Course Syllabus. Course Information HIST American Intellectual History to the Civil War TR 2:30-3:45 JO 4.614

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1 Course Syllabus Course Information HIST American Intellectual History to the Civil War TR 2:30-3:45 JO Professor Contact Information Professor D. Wickberg, x6222, JO 5.428, Office Hours T 10:00-11:30 and by appointment Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions Freshmen should have permission of instructor Course Description This is an upper-division examination of the history of religious, philosophical, political, and social ideas in America, from the initial Great Migration of the Puritans in the 1630s to the end of the Civil War in We will be examining, through a close attention to primary sources, the thought and values of a number of significant groups and individuals, and the ways in which changing conditions and contexts gave rise to new modes of thought and transformed old ones. The focus will be on understanding the ideas themselves, and only secondarily on the impact those ideas had on changing society or political life. Topics examined will include: the theological world view of Puritanism; the Great Awakening; the American Enlightenment; secularization and religious revivalism; reform ideologies; abolitionism; proslavery thought; ideas about race and gender; economic ideologies; democratic thought; Transcendentalism, and the emergence of sectionalism. Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes Students will demonstrate knowledge of significant thinkers and schools of thought in American history. Students will demonstrate ability to think about ideas historically and contextually. Required Textbooks and Materials Course Syllabus Page 1

2 The following texts are available for purchase at both the UTD bookstore and Off-Campus Books: Philip Gura, American Transcendentalism: A History David Hollinger and Charles Capper, eds., The American Intellectual Tradition, vol. I ( ), 7th edition (referred to in calendar as HC) Edmund Morgan, Visible Saints Caroline Winterer, American Enlightenments: Pursuing Happiness in the Age of Reason Please note: you must use the seventh edition of the Hollinger and Capper text, and make sure that you have volume I, not volume II. Assignments & Academic Calendar Assignments, Due Dates, Exam Dates Week I T January 10 Introduction: no reading R January 12 Week II T January 17 Puritanism John Winthrop, A Modell of Christian Charity in HC, pp The Covenant Theology Edmund Morgan, Visible Saints, pp R January 19 Edmund Morgan, Visible Saints, pp Week III T January 24 R January 26 Radical Puritanism Anne Hutchinson, The Examination of Mrs. Anne Hutchinson at the Court at Newton Roger Williams, The Bloody Tenet of Persecution for Cause of Conscience both in HC, pp Jonathan Edwards and the Great Awakening Jonathan Edwards, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Charles Chauncy, Enthusiasm Described and Cautioned Against in HC, 80-91, Week IV T January 31 The Religious Epistemology of Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards, Selection from A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections, In HC Course Syllabus Page 2

3 R February 2 Week V T February 7 R February 9 Enlightenment I Caroline Winterer, American Enlightenments, pp Paper #1 Due, No Reading Enlightenment II Winterer, American Enlightenments, pp Week VI T February 14 Enlightenment III Winterer, American Enlightenments, pp R February 16 Enlightenment IV Winterer, American Enlightenments, pp Week VII T February 21 Puritanism Transformed: Franklin and Adams Benjamin Franklin, selection from The Autobiography John Adams, A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law In HC R February 23 MIDTERM EXAM Week VIII T February 28 Revolutionary Ideology Thomas Paine, Selection from Common Sense Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence In HC R March 2 Debating The Constitution Brutus, Selection from Essays of Brutus Alexander Hamilton, Constitutional Convention Speech on a Plan of Government in HC Week IX T March 7 Constitutional Theory: the Federalist James Madison, The Federalist #s 10 & 51 In HC Course Syllabus Page 3

4 R March 9 Jefferson and Social Thought in the New Republic Judith Sargent Murray, On the Equality of the Sexes Thomas Jefferson, letters in HC , SPRING BREAK Week X T March 21 R March 23 Week XI T March 28 Race and Slavery in Enlightenment Thought Thomas Jefferson, Selection from Notes on the State of Virginia, Samuel Stanhope Smith, Selection from An Essay on the Causes of the Variety of Complexion and Figure in the Human Species, in HC , Religion, Rational and Romantic William Ellery Channing, Unitarian Christianity Charles Grandison Finney, Selection from Lectures on Revivals of Religion Horace Bushnell, Christian Nurture All in HC , , Women in the Republic Sarah Grimke, Selection from Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, and the Condition of Women Catharine Beecher, Selection from A Treatise on Domestic Economy Margaret Fuller, Selection from Woman in the Nineteenth Century Louisa McCord, Enfranchisement of Women All in HC , , , R March 30 Capitalism and Democracy George Bancroft, The Office of the People in Art, Government, Religion Orestes Brownson, The Labouring Classes Henry C. Carey, Selection from The Harmony of Interests All in HC , Week XII T April 4 Transcendentalism: Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson, The Divinity School Address Self-Reliance, in HC R April 6 NO CLASS MEETING No Reading: Paper #2 First Draft Due Course Syllabus Page 4

5 Week XII T April 11 Transcendental Political Theory Henry David Thoreau, Resistance to Civil Government In HC R April 13 Abolitionism William Lloyd Garrison, Selection from Thoughts on African Colonization Prospectus of The Liberator Martin Delany, Selection from The Condition, Elevation, Emigration, and Destiny of the Colored People of the United States Frederick Douglass, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? I in HC , Week XIII T April 18 R April 20 Week XIV T April 25 R April 27 Southern Pro-Slavery John C. Calhoun, Selection from A Disquisition on Government George Fitzhugh, Selection from Sociology for the South Both in HC , Paper #2 Final Draft Due; No Reading Lincoln and the New Nationalism Abraham Lincoln, Speech at Peoria, Illinois Address Before the Wisconsin Agricultural Society Address Delivered at the Dedication of the Cemetery at Gettysburg Second Inaugural Address in HC Francis Lieber, Nationalism and Internationalism All in HC Conclusion and Review Grading Policy There will be two papers, a midterm exam, and a take-home final exam, as well as a series of six one-page source responses. Students will also be expected to do all reading assignments, and come to class prepared to discuss the assigned reading. The first paper will be a short (4-5 pages) textual analysis; the second paper will be a longer (6-8 pages) book review and critique. The source responses can be written in response to any of the primary text readings (i.e. the articles and essays excerpted in the Hollinger and Capper volume). You are required to do six of them in the course of the semester, and can do no more than one per class meeting, so you should plan the dates in advance. You Course Syllabus Page 5

6 must submit three of your source responses by February 21. The source response should consist of a brief summary of the article, its argument and perspective, followed by a specific question that the essay raises for you and an attempt to suggest possible answers to your question. The source responses should be done without consulting any secondary sources (this includes Wikipedia or any online source). Your question might be one of interpretation (e.g. what does X author mean by Y concept? ), audience (e.g. who was this essay written for and what expectations does the author have about his/her readers? ), historical contexts (e.g. what events, peoples, policies, or institutions prompted the writing of this essay? ), influence (e.g. How is this essay related to some earlier writings we have read? ), authorial assumptions, or purposes. The source responses should be typed double-spaced, and between 300 and 400 words in length. They must be turned in on the day that reading is designated in the schedule. I will drop the lowest grade on your source responses. The second paper requires a first draft followed by a revision. Grades will be determined on the following basis: Paper #1 20% Paper #2 30% Midterm 10% Final Exam 20% Source Responses 20% All assignments, including all six source responses, must be completed in order to pass the class. Course & Instructor Policies Papers are due on the dates indicated in the syllabus. Late papers will be graded down on the following basis: 1/3 letter grade per calendar date late (e.g. if the paper is an A paper and is two days late, it will receive a grade of B+). Extensions will be granted only if requested in advance and only if there is a good reason for the extension. The midterm and final can be made up, but only if illness or other emergency prevents the student from taking the exam at the scheduled time. The student must contact the instructor about making up any missed work. Students are required to attend class. Repeated unexcused absence will result in a lowering of the grade, or failing the class. Specifically: if you miss more than two classes, your course grade will be lowered 1/3 letter grade; if you miss more than four classes, your course grade will be lowered 2/3 letter grade; if you miss more than six classes, your course grade will be lowered a full letter grade; if you miss more than eight classes, you will fail the class. Legitimate excuses for missed class are illness, family emergency, or religious holidays; you must provide document for excused absences. Students are expected to come to class on time, and be respectful of the other students in the class. Please turn off and put away all phones during class meeting time. Students will not be permitted to use laptop computers or communication devices during class unless required to do so because of disability or if the instructor grants specific permission. If you experience problems with the class in any way, please bring your concerns to the instructor. Intellectual debate is welcome, but please be sure to avoid personal comments, invective, or derogatory statements. Academic dishonesty (e.g. plagiarism, cheating on tests, etc.) is not acceptable, and will be dealt with to the full extent that university policy allows. Course Syllabus Page 6