The Paradox of American Democracy:
A Survey of US History from 1492 to the Present
Spring 2011 Syllabus
How did it happen that 18 th century Virginians engaged in developing the most radical and expansive experiment in democracy and human liberties in Western history at the same time that they were developing the most sophisticated system of slavery in the modern world? How could
Americans justify the genocide of Native Americans and theft of their lands after having just fought a bloody Civil War to end the inhumane system of slavery? What prompted President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt to imprison hundreds of thousands of Japanese-Americans while fighting a war for democracy and human rights against racism and authoritarian rule?
American history is filled with contradictions. What is the heritage of America? Is it democracy or slavery; religious freedom or religious intolerance; human liberties or genocide; degradation of workers or workers rights?
Course Description
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to some of the complexities and contradictions in the history of the United States as it developed, first as colonies in the British
Empire. The history and various cultures of the British colonies continue to inform the development of the independent nation that expanded through conquest to include former colonies of Spain and France (even Russia!) and a large region of Mexico. Working with primary documents, students will explore both the intended and the unintended consequences of key episodes and debate the contested meaning of language and symbols central to the emergence of the world's most powerful nation. We will pay particularly close attention to the concepts and institutions of a democratic society that ordinary people, including workers, have come to expect as American citizens.
Course Requirements
Students will be evaluated by their participation in class and successful completion of all in-class and outside class assignments. Students and faculty are expected to treat one another with mutual respect. Students and faculty are encouraged to express differing views and interpretations of class material. The following are the main criteria of the class.
Class Participation: Students are expected to show up to every class prepared to discuss the reading assignments, except in cases of illness or emergency. Students must be in class on time. All work must be made up. Reading assignments are to be completed prior to the class for which the assignment is listed in the syllabus. All papers and portfolios are due on the dates listed on the syllabus or as assigned by the instructor.
Students are not required to master all aspects of the reading. Posing sincere questions is an excellent way to contribute to class discussion. Helping fellow students is another excellent way to contribute.
In the event of absences, make every effort to contact another student in class to get any missed work assignments. If you cannot get what you need from other students, contact

your professor before class, after class, or by email. DO NOT ask your professor about work you missed DURING CLASS . This disrupts the work of the class and disrespects the professor. Faculty cannot be expected to react pleasantly to such as disruption, even if the student does not mean to act disrespectfully.
In the course of the semester there will be many opportunities to work in small groups, or on teams for debates. All students are expected to be engaged and to contribute. In some cases students might contribute by asking others in the group to explain concepts to them.
This serves to sharpen ideas and presentations for everyone.
Bring to every class:
Reading assignment for that day
Any written assignment for that day
Portfolios
Notebooks
According to college policy, cell phones are not allowed during class time anywhere in the building. Cell phones are to be turned off before coming in to class. Please to not use cell phones in the classroom before class. Faculty use the classroom to meet with students. And faculty should not have to be put in the position of confronting students to end their conversations so class can begin.
In-Class Writing. Students will be asked to write every class meeting . The assignments will range in time, length, and form. To get credit for in-class writing, students must demonstrate that they made an effort to do the work required for the assignment, such as reading homework. In-class writing may take the form of quizzes.
Papers: There will be four formally-written papers for the course. They must all be typed in 12-point font, double-spaced with one-inch margins. All papers must be at least five paragraphs long, and between two and four full pages long. The first paragraph must state the opinion you are going to back up in the paper. Except for the concluding paragraph, each of the next paragraphs must have at least one quotation from the class reading assignments. Students may request assistance from a writing coach provided by the college. Some meetings with writing coaches may occur during class time. Papers will be graded according to the following general guidelines. In the event of a dispute as to whether papers were submitted, students, not the instructor , are responsible for keeping copies of all work submitted to the instructor.
An A-range paper (A-, A, or A+) will be clearly written with very few big grammatical errors (on average, no more than one per paragraph). The essay will directly answer the question asked with a clear thesis in the introductory paragraph. It will use appropriate quotations from the class reading assignments. And it will stay focused on the topic.
A B-range paper (B-, B, or B+) will still be well focused on the topic, but may be weaker in either grammar or clarity. The paper will use the minimum number of quotations, though one may not be a good choice to support the paper's thesis.

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A C-range paper (C-, C, or C+) will generally address the topic, though may have several grammatical problems throughout the paper. Or the paper may not be well organized where it is clear how ideas are connected to one another. The paper will still have the minimum paper length and number of quotations, but it may have more than one weak quote.
A D-range paper (D-, D, or D+) will demonstrate that the student made the effort to read the class material and struggled to address the question posed. However, the paper may not be the minimum length, or it may not have the minimum number of quotations. The paper may have an overwhelming number of grammatical errors, or may be so poorly organized that it can not be understood well, or the paper may be largely off the topic.
A failing paper will not demonstrate that the student made the effort to read a substantial amount of the assigned reading assignments or tried to address the question posed. The paper might be substantially shorter than the minimum length required and it might have no appropriate quotations. Or the paper might have so many grammatical and style errors as to be largely incomprehensible. Note: A failing paper may still earn credit (from 20 to
60 points, for example) and is far preferable to a no-credit paper.
No Credit: A student that does not hand in a paper will receive a zero. This student will have difficulty passing the class.
A student who hands in a paper that he or she did not write, or that was copied in total or in part from someplace else (from the internet for example), may fail the class and will be referred to the coordinator of student affairs.
Portfolios
Students will keep all copies of class work, papers, quizzes and class notes in a portfolio folder. The portfolios will be collected and evaluated in the middle of the semester and at the end of the semester. Students are responsible for keeping copies of work submitted to the instructor, and keeping track of all work done in the course. Portfolios will be evaluated by other college faculty members. The evaluations are provided to the class instructor as recommendations only. However, failure to submit portfolios will likely lower your semester grade.
Course Grades :
Class Participation, In-class writing, and quizzes:
4 Papers:
40 percent
60 percent (15 percent each)
Books and Reading Assignments
*Course Reading Packet to be purchased through the Empire State College bookstore.
*di Donato, Pietro, Christ in Concrete (Signet Classic, 1993) can also be purchased through the Empire State College bookstore or purchased privately.

Calendar of Assignments
Week One: INTRODUCTION TO THE CLASS;
CONQUEST AND REVOLT
Documents: - Selections form Christopher Columbus' Journal
- Declaration of Pedro Naranjo of the Queres Nation
- Map of 17th Century North America:
Reading: - Course Syllabus
Week Two: FREEDOM AND SERVITUDE
Documents: -Timetable: Slavery and the Law in Virginia
-Letters between John and Abigail Adams in the Spring of 1776.
"Remember the ladies" and "Everyone is in rebellion on authority."
Reading: - Excerpts from Edmund Morgan, "Slavery and Freedom: The American
Paradox." Journal of American History, Vol 59, No 1 (Jun., 1972), 5-29.
- Thomas Paine, Common Sense , pp. 3-20.
Week Three LIBERATION, WORK AND RACE;
THE SPREAD OF UTOPIAN IDEALS
Document: - The Declaration of Independence
- Robert Owen, "The First Discourse on a New System of Society"
Reading: - Thomas Paine, Common Sense , pp. 21-39.
Week Four THE EARLY AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL WORKING CLASS
-SOCIAL REFORM: FEMINISTS AND SUFFRAGISTS
Document: 1848 Declaration of the Sentiments of the Seneca Falls Convention
Reading:
Week Five
- Thomas Dublin, “Women, Work, and Protest in the Early Lowell Mills”
INDIAN REMOVAL / WESTWARD EXPANSION
Document: -"John Ross letter to Congress" (1826) Trail of Tears
-Henry David Thoreau, "Resistance to Civil Government" (1848)
Reading: - Theda Perdue, "Cherokee Women and the Trail of Tears" in Unequal
Sisters: A Multicultural Reader in U.S. Women's History

Week Six SLAVERY AND CIVIL WAR
Reading: -Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass .
Week Seven RECONSTRUCTION AND CIVIL RIGHTS
WORK AND RESISTANCE AFTER THE CIVIL WAR
Document: Colloquy with Colored Ministers (1865)
Sidney Andrews on the White South and Black Freedom
Reading: - Tera W. Hunter, "Domination and Resistance: The Politics of Wage
Household Labor in New South Atlanta," in We Specialize in the Wholly
Impossible: A Reader in Black Women's History , Edited by Darlene Clark
Hine, Wilma King, Linda Reed, pp 343-354
Week Eight BEGINNINGS OF ORGANIZED LABOR
Reading: -David Montgomery, "Workers Control of Machine Production in the 19 th
Century"
-*di Donato, Pietro, Christ in Concrete (Signet Classic, 1993),
Preface, Chapter’s 1&2
Week Nine PROGRESSIVISM
Document: Lewis Hine photographs
Reading: -Gerald Woods, “Fighting the Good Fight (Against Disreputable
Pleasures) in San Francisco and Los Angeles”
-*di Donato, Pietro, Christ in Concrete (Signet Classic, 1993),
Chapter’s 3&4
Week Ten PUBLIC AND WORKER EDUCATION MOVEMENTS
THE MODERN INDUSTRIAL LABOR MOVEMENT
Reading: Daniel Nelson, "Origins of the Sit-Down Era"
-*di Donato, Pietro, Christ in Concrete (Signet Classic, 1993),
Chapter 5
Week Eleven
Reading:
THE NEW DEAL: Conservative or Radical?
-David M. Kennedy, “FDR: Advocate for the American People”
-Barton Bernstein, “FDR: Savior of Capitalism

Week Twelve THE MODERN CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
Document: Eyes on the Prize:Nashville, Tennessee sit-ins and the origins of the tudent Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
-Black Panther Platform (Based on the Declaration of Independence)
Reading: - Charles M. Payne, I've got the Light of Freedom: The Organizing
Tradition and the Mississippi Freedom Struggle , pp. 1-6, 236-264
Week Thirteen VIETNAM AND THE EXPANDING MOVEMENT FOR RIGHTS
Reading: - Martin Luther King on the War in Vietnam, Riverside Church, 1967
Week Fourteen AMERICA IN THE 21 ST CENTURY
Reading: - To be announced