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HIST 352 (CRN 12512)
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Brief DescriptionThis course will be a place to read, think, and talk about the 1960s in two particular ways: as a watershed in modern U.S. history and as an era whose contested reputation continues to preoccupy scholars and observers. Issues and images associated with the 1960s inspire some Americans, trouble others, and serve as reference points for us all. Why is this the case? The course will investigate how the history of the 1960s has been challenged and changed by recent scholarship. Why, for example, is a period still popularly perceived as a progressive era of civil rights victories, student activism, stunning military defeat, and feminist revolution emerging as a turning point in the histories of racial anti-liberalism, educational crisis, Cold War triumphalism, and cultural and political conservatism? Interpretive fashions have changed, but the consensus points to the 1960s as a critical dividing line in modern U.S. history, culture and politics. What exactly do the 1960s represent and to whom? Are the 1960s even over yet? |
Writing RequirementsThere will be a 5-page essay (double spaced), a 5-page biographical profile (double-spaced), and a final exam.
1. The first essay will take the form of a review of The Battle for Welfare Rights. I have posted some guidelines for writing book reviews. The review is due on October 28, 2008 before class.
2. The second assignment will take the form of a biographical profile based on published materials. Students can choose a subject from this list of selected 1960s memoirs. Students who wish to read other published memoirs may do so with the instructor's permission. The assignment is due on November 25, 2008 before class.
3. The final exam will consist mainly of essay questions that cover the readings and synthesize the main themes of the course. There may also be some short-answer questions or brief identificaitons and comparisons. It will be a take-home exam, distributed on the final day of the class. It is due by noon on December 9, 2008 in 321 McKenzie Hall.
Please notice when the written work is due and plan your time accordingly. |
Reading RequirementsBarry Goldwater, The Conscience of a Conservative (Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, 1990).
Maurice Isserman and Michael Kazin, America Divided: The Civil War of the 1960s (Oxford University Press, 2008).
Felicia Kornbluh, The Battle for Welfare Rights: Politics and Poverty in Modern America (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2007).
Peter B. Levy, ed., America in the Sixties--Right, Left, and Center (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998).
Dana Spiotta, Eat the Document (New York: Scribner, 2006).
various documents linked to the course syllabus |
thinking Requirements |
RulesAcademic 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 can also consult the brief guide to plagiarism and citation posted on my web site. Lateness Policy: No unexcused late assignments will be accepted and no makeup exams will be given. Students who miss deadlines will be given an F for that assignment. 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. |
Gradesessay/book review: 30% |
Calendar
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Week 1 |
WHY DO THE 1960s MATTER? WHAT WERE THE 1960s ABOUT? WHEN DID THE 1960s BEGIN AND END?September 30: Introduction to the Course
Read:
Watch and Listen: Billboard #1 hit in 1968: Beatles, "Hey Jude"
October 2: The Big Picture, in Retrospect
Read: Isserman and Kazin, chapter 1.
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Week 2 |
THE AFFLUENT SOCIETY AND OTHER AMERICASOctober 7: People of Plenty
Read:
October 9: The Rediscovery of Poverty and the Invention of Welfare Rights
Read: The Battle for Welfare Rights, Introduction - chapter 3
Reading and Discussion Questions for Felicia Kornbluh,The Battle for Welfare Rights
film: “Harvest of Shame” |
Week 3 |
THE RIGHTS REVOLUTIONOctober 14: The Color and Gender of Welfare
Read: The Battle for Welfare Rights, chapters 4 - Conclusion
October 16: The African-American Freedom Movement
Read: Isserman and Kazin, chapter 2 |
Week 4 |
LIBERALISM AT HIGH TIDE AND IN CRISISOctober 21: The Great Society and the War on Poverty
Read:
film: "American Idealist"
October 23: Crackup: 1968
Read: |
Week 5 |
VIETNAMOctober 28: Who fought and why?
Book review due before class
Read: Isserman and Kazin, chapters 3-4
Tim O'Brien, "The Things They Carried," "On the Rainy River," How to Tell a True Story," "Speaking of Courage"
October 30: Who protested and why?
Read: Tim O'Brien, "The Vietnam in Me" |
Week 6 |
CULTURES AND COUNTERCULTURESNovember 4: The New Left and Revolutionary Violence
Watch and Listen: Anti-Obama ad featuring Bill Ayers and the Weather Underground
Read:
Reading and Discussion Questions for Dana Spiotta, Eat the Document
Watch and Listen:
November 6: The Weather Underground
film: "The Weather Underground"
Read: |
Week 7 |
SEXUAL REVOLUTIONNovember 11: The Personal Politics of Second-Wave Feminism
Read:
Watch and Listen:
November 13: Gay Liberation |
Week 8 |
BARRY GOLDWATER'S 1960sNovember 18: Barry Goldwater and 1964
film: "Mr. Conservative"
Read:
Reading and Discussion Questions for Barry Goldwater, The Conscience of a Conservative
November 20: From the New Deal to the New Right
Read: Joe Lowndes, From the New Deal to the New Right, chapter 3 |
Week 9 |
THE VOICE OF THE SILENT MAJORITYNovember 25: What was the New Right and what was it about?
Biographical profile due before class
Read:
November 27: Thanksgiving |
Week 10 |
THE ENDURING LEGACY OF THE 1960sDecember 2: The 1960s and the Death of Consensus
Read:
December 4: Are the 1960s over? Final Exam |