U.S. History from Reconstruction to the Present
HI 112 IL Spring 2022
Assignment 3 due Monday 21 March (20%)
Over the course of the semester you will write a series of essays regarding the major themes of the course. You should write as much as appropriate but the majority of successful essays will be five to ten pages (5-10 pp) in length. It will be almost impossible to fully answer the question in less than five pages (typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman 12-point font recommended) but please try not to exceed twelve pages.
As a reminder, on the essays I provide numerous questions to guide you through each of the essays, but please do not simply answer the questions point for point. The ultimate goal is to write cohesive essays not compile a set of fragments. Please therefore provide an introduction and conclusion to each essay. You are strongly encouraged to write (or at least re-write) your introduction AT THE END, so that they actually introduce the essay you have completed. In addition, you will not cover all of the sub-themes equally but you will decide which are the most important points to cover IN ORDER TO make the most effective arguments.
You are expected to make arguments, which requires that all ideas are logically coherent and are supported with evidence. Without evidence you are only making assertions, which cannot be properly evaluated. Without logic and coherence, you are simply rambling. Any argument will be considered, as long it is coherent and supported by specific historical evidence. Deal with one topic per paragraph, use topic sentences and the active voice. See below for guidance:
http://www.bartleby.com/141/strunk5.html
For instance, in this assignment you will discuss what caused the Great Depression, was the New Deal successful, was WWII the “Good War,” what were the origins of the Cold War, and in that through Vietnam, why did the rhetoric and reality not match? Why did the US oppose as well as support democracy around the globe, even as it claimed almost exclusively to support it?
You are expected to review all of the sources and all sections of the textbook in order to understand the issues, although for analytic clarity you will focus on some sections and but a few sources. The most successful essays will use sources from BOTH Yawp/Boyer AND Cobbs. That said, the greatest emphasis should be on the primary sources and interpretive essays from Major Problems.
No matter what, you are primarily answering the central question of the essay. This essay will answer what caused the anxieties about the rapid changes of the 1920s, what caused the Great Depression and did the New Deal succeed, extra credit for was World War II the “good war,” and the last questions are, what were the foundations of the Cold War, and how do we understand it, in the context of imperialism and democracy.
Remember, you will not address all parts of the questions, but will focus on answering them using the most relevant evidence
III. Roaring 20s to WWII
1. Roaring Twenties: Anxieties (30%)
IF YAWP
Chapter 21, “The Progressive Era” section VI on “Jim Crow and African American Life”
Chapter 22, “The New Era”
IF BOYER
Boyer, Chapter 23, “Coping with Change”
Cobbs and Gjerde, Chapter 7, “Cultural Divide”
“Introduction, Darrow, Sanger, Petting (4th edition)”
Fass, “Sex and Youth” and/or Larson, “Fundamentalists (both editions)”
1. Why were people in the majority so anxious about the rapid changes of the 1920s?
Because of the profound social changes of the 1920s, including women and blacks gaining and expressing mobility and power in urban areas, many people in the U.S. feared and resented the transformations. Resentments against scientific innovations (evolution), the advancement of oppressive groups (blacks in the Great Migration or white women working for wages), decades of immigration (Irish etc), and Progressive politics (which seemed to favor non-WASPs) turned into broad- discussed by Paula Fass) and how these based movements. Discuss the concerns of conservatives about these phenomena (including sex among white youth as conflicts manifested (including as discussed by Edward Larson).
And with topics like birth control, or sexual activity, address how reality contrasted with the fears and myths propagated by those afraid of changes. Be sure to address the myths and realities of the “New Woman” (Yawp 22.6 “Flapper’s appeal”) and the “New Negro” (Yawp 22.7 “New Negro”) and the rebirth of the Klu Klux Klan (Yawp 22.9 “Klan Gathering”).
Describe the social changes, and who they benefitted, then explain the anxieties, being sure to distinguish between rhetoric and reality.
III. Great Depression to Cold War
2. Depression and New Deal (40%)
Cobbs and Gjerde, Chapter 8, “Depression”
“Introduction, Hoover, The Nation, Roosevelt, Grapes of Wrath (both editions)”
Kennedy, “FDR,” and Folsom, “FDR (3d ed)”
Kennedy, “FDR,” and Sutton, “FDR (4th ed)”
IF YAWP
Chapter 23 “The Great Depression”
IF BOYER
Boyer, Chapter 23, “Coping with Change”
Boyer, Chapter 24, “New Deal”
2. What caused the Great Depression? Did the New Deal succeed in responding to the problems (40%)?
What caused the Great Depression? The stock market crash was the ultimate cause of the Great Depression butdeeper economic issues underlay the apparent prosperity or the 1920s. What were these weaknesses?
President Hoover “had a record of achievement and a well-developed social philosophy.” As a person, he was arguably one of the best human beings to ever occupy the presidency, yet nonetheless is regarded as a failure. What happened? Why did Hoover’s response to the Great Depression led to discontent? Why did a majority of the people at the time believe he had failed? Note Primary Sources in Yawp 23.9 “Bonus Army Routed”
What was the New Deal? What did it attempt to achieve? Note Primary Sources in Yawp 23.4 “Second Inaugural Address” Did it succeed?
You will briefly address all parts of the essay but particularly focus on “Did FDR and the New Deal succeed? Why or why not (or where did the policies succeed more, and where did they succeed less)? Providing evidence!”
For extra credit address substantively, the debate between Kennedy and Sutton (4th edition).
OPTIONAL EXTRA CREDIT: World War II
Cobbs and Gjerde, “Ordeal”
“Introduction, Rape of Nanking, Hawaii, Pearl Harbor, Four Freedoms (4th edition)”
Katznelson, “Civilization (4th edition)
Yawp, “World War II (skim as needed)”
Boyer, “World in Crisis,” (skim as needed)
2b. Was World War II “the Good War OPTIONAL EXTRA CREDIT?”
In some U.S. wars, like World War I and particularly Vietnam, the memory of the conflict is ambivalent or even largely negative (In a 1937 poll 70% of people believed the U.S. should have stayed out of WWI). The Second World War, in contrast, is remembered in overwhelmingly positive terms. A lot of this positive sentiment was due to the actions of the opponents— aggression overall, and the racialized brutality against millions of civilians by the Axis, particularly by Japan and Germany. Describe both the aggression and atrocities by these powers.
The other reason the war is remembered fondly, is the focus on freedom by the allies during the war, and then afterwards, its impact on the U.S. economy. Discuss the impact on both wages and corporate production and profits. Finally, during the war African Americans and women gained opportunities and rights previously denied to them by the dominant groups (see for instance the essay by Alan Brinkley, Cobbs). Nonetheless, racism and sexism continued, race riots exploded (ex/ Zoot Suit Riots), and of course the scores of millions of casualties across the globe. In balance though, was this “The Good War?”
For extra extra credit, address the insights of Katznelson (4th edition)
Cold War I (40%)
Cobbs and Gjerde, “Cold War”
“Introduction, de Gaulle, Ho Chi Minh, Kennan, Wallace, Churchill, Truman Doctrine (4th edition)”
IF YAWP
Chapter 25 “The Cold War”
IF BOYER
Boyer, “Cold War”
3. Was the Cold War (for the US) always about defending democracy against Soviet aggression? (Hint: No— it was often not about that—EXPLAIN)
(40%)
What was Cold War actually about? Why was it that despite Truman Doctrine defining it as “supporting free people” against “attempted subjugation” (Cobbs) sometimes in the 1950s the US supported pro-US democratic movements (western Europe) BUT at other times supported pro-US anti-democratic movements (Iran, Guatemala, Vietnam, etc see especially Boyer)? Given that reality, what is a better way to define and explain the Cold War?
This essay returns to the exploration of why in foreign policy there is so often a dis-connect between rhetoric (the words used to defend policy) and reality (what actually happened. We will re-visit this phenomena later—UNDERSTANDING IT IS ESSENTIAL TO COMPLETING THE FINAL CUMULATIVE ESSAY
In the fourth edition, compare Kennan, de Gaulle, and Churchill, to the arguments made by Ho Chi Minh and Wallace. Note that this essay is worth more than the others—in part because here you should connect these events to the imperialism discussed in the prior assignment.
(You can choose any of the below)
Extra Credit
Using the arguments by LaFeber and Lawrence (4th ed) how do we explain why the US became embroiled in the Vietnam War. Was it a mistake? How and why?
Extra Credit II
Using Boyer and Cobbs discuss the reasons for the “Red Scare” in the USA. Why were people so ready to believe in internal enemies? This is an example of rhetoric versus reality in domestic affairs.
Extra Credit III
Using the article below, explain the differences between the rhetoric and the reality regarding the Cuban Missile Crisis
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/01/the-real-cuban-missile-crisis/309190/
NEED ASSIGNMENT HELP?
We guarantee plagiarism-free and AI-free writing services. Every assignment is crafted with originality, precision, and care to meet your academic needs.
Ready to get started? Place your order directly on this post!
Let us help you achieve excellence—authentic work, every time.
Leave a Reply