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History 387:

World War II

Course Syllabus

Course Description: This class will study the causes, the course,  and the implications of  World War II, this greatest of twentieth century conflicts.  It will handle most of the geographic areas involved, the major diplomatic, political and military events, and some of the key figures of the war.  It covers the time period of 1918 to the present, with an emphasis of course on the years 1939-1945.

CLASS FORMAT AND PROCEDURE:

  • 1)  HI 387 consists primarily of lectures, supplemented by readings and/or viewing of videotapes and disks.  For the most part, one of the three professors will deliver lectures each day. Each professor will be responsible for directing and evaluating student work in the course for one section of students.  Guest lecturers will be used as the occasion and availability warrant.
  • 2)  The class schedule will consist of two eighty-minute sessions each week.  Parts of each session is allotted to lectures by the instructors, film presentations, and occasional questions and discussion.
  • 3) Lectures both supplement and complement reading assignments, as well as introduce problems to be brought up in the discussions.  Discussion periods will investigate problems and look into interpretations of subjects in the readings and/or lectures.
  • 4) Some brief outlines of lectures, maps and other supplementary materials will be distributed to students on the web.

STUDENT REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE:

  • 1) Attendance: Students are expected to regularly attend lectures and participate in classroom discussions. Attendence will be taken regularly. Since there is no penalty for absences, there will be no excused absences.
  • 2) Reading assignments: Readings from the text and supplementary sources are given on a weekly basis. Two-to-three-page reaction papers will be assigned from the readings four times during the semester.
  • 3) Essays: Four two-to-three page essays will be assigned during the session. These essays will be based upon questions given on selected readings. Students are expected to express their reaction and answer each question in a two-to-three page, typed,and double spaced paper. The one lowest of four essay scores will be dropped. Each essay will be worth 50 points for a total of 150 points toward the course grade. Each essay will be due in class on the day stated in the syllabus. Since the lowest of three essays will be dropped, no essays will be accepted after this deadline, nor makeup essays accepted.
  • 4) Examinations: Exams will be presented on the fifth, tenth, and finals week. Each examination will include an objective section consisting of multiple choice, true/false, matching, and map items. . Each examination will count 50 points toward the course grade. In total the three examinations will count 50 points toward the course grade.
  • 5) Makeups: Makeup examinations will be given on one afternoon near the end of the session. Makeup examinations will be given only to students who have legitimate excuses (e.g. medical emergency, court appearance, etc.) and can produce a written explanation from an authoritative third party (doctor, court clerk, etc.). No makeups for essays.
  • 7) Evaluation of student performance will be made upon: a) the three examinations [50%]; and b) the reaction papers [50%].
  • 8) Grade scale: 270-300=A; 240-269=B; 210-239=C; 180-209=D; 0-179=F.

REQUIRED READINGS:

Gerhard L. Weinberg. A World at Arms : A Global History of World War II.   Cambridge University Press, 1995. (Weinberg)

James S. Olson and Randy Roberts, eds. The Good War: Readings in the History of World War II. New York: Forbes Publishing, 2000. (The Good War)

  • PROJECTED CLASS SCHEDULE:
  • WEEK I--1/11
    • 1) Course Introduction.
    • Readings:   Weinberg, pp. 6-47, Web Readings 1.
  • WEEK II--1/16-18
    • 1) The Twenty Years Truce" continued with an emphasis on the rise of the dictators.
    • 2) "Hitler and the Rise of Nazism in Germany".
    • Readings:   Weinberg, pp. 6-47; The Good War, pp. 27-56; Web Readings 2.
  • WEEK III--1/23-25
    • 1) "Diplomatic Overview of Europe in the 1930's".
    • 2) "Fall of Poland".
    • Readings:   Weinberg, pp. 48-64; The Good War, pp. 69-77; Web Readings 3-4.
  • WEEK IV--1/30-2/1
    • 2) "Sitzkrieg and Blitzkrieg".
    • 3) "The Fall of France and Dunkirke"
    • Readings:   Weinberg, pp. 64-138; The Good War, pp. 69-77; Web Readings 5-6.
  • WEEK V--2/6-8
    • FIRST REACTION PAPER DUE FEBRUARY 6
    • 1)"The Battle of Britain"
    • 2) "Barbarossa:  The Invasion of Russia"
    • Readings:   Weinberg, pp. 138-238, 263-309; The Good War, pp. ; Web Readings 7-8.
  • WEEK VI--2/13-15
    • FIRST REACTION PAPER
    • 1) "The United States and the War in Europe"
    • 2)"The Atlantic War"
    • Readings:  Weinberg, pp. 238-245, 364-407; The Good War, pp. 11-27, ; Web Readings 9-10.
  • WEEK VII--2/20-22
    • EXAMINATION #1
    • 1)"Japan in the 1930's"
    • 2) "Pearl Harbor"
    • 3) "Japanese Expansion after Pearl Harbor"
    • Readings:  Weinberg, pp. 245-263, 310-363; The Good War, pp. 157-173, 237-300; Web Readings 11-13. 
  • WEEK VIII--2/27-3/1
    • SECOND REACTION PAPER DUE MARCH 1
    • 1)"North Africa and the Desert War" 
    • 2) "Sicily and the Struggle for the Italian Peninsula"
    • Readings:   Weinberg, pp.  431-447, 464-470, 587-616, 656-666, 750-760, 771-776; The Good War, pp. 1-10; Web Readings 14-15.
  • WEEK IX--3/6-8
    • 1)"The Russian Front"
    • 2) "Air War Over Germany"
    • Weinberg, pp. 408-431, 447-464, 540-542, 574-580, 601-611, 616-619, 667-676, 703-721, 771-776; The Good War, pp. 77-92; Web Readings 16-17.
  • WEEK X--3/20-22
    • 2) "The Invasion of Fortress Europe--D-Day and its Aftermath"
    • 3) "The Recovery of France, including the Battle of the Bulge"
    • Readings:  Weinberg, pp. 687-702, 760-771, 776-779; The Good War, pp. 93-147; Web Readings 18-19.
  • WEEK XI--3/27-29
    • THIRD REACTION PAPER DUE MARCH 29
    • 1) "The Fall of the Third Reich"
    • 2) "Occupation and Resistance."
    • Readings:  Weinberg, pp. 509-533; 780-841; The Good War, pp. 147-156; Web Readings 20-21.
  • WEEK XII--4/3-5
        EXAM #2
    • 1)"The Holocaust"
    • 2) "The U. S. Home Front" 
    • Readings:  Weinberg, pp. 471-509; The Good War, pp. 173-237; Web Readings 22-23.
  • WEEK XIII--4/10-12
    • 1)"The Pacific Naval/Amphibious War."
    • 2) "The Burma-Chinese Theatre."
    • Readings:  Weinberg, pp. 632-656, 843-866; The Good War, pp. ; Web Readings 24-25.
  • WEEK XIV--4/17-19
    • 1) "The Assault on Japan"
    • 2) "The Air War over Japan"
          Readings: Weinberg, pp. 866-882; The Good War, pp. ; Web Readings 26-27.
  • WEEK XV--4/24-26
    • THIRD REACTION PAPER DUE APRIL 24
    • 1) "The Nuclear War--Hiroshima and Nagasaki"
    • 2) "The Implications of the War:  The War Crimes Trials."
    • Readings: Weinberg, pp. 536-586, 882-920; The Good War, pp. 57-68, 309-325, 353-377; Web Readings 28-29. 
  • WEEK XVI--5/1
    • 1)  "The Implications of the War:  The Cold War."
    • Readings: Weinberg, pp. 619-631, 722-749; The Good War, pp. 333-352, 377-401; Web Readings 30.