History 299:
Instructor:
Office Hours:
Office:
Major Themes in Southern History
Dr. Smith
Mon., 2:00-4:00 p.m., and by appointment
Piskor 201; phone 229-5649; email, [email protected]
Course Description:
The 299 seminar is designed especially for history majors and minors.
History 299 is designed to help prepare majors and minors for the
senior research seminar and other upper-level history courses by
honing students’ skills of research, analysis, and interpretation that
are necessary for the successful writing of history. Our topics of
discussion and research for the semester will focus on the U.S. South.
We will study various themes of southern history through
historiographical essays, primary sources, secondary scholarly sources
as well as popular media. One of our primary goals will be to discern
how historians have interpreted our themes over time.
Course Objectives:
The major objective of this course is to gain a better understanding
of how historians research, interpret, and write history. To that
end, the final product of this course will be a historiographical
essay on a topic of your choice that analyzes how historians’
interpretation(s) of the topic chosen has or has not shifted over time
and what factors have caused those shifts (or not) in interpretation.
Additional course objectives include:
-To survey major themes in southern history and how those themes have
been interpreted by historians.
-To sharpen students’ ability to locate and evaluate scholarly
secondary sources (especially peer reviewed journal articles) on a
historical topic.
-To prepare students to write a historiographical essay.
-To sharpen students’ reading and critical thinking skills through the
close reading of written texts, including primary and secondary
sources.
-To sharpen students’ critical thinking skills through the close
reading of non-written texts, including film and music texts.
-To enhance students’ oral communication skills through classroom
discussion of texts.
- To survey major themes in southern history and how those themes have
been interpreted by the popular media.
Required Texts:
Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide to Writing in History
All readings assigned on Sakai and class handouts
Binder/Folder in which to keep all reading assignments (bring to class
each class period)
Classroom Etiquette:
Everyone in the classroom is responsible for a positive learning
environment.
-Ringing cell phones are HIGHLY disruptive; please turn off cell
phones before class.
-If others are speaking, please listen carefully. You should always
treat your colleagues as bright, thoughtful people with important
things to say.
-Please be respectful of everyone in the class at all times.
Attendance Policy:
-Full and prompt attendance is expected. Attendance will be taken and
noted each class period. Students with more than two absences (one
week of class) for any reason are subject to a .5 grade deduction.
Students are subject to additional .25 grade deductions for each
additional absence (after three). There is no distinction between
“excused” and “unexcused” absences.
-Late arrivals are disruptive, so please be on time.
-This class is ninety minutes. Please take care of any personal needs
before class. Walking in and out of class during class is the height
of disruption (it’s rude); please leave class during the session only
in case of an emergency.
Class Preparedness and Participation:
Like attendance, class participation is required and expected. Simply
attending class does not equal class participation. Class
participation means actively and constructively contributing to the
learning environment of the class which includes: participating in
class discussions, asking questions, offering comments, listening to
and responding to your colleagues’ comments and questions. In other
words demonstrate to the instructor and your colleagues that you have
completed the assignment and that you have intellectually engaged the
assignment.
-It is essential that each student attends class prepared to discuss
the assigned readings for that period. If you do not read the
assignments, you will not do very well in the course.
-If you do not participate in class discussions on a regular basis in
a manner that demonstrates you have carefully read and considered the
assignments, your final grade will be significantly lowered by at
least a letter grade (i.e., 3.0 to 2.0).
-Please do not come to class without the assigned reading for the
class period. If you come to class without the assigned readings,
your final grade will be negatively affected.
-If you do miss class, you should ask a class colleague for notes,
announcements, and/or handouts, (etc.) that may have been given out
during class. You may also contact the instructor for additional
guidance.
-Your participation will be assessed not only on the amount of your
participation in class but also on the quality of your participation
in the class.
-A note on pay for print: The assigned texts to purchase for the
course have been kept to a minimum. A reader for the course would
cost between 40 and 50 dollars. Therefore, if you exceed your print
limitation and have to pay for copies, it is still much cheaper than
if a reader were required for the course.
-A Note on Laptops: Please keep laptops, tablets, phones, and other
electronic devices put away during class, unless otherwise instructed
by the professor.
Academic Integrity:
The instructor and the history department take academic honesty very
seriously. The history department has developed a “Common Statement
on Academic Honesty” that is included on the department website.
Please read this statement. Also, please read the section in Mary
Lynn Rampolla (required text) on “Avoiding Plagiarism” in A Pocket
Guide to Writing in History. St. Lawrence University has a statement
on academic honesty in the SLU Student Handbook, please read this
statement as well. Academic dishonesty—plagiarism, turning in work
that is not your own, turning in work which was completed for another
class, cheating on exams, etc.—is a very serious offensive. It will
not be tolerated.
Graded Work Policy:
Exams: Exams will be based on classroom discussions as well as
assigned readings, including films, and other forms of texts. Except
in cases of required attendance at an authorized college function (of
which you must inform the instructor before the event), no student
will be allowed to make up any graded work. Additionally, no student
will be allowed to take an exam if she or he arrives after another
student in the class has already seen and left the exam.
Quizzes: Quizzes may be given and can be announced or unannounced.
Conceptual Worksheets:
Conceptual Worksheets are distributed as a way to help students focus
their reading assignments. These worksheets are sometimes graded,
sometimes not graded. If the worksheets are turned in to the
instructor (whether they are graded or not), the instructor will
expect them to be completed in a professional manner, i.e.,
intellectually thoughtful, grammatically and typographically well
presented.
The worksheets unless graded will not be returned; therefore, students
should make copies of all worksheets before they hand them to the
instructor. These worksheets can serve as valuable study aids for
exams.
Formal Written Assignments:
Papers and other written assignments are due at the beginning of the
class period on the due dates. Assignments will be deducted .5 if
turned in after class on the date that the assignment is due.
Assignments will be deducted one letter grade for each day after the
due date. For example, if the assignment is due on Tuesday at 2:20 pm
and is turned in on the same Tuesday at 4:00 p.m., the assignment will
be deducted .5 (i.e., 3.0 to 2.5). If the assignment is turned in the
next day (before 4:30), a point will be deducted (3.0 to 2.0) and an
additional point for each day late.
Formal Written Assignments are to be turned in as hard copies on the
due date. Please do not e-mail the assignments, unless you have made
a previous arrangement with me to do so. Unless you have arranged
with me to e-mail an assignment, I will not open the assignment and
the assignment will be counted as late until I receive a hard copy.
(Please Note) Late Graded Work: Any work that is turned in late will
not be returned until the end of the semester. Please take note and
remember this caveat.
Additional Assignments: If necessary, additional assignments may be
assigned during the semester with prior notice by the instructor.
E-Mail: If you e-mail the instructor, please wait twenty-four hours
before you e-mail again. I handle e-mail as promptly as possible but
I do not check e-mail 24/7. If you have questions about graded
assignments, please contact me early enough so that I can respond.
For example, if a graded assignment is due on Tuesday at 2:20 p.m.,
you should contact me no later than the previous Monday morning.
Grade Policy:
-Your grade will be based on percentages of the total point value for
the class. For example, if we end up with 400 available points, you
will need 360 points (90%) for a 4.0.
-The best way to keep track of your grade is to keep a running tab of
the point values for all graded assignments and the number of points
you earned for each assignment.
Percentage Values: 90-100%= 4.0; 89%=3.75; 88-85%=3.5; 84=3.25%; 8380%=3.0; 79%=2.75; 78-75%=2.5; 74%=2.25; 73-70%=2.0; 69%=1.75; 6865%=1.5; 64%=1.25; 63-60%=1.0; 59%-below=0.0
A Note on Pass/Fail: According to the St. Lawrence University catalog,
“the purpose of the [pass/fail] option is to encourage students to
explore new areas of study in which they are interested but have
little or no background. The pass/fail option is not offered to allow
for the removal of deficient mid- or late-term grades incurred, nor to
justify reduced effort in a course.” There is no pass/fail option for
this course.
Course Assignments Culminating with the Historiographical Essay: All s
formal written assignments should be revised, proofread, and
documented accurately (citations and bibliography). They are to
follow the guidelines (below) for all formal written assignments.
Review of Historiographical Essays: Each student will write a review
of historiographical essays assigned in class. The review will
summarize the major points covered in the essays. You will be
expected to discuss the major interpretations covered in the essays
and the authors’ interpretation of why historical writing about the
subject has changed over time. This will serve to model
historiographical writing for you.
Annotated Bibliography: Each student will write annotated
bibliographies and/or summaries of secondary sources leading up to the
historiographical essay.
Full Draft of Historiography: Each student will turn in a complete
full draft of her/his historiographical essay that will be graded and
commented on by the instructor and then revised by the student. The
full draft should be in correct form, with correct footnote citations,
and bibliography. This is not to be treated as a “rough” or
incomplete draft. The full draft will be graded on its own merits as
a complete/separate project.
Revised Draft of Historiography: Revision is a necessary component of
good writing. After receiving the comments on the first full draft,
students will revise their historiographical essay taking into account
the instructor’s comments, possibly adding additional sources to your
research and analysis, clarifying your analysis, and/or asking
additional or different questions of your sources. This revision will
be treated as a separate project. You must revise your full draft or
you will receive a 0.0 for the assignment.
Guidelines for All Formal Written Work: For each guideline not met the
student’s grade will be subject to a .25 deduction (unless otherwise
noted, see “proofread” below).
-Please use standard one inch (1) margins.
-Please double-space your pages.
-Please number your pages.
-Please use The Chicago Manual of Style format for footnotes and
bibliography. Consult A Pocket Guide to Writing in History each time
you write a footnote and/or bibliographical citation. It is best to
simply form a habit of writing with a citation format guide each time
you need to write a citation.
-Please Do Not staple your pages. Please clip them together with a
paper clip.
-Please proofread your work. Work that is marred by typographical,
grammatical, and/or citation errors will have the grade significantly
lowered (by as much as one letter grade).
This syllabus is subject to amendment with prior notice of the
instructor (there probably will be changes).
Class Schedule, Assignments, Due Dates: Additional Assignments and
Guidelines will be distributed in class. All readings except
otherwise noted are on Sakai
28 August:
Syllabus Review; Class Introduction: What is
Historiography? Why is Historiography Important
2 September: United States Historiography; Reading: Frances Couvares
et al., “Introduction to U.S. Historiography”; Assignment Due:
Conceptual Worksheet on Couvares
4 September: The South and Slavery; Reading: U. B. Phillips, excerpt
from American Negro Slavery; John Pendleton Kennedy, excerpt from
Swallow Barn
9 September: The South and Slavery; Reading: Kenneth Stampp, “To Make
Them Stand in Fear”; excerpt from Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the
Life of Frederick Douglass
11 September: Meet in ODY with Dr. Smith and Rhonda Courtney
16 September: Gerald Grob and George Billias, from Interpretations in
American History, v.1 “American Slavery: Benign or Malignant”;
Stephanie J. Shaw, from A Companion to the American South, “The
Maturation of Slave Society and Culture”; Assignment Due: Review essay
of slavery historiography due
18 September: Southern Women in Black and White; Reading: Anne Frior
Scott, excerpt from The Southern Lady from Pedestal to Politics, “The
Image, Queen of the Home”; Anne Goodwyn Jones, excerpt from Tomorrow
is Another Day, “Dixie’s Diadem”
23 September: Cheryl Thurber, from Southern Women: Histories and
Identities, “The Mammy Image”; M. M. Manring, excerpt from Slave in a
Box, “Mammies, Mothers, and Others”
25 September: 1st Exam Over All Material To Date
30 September: Rampolla and Library Work with Dr. Smith (come to the
library prepared to work on assignment); Please be prepared to discuss
your research for your assignment thus far.
2 October:
Annotated Bibliographies/Summaries due and first round
of oral reports on research
7 October:
Southern Women in Black and White, post-Civil War;
Reading: LeAnn Whites, “Rebecca Latimer Felton and the Problem of
‘Protection’ in the New South”
9 October:
Mid-Semester Break!
14 October:
Southern Women in Black and White, post-Civil War,
con’t; Reading: Crystal N. Feimster, excerpt from Southern Horrors,
“The Triumph of White Supremacy”
16 October:
Second Set of Annotated Bibliographies/Summaries Due and
second round of oral reports on research
21 October:
Southern Women in Black and White, Post-Civil War,
continued; Reading: Kent Anderson Leslie, “Amanda America Dickinson”;
additional reading TBA
23 October:
The Origins of Jim Crow; Reading: Howard Rabinowitz,
“More than the Woodward Thesis: Assessing the Strange Career of Jim
Crow”; John David Smith, “Historians and the Origins of Racial
Segregation”; segregation historiography worksheet due
28 October:
The Practice of Segregation; Reading: Richard Wright,
“The Ethics of Living Jim Crow: An Autobiographical Sketch”; Melton
McLaurin, excerpt from Separate Pasts: Growing Up White in the
Segregated South
30 October:
Work on 1st Full Draft of Historiography
4 November:
Meet with instructor to discuss progress on papers
6 November:
2nd Exam Over All Material To Date
11 November:
Meet with instructor in ODY Library
13 November:
First Full Draft of Historiographical Essay Due
18 November:
Oral Reports on Research Process
20 November:
TBA
2 December:
Student Oral Presentations and Student Responses
4 December:
Student Oral Presentations and Student Responses
9 December:
Student Oral Presentations and Student Responses
15 December:
Revision of Historiographical Essay due by 4:30 p.m.