Oberlin
College |
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Prof. Gary J. Kornblith | FYSP
120 |
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Rice 306; x58526 | Fall
2003 |
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gary.kornblith@oberlin.edu | Peer
tutor: Maria Balducci |
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Office hours: Monday, 3:30-5 p.m. and by appointment | |
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Note:
An up-to-date, online version of the course syllabus is maintained at http://www.oberlin.edu/history/GJK/FYSP120F03. |
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Once celebrated as a heroic episode in the providential expansion of Western civilization, the European "discovery" and colonization of North America between 1492 and 1700 has more recently been portrayed as an imperialistic enterprise that wrought a holocaust upon native peoples and promoted the spread of slavery in the Atlantic World. This seminar attempts to move beyond sweeping generalizations and simple moral judgments to explore in detail the complex interactions of Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans in different regions of North America during the 16th and 17th centuries. In the process we will consider the historian's role as investigator, interpreter, and evaluator of past human behavior. How can we reconstruct the perspective of people who left behind no written record? To what extent do human motivations and norms of acceptable behavior vary not only from culture to culture but also from era to era? How should we "position" ourselves in regard to the people we study, especially when their way of life seems profoundly different from our own? In approaching these and other questions, we will read a mixture of eyewitness accounts and recent scholarly analyses. We will also make considerable use of educational technology, and we will work on a host of skills necessary for effective academic writing, college-level research, and information literacy in the contemporary scholarly environment. Our common mission is to develop our capacities for critical thinking, for the close reading of texts, for the examination of issues from multiple points of view, for logical analysis, and for the persuasive expression of our ideas in a variety of formats. |
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Format: The class meets regularly on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3 to 4:15 p.m. Class attendance is mandatory, and students are also required to post a comment or question on Blackboard in advance of most class sessions. | |||
Evaluation: Students will be graded on the basis of class participation (including postings on Blackboard), four position papers (2-3 pp. each), and an annotated bibliography. The basic formula for determining course grades is 25% for class participation (including Blackboard postings), 15% for each position paper, and 15% for the annotated bibliography. The professor reserves the right to exercise some discretion in assigning final grades. | |||
Writing Certification: This course is classified as "writing intensive," and we will spend a good deal of time on writing skills and strategies. For the first three writing assignments, paper drafts will be due on Mondays, and revised papers will be due on Fridays. (See the schedule below for specifics.) Students who, in the instructor's judgment, meet the criteria for writing proficiency by the end of the course will receive one certification credit. | |||
Honor Code: All course work is governed by Oberlin's Honor Code. If you have a question about how the Honor Code applies to a particular assignment, you should ask the professor in advance of the due date. | |||
Purchases: The following books are available for purchase at the Oberlin Bookstore. You are expected to buy them and to bring them to class when we are discussing them.
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Schedule of classes and assignments: |
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Introduction | Tues., Sept. 2 |
Discussion of goals for the course | |
Emergence
of the Atlantic World
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Thurs., Sept. 4
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Discussion of
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Mexico | Tues., Sept. 9 |
Discussion of
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Thurs., Sept. 11 |
Discussion of
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Toxcatl Massacre, PBS website |
Tues., Sept. 16 |
Discussion of
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Thurs., Sept. 18 | Discussion of
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Mon., Sept. 22 | Draft of first position paper due by noon (post on Blackboard)
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Tues., Sept. 23 | Discussion of drafts |
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Canada | Thurs., Sept. 25 |
Discussion
of
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Fri., Sept. 26 | First position paper due by 5 p.m. |
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Tues., Sept. 30 |
Discussion of
Special evening session: Pizza dinner and viewing of Black Robe, 6:30- 9 p.m., at 271 West College St. |
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Thurs., Oct. 2 |
Discussion
of
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Virginia Capture of John Smith by Virginia Indians, 1607. Colonial Williamsburg website |
Tues., Oct. 7 | Discussion of
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Thurs., Oct. 9 |
Discussion of
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Mon., Oct. 13 | Draft of second position paper due by noon
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Tues.,
Oct. 14 |
Discussion of drafts |
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Thurs.,
Oct. 16 |
Discussion of class dynamics |
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Friday., Oct. 17 | Second position paper due by 5 p.m. | ||
FALL
BREAK |
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New England
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Tues., Oct. 28 |
Discussion
of
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Thurs., Oct. 30 |
Discussion of
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Tues., Nov. 4 |
Discussion of
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Thurs., Nov. 6 |
Discussion of
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Mon., Nov. 10 | Draft of third position paper due by noon | ||
Tues., Nov. 11 |
Information Literacy at the College Level Meet at Mudd
Center lobby at 3 p.m. for resource tour and discussion of bibliography
project |
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New Netherland / New York | Thurs., Nov. 13 | Discusssion of
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Fri., Nov. 15 | Third position paper due by 5 p.m. | ||
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New Amsterdam National Park Service website |
Tues., Nov. 18 |
Discussion of
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Thurs., Nov. 20 |
Discussion of
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Virginia (again)
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Tues. , Nov. 25 |
Discussion of
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Thurs., Nov. 27 |
Thanksgiving |
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Tues., Dec. 2 |
Discussion of
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Thurs., Dec. 4 |
Discussion of
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Conclusion | Tues., Dec. 9 | Reflections
on the course |
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Thurs., Dec. 11 | Discussion of annotated bibliographies |
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Fri., Dec. 19 | Annotated bibliographies due by 4 p.m. |