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This course examines
American history from World War II to the present.
We will explore America's emergence as a world superpower in the postwar
period and its struggle to live up to its democratic ideals both at home and
abroad. In particular, we will examine the Cold War's political and cultural
impact on the nation, its influence on foreign relations from Vietnam to Central
America, and the social, political, and cultural trends that dominated the
American scene during this period.
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Bradford Wright, Comic Book Nation |
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Michael T. Bertrand, Race, Rock, and Elvis |
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Loren Baritz, Backfire: A History of How American Culture Led Us into Vietnam and Made Us Fight the Way We Did |
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Aniko Bodroghkozy,
Groove Tube: Sixties Television and the Youth Rebellion |
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Susan Douglas, Where the Girls Are: Growing Up Female With the
Mass Media |
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There will also be a few short readings available at Electronic Course Reserves and several online primary source documents found on my website. |
Grades will be
based on one midterm, a final exam, a 6-8 page primary source analysis paper, a
10 page research paper, and class participation. The exams are essay in form.
Class participation includes classroom discussions and activities as well
as attendance.
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Midterm
1:
20%
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Midterm
2:
20%
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Paper
2: 25% |
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Final:
25% |
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Class
Participation:
10% |
A
brief note on grades: A student
will earn an “A” for only excellent and outstanding work.
A “B” represents very good work, which means more than just doing the
job. A “C” is given to those
who demonstrate adequate competence and satisfactory completion of assignments.
“D” work is that which fails to demonstrate competence and/or fails
to fully complete the assignment. I
don’t think I need to explain the meaning of an “F” to you. Finally, I
always assume that each student puts his or her full effort into an assignment,
so please don’t try to make a case for a higher grade based on how much time
and effort you put into an assignment. I
can only grade performance not effort.
Please
be aware that the major themes and ideas that comprise my exams are generally
drawn from my lectures so attendance is critical if you wish to do well in this
course. Readings, both from
the text and the other assigned books, are not extra or optional assignments.
The readings complement, but do not replace, my lectures and are there to help
you better understand major themes and issues raised in class.
One key to success in this course is to keep up with the reading
assignments.
Class Etiquette: Please arrive on time and do not leave before the end of class unless you inform me prior to class. Also, please be sure cell phones and beepers are off or on silent. This includes no text messaging while in class.
