June 30, 1676: Bacon's Rebellion and the Transformation of Virginia

September 3, 1783: American Independence: Reconciling Liberty and Power

March 6, 1857: The Dred Scott Case is Decided by the U.S. Supreme Court

July 6, 1892: The Homestead Steel Strike Comes to Blows

May 27, 1943: Why We Fight: The American People and World War II

April 1, 1985: Nike, Michael Jordan, and the New Global Capitalism

This course examines key political, legal, economic, and social developments in American history. Students completing the course will:

1) gain factual knowledge about the past;
2) master major historiographical interpretations;
3) evaluate key primary documents; and,
4) think critically about the presentation of American history.

June 30, 1676: Bacon's Rebellion and the Transformation of Virginia

Primary Sources

- "The Declaration of the People, against Sr: Wm: Berkeley," by Nathaniel Bacon [ link ]
- "Those That Have Been Executed For the Late Rebellion in Virginia," by William Berkeley [ link ]
- Virginia Slave Codes [ link ]

Secondary Sources

- Wilcomb E. Washburn, "Nathaniel Bacon," American National Biography Online Feb. 2000.  [ pdf ]
- Paul David Nelson, "Sir William Berkeley," American National Biography Online Feb. 2000. [ pdf ]
- Edmund Morgan, "Rebellion," from American Slavery American Freedom [ pdf ]
- Edmund Morgan, "Slavery and Freedom: The American Paradox," JAH (1972) pgs. 14-29. [ pdf ]

September 3, 1783: American Independence: Reconciling Liberty and Power

Primary Sources

- The Declaration of Independence (1776) [ link ]
- Treaty of Paris (1783) [ link ]
- The Constitution of the United States (1787) [ link ]
- Federalist 10 and Federalist 51 (1788) [ link ]
- The Bill of Rights (1791) [ link ]

Secondary Sources

- Joseph Ellis, "The Generation" from Founding Brothers [ pdf ]
- Gordon Wood, "The Worthy Against the Licentious" from Creation of the American Republic [ pdf ]

March 6, 1857: The Dred Scott Case is Decided by the U.S. Supreme Court

Secondary Sources

- Paul Finkelman, "Introduction to the Dred Scott case" in Dred Scott v. Sandford: A Brief History with Documents (The Bedford Series in History and Culture), pages 1-53.

July 6, 1892: The Homestead Steel Strike Comes to Blows

Secondary Sources

- Joseph Frazier Wall, "Andrew Carnegie," American National Biography [ pdf ]
- Leon Wolff, "Battle at Homestead" [ link ]
- Joseph Frazier Wall, "The Rich Man's Burden and how Andrew Carnegie Unloaded It" [ link ]
- John Gordon, "The Passions of Henry Clay Frick" [ link ]
- Video: The Homestead Strike [ vid 1 ] [ vid 2 ] [ vid 3 ] [ full video ]

Primary Sources

- The Musical Saga of Homestead [ link ]
- A Show of Support: Farmers Feed Homestead Strikers [ link ]
- “An Awful Battle at Homestead, Pa.” [ link ]
- Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth: Workers Protest Carnegie Library [ link ]
- “I Will Kill Frick”: Emma Goldman Recounts the Attempt to Assassinate Frick [ link ]
- Swinton’s Silver Lining: Taking Comfort in the 1892 Strikes [ link ]
- Frick’s Fracas: Henry Frick Makes His Case [ link ]
- A Workingman’s Prayer for the Masses [ link ]
- Telling Tales: Byington’s Study of Homestead [ link ]
- Outside Looking In: Byington on Homestead’s Women [ link ]

May 27, 1943 : Why We Fight: The American People and World War II

Primary Sources

- "Prelude to War," Frank Capra, 1943 [ link ]
- Four Freedoms Address, President Franklin Roosevelt, January 6, 1941 [ link ] [ listen ]
- The Atlantic Charter, Winston Churchill & Franklin Roosevelt, Newfoundland, August 14, 1941 [ link ]
- War Message Against Japan, President Franklin Roosevelt, December 8, 1941 [ link ]
- Document: Executive Order 8802 | President Franklin D. Roosevelt | June 25, 1941 [ link ]
- Document: Executive Order 9981 | President Harry Truman | July 26, 1948 [ link ]
- Additional primary sources available on assignment page.

Secondary Sources

- Andrew E. Kersten, "African Americans and World War II,"OAH Magazine, 2002 [ link ]
- Roger Daniels, "Incarcerating Japanese Americans,"OAH Magazine, 2002 [ link ]
- James McNaughton, "Japanese Americans and the U.S. Army," Army History, 2003 [ link ]  
- Judy Litoff & David Smith, "American Women in a World at War,"OAH Magazine, 2002 [ link ]
- Betty Friedan, Chapters One and Two from The Feminine Mystique (1963). [ link1 ] [ link2 ]
- Jeff Littlejohn, "World War II: Domestic Affairs," Encyclopedia of American Political History [ link ]
- Jeff Littlejohn, "World War II: Foreign Policy," Encyclopedia of American Political History [ link ]

April 1, 1985: Nike, Michael Jordan, and the New Global Capitalism

Primary Sources

- This American Life, "Meet the Pros," Act One. Crispy with the Rock. [ link ]
- Luis "TRIKZ" da silva in Nike Freestyle commercial [ link ]
- Nike sweatshop interviews with consumers [ link ]
- Nike, Inc. v. Kasky (2002) [ overview ] [ decision ] [ oral argument ] [ documents ]

Secondary Sources

- Walter Lafeber, Michael Jordan and the New Global Capitalism (W.W. Norton, 2002).

Jan 12-Jan 18: Course Introduction

Jan 19 –Feb 1: Bacon's Rebellion and the Transformation of Virginia
Feb 1: Response statement and PowerPoint due by midnight.

Feb 2-Feb 15: American Independence: Reconciling Liberty and Power
Feb 15: Response statement and PowerPoint due by midnight.

Feb 16-March 1: The Dred Scott Case is Decided by the U.S. Supreme Court
March 1: Response statement and PowerPoint due by midnight.

March 2-March 15: The Homestead Steel Strike Comes to Blows
March 15: Response statement and PowerPoint due by midnight.

March 16-March 29: Why We Fight: The American People and World War II
March 29: Response statement and PowerPoint due by midnight.

March 30-April 26: Nike, Michael Jordan, and the New Global Capitalism
April 26: Response statement and PowerPoint due by midnight.

April 27-May 10: Completion of Digital Module
May 10: Digital Module is due by midnight

A. Teachers will complete all the assigned readings for each unit in the course.

B. At the end of each unit, teachers will submit a 500 word essay that answers the assigned discussion question for that unit.

C. Over the course of the term, teachers will construct three PowerPoint presentations. Each presentation will deal with one of the flashpoint events discussed in the course. Teachers are free to choose which flashpoint events they would like to examine in their presentations. Each presentation should be designed so that it may be used in the classroom.

D. At the end of the course, each teacher will submit a digital module of his or her own design. Each module should be formatted in accordance with the assignments presented in this course. Teachers will submit their modules in Microsoft Word, and I will format them for the internet.

All ESSAYS will be posted on our course blog, which you may reach at: http://his597.blogspot.com/

To post your essay, follow these instructions.
1) Select the topic to which you are responding.
2) Click on Comments at the end of the post.
3) Copy and paste your essay for the topic.

Please email PowerPoints and your Final Project to me at: littlejohn@shsu.edu.

Introduction

Selected PowerPoint presentations, response statements, and digital modules will be posted online. Please ensure that materials are spell-checked, thoroughly revised, and factually correct.


PowerPoint Presentations --Content Issues

A. All PowerPoint presentations designed for this course should present an INTERPRETATION of the past. Please do not simply list important dates and events. Rather, you should use your presentations to construct a meaningful narrative that presents the conflicts, contradictions, and ironies of the events that you are covering. In addition, please take the time to clearly enunciate the historical significance of the topics you are covering.

B. Each PowerPoint for this class should contain 7 to 15 slides, including:
- An introductory slide detailing the themes or central issues involved
- A series of slides highlighting the principal events, personalities, and developments involved
- A concluding slide that clearly enunciates the historical significance of the topic

PowerPoint Presentations -- Stylistic Issues

A. All PowerPoint presentations should have a simple, clean background and format. No wild colors and no wild fonts please.

B. Please do not use the pre-designed backgrounds and layouts that are loaded with PowerPoint, unless they relate directly to the course material. For instance, do not use the backgrounds that show scales, curtains, fireworks, mountains, clouds, clocks, or other common items. These are not related to the material covered in the course, and they do not look professional.

C. Please do not use clip art, moving gif files, or other “cute” images. These distract attention from the presentation and do not look professional.

D. Please be sure to include images that are related to the content you are presenting. Your images should be clear, crisp, and properly sized. Remember, distorted images look unprofessional.

E. If you would like to see example PowerPoint presentations, the please follow the links below.
- Franklin Roosevelt and The New Deal, 1932-1939 [ ppt slides in pdf ]

Digital Modules --

At the end of the course, each teacher will submit a digital module of his or her own design. Each module should be formatted in accordance with the assignments presented in this course. Teachers will submit their modules in Microsoft Word, and I will format them for the internet. The modules should include the following.

- A 150 word introduction to the material covered in the unit;
- A discussion question that requires students to compare conflicting primary sources.
- A list of 2 to 3 reputable secondary sources that places the topic in context.
- A list of 5 to 10 primary sources that presents the event from multiple view points
- Note: The primary and secondary sources must be available online.

Grading in this course will be based upon 700 possible points.