History
432
Era
of the American Revolution
Spring
2008
MWF at 11am
Social
Sciences 222
Course Content:
The course is divided into two parts, the period
before July 1776 and secondly, the period 1776-1789. The first part
reviews government and politics in the American colonies and
The second half of the course is more topical and
less chronological. Topics include the war, the army, the economic and
political problems of the post-war years, slavery and abolition, status of
women, and the U.S. Constitution.
The course is
preponderantly political, economic, and constitutional history. Except for the
book A Respectable Army, it does treat the army and the war; this
is not a course in military history.
Robert Middlekauff, The Glorious Cause: The
American Revolution, 1763-1789
James K. Martin and Mark E. Lender, A Respectable Army: The Military Origins
of the Republic, 1763-1789
Christopher and James Collier, Decision in Philadelphia
Terry Bouton, "A Road Closed: Rural Insurgency in Post-Independence
Pennsylvania," Journal of American History 87 (2000), 855-87.
(Available through The
History Cooperative)
"Nobody ever paid the price of a book; they pay only for the printing." Louis I. Kah
(Reading assignments will be made in class as the semester progresses and on some occasions there will be quizzes on the readings.)
Exams and Quizzes :
There will be at least seven quizzes which together
count 30% of the course credit. The quizzes will not be announced beforehand.
Quizzes that you miss cannot be made up; however, only your five highest quiz
scores will count. There
will be a midterm exam approximately at the twelfth class, and a second midterm
approximately at the at the mid-point in the course, covering the reading and
lectures to that point. There is a final covering the reading and lectures
of the second half. The first midterm exam
counts 15% of the course credit; the second counts 20%; and the final, 35%. The dates of the midterm exams will be determined by the
class--within limits.
Significant Dates :
January 16. Wednesday. First class.
January 21. Monday. No class. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
holiday.
February 12. Tuesday. Last day to drop the course and have it
removed from your record.
March 11. Tuesday. Last day to drop, with a "W" if
passing.
March 15-23. Spring vacation.
May 7. Wednesday. Last class.
First Midterm Exam-- Feb.
25. Monday
Second Midterm Exam--March 26, Wednesday.
Reading
Assignments
Lecture Outlines
Commendable Histories of the Revolutionary War
Declaration of Independence web site
England's Vietnam: the American Revolution