HISTORY 1312:  U.S. HISTORY SINCE 1865

 

Professor:    Joyce S. Goldberg

 

Semester:     Fall 2012

 

Sections:     010 & 012

 

Location:     UH 116

 

Office:       UH 330             

 

Open Off. Hrs.:  T-TH:  5:00-6:00 p.m. and other times T-TH by appointment    

 

Email:        goldberg@uta.edu     

 

Website:      http://www.uta.edu/faculty/maizlish/homepagegoldberg.htm  

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REQUIRED  READING

 

Give Me Liberty!  An American History     (Volume TWO,  THIRD EDITION)

 

ERIC FONER

 

 

BRING THE TEXTBOOK, PAPER, AND A WRITING IMPLEMENT TO EVERY CLASS

 

Study Space: www.wwnorton.com/foner

 

 

COURSE  DESCRIPTION  AND  OBJECTIVES 

 

This course surveys U.S. history from the end of the Civil War to the end of the Cold War. I believe the study of history is an art form, not a search for truth, and an on-going cultural debate, one continuously open to evidence-based interpretation.  Knowledge of history will not make you smarter nor help anyone avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. History=s Ausefulness@ does not lie in its predictive or explanatory value but in its ability to nurture an appreciation of the limits of our capacity to see the past clearly or even know fully the historical determinants of our own brief passage in time. If the study of history does little more than teach humility, skepticism, and a better awareness of ourselves, then it has done something useful.

STUDENT  COMPETENCIES  AND  LEARNING  OUTCOMES

 

a) Students will analyze arguments based on historical evidence.  They will learn to differentiate between primary and secondary sources and between fact and interpretation.

 

b) Students will discover the relationship between history and memory.  They will be able to identify some of the cultural debates that influence Ahistorical remembrance.@

 

COURSE  REQUIREMENTS  AND  GRADING  PROCEDURES

 

TO PASS THIS COURSE, STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO TAKE ALL EXAMS. STUDENTS WHO DO NOT,  WILL AUTOMATICALLY FAIL.   MERELY TAKING ALL EXAMS, HOWEVER, DOES NOT GUARANTEE A PASSING GRADE.

 

There will be five (5) multiple-choice exams (requiring scantrons and a pencil) each consisting of thirty questions. The sixth (6th) multiple-choice exam will consist of fifty (50) questions.  All test questions come from a combination of the textbook, online documents, lectures/discussions, and videos. The total number of points possible for the course is 200.

 

Students in one section of this class may not take a test in another section without my express permission.  Doing so will result in a grade of zero.

 

Makeups will be given ONLY on TUESDAY, DEC. 4th, from 2:00-5:00 p.m.  None will be multiple-choice. I do not permit exam re-takes, offer extra-credit opportunities, or grant incompletes.  Students are solely responsible for withdrawing from this course.

 

I will never email any grades.

 

 No lectures are available online

 

Final course grades will be determined by the following scale.

 

180-200 points   = A

159-179 points   = B

138-158 points   = C

117-137 points   = D

   Below 117 points   = F 

ACADEMIC  DISHONESTY

At UT Arlington, academic dishonesty is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated in any form, including (but not limited to) "cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts" (UT System Regents' Rule 50101, §2.2).

All students enrolled in this course are expected to adhere to the UT Arlington Honor Code: 

I pledge, on my honor, to uphold UT Arlington's tradition of academic integrity, a tradition that values hard work and honest effort in the pursuit of academic excellence.


I promise that I will submit only work that I personally create or contribute to group collaborations, and I will appropriately reference any work from other sources. I will follow the highest standards of integrity and uphold the spirit of the Honor Code.

Suspected violations of the university's academic integrity standards (including the Honor Code) will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct. Violators will be disciplined in accordance with University policy, which may result in the student's suspension or expulsion from the University.

 

 

STUDENTS  WITH  DISABILITIES

I will ensure that disabled students are appropriately accommodated in my classroom. If you require an accommodation based on disability, it is your responsibility to provide documentation through the Office for Students with Disabilities.  (See Student Handbook)

 

ACADEMIC  SUCCESS

UTA offers many programs to help you achieve academic success.  Contact the University Advising Center for help. Click on AStudent Services.@  The History Department web site also links to sources that offer tips on reading history books, taking notes, and exam preparation. Go to www.uta.edu/history, Click on AStudent Guides to the Study of History.@ In addition textbook link to Astudy space@ in this syllabus provides another useful source of assistance.

 

PROFESSOR=S  PERSONAL  ACADEMIC  ADVISORY

Six hours of U.S. history are mandated by the Texas legislature.  Many students resent this requirement and do not willingly or happily enroll in this course.  Do not take out your anger on me! I enjoy teaching this class and take my instructional obligation seriously.  In addition, I require all students to perform at what I believe to be at university level standards.  Just showing up does not entitle you to a passing grade. I recommend: 

 

1) Regular attendance and completion of the readings BEFORE class

2) Note-taking from readings, from class discussions, from videos 

3) Regular rewriting and reviewing of notes

4) Study groups and/or use of the textbook website,  www.wwnorton.com/foner    
5) Serious preparation before each exam.

 

 

CLASSROOM  DECORUM

Although I prefer an atmosphere of informality and good humor, rudeness and incivility are unacceptable and common courtesies will be enforced. 

 

1)  Students should attend all classes, although no records will be kept. You will be neither penalized nor rewarded for attendance. You are responsible for all work transacted every class--lectures, videos, transparencies, etc. 

 

2) You are expected to arrive on time AND REMAIN FOR THE DURATION OF THE CLASS. Students arriving late or who need to leave early must sit in the last three rows of the classroom. 

 

3) ALL ELECTRONIC TOOLS MUST BE PLACED ON SILENT MODE AND OUT OF SIGHT. NO TEXTING WILL BE PERMITTED DURING CLASS.

 

4) No electronic devices of any kind may be used during class without my formal consent.  Those who have an acceptable reason, are willing to sign a Apledge,@ and who agree to sit in the last row of the room may be granted permission to use an electronic note-taking device.

 

5) Reading newspapers, sleeping, or other disruptive activities are not acceptable classroom behaviors.  Eating and drinking, in moderation, are permitted but please use common sense.

 

READING  ASSIGNMENTS  AND  DISCUSSION  TOPICS

 

In case of inclement weather or school closings for any reasons, you are required to remain current with the syllabus, including all exam dates.

  

 

Th-Aug. 23rd:   

Organizational meeting and course introduction

 

 

T-Aug. 28th:

Civil War Legacies: change or continuity?

 

EF: Preface pp. xxxviii (from split)-xliii (to acknowledgements);

pp. 584-600

 

Doc: Carl Schurz, AReport on the Condition of the South@

 

 

Th-Aug. 30th:    

Reconstruction: tragic era or time of hope?

 

EF: pp. 600-609; p. A-10 (14th and 15th amendments)

 

Doc: @Opinions of Senators in the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson@

T-Sept. 4th:

Counterrevolution: fighting corruption or undoing Reconstruction?

 

EF: pp. 610-616

 

Doc: ABlack Americans in Congress@ (Robert Smalls)

 

Doc: AJustice Harlan=s Dissent in Plessy v. Ferguson@

 

 

Th-Sept. 6th:      

Reunion: binding wounds or betrayal of African Americans?

 

EF: pp. 616-622; 688-697

 

Doc: AFlorida, North Carolina, and Texas Black Codes@

 

EXAM #1 (bring scantron and pencil)

 

T-Sept. 11th:  

Industrialization: free markets or the freedom to exploit?

 

EF: pp. 630-643; 666-672

 

Doc: AAndrew Carnegie=s Gospel of Wealth@ 

 

Doc: ASamuel Gompers: What does Labor Want?@

 

 

Th-Sept. 13th: 

Urbanization: Insistituional inequality or the price of progress?

EF: pp. 656-666; 697-703

 

Doc: AChinese Exclusion Act@

 

Doc: AJacob Riis photographs@

 

Doc: ANew York Times Accounts of Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire March 26, 1911"

 

 

T-Sept. 18th:  

Populism: cycles of nature or the politically embattled farmer?

 

EF: pp. 643-656; 676-688

 

Doc: APopulist Platform@

 

Doc: ACross of Gold Speech@

 

 

Th-Sept. 20th:   

Progressivism: radicalism or a conservative search for order?

 

EF: pp. 722-762; 795-800 [LONG ASSIGNMENT]

 

Doc: AWEB DuBois: The Talented Tenth@ 

 

Doc: ABooker T. Washington: Atlanta Compromise Speech@

 

Exam #2 (bring scantron and pencil)

 

T-Sept. 25th:   

From the Old Diplomacy to New: evolution or revolution?

 

EF: pp. 703-705

 

Doc:AAlfred Thayer Mahan: The Influence of Seapower upon History@                        


Th-Sept. 27th:   

War with Spain:  fighting for empire or American manhood?

 

EF: pp. 705-718

 

Doc: ATheordore Roosevelt: The Strenuous Life@

 

Doc: AThe deLome Letter@

 

 

T-Oct. 2nd:

World War I: failure of diplomacy or morality?

 

EF: pp. 775-779

 

Doc: AThe Zimmermann Telegram"

 

Doc: AWar is a blessing not a curse@

 

 

Th-Oct. 4th:

The Great War: the modern world or the modern madness?

 

EF: pp. 779-795; 800-803

 

Doc: AI didn=t raise my boy to be a soldier@

 

Doc: AThe Fourteen Points@

 

 

T-Oct. 9th:

Wilson and Lodge: the war to end all wars or seeds of another?

 

EF: pp. 803-811

 

Doc: AWilson Defends the League of Nations@

Doc: AThe Lodge Reservations@

 

 

Exam #3 (bring scantron and pencil)

 

Th-Oct. 11th:

Roaring Twenties: modernism or reactionism?

 

EF: 816-847

 

Doc: ACountee Cullen: Yet do I Marvel@

 

 Doc: AClaude McKay: If we must die@

 

Doc: ADarrow examines Bryan: The Scopes Trial@

 

 

T-Oct. 16th:

Crash and Depression: profligacy or the poverty of abundance?

 

EF: pp. 847-854

 

Doc: Depression era photos by Dorothea Lange

 

Doc: ALetters to Mrs. Roosevelt:Requests for clothes@

 

 

Th-Oct. 18th:

New Deal: saving, restoring, or destroying capitalism?

 

EF: pp. 858-898 (long assignment)

 

Doc: APictures from the Dust Bowl@

 

Doc: ADust Bowl Disaster Slides@

 

 

Doc: AWoody Guthrie@

 

 

T-Oct. 23rd:

World Conflict: U.S. illusions of neutrality

 

EF: pp. 902-915

 

Doc: AKellogg-Briand Pact@

 

Doc: AThe Stimson Doctrine@

 

Doc: AFDR=s Quarantine Speech@

 

 

Th-Oct. 25th:

Homefront: don=t you know there=s a war on?

 

EF: pp. 915-932

 

Doc: AExecutive Order 9066"

 

Doc: AKorematsu v. United States@

 

Doc: AJustice Jackson=s Dissent@

 

 

Exam #4 (bring scantron and pencil)

 

 

T-Oct. 30th:

Winning the War and Shaping the Peace: descent into cold war?

 

EF: pp. 940-952

 

Doc: AThe Four Freedoms@

 

Doc: AThe Atlantic Charter@

 

Doc: AFDR=s Promise of a Second Front"

 

 

Th-Nov. 1st:

Truman and Kennan Define the Cold War: ends or means?

 

EF: pp. 952-968; 971-983

 

Doc: AThe Truman Doctrine Speech@

 

Doc: AThe Marshall Plan Speech@

 

Doc: AKennan=s Long Telegram@

 

 

T-Nov. 6th:

Eisenhower Triumphant: holding the line or on the brink?

 

EF: pp. 988-999; 1002-1015; 1018

 

Doc: AJohn Foster Dulles on the Liberation of Captive Peoples@

Doc: ANSC-68: I-IV and conclusions@

 

Doc: AEisenhower and the Military-Industrial Complex@

 

 

Th-Nov. 8th:

War and Postwar Civil Rights: justice versus power?

 

EF: pp. 932-940; 968-971; 977; 980; 984-987; 999-1001; 1016-1017

 

Doc: AExecutive Order 8802"

 

Doc: AExecutive Order 9981"

 

Doc: AExecutive Order 10730"

 

 

Exam #5 (bring scantron and pencil)

 

T-Nov. 13th:

Flexible Response: Kennedy the reformer or cold warrior?

 

EF: pp. 1027-1043

 

Doc: APhotographs 1-25 Cuban Missile Crisis@

 

Doc: AOfficial Program for the March on Washington@

 

Doc: ALetter from a Birmingham jail

 

 

Th-Nov. 15th:

All the Way with LBJ: the Great Society and the great disaster?

 

EF: pp. 1043-1079

 

Doc: AThe Ballot or the Bullet@

 

Doc: AThe Tonkin Gulf Resoluton@

 

 

T-Nov. 20th:

Vietnamization and Detente: Nixon=s years of peace or turmoil?

EF: pp. 1080-1093; 1096-1101

 

Doc: ANixon=s Resignation Speech@

 

Doc: AJohn Kerry and the Vietnam Veterans Against the War@

 

 

 

Th-Nov. 22nd:

Thanksgiving break

 

 

T-Nov. 27th:

Conservative Resurgence: the Reagan Revolution?

EF: pp. 1101-1121

 

Doc: Shirley Chisholm on the Equal Rights Amendment

 

Doc: AJerry Falwell=s Listen America@

 

Th-Nov. 29th:

The Twenty-First Century: where are we now?

 

EF: pp. 1122-1167 [long assignment]

 

 

T-Dec. 4th:

NO CLASS

 

MAKEUPS ONLY

MAKEUPS ARE NOT MULTIPLE CHOICE

YOU MAY COME ANYTIME BETWEEN 2:00-5:00 P.M.

BRING ONLY A PEN!

 

EXAM #6 (bring scantron and pencil)

 

 

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6th:

section 010: FINAL EXAM (bring scantron and pencil)

2:00-4:30 p.m.

 

 

 

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11th:

section 012: FINAL EXAM (bring scantron and pencil)

2:00-4:30 p.m.

 

YOU MUST TAKE YOUR final EXAM ON THE DAY THAT CORRESPONDS TO YOUR OFFICIAL SECTION ENROLLMENT. 

 

No discussion of grades will ever occur by email.