via email by 5:00pm |