University of Arizona
Instructor: Stephanie Capaldo Fall 2011
Email: scapaldo@email.arizona.edu
Haury Anthro Bldg. rm #216
Office: S Sci 124A (will change)
Office Hours: T 2-3, W 10-11
T/R 12:30-1:45
TA: Rocio Gomez
Email: gomez8@email.arizona.edu
Office: S Sci 124A
Office Hours: R, 11:30-12:30
Course Description:
Historians began to consider the environment an agent in historical change and a category of analysis during the 1970s. Environmental history, as a discipline, was originally inspired by and grew out of the Environmental Movement of the mid 20 th
century.
Therefore, environmental history was initially inspired by a desire to understand change, change in how humans interacted with and understood their place within the natural world. This course in American Environmental History will trace 1) the ways in which the physical environment has influenced American culture and society over time 2) the ways in which American cultures have impacted the physical environment and 3) how ideas about the environment have evolved throughout American history, and how those alterations represented particular moments in time. The course will span from 16 th century colonial encounters through recent 21 st century conceptions of “sustainability.”
Hist 355 is both a lecture and discussion course and will highly revolve around assigned readings, both primary and secondary. Students are expected to read all of the assigned reading material each day and be prepared to discuss them in class. In addition, writing will also be central to the learning experience and students will have the opportunity to express their individual interpretations of readings and demonstrate their understanding of past events through writing assignments. Most writing assignments should be turned in via the D2L drop-box by 11:59pm on the day that they are due. The drop-box will close after 11:59 and therefore will not accept late assignments.
Required Reading
*Carolyn Merchant and Thomas Paterson ed., Major Problems in American
Environmental History , 2nd ed.
*William Cronon, Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists and the Ecology of New
England
*Henry David Thoreau, Walden
*David Pellow, Garbage Wars: The Struggle for Environmental Justice in Chicago
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*Edward Abbey, The Monkey Wrench Gang OR Daniel Quinn, Ishmael: An adventure of
the Mind and Spirit [Students are only required to read one of the above: Abbey or
Quinn. Students may choose between the two.]
[ All books are available in the University Bookstore, but are also often less expensive online. Especially Walden , The Monkey Wrench Gang and Ishmael : all three will be easy to find cheap online or at a used book store. You may purchase any edition of Walden .]
Assignments
Writings
*Personal Environmental History Paper : Early in the semester, students will write a 2- page essay that asks them to reflect on their own personal environmental histories.
Specific directions and suggestions will be available on D2L. The Personal
Environmental History Paper is due by 11:59 pm on Tuesday, August 30 th and worth
10% of the final grade. This assignment should be turned in through the appropriate dropbox in D2L.
*Primary Source Paper : Students are required to write one 3-4 page essay that addresses the primary source readings assigned for a particular week (students will have a choice).
There will be a list of prompts to choose from posted on D2L, along with specific directions and expectations. These papers will be argument-driven and will use primary sources to support a chosen thesis. There are a total of three possible due dates
( Thursday, September 15 th / Thursday, October 6 th / or Thursday, November 10 th ) and students choose only one, that corresponds to the weekly topic that is most interesting to them. This assignment is worth 15% of the final grade and should be turned into the appropriate dropbox on D2L by 11:59 pm on the related day.
*
Journal, “Find Your Own Walden”
: While we are studying 19 th
century environmental philosophers, students will read selections from Henry David Thoreau’s
Walden .
Accordingly, students will use Thoreau’s journal to inspire their own personal journal writings. Over a period of three weeks, students will “find their own personal Walden” and spend an hour a week observing, thinking and writing. Specific directions will be provided on D2L and students will periodically bring their working journal to class for discussion. A final version of the journal will be due Tuesday, October 25 by 11:59 pm in the appropriate D2L dropbox and is worth 15% of the final grade.
Exams
* Mid-Term Exam : Your mid-term exam will be in class on Thursday, October 13 th . It will cover all the material, lecture, discussions and readings, previous to the exam. The format contains a set of identifications, a short and long essay. More details will be discussed as the date approaches. You must bring a blue book. The mid-term exam is worth 20% of the final grade.
* Final Exam : Your final exam will be a take home essay exam that you will receive on the last day of class, Tuesday, December 6 th and will turn in on the day and time of your scheduled final, Tuesday, December 13 th at 10:30 am in the appropriate dropbox on
D2L. The Final Exam is worth 25% of the final grade, however it is not cumulative, and will only cover the course material after the mid-term.
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In-Class Writings and Participation
Throughout the semester there will be a series of in-class writings and group activities that students will be evaluated on, depending on their level of participation and engagement. Therefore, attendance and participation are important and will add up to
15% of the final grade.
Grading
Personal Environmental History
Primary Source Paper
Walden Journal
Mid-Term Exam
Final Exam
10%
15%
15%
20%
25%
15%
100%
In-Class Writings and Participation
Total
[ There is no extra credit offered in this course.
]
A Note on Academic Dishonesty:
*Plagiarism or cheating on ANY level is not tolerated in this course. Plagiarism and cheating will result in the failure of the course. Students’ work in this, and any University course is governed by the University of Arizona Code of Academic Integrity, which can be accessed and fully read at: http://catalog.arizona.edu/policies/974/acacode.htm
. In addition, students should also be in full compliance with the Department of History
Policy on Academic Dishonesty: http://history.arizona.edu/node/757 . If you ever have any questions regarding plagiarism, contact myself or your TA. Lastly, see Indiana
University’s guide on plagiarism, how to recognize it and how to avoid it: https://d2l.arizona.edu/d2l/lms/content/preview.d2l?tId=699341&ou=131738 .
A Note on Personal Technology in the Classroom:
* CELL PHONES MUST BE TURNED OFF IN THE CLASSROOM. No phone calls, no texting, no searching the web- or anything else that a cell phone may be able to do. Period.
*Laptops are permitted for course use only (taking notes, accessing online readings, looking at the course D2L page). Anyone using a laptop for any other reason will be asked to close their computer and begin to take notes the old fashion way. It is distracting to your peers. Period.
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Course Outline
Week One: What is Environmental History?
8/23 Introduction to Course
8/25 * Major Problems , Ch 1
*White, “Are You an Environmentalist or Do You Work for a
Living?”: Work and Nature [D2L]
Week Two: Cultural Encounters
8/30 * Major Problems , Ch 2: pg 27-37, 42-58
*Cronon, Changes in the Land , Ch 1
DUE: Personal Environmental History
9/1 * Major Problems
*Cronon, Ch 2-3
, Ch 2: pg 38-39, 58-62
Week Three: Property, Commons and “Abundance”
9/6
9/8
* Cronon, Ch 4-5
*Hardin, “The Tragedy of the Commons” [D2L]
* Major Problems
*Cronon, Ch 6-7
, Ch 3: pg 65-84
Week Four: Slavery: Exploited Bodies and Land
9/13 * Major Problems , Ch 4: pg. 95-114, 120-123
*Merchant, “Shades of Darkness: Race and Environmental
History” [D2L]
9/15 * Major Problems , Ch 7: pg. 204-223, 226-236
DUE: Primary Source Paper Option #1
Week Five: Early Republic Era
9/20 * Major Problems , Ch 5: pg. 129-138, 147-154
*Cronon, Ch 8
9/22 * Major Problems , Ch 5: pg. 138-146, 154-164
Week Six: Westward Bound
9/27 * Major Problems
*Sandwiess, “Print the Legend: Photography and the American
West” [D2L]
, Ch 9: pg. 274-288
9/29 * Major Problems , Ch 9: pg. 288-310
*Taylor, “Wasty Ways: Stories of American Settlement” [D2L]
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Week Seven: 19 th Century Industrial Growth and Opposition
10/4 * Major Problems
*Thoreau, Walden
, Ch 8: pg. 238-249, 260-265
: TBA
10/6 * Major Problems , Ch 6: pg. 166-181, 186-197
*Senses Articles: Smith, “Introduction,” Cook, “Visual,” Rath,
“Hearing” [D2L]
* Walden : TBA
DUE: Primary Source Paper Option #2
Week Eight: MID-TERM
10/11
*Senses Articles: Chiang, “Smell,” Smith, “Touch” [D2L]
* Walden : TBA
Bring 1 st Journal Entry to Class
10/13 MID-TERM EXAM [Bring Blue Books]
Week Nine: Resources Conservation vs Wilderness Preservation
10/18 * Major Problems , Ch 10: pg. 312-336 & Ch 11: 379-388
* Walden : TBA
*Cronon, “The Trouble with Wilderness”
Bring 1 st and 2 nd Journal Entries to Class
10/20 * Major Problems , Ch 11: pg. 352-372
*Hetch Hetchy Sources [D2L]
Week Ten: New Cities, New Problems & Early Activism
10/25 * Major Problems , Ch 12: pg. 390-415
* Pellow , Garbage Wars, Ch 1
DUE: Complete Journals Due In-Class
10/27
*Price, “When Women Were Women, Men Were Men, and Birds
Were Hats” [D2L]
*Jordan, “Conservation of Boyhood: Boy Scouting’s Modest
Manliness and Natural Resource Conservation, 1910-1930” [D2L]
*Pellow, Ch 2-3
Week Eleven: Ecology and Science
11/1 * Major Problems , Ch 13: pg. 427-440
*Leopold, A Sand County Almanac , “Marshland Elegy,”
“Odessey,” & “Thinking Like a Mountain” [D2L]
11/3 * Major Problems
*Pellow, Ch 4
, Ch 13: pg. 447-465
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Week Twelve: Activism!
11/8 * Major Problems
*Gotlieb, “The Sixties Rebellion” pg. 96-105 [D2L]
*Pellow, Ch 5
, Ch 14: pg. 470-481
11/10 * Major Problems , Ch 14: pg. 494-500
*Gotlieb, cont. “The Sixties Rebellion: Earth Day 1970” pg. 105-
114 [D2L]
*Rome, “The Genius of Earth Day” [D2L]
DUE: Primary Source Paper Option #3
Week Thirteen: Environmental Justice, Environmental Racism & Ecofeminism
11/15 * Major Problems , Ch 15: pg. 502-512
*Gotlieb, “A Question of Class” [D2L]
*Bullard, “Anatomy of Environmental Racism and the
Environmental Justice Movement” [D2L]
*Pellow, Ch 7
11/17
*Gotlieb, “Gender and Place” [D2L]
*Unger, “Women, Sexuality and Environmental Justice in
American History” [D2L]
Week Fourteen: The U.S.-Mexico Border
11/22
*Perales: “Fighting to Stay in Smeltertown: Lead Contamination and Environmental Justice in a Mexican-American Community”
[D2L]
*Gauna, “An Essay on Environmental Justice: The Past, the
Present, and Back to the Future” [D2L]
11/24 Thanksgiving [NO CLASS]
Week Fifteen: “Sustainability”
11/29 * Major Problems , Ch 15: pg. 512-524
*McCloskey, “The Emperor Has No Clothes” [D2L]
12/1 * Major Problems , Ch 15: pg. 537-541
*Mathews, “Letting the World Grow Old” [D2L]
Week Sixteen: Recent 20 th Century Literature as Environmental Activism
12/6 *Abbey, Monkey Wrench Gang OR Quinn, Ishmael
[FINAL EXAM DUE TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13 TH AT 10:30 AM IN D2L]
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