American History II Syllabus

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GE 215 : American History II

Students will learn about political, cultural, economic, foreign policy, and other changes that have shaped the United States between the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

Student Learning Outcomes

this course will help students improve their reading, writing, and critical-thinking skills by means of historical analysis; understand the importance of studying history in terms of better comprehending the current condition of the United States; and, hopefully, appreciate history as an edifying, enjoyable pursuit.

Instructional Materials

John M. Faragher, et al., Out of Many: A History of the American People, vol. 2, 9th ed. (2020) (see VitalSource Course Materials in the Course Information module). For the other assigned sources, click the hyperlinks in each module.

Course Policies

students will learn to recognize economic, political, and social factors that significantly influenced each decade of twentieth-century America. They will be able to explain factors leading to American involvement in major wars since the early twentieth century and identify unique aspects of such periods of American history as the Great Depression, Cold War, and Civil Rights.

Student Evaluations:

 

Assignment

Points

Percentage of Grade

Module 1

multiple choice

5

5

Module 1

discussion

5

4

Module 2

multiple choice

5

5

Module 2

discussion

5

4

Module 3

multiple choice

5

5

Module 3

discussion

5

4

Module 4

multiple choice

5

5

Module 4

discussion

5

4

Module 5

multiple choice

5

5

Module 5

discussion

5

4

Module 6

multiple choice

5

5

Module 6

discussion

5

4

Module 7

multiple choice

5

5

Module 7

discussion

5

4

Module 8

multiple choice

5

5

Module 8

discussion

5

4

Module 9

multiple choice

5

5

Module 9

discussion

5

4

Module 10

multiple choice

5

5

Module 10

discussion

5

4

Module 11

final paper

10

10

Note: each Knowledge Check and Progress Check is worth up to 0.5% of your total grade in bonus points.

Grading Scales

A = 90% - 100%                   

B = 80% -  89%         

C = 70% -  79%           

D = 60% -  69%         

F = below  60%   

Course Outline

Module

 

Assignments

Module 1

April 1 to April 7

The 1900s to World War 1

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, Chapter 21

-watch W. E. B. Dubois, “Strivings of the Negro People” (1897)

-listen to and read Booker T. Washington, "'Speech to the Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition'" (1895)

-Jane Addams, Twenty Years at Hull-House with Autobiographical Notes (1911), 89-113

-watch “There is Power in a Union” (1913)

-see Module 1: Assignments

Module 2

April 8 to April 14

World War 1

- Faragher, et al., Out of Many, Chapter 22

-watch “Over There” (1917)

-Woodrow Wilson, "Address to the Senate on the Nineteenth Amendment" (1918)

-W. E. B. Du Bois, "Returning Soldiers," The Crisis (1919), 13-14.

-A. W. Catlin, With the Help of God and a Few Marines (1919), 293-306

-listen to and read Henry Cabot Lodge, "'League of Nations' Speech" (1919)

-see Module 2: Assignments

Module 3

April 15 to April 21

The 1920s

- Faragher, et al., Out of Many, Chapter 23

-John F. Carter, Jr., "These Wild Young People: By One of Them" The Atlantic (1920)

-listen to and read Warren G. Harding, "'Readjustment' Speech" (1920)

-Marcus Garvey, "First Message to the Negroes of the World from Atlanta Prison" (1925). Also watch the UNIA anthem

-watch “The Charleston” (1920s)

-see Module 3: Assignments

Module 4

April 22 to April 28

The 1930s

- Faragher, et al., Out of Many, Chapter 24

-Donald Davidson, et al., "Introduction: A Statement of Principles," in I'll Take My Stand: The South the and the Agrarian Tradition (1930), xli-lii

-Franklin D. Roosevelt, "Democratic National Convention Speech" (1932). Also watch part of the speech

-Huey Long, "'Every Man a King' Speech" (1934). Also watch part of another Long speech

-Alfred M. Landon, "'Acceptance Speech'" (1936)

-see Module 4: Assignments

Module 5

April 29 to May 5

World War 2

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, Chapter 25

-listen to and read Franklin D. Roosevelt, "'Arsenal of Democracy' Speech" (1940)

-listen to and read Charles Lindbergh, "Des Moines Speech" (1941)

-watch The Andrews Sisters, “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” (1941)

-Langston Hughes, "Beaumont to Detroit: 1943," in The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, ed. Arnold Rampersad and David Roessel (1995), 281

-Harry S. Truman to Richard Russell, August 9, 1945

-watch a scene from “Truman” (1995)

-see Module 5: Assignments

Module 6

May 6 to May 12

The mid-to-late 1940s and the 1950s

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, chapters 26 and 27

-read George Kennan, "'Long Telegram'" (1946)

-watch “How to Spot a Communist” (1950)

-listen to “McCarthy on Trumanism” (1953)

-listen to Jack Kerouac, "The San Francisco Scene" (1959)

-watch Dwight D. Eisenhower, "Farewell Address" (1961). Here is a transcript.

-see Module 6: Assignments

Module 7

May 13 to May 19

The 1960s

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, chapters 28 and 29

-watch and read John F. Kennedy, "'Civil Rights Speech'" (1963)

-listen to and read Malcolm X, "The Ballot or the Bullet" (1964). Also watch this clip from “Malcolm X” (1992)

-listen to Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1964)

-listen to Martin Luther King, Jr., “Beyond Vietnam” (1967)

-listen to The Fugs, “War Song” (1967)

-see Module 7: Assignments

Module 8

May 20 to May 26

The 1970s

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, chapter 30 until part 30.2.4 (pg. 756)

-Carl Wittman, A Gay Manifesto (1970)

-Richard Nixon and Mao Zedong, "Memorandum of Conversation" (1972)

-Zbigniew Brzezinski to Jimmy Carter, December 2, 1978

-listen to and read Jimmy Carter, "'Crisis of Confidence' Speech" (1979)

-see Module 8: Assignments

Module 9

May 27 to June 2

The 1980s

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, chapter 30, from part 30.2.4 (pg. 756) to 30.4.2 (pg. 766)

-watch and read Ronald Reagan, "'Evil Empire' Speech" (1983)

-listen to Cesar Chavez, "'Commonwealth Club Address'" (1984). Also watch this clip from “Cesar Chavez” (2014)

-see Module 9: Assignments

Module 10

May 30 to June 6

The 1990s to 2000

-Faragher, et al., Out of Many, chapter 30, from part 30.4.2 (pg. 766)

-watch Social Distortion, “Story of My Life” (1990)

-watch and read George Bush, "'New World Order' Speech" (1991)

-Francis Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man (1992), xi-xxiii (ignore the footnotes).

-Project for a New American Century, "Statement of Principles" (1997)

-watch and read Bill Clinton, "Statement on Kosovo" (1999)

-John Burgess, "Violence Breaks Out at Seattle WTO Meeting," Washington Post (1999)

-see Module 10: Assignments

Module 11

May 27 to June 6

Final Paper

-see Module 11: Assignment
Communication

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