ISP 3810

APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF HISTORY

WINTER 2006

Historical Perspectives: History and You

Sections:981 (3cr), 982 (4cr)

Instructor: Ronald Aronson (313) 577-0828

Office: 2426 AAB 5700 Cass Ave.

Email: ac7159@wayne.edu

Reader: Karen McDevitt Email: aa6545@wayne.edu

Fax: (313) 577-8585

Class Location: 215 Old Main

Class meets every Monday, 6:00-9:40pm, Jan.9 - April 24 except for January 16 (Martin Luther King Day) and March 13 (Spring break).

Office Hours: I will be at my office on campus at least one hour before every class session; please see me by appointment during that time. Contact me by phone or by email with any questions or to make an appointment.

            General Education Requirement:

ISP 3810 fulfills the University General Education requirements in Historical Studies (HS). HS courses provide insight into the development of human institutions, their similarities and differences, and the means by which knowledge about the past is acquired. Such studies reveal how contemporary perspectives evolve from past events, while enhancing understanding of the present. Approved courses may explore significant historical periods or themes. In keeping with this requirement, ISP 3810 does not offer a comprehensive overview of history. Rather, by focusing on major themes and on genealogy it allows the student to situate her/himself in the historical process while fostering understanding of the purposes and methods of historical study.

                        Course Plan:

According to novelist George Eliot, “there is no private life which has not been determined by a wider public life . . . .” We will explore what this means as we watch historians at work in creating what we know as “history.” As students work on their own family histories, we will discuss both how historians make decisions and how the personal and the historical intersect.

This upper-division course explores three intersecting questions, What is history? How is it made and understood? And how does it affect individual lives? The course examines the historical nature of our experience, the historical development of social institutions, cultural practices, and values, and how knowledge of the past is acquired. We will explore our own and our families’ historicity - the historical dimensions of our own lives and personal experience.

All students will read the texts, Davidson and Lytle’s After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection, W. E. B. Dubois’s classic, The Souls of Black Folk, Kevin Boyle’s Arc of Justice, and In My Mother’s House by Kim Chernin, and see several films. In addition, students will be exposed to genealogy throughout the course and will include reflections on family history in their final paper.

Texts (available at the Wayne State University Bookstore (Barnes and Noble), Cass and Warren, Detroit: 313-577-2436

Davison and Lytle, After the Fact (5^th Edition)

W. E. B. DuBois, The Souls of Black Folk

Kevin Boyle, Arc of Justice

Kim Chernin, In My Mother’s House

Student Responsibilities and Grading Procedures:

Entering class after the first week:

According to University policy, late registration ends on January 23. No student will be allowed into the class after that date.

Students place themselves at a serious disadvantage by entering or first attending the class after the first week, especially when not obtaining the syllabus either directly or through Blackboard, not contacting the instructor to find out what they missed, or not obtaining course books, and not coming to the next class with the assigned reading completed.

Doing any of these greatly increases one’s chances of not completing the course satisfactorily. In order to avoid getting off on the wrong foot, a student who for whatever reason cannot be at the first class should:

●         Contact the instructor immediately by phone or email to introduce yourself, explain the situation, and obtain a makeup assignment, including making arrangements to see any missed films;

●         Go to Blackboard and download the syllabus;

●         Read the syllabus carefully and email the instructor with any questions;

●         Purchase the course books at the University Bookstore;

●         Come to the next class with all work prepared.

Attendance policies:

●         Attendance at every scheduled class is required, not optional. Weekly participation is vital to the course.

●         Coming in significantly late or leaving significantly early counts as missing half a class.

●         Any student who misses 3 classes will be dropped automatically from the course.

●         In the event of an emergency, contact me as soon as possible by phone (313-577-0828) or e-mail <ac7159@wayne.edu>.

Makeup policy when absent:

●         All missed homework assignments must be made up by the next class.

●         Make-up assignments are required for each class missed. The makeup assignment is to do a one-page response to the week’s Study Question. Avoid coming to the next class without bringing the make-up assignment with you.

●         Each missed class without a make-up assignment lowers your grade by 1/3 grade (3 points).

Keeping informed:

Students are expected to check Blackboard once a week for any new information or assignment updates. The syllabus will be posted there, as well as regular announcements in information about your grades.

Assigned papers include:

(1) Short papers and quizzes on assignments                                   (10%)

(2) A paper on the theme of the Veil in The Souls of Black Folk        (16%)

(3) A paper on After the Fact                                                              (16%)

(4) A Paper on The Arc of Justice                                                       (16%)

(5) A final paper, based on your reading of In My Mother’s House and your viewing of Professional Revolutionary. This will be an in-depth discussion of the relationship of the personal and the historical, in After the Fact, DuBois, In My Mother’s House, and your own reflections on your family history                                         (20%)

Class attendance and participation will constitute 22% of the final grade.

Late assignments will be marked-down ½ grade every day past the due date. Always keep a copy of your submitted work.

The Contract:

As students you have a right to expect that your instructor will come to class prepared, treat you with respect, and conduct class in a scholarly manner. Being learners and not consumers, students’ growth and development entail a corresponding commitment: coming to class prepared, treating the instructor and fellow students with respect, and taking all aspects of class participation seriously. Students are required to be punctual and to attend every class session in full. Participation entails active involvement in class discussion and all activities, scholarly demeanor, and respect for the classroom process and the opinions of others.

The purpose of this course is to help students develop their capacity to think. As a course focusing on ideas, its lifeblood is class discussion. This is a collective process, requiring tolerance, openness, and careful listening. Each participant has a right to expect this of the others.

Grades on papers:

A = Excellent (A is equivalent to 4.00 HPA; A- is equivalent to 3.67). Well-written and well-argued with a clear thesis statement, sustained focus on the thesis, plenty of well-developed examples, and use of relevant readings from the text. May contain original ideas or insights.

B = Good (B+ 3.33 HPA; B 3.00; B- 2.67). A strong presentation but may not adequately develop one or more of the above areas.

C = Average (C+ 2.33 HPA; C 2.00; C- l.67). Shows understanding of the issues and readings, but a thin presentation, weak in key areas or does not touch upon key points. May also have writing problems.

D = Poor but still passing (D+ 1.33 HPA; D 1.00; D- 0.67). A cursory presentation lacking in examples and support from the text, and or serious writing problems. May show inadequate reading or reflection.

E = not acceptable (E or F = 0.00 HPA). Inadequate effort.

R = Returned for revision. Automatic for D and E papers (except plagiarized papers) until the final week.

Final Grades:

●         In order to receive a passing grade for the course, you must complete all four essays. Where insufficient work has been done to assign a grade and at the instructor’s discretion, a student may be given an “X.”

●         A student who is unable to complete the final assignment but has completed most of the course work and has notified the instructor of his or her intention to complete the remaining work by a given date may, at the instructor’s discretion, be granted an “I” until the work is made up and a final letter grade assigned. At the end of one year, the University regards the “I” as a “W” and the course must be retaken. Extensions are difficult to obtain.

Plagiarism, Citation and Rough-Draft Policies:

PLAGIARISM IS NOT TOLERATED AT WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY; STUDENTS WHO PASS OFF THE WORK OF OTHERS AS THEIR OWN WILL RECEIVE A FAILING GRADE. THIS IS AUTOMATIC AND CANNOT BE APPEALED. WHETHER QUOTING, SUMMARIZING, PARAPHRASING, OR ALLUDING, YOU MUST PROVIDE PROPER DOCUMENTATION OF ALL SOURCES following Trimmer's Guide to MLA Documentation (4th edition) or the MLA Handbook (fifth edition). Or look online at: <http://www.ccc.commnet.edu/mla/index.shtml>. For IS plagiarism policy see: <http://www.is.wayne.edu/Policies/Plagiarism.htm>. I encourage rough drafts and ongoing discussion of papers by email.

Reflections on Your Own Family History:

4 of the 20 percentage points (20% of that paper grade) of your final paper will come from your own reflection on your own family history. You may do it in any way you wish, but suggestions will be presented during the course about documents, oral interviews, family trees, timelines, and the use of websites and census reports. The point will be to connect your family history with the larger history we are studying.

 SCHEDULE

●         Week 1 (Jan. 9): “What Is History?” Introduction to the Course

Film: Professional Revolutionary: The Life of Saul Wellman

In-class writing response to film. Writing question: What is the purpose of the film and to what extent does it succeed?

●         JANUARY 16 - NO CLASS: MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY  

●         Week 2 (Jan. 23): Images of Women during the 1940s and 1950s

Assignment: After The Fact: “From Rosie to Lucy: The Mass Media and Images of Women in the 1950s,” “Contemporary Body Image and Gender”(346-373, 432-462)

Study Question: How did gender roles during the 1940s and 1950s?

Film: Rosie the Riveter

●         Week 3 (Jan. 30): How to Read a Document

Assignment: ATF, "Declaring Independence” (49-72), Dubois, The Souls of Black Folk, “Forethought,” Chapter I

Discussion of Genealogy

Study Question: What information is needed to understand the Declaration of Independence?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 4 (February 6): 1) Two Ways of Entering the New Land; 2) America”s First Witch Hunts

Assignment: ATF, “Serving Time in Virginia” and “The Visible and Invisible Worlds of Salem” (1-48)

Study Question: Why, according to “Serving Time in Virginia,” did Jamestown fail to flourish for many years, and how was the problem solved?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 5 (February 13): “Going West: Myth and Reality”

Assignment: ATF, “The Invisible Pioneers,” 124-149, Dubois, The Souls of Black Folk, Chapters 2 and 4

Study Question: What were the “invisible pioneers” and how did they operate?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 6 (February 20): “Individual Motivation and Great Causes”

Assignment: ATF, “The Madness of John Brown” (150-176), Dubois, The Souls of Black Folk, Chapters 7 and 8

Study Question: Was John Brown mad?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 7 (February 27): “African American Stories”

Assignment: ATF, “The View from the Bottom Rail” (177-209), Dubois; The Souls of Black Folk, Chapters 9, 11, and 13

Study Question: How does Dubois help explain today’s problems of African American poverty?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 8 (March 6): “The Lives of Immigrants: I”

Paper Assignment: What does Dubois mean by the Veil and how does it help explain relations between African Americans and whites in his time and today? (3 pages, 750 words; 3-credit students may omit the “today”: 2 pages, 500 words)

Reading Assignment: ATF, “The Mirror with the Memory” (210-233)

Study Question: Does photography present things as they really are?

Quiz on the reading

●         MARCH 13 - NO CLASS: SPRING BREAK

●         Week 9 (March 20): “The Lives of Immigrants: II”

Assignment: ATF “USDA Government Inspected” (234-261), Boyle, Arc of Justice, 1-101

Study Question: Why was Leon Breiner killed?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 10 (March 27): The Case of Ossian Sweet

Paper Assignment on After the Fact: What is the book’s purpose and how is it demonstrated? Write a 3-4 page paper (750-1000 words). Your paper must include and make mention of at least five of the chapters we have read.

Reading Assignment: Boyle, Arc of Justice, 102-228

Study Question: How did the historical become personal in the case of Ossian Sweet?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 11 (April 3): Ossian Sweet and Sacco and Vanzetti on Trial

Assignment: ATF: Sacco and Vanzetti” (262-288), finish Arc of Justice

Study Question: What is the difference between the goals of a jury and the tools available to it and those of a historian?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 12 (April 10), The Historical and the Personal: Rose Chernin

Paper Assignment on Arc of Justice: How does the historical become personal and the personal become historical in the story of Ossian Sweet? Write a 3-4 page paper (750-1000 words); (3-credit students 2-3 pages - 500-750 words).

Reading Assignment: Chernin In My Mother’s House, Forword, Part One (vii-115)

Study Question: How did the historical become personal in the life of Rose Chernin?

Quiz on the reading

●         Week 13 (April 17): From Rose to Kim Chernin

Assignment: In My Mother’s House, Part II (119-195)

Study Question: How did the personal become historical in the life of Rose Chernin?

Quiz on the reading

Film: Freedom on My Mind

●         Week 14 (April 24): Personal Stories and History

Assignment: In My Mother’s House, Part III and Epilogue (196-307)

Study Question: How do the personal and the historical interact in Wellman’s life, both Chernins’, and your own?

Films: Professional Revolutionary: The Life of Saul Wellman; First Amendment on Trial: The Case of the Detroit Six

●         Week 15 (May 2): Final Exam Day - Evaluation and Discussion

Final Assignment: How is the historical personal and the personal historical? Write a 6-page paper (1500 words) based on appropriate readings in ATF, The Souls of Black Folk, In My Mother’s House, The Arc of Justice and your own genealogical research (3-credit students 4 pages, 1000 words). Consider how historical events and processes shape individual lives, values, and even personalities, and how individuals contribute to historical events and processes.

ISP 3840

DIRECTED STUDY: FAMILY HISTORY

WINTER 2006

Instructor: Ronald Aronson (313) 577-0828

ac7159@wayne.edu

Fax: (313) 577-8585

In this Directed Study course, which is designed to complement Humanities 3810, students will have the opportunity to undertake their own in-depth study of their family history.

Students will read and rely on Nancy Hendrickson, Finding Your Roots Online. Students will present “how-to” tips from this book’s ten chapters to the 3810 class.

In addition, you will:

1) analyze a document

2) prepare a family tree

3) conduct an oral history interview (not required of students enrolled for 2 credits).

4) spend time at a major genealogy website such as that of the Latter Day Saints, http://byubroadcasting.org/ancestors/ or another one mentioned in Hendrickson (above).

5) prepare a family history time-line

6) Read and use the materials on the website for Ancestors, http://www.pbs.org/kbyu/ancestors/

7) obtain and analyze a major record, such as a census report or visit a genealogical library or collection such as the Burton Historical Collection at the Detroit Public Library

8) write a family history paper of at least 6 pages (4 pages for students enrolled for 2 credits)

 - or create a family history web site

THESE ARE DUE ON APRIL 24

and 9) present their findings to the class on April 24 and May 1

The Directed Study schedule is printed in boxes at appropriate weeks on the 3810 schedule. 

Directed Study presentations and due dates are as follows:

January 30: Bring a document to class and analyze it

March 20: Oral history, time line, or family tree

April 24 - Paper due incorporating 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 above

April 24, May 1 - Presentation to class

Grades on papers:

A = Excellent (A is equivalent to 4.00 HPA; A- equivalent to 3.67). Well-written and well-argued with a clear thesis statement, sustained focus on the thesis, plenty of well-developed examples, and use of relevant readings from the text. May contain original ideas or insights.

B = Good (B+ 3.33 HPA; B 3.00; B- 2.67). A strong presentation but may not adequately develop one or more of the above areas.

C = Average (C+ 2.33 HPA; C 2.00; C- l.67). Shows understanding of the issues and readings, but a thin presentation, weak in key areas or does not touch upon key points. May also have writing problems.

D = Poor but still passing (D+ 1.33 HPA; D 1.00; D- 0.67). A cursory presentation lacking in examples and support from the text, and or serious writing problems. May show inadequate reading or reflection.

E = not acceptable (E or F = 0.00 HPA). Inadequate effort.

R = Returned for revision. Automatic for D and E papers until the final week.

Final Grades:

ALL course requirements must be fulfilled to receive a final grade in the A to C minus range. Students who do not complete all course requirements will receive a grade in the D to E range. Where insufficient work has been done to assign a grade and at the instructor’s discretion, a student may be given an “X.”

A student who is unable to complete the final assignment but has completed most of the course work and has notified the instructor of his or her intention to complete the remaining work by a given date may, at the instructor’s discretion, be granted an “I” until the work is made up and a final letter grade assigned. At the end of one year, the University regards the “I” as a “W” and the course must be retaken. Extensions are difficult to obtain.

Plagiarism, Citation and Rough-Draft Policies.

PLAGIARISM IS NOT TOLERATED AT WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY; STUDENTS WHO PASS OFF THE WORK OF OTHERS AS THEIR OWN WILL RECEIVE A FAILING GRADE. THIS IS AUTOMATIC AND CANNOT BE APPEALED. WHETHER QUOTING, SUMMARIZING, PARAPHRASING, OR ALLUDING, YOU MUST PROVIDE PROPER DOCUMENTATION OF SOURCES following Trimmer's Guide to MLA Documentation (4th edition) or the MLA Handbook (fifth edition). Or look online at: <http://www.ccc.commnet.edu/mla/index.shtml>. For IS plagiarism policy see: <http://www.is.wayne.edu/Policies/Plagiarism.htm>. I encourage rough drafts and ongoing discussion of papers by E-mail.