Fall, 2006

History 490-01

HISTORY SENIOR SEMINAR

Yue-him Tam. OM 305. tam@macalester.edu. Phone: x6262. Office Hours: TR 2:30-4:30 and other times by appointment.

Peter Weisensel. OM 307. weisensel@macalester.edu. Phone: x6570. Office Hours: MWF 9:00-11:30, and other times by appointment.

This class should be unlike any other history class you have taken because it is, in nearly every way, your class. It presents you with the opportunity to act as a professional historian by pursuing your own research within intellectual communities of other researchers (the rest of the class, the rest of the department, and those other historians around the country who have studied and written upon your topic). The success of your own project, and of the class as a whole, depends on your initiative, creativity, and ability to work effectively within these larger communities.

The senior seminar is the culminating event in a Macalester history major. Our central purpose is to give students an opportunity to practice the skills they have been developing over the past three years, analysis, research and writing, while working on a topic of their choice. We envisage projects of two types: a. traditional academic historical analysis; or b. projects in public history (exhibits, displays, etc. that reach the public). Students choosing the latter will work with Paul Schadewald of the History Department and the staff of the Minnesota Historical Society.

The final product will be either a 20-25 page academic research paper complete with footnotes and bibliography, or, a product in public history demonstrating equal insight and effort. If you choose an historical research paper we expect you to argue a point of historical significance and to place your project in the appropriate historiographical context (how does your work add to or correct existing work on the subject?). Historians make history, and it is not history unless you add your insight to interpreting and understanding the facts. You will turn in the final versions of your papers/projects at the end of the semester. Shortly before the end though (Dec. 4th) we have planned a student-run history conference, modeled on professional conferences, at which you will present your findings to an audience of friends, fellow students and history faculty.

Grading. A written grade will be calculated by averaging the grades on the two short written assignments (15% each), and your final paper (70%). This grade may then be modified up or down by one or two half-grades, where appropriate, to reflect class involvement. Thus, for example, a B average on the assigned work will yield a grade between C+ and A-.

Course Schedule

As you see, we have left several weeks “open.” This does not necessarily mean that there will be no class meeting that week. We have deliberately left some unscheduled time to fit in things that might arise in the course of the semester as a result of student initiative or as a result of issues that might come up in the course of your work on your projects.

Sept. 11. Introductions. Discussion of the course.

Guest: Paul Schadewald, Macalester College.

Sept. 18. Some models for your projects. First written assignment.

Writing Assignment. Read and carefully study the following four articles. The forms and styles differ from one another, reflecting the variety of historical writing, though they may share some features. Some questions that you might want to think about while you are reading them are:

1. How does each introduce the larger historical issue that it deals with and explain the central analytical problem that the essay will address?;

2. How does each identify some “smaller” questions that serve as a way of approaching the “larger” question?;

3. How does each invoke some methodological or theoretical literature that will guide the investigation?;

4. How does each establish its arguments within a larger historical literature in order to clarify various interpretative stances?; and

5. Hoe does each set forth a clear conclusion (or thesis) about the interpretation that has been presented?

Please come to class prepared to address all of these five points as they relate to each article.

After having thought carefully about all of the above, write a 2-3 page review (or evaluation) of ONE of the articles. Your critique should set forth the thesis and argument of the reading and then assess its strengths and weaknesses. Specifically, it should:

1. State the author’s major points briefly;

2. Indicate why this work is valuable, relevant and important. How does it contribute to your understanding in a new, revealing way? Is the argument developed in a convincing way? How so?;

3. Indicate what the weaknesses might be. Is it because of questions asked?, sources consulted?, logic?, etc. How so?

All papers are due no later than this class sesssion.

The articles:

Louis S. Warren, “Buffalo Bill Meets Dracula: William F. Cody, Bram Stoker, and the Frontiers of Racial Decay,” American Historical Review, vol. 107, no. 4 (Oct., 2002), 1124-1157, at http://www.historycooperative.com/journals/ahr/107.4/ah0402001124.html

Joy Wiltenburg, “True Crime: The Origins of Modern Sensationalism,” American Historical Review, vol. 109, no. 5 (Dec., 2004), 1377-1404, at http://www.historycooperative.org.clicnet4.clic.edu/journals/ahr/109.5/wiltenburg.html

Gavan McCormick, “The Japanese Movement to Correct History,” in Laura Hein and Mark Selden (eds.), Censoring History. Citizenship and Memory in Japan, Germany and the United States (New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2000). Handed-out in class.

Priya Satia, “The Defense of Inhumanity: Air Control and the British Idea of Arabia,” American Historical Review Vol. 111, No. 1 (January), 16-51, at http://0-www.historycooperative.org.clicnet4.clic.edu/journals/ahr/111.1/satia.html

Sept. 25. Preliminary Proposal due in class. Bibliography of secondary sources (at least 10 items) due in class.

Many of you will undoubtedly be working in areas that are outside the expertise of the two instructors. If you are working in such an area, you must consult with a member of the History Department about the feasibility of your proposal and for advice about your approach and bibliography. Your proposals and bibliographies must include the signature of the separtment member with whom you have consulted.

Oct. 2. Yom Kippur. No class.

Oct. 9. Narrative outline and full bibliography (including primary sources) due in class.

Second Written Assignment. Since working on your search for materials, you have encountered several major works that deal, in some way, with your topic. You will need to think about how your argument relates to preexisting work. For this class you will select one fairly recently published book upon which you are drawing and write a critical review of it of approximately 1000 words. Such a review should be modeled on book reviews that appear in journals, but you want to angle your review toward its relevance to your own topic. All reviews are due no later than this class session.

You have probably encountered some primary or documentary material related to your text that presents rich opportunities for interpretation. Bring a short selection from one of these documentary materials to class, and we, as a grouyp, can discuss interpretative strategies.

Oct. 16. Open.

Oct. 23. Open.

During these two weeks you will be researching and writing the first draft of your papers/projects. This will be a time when the professors (both Profs. Tam and Weisensel on the one hand and the other professors in the department) will be particularly concerned to see you to talk over strategies, issues, problems, as they arise. Students should think about “class” during these two weeks (and the week of Oct. 30) as including meeting(s) with Profs. Tam and Weisensel, preferably both of them and you together at the same time.

Oct. 30. First Draft due in class. Career Night. Now that you are really busy working on your projects, it might be a good idea to take a break to consider possible careers for history majors. This will be a fun- and food-filled evening with lots of resources from the Career Development Center. Alums who were history majors are being invited as well.

This class the instructors will turn back to you their written comments on your first drafts.

Nov. 6. Peer Critiques due. During the week before this session each student will comment on two rough drafts by two other students. This means that each of you will receive two reviews of your work, in addition to the comments provided by Profs. Tam and Weisensel.

Nov. 13. Conference preparation. We will meet to determine the tasks to be done and form subcommittees to do them. Naturally, work continues on polishing your projects outside of class.

Nov. 20. Conference preparation.

Nov.27. Conference preparation.

Dec. 4. History Department Senior Conference. Grand Gala Event.

Dec. 11. Final meeting. Critique of the conference. Social event. Final versions of papers and projects due in class.