c




 
 
Dr. Ryan K. Anderson
ryan.anderson@uncp.edu
775-(4263)
Office Hours: M/W: 3pm-4:45pm and by appointment in Dial 211

This class explores how America dealt with the challenges facing a newly-modernized nation between the First
World War and the Second World War. This involved creating of a mass society, culture, and economy;
confronting the problems of consumer society¶s prosperity and its collapse into the Great Depression; and debating
what role, if any, America must play in the larger world. This class is designed for majors in the Department of
History and for people who have taken the second half of American Civilizations and want the challenge of an
upper-division course in this discipline. By the end of the semester you will possess a deeper understanding of
Interwar America, including the major events mentioned above and the people caught up in them, than you had at
the end of American Civilization since 1877. You will not only learn more about history, you will also continue
sharpening the research, writing, discussion, and critical thinking skills befitting a person majoring or minoring in
History.


OÊ Michael E. Parrish, Anxious Decades: America in Prosperity and Depression, 1920²1941 (Norton, 1994)
ISBN: 0-393-31134-1
OÊ Aoshua Zeitz, ( apper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Sty e, Ce ebrity, and the Women Who Made America
Modern (Crown Publishers, 2006) ISBN: 978-1-4000-8054-0 (1-4000-8054-1)
OÊ Elliott Gorn, Di inger¶s Wi d Ride (Oxford, 2009) ISBN: 978-0-19-530483-1
OÊ Samuel Hynes, ( ights of Passage: Reco ections of a Wor d War II Aviator (Penguin, 2003) ISBN: 978-0-
14-200290-2
OÊ I also provide primary source materials via Facebook each week that tie into lecture.

i 

†Ê Facebook
÷Ê Our class will communicate with each other through a Facebook wall entitled ³HST 3150: War, Prosperity,
and Depression.´ I will post relevant links, encourage discussion, and communicate with you through our
class wall.
÷Ê You do not have to ³friend´ me to use the wall. In fact, I do not friend students during the semester. If you
do not have a Facebook profile, you must get one. It is easy to establish and you do not have to provide any
personal information for public consumption. You my even employ an alias, if you wish. Please see me
during office hours if you have any questions.
÷Ê The use of Facebook is required.
†Ê Scrbd.com
÷Ê Scrbd.com is a self-publishing site. I post readings for the class here and link the documents to our
Facebook wall. You can print the materials from the site (be sure to choose the download and print option).

†Ê Kelly Schrum, Alan Gevinson, and Roy Rosenzweig, ù S History Matters: A Student Guide to
ù S History On ine (2009)

†Ê On Mary Livermore Library¶s ³Electronic Resources´ page, choose ³History´ in the ³Databases by
Subject´ pull-down tab.
÷Ê A-STOR
÷Ê America History and Life
÷Ê Historical *ew York Times
÷Ê NewspaperARCHIVE
÷Ê Accessible Archives
÷Ê America's Historical Newspapers: 1690-1922

†Ê On Mother Internet
÷Ê Making of America: http://moa.cit.cornell.edu/moa/
÷Ê Library of Congress Digital Collections Page http: //www.loc.gov/library/libarch-digital.html
÷Ê Historical Newspapers Online: http://gethelp.library.upenn.edu/guides/hist/onlinenewspapers.html




OÊ All of your work is to be emailed to ryan.anderson@uncp.edu by the beginning of class on the

day an assignment is due. It must be presented in .docx format, which is available in all UNCP
computer labs. Failure to submit on time or in the proper format will result in a deduction of
points.

OÊ You must sign you student contract before I will grade any work. If you do not sign the contact I
will not grade any of your work and you will fail the course.

OÊ Take Home Midterm and Final Exams: 100 points each/200 total points
÷Ê Your exams consist of a six-page essay that requires you make use of lecture material,
primary sources [I suggest you work with these materials when we discuss them in class],
and our monograph reading.
÷Ê You generally have a week to complete this work, so I expect you to pay attention not
only to content, but also to form²treat this like any major essay project in terms of
grammar, style, and proofreading. You may use parenthetical citations to mark your use
of class readings, but there is no need to cite lecture material.

OÊ Book Reviews: 100 points each/300 points total

÷Ê Book reviews are written to approximately 500 words and according to the format that I
will provide.

OÊ Class Participation: 100 Points

÷Ê 60 points for three academic journal article bibliographies related to our monograph
reading (this excludes the text) and due on the first day we discuss the book at the
beginning of class.
  !
"    #


 
   

 
 # " 

!This must be cited
according to Chicago Manual of Style and include a 3-5 sentence annotation. I grade
these on your ability to find appropriate sources, format the citations correctly, and
annotate them meaningfully²that includes content and grammar. We will meet
independently to discuss these assignments. If you fail to meet with me your grade on
the assignment will suffer.
÷Ê 20 points for general discussion contributions both in-class and online. I grade both on
quantity and quality; I cannot grade you in this category if you miss class regularly. I
will provide you with informal updates on your progress in this area.
÷Ê 20 points [2x @ 10 points ea] for constructing questions for book discussion on two
occasions this semester [a sign-up sheet will circulate through class on 1/14].


  
A: 600-540
B: 539-480
C: 479-420
D: 419-360
F: 359 and below
I work within etter grades on the p us/minus system)





$
%

Use the Writing Center as a resource. They will help you with your writing style and using word
processing software.

I do not offer extensions. If you turn in any assignment late, you will be docked a letter grade once class
passes and for every day beyond that (this includes weekends and university holidays).

Don¶t plagiarize or cheat. That means: don¶t write in conjunction with a classmate; don¶t Google the
book title and ³borrow´ from other people; don¶t use ANY internet sources; don¶t pay someone else to
write it or accept a paper written by someone else; and if you¶ve read the book and written a paper on it
before (this means don¶t borrow directly from informal essays for the out-of-class essay), you must write
a new paper.

If you do any of these things or anything else dishonest (read up on the university policy if you¶re cloudy
on what that means), O
 
   
  

 
. I¶ll
revisit this topic later in the semester to make sure I am explicitly clear.

I heartily encourage asking questions and participating in our intellectual conversation, either in or out of
class. You will learn more during your time in here (and beyond) if you consider contrary views and
engage in conversation with the people who hold them. It goes without saying, that everyone in this class
will receive equal respect. If your comportment does not befit a university classroom, you will be
excused. Turn off your cell phones, do not read the newspaper or do homework in class, and if we have
just started, please enter in an unobtrusive fashion and take the nearest available seat.    
"
 
  &  

''  
Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments is requested to speak directly to
Disability Support Services and the instructor, as early in the semester (preferably within the first week)
as possible. All discussions will remain confidential. Please contact Disability Support Services, DF
Lowry Building, 910-521-6695.This publication is available in alternative formats upon request. Please
contact Disability Support Services, DF Lowry Building, 521-6695.
















Ê Ê
 Ö 
Ö 

(#)  (

*$+,-
Course Introduction and 1919
-Discussion Sign Up in Class on 1/14

*
" +.,/
Establishing Normalcy
-1/17: ù*CP c osed

*

+/-,/0
Mass Society, Culture, and Business

*1 
+,/+-
Mass Society, Culture, and Business

*1/+.,/+
Mass Society, Culture, and Business

* /+-,/+0
Mass Society, Culture, and Business
2/18: ZeitzÊbook discussion, reviews and annotated bibs due at this time

* /+/,/
The Twenties Crumble
ëParrish: read Part One by now
ëMidterm out on 2/25

*2/+/0,+-
The Great Depression
ëMidterm due by beginning of c ass on 3/4

*3+.,+/
Spring Break

*
+-,+0
The Great Depression: Reactions
3/14: ast day to withdraw with a ³W´

*2+/,+/
The Great Depression: Reactions

*
"+/0,-+
4/1: Gorn book discussion, reviews and annotated bibs due at this time


Ê
Ê

*

-+-,-+0
Isolation vs. Intervention

*1 
-+,-+
Going to War

*1-+0,-+//
Going to War
ùniversity C osed: 4/22

* -+/,-+/4
The Beginning of the End
4/29: Hynes book discussion, reviews and annotated bibs due at this time
4/25: (ina Exam goes out

* +/,+5
5/3: (ina Exam due by noon

[tear or cut]

Student Contract *Important*

HST-3150
Dr. Ryan K. Anderson

This contract is an essential document. By completing this, you confirm that you have done your job as a
student by reading the syllabus and agreeing to its terms. You MUST complete it BEFORE I will grade any of
your work in this class. If you do not understand any part of this syllabus, you may come to me during office
hours and ask for clarification before signing. If you never initial and sign this document or do not return it to
me I will not grade your work in this class and you will fail.

I have read and understand the entire syllabus. I accept its stipulations.

Print Name______________________________

Signature_______________________________

Date___________________________________

Ê Ê