THE UNITED STATES IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

HIST 407
CRN 38570
SPRING 2014
WEDNESDAY, 2:00 - 4:50
373 MCKENZIE HALL

PROFESSOR ELLEN HERMAN
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON

office: 335 McKenzie Hall
phone: 346-3118
e-mail: eherman@uoregon.edu
office hours: Monday, 11:30 - 1:30

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

This seminar will be a place to think, talk, and write about a wide variety of topics in U.S. history during the twentieth century. What interpretive trends characterize recent scholarship in fields as diverse as social history, political history, history of science, gender history, African-American history, and the history of the United States in the world? And that's only a start!

Students will do some common reading at the very beginning of the term so that we can think and talk together about the historical developments that interest you most. But the primary purpose of this course is to give each student the experience of doing the work of history him or herself. To achieve that goal, each student will engage in a substantial independent research project, based in primary sources, resulting in a paper of 20-25 pages. In short, this research seminar aims to make you a historian!

Students can expect to devote a lot of time to defining, executing, and discussing their projects with other participants in the seminar. Written research proposals and other writing samples will be shared with everyone in order to generate constructive suggestions, questions, and ideas for revision and refinement. Research presentations will be made by every student during the final weeks of the term.

WRITING REQUIREMENTS

Each undergraduate student in this course is expected to produce a 20-25-page (double-spaced) research paper, based on primary sources. Please consult indiividually with the instructor at the beginning of the course.

A one-paragraph statement of the research project will be due during week 2.

A three-page research prospectus will be due during week 4.

A draft of a first paragraph will be due during week 5.

A draft of an outline will be due during week 6.

The final paper is due on Wednesday, June 11, 2014 at noon in 321 McKenzie Hall.

READING REQUIREMENTS

Stephen J. Whitfield, A Companion to 20th-Century America (Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2004).

American Historical Association, American History Now. This series of essay-length publications is designed to explore and summarize historiographical developments in many major fields: environmental, political, cultural, African-American, and American Indian history as well as the history of religion, borderlands, immigration, and capitalism.

History Matters is a major online resource for teachers of U.S. history compiled by the American Social History Project and the Center for History and New Media. It includes a large collection of primary sources on twentieth-century topics. Because they are online, you can conveniently browse by time period, topic, or a combination of the two.

THINKING REQUIREMENTS AND WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

History is a discipline that requires discipline, no less than music, neuroscience, or architecture. That means you should expect this course to require real time and effort. But history repays those who devote time and effort to it many times over. You can also expect the following tangible benefits, all applicable in a wide range of occupations and careers:

• the habit of asking critical questions frequently
• improved reading, writing, and analytical skills
• the ability to recogize and evaluate primary and secondary sources, with special attention to interpreting multiple and conflicting sources of information
• practice in thinking about how economic, political, cultural, and social forces interact over time

My hope is that you will also experience the pleasure of learning. History promises to make us more interesting people and better, more insightful citizens of our communities and our world.

RULES

Academic Honesty
If this course is to be a worthwhile educational experience, your work must be original. Plagiarism and other forms of cheating are very serious infractions and will not be permitted. Students who are uncertain about what plagiarism is, or who have questions about how to cite published, electronic, or other sources should feel free to consult with the instructor. You may also find my brief guide a helpful place to begin.

Lateness Policy
No late papers will be accepted except in the case of a documented medical emergency.

Accommodations
If you have a documented disability and anticipate needing accommodations in this course, please arrange to see me soon and request that Disability Services send a letter verifying your disability.

GRADES

This is a research-oriented course, so grades depend very heavily on the quality of the final paper. But everything will be taken into account: level of preparation for and participation in weekly discussions, verbal presentations of research projects, and critiques of one another’s research agendas and writing samples.

Calendar

Week 1

Week 2

APRIL 9: THE RESEARCH PROJECTS IN BRIEF

READING:
Locate and read five primary sources related to the field(s) that interests you on the History Matters website. Read them, take notes on them, and think about how they relate to the essays you read last week. Bring them to class and come prepared to talk about your selections.

One-paragraph statement of research topic due. (Note: Make enough copies for all course participants because we will be sharing these.) It must include:

• working title
• general statement of primary research problem and/or question to be explored
• bibliography: at least four preliminary sources (two primary, two secondary)

Please note that essays in the Whitfield book list secondary sources at the end. This is a good place to start, but you should also become familiar, if you aren’t already, with using whatever combination of primary and secondary sources makes sense for your partiular research project. These might include encyclopedias, microforms, audio and film recordings, journal articles, book reviews, maps, photographs, letters, newspapers, magazines, survey reports, and unpublished theses. Many of these are available in Knight Library or through interlibrary loan, which requires a little advance planning. In addition, electronic indexes are indispensable for conducting research. These will help you build a good bibliography of primary and secondary sources for your project.

These indexes include, but are not limited to:
• America: History and Life
• JSTOR: The Scholarly Journal Archives
• Readers’ Guide Retrospective

There are a number of excellent historical web sites and you should certainly use them if they are relevant to your project. More and more primary sources are being digitized by libraries, museums, and other institutions. But there’s a lot of junky history online as well, so be critical about what you use. I do not want to see bibliographies consisting exclusively of materials located online.

APRIL 16: NUTS AND BOLTS: GETTING ACQUAINTED WITH SOURCES

Discussion of the one-paragraph research statements. Each student should come to class with a few written comments, questions, and suggestions for other students. We will discuss these in class as a way of expanding the research proposals and moving them forward.

Please also bring in two sources from your own research thus far, one primary source and one secondary source.

APRIL 23: NUTS AND BOLTS: WHAT HISTORIANS DO WITH THE SOURCES THEY USE

Three-page research prospectus due. (Note: Make enough copies for all course participants because we will be sharing these.) It must include:

• working title
• detailed statement of primary and secondary research problems and questions
• tentative outline: the major topics you plan to cover and the order in which you plan to cover them
• bibliography: at least 15-20 sources

We will continue the discussion of using and interpreting sources. Each student should come to class with one example of a primary source and one example of a secondary source drawn from your own research project. We will discuss these and talk about how to make the most effective use of sources as evidence and basis for interpretation.

APRIL 30: NUTS AND BOLTS: BIBLIOGRAPHIES, ORGANIZATION, OUTLINES, WRITING, REVISING, AND OTHER ELEMENTS OF PAPER-WRITING

Please write an opening paragraph for your paper, make enough copies for everyone, and bring them to class.

Resource: The Stages of Writing Research Papers

MAY 7: NUTS AND BOLTS: BIBLIOGRAPHIES, ORGANIZATION, OUTLINES, WRITING, REVISING, AND OTHER ELEMENTS OF PAPER-WRITING

Please draft an outline for your paper, make enough copies for everyone, and bring them to class.

Resource: Guidelines for Research Presentations

MAY 14: STUDENT PRESENTATIONS

Zach Bigalke, "Anything But Ringers: How the Rise and Fall of the American Soccer League Impacted the Development of the 1930 U.S World Cup Team"

Nick Wilson, "Aluminum Spears: The Evolution of Military Fighters in the Cold War"

Resource: Guidelines for Research Presentations

MAY 21: STUDENT PRESENTATIONS

Will Lay, "The African-American Civil Rights Movement in Greenville, South Carolina"

Jill Fogelstrom, "American Music 1920s-1960s: Under the Influence of Drugs"

Desirae Ramirez, "The Experiences of the Forgotten: Black Women in the Civil Rights Movement"

Resource: Guidelines for Research Presentations

MAY 28: STUDENT PRESENTATIONS

Larissa Leavitt, "Pledging Allegience: The Roots of Patriotic Education and Celebratory History in American Elementary Schools, 1880-1920"

Justin Watson, "Air Combat in the Cold War"

Charlie Rath: "A Peacefully Violent Decade: Civil Disobedience in the 1960s"

Resource: Guidelines for Research Presentations

JUNE 4: STUDENT PRESENTATIONS

Faith Liptak, "House Un-American Activities Committee Investigations: What was their motive and how was that portrayed and executed in their investigations and in the eyes of the American public?"

Alex Sasaki, Racial Stereotypes in Film

Sierra Sullivan, "The Evolution of Deception: Photoshop in the 20th-century U.S."

Resource: Guidelines for Research Presentations