TITLE: History 3332, Sec. 01 – U.S. Military Affairs Since 1900
TIME: TTh, 8:00-9:20 a.m., 28 Holden Hall
Spring Semester 2004, Texas Tech University
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. David L. Snead
Visit my web site at www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead
OFFICE HOURS: TTH, 11:00 am-noon, W, 2:00-3:00 pm, and by appointment. Generally, I am in my office by 7:15 a.m. and stay to 3:45 p.m. everyday. If I am in my office, feel free to stop by if you need to see me. If it is not a good time, I will let you know. You can email me at david.snead@ttu.edu. You can also call me at 742-1004 (ext. 240).
Office: 49 Holden Hall
COURSE OBJECTIVES: To obtain a better understanding of the events, people, and ideas that helped shape the military affairs of the United States during the 20th century. More specifically, the goals of this course include:
1) To discover the importance of studying U.S. military history. Why is a course on U.S. military history even taught at Texas Tech? How will this course influence your understanding of the overall history of the United States? Why study military history when there are so many other important historical fields? You should discover your own answers to these questions throughout the semester.
2) To gain an appreciation for the influence of the period under study in this course on the events of today. How did the four major wars of the 20th century—World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War—and the numerous smaller ones change and/or influence the United States? Why has the United States developed the military policies that it follows? You will find answers to these questions and more in this class.
3) To recognize the monumental changes in tactics, strategy, national policy, weaponry, and technology in the 20th century that influenced the evolution of American military. Why did the United States move from maintaining a relatively small peacetime military to a relatively large one? How did the American military evolve through the course of the century? How did advances in communication, transportation, and technology alter the battlefield and the world power structure?
COURSE MATERIALS:
1) Text – Millett, Allan R., and Peter Maslowski. For the Common Defense: A Military History of the United States of America. New York: The Free Press, 1994.
2) Supplementary Readings
a) Eisenhower, John S.D. YANKS: The Epic Story of the American Army in World War I. New York: The Free Press, 2001.
b) Kershaw, Alex. The Bedford Boys: One American Town’s Ultimate D-Day Sacrifice. Cambridge, MA: De Capo Press, 2003.
c) Moore, Harold G., and Joseph L. Galloway. We Were Soldiers Once…And Young: Ia Drang: The Battle That Changed the War in Vietnam. New York: HarperPerennial, 1992.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Members of this class will be responsible for all material addressed in this course, including lectures, readings, discussions, and films. The final course grade will be based on the following:
1) One midterm test – the test will be worth 20% of your final grade. It will cover chapters 10 through 14 in the text and any material covered in class.
2) 6 quizzes - 7 quizzes will be given based on your readings from the text. However, I reserve the right to give a quiz on any material covered in class. Your lowest quiz grade will be dropped. There will be no make-ups, except for extreme circumstances (A missed quiz will be recorded as a zero). The quizzes will be worth 15% of your final grade.
3) Two short essays - each student will be required to write two 3 to 5 page papers that focus on the supplementary readings. The papers combined will be worth 35% of your final grade grade.
4) A final exam - the final exam will be cumulative in the sense that the study of history is based on what is already known. However, emphasis will be given to the material covered since the last test, including chapters 15 through 18 and the epilogue in the text, and Moore and Galloway’s We Were Soldiers Once. The exam will be worth 30% of your final grade.
GRADE SCHEDULE: A+ (98-100), A (92-100), A- (90-91), B+ (88-89), B (82-87), B- (80-81), C+ (78-79), C (72-77), C- (70-71), D+ (68-69), D (62-67), D- (60-61), F (0-59).
****All
work done in this class must adhere to Texas Tech University’s honor
code.****
ATTENDANCE POLICY: Regular attendance is expected. Every absence, whether excused or unexcused, will be recorded. Any student missing between two and three weeks of classes (i.e. five to six class sessions) will have his/her final average automatically LOWERED ONE FULL LETTER GRADE. If a student misses more than three weeks of classes (i.e. seven or more class), he/she will automatically FAIL. A student arriving late or leaving early is subject to being counted absent. Texas House Bill 256 requires institutions of higher education to excuse a student from attending classes or other required activities, including examinations, for the observance of a religious holy day. The student shall also be excused for time necessary to travel. An institution may not penalize the student for the absence and allows for the student to take an exam or complete an assignment from which the student is excused. No prior notification of the instructor is required.
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES (Americans with Disabilities Act): I will make every reasonable accommodation to assist students with disabilities. It is the responsibility of the student to let me know of the disability as soon as possible and to help develop the best program for accommodating his/her needs. Students should provide appropriate verification of need for assistance from the Office of Disabled Student Services in West Hall.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE ASSIGNMENT:
1/22 – TBA
1/27 – U.S. Military before World War I and the Causes of the War
1/29 – American Neutrality and the Decision for War Read Ch. 11
2/3 – U.S. Involvement to the Summer of 1918
Paper 1 (Eisenhower) Due
2/5 – End of the War and the Treaty of Versailles Read Ch. 12
2/10 – The American Military between the Wars
2/12 – Steps to World War II – A Reluctant Participant Read Ch. 13
2/17 – 1942-43 – Turning the Tide
2/19 – “ “ “ " Read Ch. 14
2/24 – Defeating Italy and the Air Campaign
2/25
– Last day to drop a course and receive an automatic W
2/26 – Triumph in Europe
3/2 – To V-J Day
3/4 – Midterm Read Ch. 15
3/9 – The Immediate Aftermath of World War II
3/13-3/21
– No Class (Spring Break)
3/23 – Korean War
3/25 – “ “ Read Ch. 16
3/30 – “New Look” and Eisenhower’s Military Program
4/1 – Flexible Response, Kennedy, and the Cold War
4/6 – Crises of the Kennedy Administration Read Ch. 17
4/8 – U.S. Involvement in Vietnam to 1965
4/13 – LBJ’s Escalation of the War
4/15 – Vietnamization, Nixon, and the End of the War Read Ch. 18
4/20 – 1962 to 1980 – The U.S. Military Beyond Vietnam
4/22 – The American Military under Reagan
4/27 – George Bush, Sr. and His Military Questions Read Epilogue
4/29 – The American Military in the 1990s
4/30
– Last day to drop a course and still receive a W (you talk to Dr.
Snead)
Final Exam – Thurs., May 6, 10:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Paper 1: Yanks
History 3332, Sec. 01
Dr. Snead
Directions: John Eisenhower argues in Yanks that his purpose in writing the book was “to strike a balance, to examine how the AEF came about, to describe the gargantuan efforts needed to create it, supply it, train it, and fight it, and in so doing show how the modern American Army was born.” (p. xiv) How successful was he in achieving his purpose? Explain why he was or was not successful? Make sure you provide specific examples to support your arguments.
Due
Date, Rough Draft, and Format:
1)
Your paper is due on Tuesday, February 3.
2) The paper must be typed, doubled-spaced with margins on each side of approximately one inch, and be between 3 and 5 pages in length. In addition, you must turn in a typed and hand-edited rough draft. Any final paper not containing a typed and hand-edited draft will be penalized 5 points. Any paper turned in after the due date will be assessed a ten point penalty for each day it is late, including weekends.
3) Please see Professor Snead’s web site at www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead for tips on writing your essay. With very few exceptions, the best essays in this class will be the ones that undergo several revisions. You will only have to turn in one rough draft, but I expect that you will make several. In your revisions, check for grammatical errors, organizational problems, and the persuasiveness of your arguments. Papers failing to meet the minimum standards presented on the website will be graded accordingly.
4) If you have any questions and/or problems at any stage of this assignment, it is your responsibility to seek assistance from me.
Paper 2: Bedford Boys
History 3332, Sec. 01
Dr. Snead
Directions: Alex Kershaw’s The Bedford Boys examines one American town during World War II with an emphasis on the importance of D-Day to its population. How well does he describe the experiences of the soldiers and citizens of Bedford, VA during the war and especially surrounding D-Day? What sources does he use to write his story? Are they effective? Explain using specific examples.
Due
Date, Rough Draft, and Format:
1)
Your paper is due on Thursday, February 26.
2) The paper must be typed, doubled-spaced with margins on each side of approximately one inch, and be between 3 and 5 pages in length. In addition, you must turn in a typed and hand-edited rough draft. Any final paper not containing a typed and hand-edited draft will be penalized 5 points. Any paper turned in after the due date will be assessed a ten point penalty for each day it is late, including weekends.
3) Please see Professor Snead’s web site at www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead for tips on writing your essay. With very few exceptions, the best essays in this class will be the ones that undergo several revisions. You will only have to turn in one rough draft, but I expect that you will make several. In your revisions, check for grammatical errors, organizational problems, and the persuasiveness of your arguments. Papers failing to meet the minimum standards presented on the website will be graded accordingly.
4) If you have any questions and/or problems at any stage of this assignment, it is your responsibility to seek assistance from me.