HST-019: The
Depression and the New Deal
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HST-019: The Depression and New DealProfessor: Andrew Morris
Course Description:We will be focusing on a dynamic period of American history, from the mid-1920s through the late 1930s, a period that many historians see as a “watershed” in American history – a point that marks a decisive break from the past and sets a pattern for future events. In ten weeks, we will study topics ranging from the spread of advertising in the 1920s to the cause of the Depression of the 1930s to the “alphabet soup” agencies of the New Deal and to the lives of ordinary Americans living through this remarkable time.
Reading:There’s a lot of reading in this class – probably about 150-200 pages per week on average, though some weeks more and some weeks less. The readings are a mix of primary sources (documents written or produced in the early Cold War) or secondary sources (books or articles written by scholars or observers at some later point in time). You are expected to have read the assigned readings on the class that they’re assigned for, and to have them with you in class.
Required Books:Alan Brinkley, Voices of Protest: Huey Long, Father Coughlin
and the Great Depression
Attendance:Someone once said that 90 percent of life is just showing up. It won’t be 90 percent of your grade in this class, but you’re expected to show up. I will take attendance, and for every class you miss after three classes, your final grade will be lowered by 1/3 of a letter grade; i.e., if you miss 4 classes, and you earn an “A”, your final grade will be lowered to an “A-“; miss 5 classes, it will be a “B+”, and so-on.
Participation:This course will depend on your participation in classroom discussion and activities, and participation will constitute a portion of your grade. Participation consists of being an active and informed member of the class in our discussions, in-class projects, and occasional in-class writing assignments. If you are shy and have trouble speaking in class, please see me to discuss strategies for participation.
Writing:There’s a lot of writing in this course: a weekly assignment of 250-500 words, plus a midterm paper (4-6 pages) and a final paper (5-8 pages). The topic of the weekly assignments will be distributed on Mondays, and the assignments will be due at the beginning of the class on Fridays, unless otherwise noted. These will serve as the basis for our discussion on Fridays. The midterm and final papers will pose broader questions that will ask you to integrate the work we’ve done during the term.
Classroom Courtesy:This class will be our own little community for 10 weeks. As members of this community, our expectation will be that we will treat each other with courtesy and respect, particularly when we encounter differences of opinion. It is also essential that we avoid things that serve as distractions during class. This includes use of any electronic devices, reading non-class material, extraneous conversations, etc.
Evaluation:Participation: 15%
Note on Academic Honesty:(This statement abstracted from the Union College policy on plagiarism) Your responsibility as a student is academic honesty. You should know and understand your obligations as a student and are expected to dedicate yourself to the highest ideals of scholarship. Primary among the values at the College are personal integrity and initiative, independence of thought, critical understanding and responsibility for one’s own work. Academic dishonesty is a denial of these ideals and values for which the College stands. The code of academic honesty requires:
It is the responsibility of each student to know and to act at all times in a manner consistent with the obligation of academic honesty Plagiarism is a more subtle form of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism is a serious offense to the academic community, because it threatens the whole basis of the academic enterprise: the growth and training of the student’s mind as it encounters the disciplines and records of other minds. Plagiarism weakens our confidence in the solidity and reliability of a scholar’s work. It injects fraud and deceit into a relationship built on trust and respect. Plagiarism is the theft of written material, usually with the intent
of presenting the work of another person as one’s own. It can range
from the deliberate, wholesale copying from a book, or the Internet,
to a naïve failure to supply sufficient information about quoted and
derived material. The intent to deceive lies behind the “hard core”
act of plagiarism, but all students should be aware of the
complexities of handling scholarly materials. It is not only an
exact copying of an unacknowledged source that can be termed
plagiarism. The much more common occasion is found in a paper that
is not a clone of the original text, but that parallels the
appropriated material too closely. The honest student must be aware
of how to handle his or her source materials responsibly.
Assignments and Due Dates:
Week One: Politics of the Hoover EraMonday, Jan. 5
Wednesday, Jan. 7
Friday, Jan. 9
Week Two: Consumer Society in the 1920sMonday, Jan 12Wednesday, Jan. 14
Friday, Jan. 16
Week Three: The Great DepressionMonday, Jan. 19
Tuesday Night: Movie Viewing: “Gabriel Over the White House”Wednesday, Jan. 21
Friday, Jan. 23
Week Four: The Crisis of Rural AmericaMonday, Jan. 26
Wednesday, Jan. 28
Friday, Jan. 30
Week Five: Recovery and ReformMonday, Feb. 2
Wednesday, Feb. 4
Friday, Feb. 6
Week Six: Making Do in the DepressionMonday, Feb. 9
Wednesday, Feb. 11
Friday, Feb. 13
Week Seven: Labor Shall RuleMonday, Feb. 16Wednesday, Feb. 18
Friday, Feb. 20
Week Eight: A New Deal for Race Relations?Monday, Feb. 23
Wednesday, Feb. 25
Friday, Feb. 27
Week Nine: Contesting the New DealMonday, March 1Wednesday, March 3
Friday, March 5
Week Ten: The End of ReformMonday, March 8
Wednesday, March 10
Friday, March 12
Final Paper Due on Exam Day |
SyllabusAssignmentsScheduleLinks |
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HST-019 Home | Andrew Morris' Home Page |
Department of History |
Union College Home Page
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