HIST 4260.001
Topics in U.S. History: Women in the Modern U.S.
Dr. Rachel Moran WH 115, T/TH 12:30-1:50 Department of History University of North Texas
Enrollment: 35
Office: Wooten Hall 248 Fall 2014
Office Hours: T/TH 2-4pm or by appointment
Required Texts:
- Women’s America: Refocusing the Past, Vol. 2, Ed. Linda Kerber and Jane Sherron De Hart, 7th edition. Oxford UP, 2010. 0195388348. Appx $45 new.
- Joan Jacobs Brumberg, The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls. Vintage, 1998. 0679735291. Appx $15 new. Cheaper on kindle (2010, B003O86L0S) or used (any edition is fine).
- Susan K. Cahn, Sexual Reckonings: Southern Girls in a Troubling Age. Harvard UP, 2012. 0674063937. Appx. $20 new. Cheaper on kindle (B002PMVOZG) or used.
- Some required readings and course materials are on Blackboard, please confirm your access to the electronic course space and Blackboard emails ASAP.
Course Schedule:
Week 1:
Aug 26 – What is Women’s History?
Aug 28 – Ways of Doing Women’s History
Due: Blackboard, Kate Haulman, “Defining ‘American Women's History,’" AND Blackboard, Nancy Hewitt, “From Seneca Falls to Suffrage?”
Week 2:
Sept 2 – Themes in Women’s History 1: Sex and Gender, Sameness and Difference
DUE: Blackboard: Antonia I. Castañeda, “Women of Color and the Rewriting of Western History,” AND Leslie M. Alexander, “Rethinking the Position of Black Women in American Women's History”
Sept 4 – A Fight for Citizenship I: Late 19th Century Suffrage
DUE: WA, Rebecca Edwards, “Pioneers at the Polls: Woman Suffrage in the West,” p. 342-348.
Week 3:
Sep 9 – Jim Crow and Jane Crow: Race in the Late 19th Century
DUE: Cahn, Chapter 1, “Holding Excitement in their Hands: The Southern Girl Problem,” p. 16-42 AND WA, Patricia Schechter, “Ida B. Wells and Southern Horrors” p. 349-355.
Sep 11 – Indigenous Women and the “Race Line” at 1900
DUE: WA, Peggy Pascoe, “Ophelia Paquet, a Tillamook Indian Wife: Misegenation Laws and the
Privileges of Property, p. 363-367 AND WA, Zitkala-Sa, “This Semblance of Civilization,” p. 356-
360.
Week 4:
Sep 16 – The New 20th Century City
DUE: WA, Annelise Orleck, “From the Russian Pale to Labor Organizing in New York City, p. 386- 401.
Sep 18 – Organizing Women Wage-Workers
DUE: WA, Kathryn Kish Sklar, “Florence Kelley and Women’s Activism in the Progressive Era,” p. 402-413 AND WA, “Protecting Women Wage-Workers,” p. 415-419.
Week 5:
Sep 23 – A Fight for Citizenship II: 20th Century Suffrage
DUE: WA, Ellen Carol DuBois, “The Next Generation of Suffragists: Harriot Stanton Blatch and Grassroots Politics,” p. 420-426
In class: One Woman, One Vote
Sep 25 – The “New Woman”? Pt. 1
DUE: Cahn, Chapter 2, “Spirited Youth or Fiends Incarnate?,” p. 43-67 AND WA, Vicki L. Ruiz, The Flappers and the Chaperone: Mexican American Teenagers in the Southwest,” p. 477-483.
Week 6:
Sep 30 – Themes in Women’s History 2: Menstruation
DUE: Brumberg, Chapter 1, “The Body’s New Timetable: How the Life Course of American Girls has Changed,” p. 1-26 AND Brumberg, Chapter 2, “Sanitizing Puberty: The American Way to Menstruate,” p. 27-56.
Oct 2 – Themes in Women’s History 3: Beauty
DUE: Brumberg, Chapter 3, “Perfect Skin,” p. 57-94 AND Blackboard, Maxine Leeds Craig, “Ridicule and Celebration: Black Women as Symbols in the Rearticulation of Race”
Week 7:
Oct 7 – The New Woman? Pt. 2
DUE: Cahn, Chapter 3, “‘Just as Much a Menace’: Race and Sex Delinquency,” p. 68-97 AND Cahn, Chapter 4, “‘A Head Full of Diamonds’: Fact, Fiction, and African-American Girls’ Sexuality,” p. 98-128.
Oct 9 – ***EXAM 1*** Bring Bluebook
Week 8:
Oct 14 – Women in the Great Depression
DUE: WA, Leslie J. Reagan, “When Abortion was a Crime: Reproduction and the Economy in the Great Depression,” p. 506-515 AND Cahn, Chapter 5, “‘Living in Hopes’: An Economy of Desire,” p. 129-155.
Oct 16 – Women and the New Deal
DUE: Blackboard, Alice Kessler-Harris, “Providers: Gender Ideology in the 1930s” [not the Kessler Harris essay in book!]
Week 9:
Oct 21 – Themes in Women’s History 4: Sex and Science
Due: Cahn, Chapter 6, “Sex, Science, and Eugenic Sterilization,” p. 156-180 AND Brumberg, Chapter 4, “Body Projects,” p. 95-138.
Oct 23 – Women in WWII: Homefront Heroines
DUE: WA, Ruth Milkman, “Gender at Work: The Sexual Division of Labor during World War II,” p. 553-564 AND Cahn, Chapter 7, “The World War II Pickup Girl and Wartime Passions,” p. 181 210.
Week 10:
Oct 28 – Women in WWII: Dangerous Dames
DUE: WA, Beth Bailey and David Farber, “Prostitutes on Strike: The Women of Hotel Street during World War II,” p. 544-552 AND WA, Valerie Matsumoto, “Japanese American Women during World War II,” p. 537-542.
In Class: The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter
Oct 30 – Cold War America
DUE: WA, Amy Swerdlow, “Ladies’ Day at the Capitol: Women Strike for Peace versus HUAC,” p.
617-629.
Week 11:
Nov 4 – American Women in the Shadow of the Bomb
DUE: Cahn, Chapter 9, “Would Jesus Dance?: The Dangerous Rhythms of Rock and Roll,” p. 241 268
Nov 6 – Women and the Civil Rights Movement
DUE: Cahn, Chapter 10, “The Sexual Paradox of High School Desegregation,” p. 269-303 AND Blackboard, “Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee Position Paper: Women in the Movement”
Week 12:
Nov 11 – Themes in Women’s History 5: Sexuality
DUE: Brumberg, Chapter 5, “The Disappearance of Virginity: Sexual Expression and Sexual Danger,” p. 139-192.
Nov 13 – Sexuality in the 1950s
DUE: WA, Estelle Freedman, “Miriam Van Waters and the Burning of Letters,” p. 591-597 AND WA, Susan Cahn, “‘Mannishness,’ Lesbianism, and Homophobia in U.S. Women’s Sports” (note this is in WA even though it’s also Cahn!)
Week 13:
Nov 18 – Was there a Sexual Revolution in the 1960s?
DUE: WA, Beth Bailey, “Prescribing the Pill: The Coming of the Sexual Revolution in America’s Heartland,” p. 652-663 AND WA, Susan J. Douglas, “Why the Shirelles Mattered: Girl Groups on the Cusp of a Feminist Awakening,” p. 660-663.
In Class: The Pill
Nov 20 – The Second Wave
DUE: Blackboard, Becky Thompson, “Multiracial Feminism: Recasting the Chronology of Second Wave Feminism”
Week 14:
Nov 25 – ***Exam 2*** Bring Bluebook
Nov 27 – FALL BREAK/NO CLASS
Week 15:
Dec 2 – A Third Wave? A Fourth Wave?
DUE: Blackboard, Jessica Valenti, “You’re a Hard Core Feminist, I Swear,” AND examine a couple contemporary feminist websites.
Choose from:
feministing.com
thefbomb.org
thefeministwire.com
jezebel.com
crunkfeministcollective.wordpress.com
blackgirldangerous.org
Dec 4 – Women’s History and Women’s Present
DUE: Watch http://www.makers.com/documentary (three hours – plan accordingly!)
Week 16:
Oral History paper due – Dec 9 (via blackboard)
Dates to put in your planner NOW:
Oct 9 – Exam 1
Nov 25 – Exam 2
Dec 9 – Oral history paper due
TBD – Primary document paper and group presentation due – This VARIES based on your group assignment. My due date is ______.
Grading:
Participation: 100 points
Exam 1: 200 points
Exam 2: 250 points
Paper-Project A: 100 points for paper (indiv. grade), 100 points for presentation (group grade)
Solo Paper B: 250 points
TOTAL: 1000 points
900+ A
800-899 B
700-799 C
600-699 D
Below 600 F
Late work
Late assignments will be graded down 1/2 letter grade for each day late. For example, if your paper was one day late, you would receive an A- instead of an A; two days late means a B+ instead of an A, etc….
More importantly, late assignments mean late feedback from me. Since each piece of this course builds upon the last, it is critical you stay up to date with all work.
Plagiarism and Code of Academic Integrity: In your written work, always cite the author or title and page number for every idea (quoted or paraphrased) that is not your own. Cheating and plagiarism are academic crimes that result in a failing course grade. You cheat by copying or providing answers, hints, or help to or from another student. You commit plagiarism if you use another person’s ideas or expression in your writing without acknowledging the source. If you quote without citing or put someone else’s ideas into your own words without crediting them, you plagiarize. Cite in parenthesis or with a full footnote or endnote [e.g. (Moran lecture, 1-14-14) or (WA Zitkala-Sa 357)]. You need not cite encyclopedia-type knowledge such as birth and death dates or place, the names of famous people’s teachers or relatives. By January 21 read “Categories of Academic Dishonesty” at:
http://policy.unt.edu/sites/default/files/untpolicy/pdf/7-Student_Affairs-Academic_Integrity.pdf
Accommodations: Students with disabilities who want accommodations must be registered with the Office of Disability Accommodation. Bring your letter of accommodation to me as soon as possible and before graded work is due. ODA is at the Union Suite 321, 940-565-4323.
The University of North Texas makes reasonable academic accommodation for students with disabilities. Students seeking accommodation must first register with the Office of Disability Accommodation (ODA) to verify their eligibility. If a disability is verified, the ODA will provide you with an accommodation letter to be delivered to faculty to begin a private discussion regarding your specific needs in a course. You may request accommodations at any time, however, ODA notices of accommodation should be provided as early as possible in the semester to avoid any delay in implementation. Note that students must obtain a new letter of accommodation for every semester and must meet with each faculty member prior to implementation in each class. For additional information see the Office of Disability Accommodation website at www.unt.edu/oda. You may also contact them by phone at 940.565.4323.
Participation grade
This course requires active participation to earn an A in class conduct, so that students contribute to each others’ learning. No points are assigned for just attending and soaking up the work the instructor and other students present. Answer questions to demonstrate reading comprehension, make comments relevant to the discussion, ask questions, do any small in-class work, and bring readings and notes from which to cite. Please show respect for everyone in the room and for the discussion of ideas and do not engage in disruptive behavior (side conversations, cell phones, doing reading or work that does not pertain to class, etc.).
Because UNT is a heavily commuter campus, traffic can make students late. If you are late or must leave early, come or go quietly. In general, allow a reasonable maximum commute time.
EXAM 1: Midterm, Covers Aug. 26-Oct. 7
This is a blue book (in class essay and short-answer) exam. You write one essay (choose between two) and complete four short identifications (including SIGNIFICANCE. Choose from seven).
EXAM 2: Final, Covers Oct. 14-Dec. 4 (not cumulative)
Same format as midterm.
Group Project/Paper A: Learning History through Women’s Lives
You will be divided into teams of 4-5 students each (about 8 teams).
A. Coordinate Yourselves: Create and circulate among yourselves and to me an accurate list of the group members’ emails and phone numbers. All students should check their EagleMail account or forward it to an account they use.
B. Facilitate Discussion: Your group will facilitate discussion for about 20 minutes. The goal is to get the rest of the class to understand and supply the daily readings’ main points, quality of evidence, and significance to the larger context of modern women’s history. Do not answer questions for the class. Focus on arguments and importance rather than soliciting opinions not backed by evidence.
—Plan Presentation: Decide how to elicit these answers. Do you want a basic all-class question and answer, small groups dividing up the work, a debate between two contrasting positions, role-playing various points, jeopardy or some other game format, or another method? For anything with multiple parts, group members can circulate to help each group of students.
-- Write individual response paper. Due the night before your facilitation (by midnight!). This is a 3-4 page individual paper on the readings due the day you will facilitate. Your response is worth 100 points (10% of course grade). Each group member receives his or her OWN grade. See separate instructions and rubric for response paper instructions.
—Give group presentation with visual : Prepare together ahead of time, and turn in the visual (Power Point, a Word Document with directions, etc.) to me in class by the start of class your facilitation day. Tell me at least 48 hours AHEAD if I should put any directions or study questions online or have you announce anything for students to prepare and supply that. Facilitations without turning in the preparation will only earn ½ the grade, so the group should coordinate to get in this part. Your presentation and visual is worth 100 points (10% of course grade). Each group member SHARES this grade (one grade per team), though
C. Rely on one another for notes and studying.
The group facilitation is worth 100 points (10% of final grade), or half the grade. The other 100 points (another 10% of final grade) is a written analysis of one of the primary sources (each group member does a different source, and each member earns their own grade.
Solo Paper B: Oral History: Learning Women’s Lives through History
This essay is to be based on your first-hand interviewing of a woman who is at least fifty-five years old (preferably older); if possible, she should be a relative--grandmother, great-aunt, etc.--or close family friend. If that is impossible or completely uninteresting to you, then choose someone else who is willing to talk freely and honestly with you about her life.THE POINT IS TO PUT YOUR “SUBJECT'S” LIFE INTO THE LARGER HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF THE TIMES THROUGH WHICH SHE HAS LIVED. It is, in short, to be interpretive and analytical, andNOTjust narrative.
- For the interview
- A woman 55 years or older, ideally a relative. Someone you can speak to *in person* is best, if at all possible
- At least 1-2 hours to sit down and talk. Privacy.
- Go in with a list of questions and topics you want to cover
- TRANSCRIBE the interview (type up responses and questions).
- For the paper
- Attach a typed transcription of the interview (single or double spaced, any professional font)
- Write a 5-6 page typed, double-spaced paper WITH AN ARGUMENT on this woman’s life. It is not a biography, it is not a life story – it is an argumentative essay a la “Sarah Jones’ life was above all characterized by…”. Focus in on 1-2 ideas, like those in the bullet points above. Find out something juicy. THEN, place it in its historical context. The use of course materials/lecture/citations to contextualize your own research is MANDATORY.
- See rubric for full writing guidelines.