Bass (Georgetown)

Texts

Paul Lauter, et. al., Heath Anthology of American Literature

Paul Boyer, et. al., The Enduring Vision

Binder/Reimers, The Way We Lived

James McLoughlin, Revivals, Awakenings and Reform

Hannah Foster, The Coquette; A Novel

James Deetz, In Small Things Forgotten: An Introduction to Historical Archaeology

Essays and Handouts (American Studies Reader):

Samuel Danforth, "Errand into the Wilderness" (in The Wall and the Garden, A.W. Plumstead [Minnesota, 1968])

Perry Miller, "Errand into the Wilderness" Errand into the Wilderness [1953].)

Sacvan Bercovitch, "The Puritan Errand Reassessed" (in The American Jeremiad [Wisconsin, 1979])

Henry Nash Smith, "Can American Studies Develop a Method?" 1958)

Bruce Kucklick, "Myth and Symbol in American Studies"

Janice Radway, "American Studies, Reader Theory and the Literary Text"

Pauline Turner Strong, "Captive Images"

Carroll Smith-Rosenberg, "Writing History: Language, Class, and Gender"

Cary Carson, "Doing History with Material Culture"

John Kouwenhoven, "American Studies: Words or Things"

Emmett Curran, "Splendid Poverty: Jesuit Slaveholding in Maryland, 1805-1838"

General Information

Abstract

This course is the first in a four-course, core sequence for American Studies majors. Therefore, it has the burden of being both the first segment of the chronological sequence as well as an introduction to the methodologies and scope of American Studies as field. In addition to these two goals, this year we added an "electronic literacy" component that included some days in the computing lab as well as a set of lectures on electronic resources and network learning.

As an attempt to fuse the electronic component with the general goal of introducing students to interdisciplinary thinking we reconceived of the entire core sequence as providing students an education in "information literacies." In this way, facility with electronic and network resources falls in as one of a large number of tools students are exposed to for dealing with historical and cultural information. All texts--whether historical documents, literary works, or headstones--become sites of information that must be interpreted through the codes of their particular genres, materials, and contexts.

This general goal of teaching "information literacies" is maintained throughout the course and indeed the entire course sequence. At different times we might emphasize intellectual history, social history, material culture, literary history, sociology, geography, and so on. Readings are quite varied and include conventional historical texts and essays, essays about the history of American Studies, some cultural theory, and the wide range of historical, literary and cultural documents in the Heath Anthology of American Literature.

Population

As mentioned above, this is the first course of a four-course core sequence for the American Studies major. Most students are sophomores and have just declared American Studies as their major. The class is always team taught by two professors, each from a different discipline (in this case history and English). The course had 26 students enrolled.

General Pedagogy

(These are the student requirements as they are addressed to students on the syllabus):

This class has a student-centered philosophy. That means that you will carry most of the discussion most of the time. In order to actively engage the material on a daily basis, you need to process each day's reading as well as read it. Therefore, we will ask you to prepare some kind of written response for every day that the class meets. Some days you will be asked only to come prepared with a one-paragraph response to one of the reading questions that have been handed out to you in the previous class. Other days you will be asked to write a one-page, single-spaced paper in either draft or final form (never more than once a week). And in conjunction with these papers you may be asked to read and respond to papers written by your peers. There will probably also be a midterm paper of about four pages that will be a rewrite and expansion of one of the smaller papers. Additionally, there will be some collaborative group projects, including the final group project at the end of the semester. This final projectwill include an oral exam component.

note: You should keep a sequential copy of every writing and thinking assignment in a journal that we may ask to see at any time.

Computing Component

This course has a computing component that we are calling the "Electronic Literacy Component." You will note in the syllabus that there are six class sessions that will be conducted in the computer lab in the Reiss Building. In conjunction with these computer related projects, you may also be expected to put in some out of class "lab" time in the lab. We will explain the computing component as we go. Be sure and note that on the computer lab days we will meet in the Reiss Lab and not in our regular classroom. This also means that this course has a mandatory computer lab fee.

Electronic Literacy Component includes:

Lecture #1: (in class) Introduction to Electronic and Network learning;

Lecture #2; (in class) "Hypertext, Text Encoding, and American Culture Studies";

Lab Day #1: Intro to email and the Internet;

Lab Day #2: More Internet instruction; FirstSearch (WorldCat, MLA, Library of Congress, etc.); Electronic News Groups and Discussion Groups;

Lab Day #3: File Transfer Protocol (ftp); WordCruncher Demonstration; Internet: Searching with "Veronica"; making "bookmarks" using Gopher;

Lab Day #4: Exercises with WordCruncher--Narrative of Frederick Douglass ; Demonstration of American Studies hypertext ToolBook resources; Introduction to Semester Synthesis Project: The Jesuit Plantation Project;

Readings

Unit #1

Mythic Geography: Puritan Origins and the Problem of "American" Studies (Eight Class Sessions)

Samuel Danforth, "Errand into the Wilderness" Perry Miller, "Errand into the Wilderness" Sacvan Bercovitch, "The Puritan Errand Reassessed" (ASR)

Native American Traditions: creation myths, narratives; Journal of the First Voyage of Christopher Columbus ; The Virgin of Guadalupe ; Cabeza de Vaca ; Samuel de Champlain ; Samuel Purchas (Lauter)

"Ch. 2: Conflicting Cultural Values in Early America" (Binder/Reimers)

John Smith ; Richard Frethorne ; Thomas Morton ; John Winthrop ; William Bradford (Lauter)

Henry Nash Smith, "Can American Studies Develop a Method?" Bruce Kucklick, "Myth and Symbol in American Studies"

Janice Radway, "American Studies, Reader Theory and the Literary Text" (ASR)

Short Paper Due: Topic: "Origins, Myths, and the Idea of 'American Studies'"

Unit #2

Religion in Colonial America: Social Change and Social Control

Introduction, Chs. 1, 2, and 3 (William McLoughlin, Revivals, Awakenings, and Reform)

Mary Rowlandson , A Narrative of the Captivity Of. . . (Lauter) Boyer, Enduring Vision (Salem Witchcraft Trials); Cotton Mather (all selections in Lauter);

Jonathan Edwards ; Elizabeth Ashbridge ; (Lauter) Pauline Strong, "Captive Images" (ASR)

"Ch. 5: Eighteenth-Century Religion: Progress and Piety" (Binder/Reimers)

Unit #3

Race, Nationalism, and the Revolution

John Woolman (Lauter); Jupiter Hammon ; Prince Hall ; Samson Occom ; Phillis Wheatley ; (Lauter)

"Ch. 1: Indians and Europeans" "Ch. 4: Crossing the Atlantic--The Experiences of Slaves and Servants" (Binder/Reimers)

Benjamin Franklin , "A Narrative of the Late Massacres," "Information to Those Who Would Remove to America,""Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America"; (Lauter)

Thomas Jefferson , from Notes on the State of Virginia Hector St. Jean de Crèvecoeur , from Letters from an American Farmer (Lauter)

Short Paper Due: "The Language of Race and Nation"

Chapter 5 Boyer, Enduring Vision; Paine , Adams ; (Lauter)

Chapter 6; Boyer, Enduring Vision Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers; Judith Sargent Murray (Lauter)

Short Paper due: "Shaping the Nation and the Idea of Difference"

E-Literacy #1

ELECTRONIC LITERACY #1: Lecture/ Introduction to Electronic and Network learning;

COMPUTER LAB Intro to email; Internet

Unit #4

Men and Women: The Self-Made and the Unmade

Benjamin Franklin , Autobiography (Lauter)

Gustavus Vassa , The Surprising Life of Olaudah Equiano (Lauter)

Vassa; intro to Foster.

Hannah Foster , The Coquette

Carroll Smith-Rosenberg, "Writing History: Language, Class, and Gender" (Handout)

COMPUTER LAB--REISS BUILDING More Internet instruction; FirstSearch (WorldCat, MLA, Library of Congress, etc.); Electronic News Groups and Discussion Groups.

Unit #5

Everyday Life, Social History, and Material Culture

Introduction to material culture.

Cary Carson, "Doing History with Material Culture" (ASR)

Deetz, In Small Things Forgotten

Field Trip to Oak Hill Cemetery;

Paper Due: Material Culture Assignment

John Kouwenhoven, "American Studies: Words or Things" Discussion of Material Culture Assignments.

COMPUTER LAB--REISS BUILDING File Transfer Protocol (ftp); WordCruncher Demonstration; Internet: Searching with "Veronica"; making "bookmarks" using Gopher.

Unit #6

Jacksonianism and Antebellum Political Cultures

Chapter 4, pp. 98-122, 138-140 Revivals, Awakenings, and Reform (McLoughlin), "Ch. 8: Industry and Ideology in an Emerging Nation: The Lowell Venture"--and documents (Binder/Reimers); "The Rise of Manufacturing," (Boyer) pp.292- 295.

Chapter 10, "Politics, Religion, and Reform in Antebellum America" (Boyer); Chapter 9, "The Cherokee Removal: An American Tragedy," --and documents (Binder/Reimers)

Frederick Douglass , Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave (Lauter)

"Ch. 14: Plantation Society in the Antebellum South" (Binder/Reimers); "Life Under Slavery" and "Emergence of African American Culture"pp. 397-411

E-Literacy #2

Electronic Literacy #2: "Hypertext, Text Encoding and American Culture Studies"

COMPUTER LAB--REISS BUILDING; use of WordCruncher to analyze F. Douglass Narrative

Introduction to Semester Synthesis Project: The Jesuit Plantation Project; R. Emmett Curran, "Splendid Poverty" (handout)

Reading Questions

Set #1

These reading questions are for the following selections in Lauter:

John Woolman , "The Journal of John Woolman," (skim the first part, read the second part more carefully) and "Some Considerations on the Keeping of Negroes"; Jupiter Hammon , all selections; Prince Hall , all selections; Phillis Wheatley , all selections; Samson Occom , "A Short Narrative of My Life" only

For the following questions: write out a short paragraph for each of the questions on a sheet of paper. These do not have to be formal responses, but they should be complete enough for you to speak from on Friday. These sheets will be turned in as part of your next paper, due Friday, October 8.

1. Compare Woolman's notion of spirituality to Jonathan Edwards '. Are they alike or very different? Would Edwards have approved of Woolman?

2. Based on your reading of Woolman, especially in "Some Considerations...," make some observation(s) about how he uses the terms "nature" and "nation".

3. In the readings by Hammon, Hall, Wheatley and Occom, pick two passages that reveal some aspect of how a "racial minority" in the 18th century could find a "voice" and "audience" in writing.

Set #2

These reading questions are for the following selections in Lauter:

Benjamin Franklin , "Narrative of the Late Massacres," "Information for those Removing to America," "Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America" Hector St. Jean de Crèvecoeur , from Letters of an American Farmer, Letter II "On the Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures..." and Letter III "What is an American", only.

1. In Franklin's "Narrative of the Late Massacres," how many "social or cultural distinctions " is he making? That is, what kinds of social or cultural "categories" make up his argument? How do these categories overlap, intersect or relate to what you tend to think of as "racial" categories?

2. Considering both the Crèvecoeur selections and Franklin's "Information for those Removing to America" together, make a list of some characteristics that make up an "American". Do Crevècoeur and Franklin approach this in the exact same way or are there differences?

3. How does Franklin's "Late Massacres" selection, written in 1764, compare with the "Savages" essay, written 20 years later? Is there any difference in tone or thinking?

Reading Questions : Set #3

These reading questions are for the following selections in Lauter:

Hector St. Jean de Crèvecoeur , Letters from an American Farmer: Letter IX, and Letter XII.

Thomas Jefferson , from Notes on the State of Virginia

For the following questions: write out a short paragraph for each of the questions on a sheet of paper. These do not have to be formal responses, but they should be complete enough for you to speak from on Wednesday. These sheets will be turned in as part of your next paper, due Friday, October 8.

1. Find one place in Letters IX and XII where Crèvecoeur uses the term "society": write a one sentence definition of what "society" means in that context.

2. Find at least one passage in any of the reading that somehow contributes to the description of "America" as a "middle zone" between Europe and a "savage" wilderness.

3. Compare/contrast what Thomas Jefferson and Crèvecoeur appreciate about Native Americans. List a couple of meaningful examples for each.