Mrs. Ruland's United States History Class
Historians and Their Essays
You are being asked to “do history” this year as a U. S. History G/T student. To help in this endeavor, you are asked to read the work of a historian and then to write a critical analysis of the historian’s work. The purpose of having you do this kind of reading is to broaden your understanding of history, to give you the chance to read the work of real historians other than the writer of the text, and to give you original material that you can use in your essays. Remember that you need to read a complete essay, that it must be at least 30 pages, that the reading may NOT be a work of fiction but must be a work by a "real" historian. The following list is suggested but it is not a comprehensive list by any means and it is constantly changing. This is a semester assignment, so you will read an essay in 1st semester that focuses on the history covered in Units 1 and 2. You will read another essay in the 2nd semester that focuses on the history covered in the second half of the course.
General Topics
The following books contain essays that are relevant to both 1st and 2nd semester.
After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection. James West Davidson and Mark Hamilton
All the Laws But One. William H. Rehnquist
The American Nightmare: The History of Jim Crow, Jerrold M. Packard
The American Political Tradition and the Men Who Made It. Richard Hofstadter.
Civic Ideals: Conflicting Visions of Citizenship in U.S. History, Rogers M. Smith
Freedom From Fear: The United States, 1929-1943. David M. Kennedy.
Hidden History: Exploring Our Secret Past. Daniel J. Boorstin
Lies My Teacher Told Me. James Loewen (When using this book, please recognize that it was written in 1995; textbooks have improved since then. When discussing his thesis, you should focus on what Mr. Loewen felt was significant about the specific topic, and not on whether or not it is covered in current textbooks.)
A Necessary Evil: A History of American Distrust of Government, Garry Wills
Out of Our Past, Carl N. Degler
A People’s History of the United States, Howard Zinn
Story of American Freedom. Eric Foner
The Supreme Court, William H. Rehnquest
The Supreme Court: The Personalities and Rivalries that Defined America, Jeffrey Rosen
Wall Street: A History, Charles R. Geisst
1st Semester
American Indian Holocaust and Survival, Russell Thornton
The Americans: The National Experience. Daniel Boorstin
Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West. Dee Brown.
A Century of Dishonor. Helen Jackson
Free Speech In Its Forgottern Years, David M. Rabban
Frontier Thesis: The Frontier in American History. Frederick Jackson Turner
The Great Influenza, John M. Barry
Legacy: New Perspectives on the Battle of Little Bighorn, Charles E. Rankin
Meet You in Hell: Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick and the Bitter Partnership that Transformed America, Less Standiford
Over Here: The First World War and American Society. David M. Kennedy
Paris 1919, Margaret MacMillan
Profiles In Courage. John F. Kennedy.
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt. Edmund Morris.
A Short History of Reconstruction. Eric Foner
Son of the Morning Star. Evan S. Connell
Standing at Armageddon: The United States 1877-1919. Nell Irvin Painter.
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. Ron Chernow.
Triangle: The Fire that Changed America, David Von Drehle
2nd Semester
Americans at War. Stephen E. Ambrose.
And Justice For All, John Tateishi
The Army and Vietnam, Andrew F. Krepinevich, Jr.
At Dawn We Slept: The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor. Gordon W. Prange
Closed Chambers , Edward Lazarus
The Day the Presses Stopped: A History of the Pentagon Papers Case, David Rudenstine
The Decision to the Use the Atomic Bomb, Gar Alperovitz
Fire in the Lake: The Vietnamese and the Americans in Vietnam. Frances Fitzgerald
Glory and the Dream: A Narrative History of America, 1932-1972. William Manchester
Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974. James T. Patterson.
Into the Guagmire: Lyndon Johnson and the Escalation of the Vietnam War, Brian VanDeMark
JFK and Vietnam, John M. Newman
Korea: The Untold Story of the War, Joseph C. Goulden
The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam. Barbara Tuchman. (good but difficult sections on Vietnam)
Our Mothers’ War, Emily Yellin
Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-63. Taylor Branch
Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years, 1964-1968, Taylor Branch
A Season for Justice, Morris Dees with Steve Fiffer
They Marched into Sunlight: War and Peace Vietnam and America October 1967, David Maraniss
Tonkin Gulf, Edwin E. Moise
The Victors: Eisenhower and His Boys: The Men of World War II. Stephen E. Ambrose
Vietnam and American Foreign Policy, John R. Boettiger, ed.
Vietnam: A History. Stanely Karnow
The Warren Court and American Politics, Lucas A. Powe, Jr.
We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese. Elizabeth M. Norman
CRITICAL ESSAY REQUIREMENTS (50 points)
The following information is to be included in the critical essay. Please type this essay; finished essays should be 1-2 pages, double-spaced. If you are unfamiliar with a critical essay and want more information on how to write one, check out Writing Critical Essays at Gallaudet University's English Works! Abstracts
♦ Introduction containing title and author of essay, title of book and pages where essay is found; statement of author’s thesis (What was author trying to prove. Remember that historians do not just present information; by presenting certain pieces of information in a particular order and emphasis, historians try to prove a specific point. A British historian might use the same information as an American about the American Revolution, but might use it to show that the American colonists were not justified.) (10 points)
♦ Discussion of author’s argument - 1-2 paragraphs in which you list the key points and supporting facts used in the author’s case. Explain how the author tried to prove what you stated in the introduction. I am interested in your understanding of the argument, so avoid quotes and explain in your words. (20 points)
♦ Critique of author’s case - 1-2 paragraphs in which you state how well the author proved his point. Were you convinced? Were there holes in the argument? Are you aware of information that would disprove author’s thesis? Were there some interesting things to consider? This is your opinion, but be sure to back it up with your own facts. Remember to avoid the use of first person (don’t use I, my, me, mine or similar words) (20 points)
Last updated August 7, 2009
© Marcella Ruland 1998-2009, All rights reserved
