U.S. History 1 (to 1865)
History 2111 Honors, Fall 2004
Dr. Ann McCleary Class meetings: Tuesday/Thursday
History Department 11-12:15
Office: TLC 3-211 Pafford 202
770-838-3031
Office hours: Tuesday/Thursday, 1-3, Tuesday 10-11, in Center for Public History (Pafford 205) and by appointment on other days
Class Objectives
This class will explore the major themes and issues in the history of the United States, from the eve of colonization in the 17th century through the Civil War. In keeping with the goals of the Honors College, the class will encourage class participation and discussion among students and written assignments such as essays and individual research projects. Class assignments and discussions will emphasize critical thinking and writing skills and the analysis of primary historical documents. Throughout the class, we will explore how historians have interpreted and reinterpreted the early American past and students will be expected to make and defend their own interpretations.
Learning Outcomes
1. The student will be able to identify culturally grounded assumptions which have influenced the perception and behavior of people in the past and to identify those which influence his/her own perception and behavior.
2. The student will be able to identify and critique the theories, concepts, and assumptions which historians have used to create coherent interpretations of the past.
3. The student will be able to use independently the theories and conceptual frameworks to organize, synthesize, and communicate his/her interpretation of historical phenomena.
4. The student will develop and take responsibility for his/her own interpretations of the past by explaining and defending them orally and in writing.
Required Readings
These books should be at the campus bookstore:
Faragher, John, et al. OUT OF MANY, volume 1, brief edition. Prentice Hall publishers, Fourth Edition. The packaged set should include the textbook and documents set.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, edited and with an introduction by David W. Blight, Bedford/St. Martin’s Press, 1993.
The Sovereignty and Goodness of God by Mary Rowlandson, edited and with an introduction by Neal Salisbury. Bedford/St. Martin’s Press, 1997. Also available in an on-line version on Amazon.com
Assignments and Grading
35% Written assignments responding to historical documents and issues of historical debate
During the semester, students will write five papers analyzing historical documents, developing and defending an interpretation of a historical event, or evaluating different historians’ perspective and interpretations of the past. Two of these papers will be 2-3 page papers based on the narratives of Frederick Douglass and Mary Rowlandson (10% each). The other three assignments will be shorter ones and will relate directly to class readings (5% each).
All written assignments will be made through the weekly assignment sheets provided each Thursday in class. Please note that you are responsible for turning in all assignments on time, even if you are absent from class the date they are assigned. Late assignments will not be accepted without a valid excuse.
15% Research paper on the Civil War
Each student will write a four- to five-page research paper using primary source documents on the Civil War from the Valley of the Shadow project (Ayers, Edward and Anne Rubin, Valley of the Shadow: Two Communities in the American Civil War. http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/vshadow2 ) To explore the impact of the Civil War on American communities and to compare its impact on the northern and southern states, historians at the University of Virginia have spent several years collecting primary source documentation on two border communities during the War–one in Virginia and on in Pennsylvania. The project is designed to offer students original documentation which they can use to draw their own conclusions.
To begin this assignment, chose a question–or perhaps select several questions–that you would like to address about the Civil War. Review the documents on the website and decide what question you can best address given the documentation available. Then, using these primary sources available on the website, write an original research paper answering your question. Use appropriate footnotes as appropriate. The final paper should be word-processed and should include a bibliography that lists the particular documents you consulted.
On the last class day, all students will make a brief, five minute presentation on their research, outlining their major findings. You MUST be present on the class presentation day in order to receive credit for this paper; if you are no in class to present your paper, your grade for this assignment will be an “F”.
30% Midterm and Final Examinations
The midterm and final exams will include short-answer questions, identification questions, and an essay question will require the student to use the information he or she has learned to develop and defend an argument about this period of American historian. The midterm will also incorporate a map component. The final will not be cumulative; it will cover the chapters after the midterm examination. Each exam will count for 15% of the final grade.
20% Class discussion and participation
This course encourages class discussion and participation. Rather than following a more traditional lecture format, I will expect students to have done the reading in advance and to come to class prepared to discuss the readings. Each Thursday, I will distribute an assignment sheet that will list additional readings for the following week (beyond the textbook) to include specific primary documents from the Documents Set and chapters from the Taking Sides reader.
I will take attendance on each class day. More than three unexcused absences will lower a student’s final grade one letter grade. More than six unexcused absences will lower a student’s final grade by two letter grades
Occasionally, students will be asked to write ask in-class responses to topics being discussed or readings for that class date. These will not be graded, but they will be counted towards the class participation grade.
Honor Expectations
Students are expected to turn in written work that is their original work. When preparing your written assignments, plagiarism is not acceptable. Any work that is plagiarized will be returned with no grade. Plagiarism means stealing and using the ideas or writing of another as one’s one. You may not copy words directly from another writer, unless those words are included in quotations and you reference the writer in a footnote or citation.
Tentative Class Schedule
Please note! On Thursday of each week, I will hand out a weekly assignment sheet that will provide more detail on the class activities, writing assignments due, and additional readings for the coming week. Reading assignments from the documents reader and biography reader will be on this assignment sheet You are still responsible for turning in all assignment on time, even if you miss class.
August 24/26: North America at the Eve of Colonization
Read: Out of Many, chapter 1
August 31/ The Age of Exploration
September 2 Read: Out of Many, chapter 2
On reserve: debate about Christopher Columbus
September 7/9: The Colonization of North American in the 17th century
Read: Out of Many, chapter 3
Paper due this week on Mary Rowlandson’s captivity narrative
September 14/17: Slavery and Empire
Read: Out of Many, chapter 4
September 21/23: The North American Colonies in the 18th Century
Read: Out of Many, chapter 5
September 28/30: The American Revolution
Read: Out of Many, chapter 6 and begin chapter 7
October 5/7 Creating the United States
Read: Out of Many, finish chapter 7 and start chapter 8
October 12: The Constitutional Crisis
Read: finish Out of Many, chapter 8
October 14: Midterm exam
October 19/21: A New Republic
Read: Out of Many, chapter 9
October 26/28: The Democratic Era
Read: Out of Many, chapter 10
November 2/4: Sectional Divisions: The South and Slavery
Read: Out of Many, chapter 11
November 9/11: Sectional Divisions: The North and Industry
Read: Out of Many, chapter 12
November 16/18: America at Mid-Century: Growth and Expansion
Read: Out of Many, chapters 13 and begin 14
November 23: America at Mid-Century (con’t)
Read: Out of Many, complete chapter 14
November 25: No class, Thanksgiving break
November 30/: Sectional Crisis: The Coming of the Civil War
December 2 Read: Out of Many, chapter 15
December 7: The Civil War
Student presentations on Civil War research projects
Students must be in class this day to present their research in order to receive credit for this research project. Students who do not come to class will receive an “F” for the project
December 14: Final Exam, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.