History 259 Syllabus Spring 2005

OBERLIN COLLEGE
Department of History

Gary J. Kornblith
Rice 306
x58526
gary.kornblith@oberlin.edu

History 259

Spring 2005

Office hours: Wed., 3:45-5:30 p.m.,
and by appointment

Revolutionary America and the Early Republic

The official, up-to-date version of this syllabus is maintained online at www.oberlin.edu/history/GJK/H259S05/.

This course explores the creation of the United States and the complex dynamics that shaped American society and culture in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. We will begin by examining the British colonies in mainland North America at approximately 1750, and we will proceed to explore in depth the causes and consequences of the American Revolution. Historians have long debated the Revolution's purpose and significance, and we will look at different sides of this enduring controversy. In the process, we will consider what the War for Independence meant to Native Americans and African Americans as well as to Euro-American men and women. We will also analyze the patriots' efforts to establish a republican form of government on a firm foundation. In particular, we will weigh the question of whether the ratification of the federal Constitution represented the fulfillment, repudiation, or modification of the original Spirit of '76. We will also consider whether the new federal system worked the way its framers intended, paying special attention to why political controveries in the early Republic proved so vicious. Our focus after spring break will be on the inter-related processes of democratization, capitalist development, and the expansion of slavery during the first two decades of the nineteenth century. We will conclude with an analysis of how much the American social order and American cultural norms had changed between 1750 and 1820, the nation's formative era.

Over the course of the semester, students will undertake individual projects involving intensive research in primary source materials. Students will make oral presentations of their findings to the class. Research papers will be due at semester's end. The goal of this project is to empower students to do history, not just to read it.

Format: The class will meet three times each week--for one hour on Monday, for one hour on Wednesday, and for up to two hours on Friday. As indicated below, some class sessions will be devoted to lectures, others to discussions, and yet others to viewing videos. The discussions will focus on the reading assignments, and in preparation for these sessions, students will be expected to post preliminary comments on Blackboard.

Requirements: In addition to doing the assigned reading and regularly posting comments on Blackboard, students will write two position papers (3-4 pages each); a prospectus for the research project (1-2 pages); and a research paper (9-10 pages). They will also make oral presentations of their research findings. The due dates are given in the schedule of assignments below. Participation in class discussions is expected, and students should notify the instructor of the reasons for absences from discussion sessions.

Grades: Final grades will be based on the following formula: position papers, 15% each; research paper, 45%; and class participation (including Blackboard postings and in-class discussions), 25%. The professor reserves the right to exercise some discretion in determining final grades.

Honor Code: All course work is governed by Oberlin's Honor Code. If you have a question about how the Honor Code applies to a particular assignment, you should ask the professor in advance of the due date.

Writing Certification: Students who wish to be considered for certification of writing proficiency should notify the instructor at the beginning of the semester.

Purchases: The following books are available at the Oberlin Bookstore and should be purchased.

Gordon S. Wood, The Radicalism of the American Revolution

Jack P. Greene, ed., Colonies to Nation, 1763-1789

Bernard Bailyn, The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution

Ray Raphael, A People's History of the American Revolution

Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, A Midwife's Tale

Douglas R. Egerton, Gabriel's Rebellion

Schedule of Classes and Assignments:

Mon., Feb. 7	Introduction
Wed., Feb. 9	Lecture: The Making of the British Empire
Fri., Feb. 11 Source: Papers of George Washington	Discussion: The Social Order of Colonial America Wood, The Radicalism of the American Revolution, 3-168 Michael Zuckerman, "Tocqueville, Turner, and Turds: Four Stories of Manners in Early America," Journal of American History, 85 (June 1998): 13-42 [in JSTOR] Alan Taylor, American Colonies, 301-37 [on reserve and on ERes]

Mon., Feb. 14	Lecture: Origins of the Imperial Crisis
Wed., Feb. 16	Discussion: The Anglo-American Debate over the Stamp Act Greene, Colonies to Nation, 45-92
Fri., Feb. 18 Source: National Archives	Discussion: Popular Mobilization against the Stamp Act Edmund S. Morgan and Helen M. Morgan, The Stamp Act Crisis, 125-64 [on reserve and on ERes] Pauline Maier, From Resistance to Revolution, 77-112 [on reserve and on ERes] Gary B. Nash, The Urban Crucible, 292-311 [on reserve and on ERes]

Mon., Feb. 21	Lecture: Renewed Imperial Reform, Revived Colonial Resistance First position paper due
Wed., Feb. 23	Lecture: Conflicts within the Colonies
Fri., Feb. 25	Discussion: Ideological Interpretation of the Revolution's Origins Bailyn, The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution, ix-xvi, 1-159 Greene, Colonies to Nation, 122-33, 213-220

Mon., Feb. 28	Lecture: Continental Mobilization and War
Wed., Mar. 2 Source: Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities	Discussion: Social Interpretations of the Revolution's Origins T.H. Breen, "Narrative of Commercial Life: Consumption, Ideology, and Community on the Eve of the American Revolution," William and Mary Quarterly, 3rd. Ser., 50 (July 1993): 471-501 [in JSTOR] Woody Holton, "The Ohio Indians and the Coming of the American Revolution in Virginia," Journal of Southern History 60 (Aug. 1994): 453-478 [in JSTOR] Marcus Rediker, "A Motley Crew of Rebels: Sailors, Slaves and the Coming of the American Revolution," in Ronald Hoffman and Peter J. Albert, eds,. The Transforming Hand of Revolution, 155-98 [on reserve and on ERes]
Fri., Mar. 4	Lecture and Library Tour: Resources for Primary Research Note: Class meets in Mudd 443

Mon., Mar. 7	Lecture: Secession from the British Empire
Wed., Mar. 9 Source: National Archives	Discussion: The Case for Independence Greene, Colonies to Nation, 270-301 Pauline Maier, American Scripture, 47-96 [on reserve and on ERes] David Armitage, "The Declaration of Independence and International Law," William and Mary Quarterly, 3rd Ser., 59 (Jan. 2002): 39-64 [in History Cooperative, accessible from a campus computer]
Fri., Mar. 11	*Video: Rebels & Redcoats* (part 1)**

Mon., Mar. 14	*Video: Rebels & Redcoats* (part 2) Second position paper due**
Wed., Mar. 16 Source: Valley Forge Historical Society	Discussion: Wartime Experience of Euro-Americans Raphael, A People's History of the American Revolution, Introduction and chaps. 2-4 Recommended: Barbara Clark Smith, "Food Rioters and the American Revolution," William and Mary Quarterly, 3rd Ser., 51 (Jan. 1994): 3-38 [in JSTOR]
Fri., Mar. 18	*Video: Rebels & Redcoats* (parts 3 and 4)**

Mon., Mar. 21	Lecture: Constituting State Governments
Wed., Mar. 23	Discussion: Wartime Experience of Native Americans and African Americans Raphael, A People's History of the American Revolution,chaps. 5-6. Recommended: Ira Berlin, "The Revolution in Black Life," in Alfred F. Young, ed., The American Revolution, 349-82 [on reserve and on ERes]
Fri., Mar. 25	No class Prospectus for research project due on
Spring Break
Mon., Apr. 4	Lecture: The Challenge of Nation-Building
Wed., Apr. 6 Source: Prentice Hall School	Discussion: Drafting the Federal Constitution Greene, Colonies to Nation, 514-56
Fri., Apr. 8	Discussion: Debating the Federal Constitution Greene, Colonies to Nation, 557-76 Video: Empire of Reason

Mon., Apr. 11	Lecture: The Federalist Establishment and Its Enemies
Wed., Apr. 13	Lecture: The Revolution of 1800
Fri., Apr. 15 Source: Bill of Rights Institute	Discussion: Making Sense of Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson, "Draft of a Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom, 1779" Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia Query 14 ("Laws") Query 17 ("Religion") Query 18 ("Manners") Query 19 ("Manufactures") Letter of Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, Sept. 6, 1789 Letter of Thomas Jefferson to George Washington, Sept. 9, 1792 "Draft of the Kentucky Resolutions," Oct. 1798 Thomas Jefferson, "First Inaugural Address," March 4, 1801

Mon., Apr. 18	Lecture: Social Transformation in the North, 1790-1820
Wed., Apr. 20	Discussion: Gender and Family in Post-Revolutionary New England Ulrich, A Midwife's Tale, 3-161, 204-34 Related website: DoHistory.com
Fri., Apr. 22	Discussion: Progress on research projects Video: A Midwife's Tale: A Film

Mon., Apr. 25	Lecture: Social Transformation in the South, 1790-1820
Wed., Apr. 27 Source: Library of Congress	Discussion: Slavery and Slave Resistance in Jeffersonian Virginia Egerton, Gabriel's Rebellion, ix-xiii, 3-178
Fri., Apr. 29	Video: Jefferson's Blood

Mon., May 2 Source: Ohio History Central	Lecture: Nationalism, Sectionalism, and Identity in the "Era of Good Feelings"
Wed., May 4	Discussion: Assessing the Historical Significance of the American Revolution Wood, Radicalism of the American Revolution, 229-369 Jack P. Greene, "The American Revolution," American Historical Review, 105 (Feb. 2000): 93-102 [in History Cooperative, accessible from a campus computer]
Fri., May 6	Oral Presentations of Research Projects Gliserman, Pourzand, Binder, Seidman, Seid, Lehr

Mon., May 9	Oral Presentations of Research Projects Strathmann, Weber, Stein, Knight
Wed., May 11	Oral Presentations of Research Projects George, Webre, Anti, White
Fri., May 13	Oral Presentations of Research Projects Green, Dishy, Matson, Hill, Curtis, Monaghan

Tues., May 17	Research paper due