AMH 5930. Section 5593.

Instructor: Robert H. Zieger. Office is 236 Keene-Flint. Hours: M&W, 1:30-2:30 p.m.; F, 9-10 a.m. Phone: 392-0271, ex. 252. E-mail: zieger@ufl.edu[.] The address for my home page is: http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/rzieger. This site contains a copy of this syllabus.

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Course objectives: To help students to expand their knowledge of historical development and historical literature relating to the period of the two world wars; to help students to improve their critical, writing, and presentational skills; to facilitate students' work on their longer-range agendas

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Required readings: See below.
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Requirements: Students are asked to conduct a class session on a topic of their choice and to direct other members of the class to appropriate readings in connection with it; to write several short synopses of weekly readings; to produce a seminar paper, which may be in the form of a thesis or dissertation chapter or prospectus-and which may, or may not, be related to the subject of the presentation; and to write a critique of a colleague's paper.

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Grading: In seminars, a large part of the grade relates to the final paper and to the student's responsiveness to ongoing commentary and suggestions. Faithful attendance, energetic participation in class discussions, and student presentations (see below) also factor in significantly.
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Class schedule and assignments

January 5: Introduction

Part 1: Review of the period

January 12: Student reports on recent books on progressivism

January 19: Reading assignment is Martin J. Sklar, "Some Political and Cultural Consequences of the Disaccumulation of Capital: Origins of Postindustrial Development in the 1920s"; John Braeman, "The American Polity in the Age of Normalcy: A Reappraisal"; Lynn Dumenil, "Re-Shifting Perspectives on the 1920s: Recent Trends in Social and Cultural History."

January 26: David Kennedy, Freedom from Fear, to page 380. Presenters are Bewig, Bliss, and Kiziah

February 2: Kennedy, Freedom from Fear, from page 381. Presenters are Duncan, McEachin, and Redondo

Part 2: Student selected topics

Note: Presenters will tell us our reading assignments, which will differ from topic to topic.

February 9: Joel McEachin, "The Involvement of the Federal Government in Housing, 1918-1945."

February 16: Emma Kiziah, "The LaFollette Committee and the New Deal."

February 23: Marcos Redondo, "The United States and Cuba: A Shift in Policy from Direct Intervention to Indirect Support of Pro-US Regimes, 1914-1933."

March 9: Keisha Duncan, "Black Women in the Universal Negro Improvement Association."

March 16: Alan Bliss, "National Planning in the US in the 1920s and 1930s"

March 23: Matt Bewig, "The Lochner Era: Fact or Fiction?" 
 

Part 3: Student projects

March 30: Class meets for progress reports, which should also be written in the form of a two page declarative narrative.

April 6: Individual conferences

April 13: Individual conferences; papers to be made available to all members of the class by April 15. All students are expected to read all the papers and to participate in the presentation discussions.

April 20: Presentation of papers and critiques

Additional session (April 27?): Presentation of papers and critiques.