Seminar in the History of American Ideas and Values

Description

A seminar in cultural and intellectual history, this class will examine a number of ideas and values at the heart of American culture. We will read historical works on the evolution of American beliefs about race, national identity, cities, nature, gender and beauty, Jesus, music, liberalism, and iconic presidents such as Lincoln and Kennedy.

Learning Outcomes

Students should gain a deeper understanding of how certain ideas have exerted a powerful force in American history, defining our sense of what is possible, what is desirable, what is good, and what is bad. Students should also learn about American culture: how it functions, develops, and changes over time.

Finally, as an upper level seminar, the course will challenge students to understand how historians work – how they create arguments and try to support them with evidence. By doing so, students will increase their ability to analyze and evaluate works of history, as well improving their skills at writing argumentative essays.

Requirements

The success of a seminar depends on the intellectual energy of the members. Therefore, attendance at every meeting is compulsory (no exceptions) and readiness to discuss the assignments is expected.

Class participation = 20% of final grade

Written Work = 80% of final grade

Three one-page papers (30%) and one twelve-page paper (50%) are required. Please be sure to observe the page limits on the short papers. You are being asked to say a lot in a small space. The purpose is to produce highly focused thinking and writing by eliminating space for rambling and vagueness. These assignments will prepare you to express yourself concisely and thus more elegantly in your final paper.

Papers must be submitted on time (no exceptions).

Required Texts

1. Jill Lepore, The Name of War: King Philip’s War and the Origins of American Identity

2. Winthrop Jordan, The White Man’s Burden: Historical Origins of Racism in the United States

3. Gary Wills, Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words that Remade America

4. Gunther Barth, City People: The Rise of Modern City Culture in Nineteenth-Century America

5. Thomas Dunlap, Saving America’s Wildlife: Ecology and the American Mind

6. Alan Ryan, John Dewey and the High Tide of American Liberalism

7. John Kasson, Houdini, Tarzan, and the Perfect Man: The White Male Body and the Challenge of Modernity in America

8. Kathy Peiss, Hope in a Jar: The Making of America’s Beauty Culture

9. Steven Prothero, American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon

10. John Hellmann, The Kennedy Obsession: The American Myth of JFK

11. Martha Bayles, Hole in Our Soul: The Loss of Beauty and Meaning in American Popular Music

Syllabus

Week 1 (Aug. 31): Introduction.

Week 2 (Sept. 7): Discuss Lepore, The Name of War.

One-page paper due in class. Assignment: write a critique of Lepore’s thesis.

Week 3 (Sept. 14): Discuss Jordan, The White Man’s Burden.

One-page paper due in class. Assignment: write a critique of Jordan’s thesis.

Week 4 (Sept. 21): Discuss Wills, Lincoln at Gettysburg.

Week 5 (Sept. 28): Discuss Barth, City People.

One-page paper due in class. Assignment: write a critique of Barth’s thesis.

Week 6 (Oct. 5): Discuss Dunlap, Saving America’s Wildlife.

Week 7 (Oct. 12): Discuss Ryan, John Dewey, Ch. 1-5.

Week 8 (Oct. 19): Discuss Ryan, John Dewey, Ch. 6-9.

Week 9 (Oct. 26): Discuss Kasson, Houdini, Tarzan, and the Perfect Man.

Week 10 (Nov. 2): Discuss Peiss, Hope in a Jar.

Week 11 (Nov. 9): Discuss Prothero, American Jesus.

Week 12 (Nov. 16): Discuss Hellmann, The Kennedy Obsession.

Week 13 (Nov. 23): No class meeting.

Week 14 (Nov. 30): Discuss Bayles, Hole in Our Soul, Ch. 1-11.

Week 15 (Dec. 7): Discuss Discuss Bayles, Hole in Our Soul, Ch. 12-21.

Final paper: topic to be assigned. Final paper will be due in my office by 5:00 PM, December 14. The final paper will not require outside reading and will not be a research paper. It will be an analytical essay based on our required texts.