TITLE: History 4309 – United States and the Cold War
TIME/LOCATION: MWF, 10:00-10:50 am, 127 Holden Hall, Texas Tech University, Fall Semester 2003
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. David L. Snead
Visit my web site at www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead
OFFICE/OFFICE HOURS: MW, 8-9:00 am and noon-1 p.m., and by appointment. Generally, I am in my office by 7:15 am and stay to 3:30 pm.
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 examine the causes, course, and consequences of the Cold War. More specifically, the goals of this course include:
1) To understand the close connection between the Cold War and every aspect of American society between 1945 and 1991. How many American families experienced the loss of loved ones in military conflicts stemming from the Cold War? Did you know that many songs, movies, and popular books owe their impetus to the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union? How have American sports been influenced by the Cold War?
2) To select, research, and discuss a topic concerning the United States and the Cold War. You will have to use primary and secondary sources to investigate your topic and then write a well-organized and well-argued research paper.
3) To recognize trends in American diplomatic history that continue to today. How has the budget of the United States been influenced by its diplomatic history? Why does the United States often see itself as the world policeman? How do economic issues still affect the development and execution of American foreign policy? You will recognize these and other trends as the course unfolds.
COURSE MATERIALS:
1) Text – Judge, Edward H., and John W. Langdon. A Hard and Bitter Peace: A Global History of the Cold War. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1996.
2) Supplementary Reading
a)
Dudziak, Mary L. Cold
War Civil Rights: Race and the
Image of American Democracy.
Princeton University Press, 2000.
b)
Whitfield, Stephen J. The
Culture of the Cold War 2nd ed.
Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins
University Press, 1996.
c)
Fischer, Beth A. The Reagan
Reversal: Foreign Policy and the
End of the Cold War. Columbia:
University of Missouri Press, 1997.
d) Dr. Seuss. The Butter Battle Book. New York: Random House, 1984.
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 Test – the test will cover chapters 1-9 in the text and any material addressed in class. It will be worth 15% of your final grade.
2) Three short papers – each student will be required to write three 3 to 5 page papers that focus on the supplementary readings. Paper 1 will focus on Whitfield’s The Culture of the Cold War. Paper 2 will examine Dudziak’s Cold War Civil Rights. Paper 3 will address Fischer’s The Reagan Reversal. The three essays will be worth 40% of your final grade.
3) A research paper – you will have to select a topic, do research using primary and secondary sources, and write a 12 to 15-page research paper. Additionally, you will have to turn in a research proposal, working bibliography, and rough draft at announced times as well make an oral presentation of your research. Please see the attached assignment for a more detailed explanation of the requirements for the paper. The research paper will be worth 25%. Your proposal, working bibliography, rough draft, and oral presentation will be worth 5% of your final 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 chapters 10-18 in the text and any material addressed in class since the second test. The exam will include an essay question on Dr. Seuss’s The Butter Battle Book. The exam will be worth 15% 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 or 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 verification of need for assistance from the Office of Disabled Student Services in West Hall.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE:
9/3 – Introduction Read Ch. 1
9/5 – Historical Background to the Cold War Read Ch. 2
9/8 – “ “ “ “ “ “
9/10 – Collapse of the Wartime Alliance, 1945-6 Read Ch. 3
9/12 – Identifying the Soviet Threat and Containment Read Ch. 4
Research Topic Due
9/15 – Containment in Action: Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan Read Ch. 5
9/17 – Escalation of the Cold War: Berlin, the Bomb, and China Read Ch. 6-7
9/19 – TBA
9/22
– NSC 68 and the Korean War
Read Ch. 8
Paper 1 Due – The Culture of the Cold War
9/24 – Eisenhower’s New Look Foreign Policy Read Ch. 9
9/26 – “ “ “ “ “ “
9/29 – Challenges to the New Look
10/1 – Test #1 Read Ch. 10
10/3 – Kennedy and the Cold War
10/6 – “ “ “ “ “ Read Ch. 11
10/8 – “ “ “ “ “
10/13 – Evolution of the Cold War in the 1960s (beyond Vietnam) Read Ch. 13
Paper 2 Due – Cold War Civil Rights
Last day to drop a course and receive an automatic
W
10/15 – Détente under Nixon
10/20 – Ford, Carter, and the End of Détente Read Ch. 15
10/22 – Ronald Reagan and the Evil Empire Read Ch. 16
Working Bibliography (including Primary and Secondary Sources) Due
10/27 – Reagan, Gorbachev, and the Thaw of the Cold War
Paper 3 Due – The Reagan Reversal
10/29 – Bush, Gorbachev, and the End of the Cold War Read Ch. 18
10/31 – Legacy of the Cold War
11/3
– Final Exam
11/5 – Library and Research Day
11/7 – Library and Research Day
11/10 – Library and Research Day
11/12 – Library and Research Day
11/14 – Library and Research Day
11/17 – Student Presentations
Rough Draft Due
11/19 – Student Presentations
11/21 – Student Presentations
11/24 – Student Presentations
11/26-11/30 – No Class (Thanksgiving Holiday)
12/1 – Student Presentations
12/3 – Student Presentations
12/5 – Student Presentations
Last Day to Turn in Final Papers
Last day to drop a course and still receive a W
(you must see Dr. Snead)
12/8 – Student Presentations
12/10 – Student Presentations
Paper
Assignments:
Paper
1: The
Culture of the Cold War
Directions: In The Culture of the Cold War, Stephen Whitfield examines impact of the Cold War on American culture and society in the late 1940s and 1950s. In your essay, identify and describe his arguments, evaluate the sources and methodology he uses to make them, and analyze how persuasive he is. You must include in your paper specific examples from his book, including quotes, to support your analysis. Cite specific examples using footnotes to support your arguments. The format for the footnotes can be found on Dr. Snead’s website, www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead, at the “Reading and Writing Tips” link.
Due
Date, Rough Draft, and Format:
1) Your paper is due in class on Monday, September 22.
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: Cold War Civil Rights
Directions: In Cold War Civil Rights, Mary Dudziak argues that U.S. civil rights and Cold War policies became intertwined between 1945 and the early 1960s and that they cannot be understood separate from each other. In your paper, you need to describe her arguments, evaluate the sources and methodology she uses to make them, and analyze how persuasive she is. You must include in your paper specific examples from her book, including quotes, to support your analysis. Use footnotes to cite your examples. The format for the footnotes can be found on Dr. Snead’s website, www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead, at the “Reading and Writing Tips” link.
Due
Date, Rough Draft, and Format:
1) Your paper is due in class on Monday, October 13.
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 3: The Reagan Reversal
Directions: In your essay, address the following questions. What does Beth Fischer argue in The Reagan Reversal? What supporting evidence does she use? How persuasive is she? You must include in your paper specific examples from her book, including quotes, to support your analysis. Use footnotes to cite your examples. The format for the footnotes can be found on Dr. Snead’s website, www3.tltc.ttu.edu/snead, at the “Reading and Writing Tips” link.
Due
Date, Rough Draft, and Format:
1) Your paper is due in class on Monday, October 27.
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.
12/5 – Final Papers, including a bibliography, are due. You may turn the paper in earlier if you would like.