History
461 Richard
H. Immerman
Studies in U.S. Diplomatic
History Gladfelter
909
Spring
2004 1-7466\610-645-5436
TUCC—Tuesday,
7:45-9:45 rimmerma@temple.edu
For more than two decades the field of U.S. Diplomatic History, or what its practitioners prefer to call the History of U.S. Foreign Relations, has undergone intense introspection and self-criticism. The objective has been to reinvigorate the subfield by reducing the "sterility" associated with the Rankean tradition. Without claiming this goal has been achieved (let alone that the “Rankean tradition” is inherently sterile), diplomatic history’s revitalization (and come back) is manifestly evident. Exploiting archives in many different lands and languages, contemporary scholars are asking new questions and applying interdisciplinary methodologies and innovative conceptual frameworks to their investigations. These efforts have generated great excitement while at the same time expanding the parameters of--some would argue transforming and even redefining--the subfieldfield itself. The end of the cold war and fluidity of the contemporary international environment (even before 911, the War on Terrorism, and the Invasion of Iraq) has provided further impetus to this phenomenon.
The intention of this course, accordingly, is to broaden your familiarity with the historiography as well as the history of U.S. foreign relations. To begin this process you will all become intimately acquainted with the essays in Explaining the History of American Foreign Relations. Collectively, they represent neither a manual or recipe book (indeed, a revised edition is scheduled for publication this calendar year). They should, however, stimulate your own thinking--and imagination--about what has, should, can, and will be written. Each of you will select, or I will assign, one of these "think pieces," about which you will prepare a five-to-ten-minute oral presentation at our next--January 27--meeting. You should evaluate what you consider the pros and cons of the author’s diagnoses and prescriptions, and if possible, suggest what (if any) subject areas you believe might lend themselves to the type of approach s/he recommends.
The
subsequent session, on February 3, will launch our tour of the history
of U.S.
foreign policy—at least this course’s/semester’s tour. Please note the
chronological parameters. This semester's focus is on the pre-cold war
years
(although, as we’ll see, the inclusion of the last week’s reading is by
itself
historiographically controversial). With that in mind, commencing with
this
class and extending to the semester's end, two or three of you
(depending on
class size) will read, in addition to the book assigned to everyone,
one the of
the others listed each week on the syllabus. Phrased differently, for
that week
the "chosen" few will read two books. S/he will in 750 words
review critically (c.f. the brief guide to writing a book review
available
on the courses' web page) the selection (comparing it, when
appropriate, to the
one we all and any other works that come to mind). Please be sure to
check
thelibrary for the book you will review in ample time for me, should it
not be
available (a not uncommon occurrence at Paley) and I not own a copy, to
provide
you with a substitute title.
These reviews will provide the basis
for an
approximately fifteen-minute oral presentation in which each
presenter
will have the opportunity to supplement his/her review by providing
illustrations from the book as well as to clarify or expand upon
criticisms and
arguments. The guide to writing a book review is a general
guide--nothing more.
Feel free to follow your own instincts, as long as you do not end
up
writing a book report. The only other proscriptions are
misspellings,
mistakes in grammar, contractions, and passive voice. This
and all
future reviews should be distributed to me and each class member—by
email (preferably by attaching a file but if necessary, because you
use, ugh,
an old mac or something equally sinister, pasted text). You must at
the
very, very latest send that email by midnight of the Monday
immediately
prior to your oral presentation.
This distribution and deadline is particularly critical for the week's designated "commentators." What I mean by "commentators" is that, similar to the convention at scholarly meetings, class members assigned to "comment" will take about 10 minutes to analyze critically the review by pointing out the strengths and weaknesses (of both the review and the book) and by posing questions about the subject matter, arguments, sources, methodology, etc. Commentators will decide among themselves which book each will critique. Because s/he probably has (and need) not read the works under review, I will, if and when warranted, inject points of information and clarification.
Further clarification will be provided during the "audience participation" portion of the "panel" which will follow the presentations. The "audience" (class) will be well informed because you all will have read the "globally-assigned" book and written a one-page review of it (those reviewing the week's supplementary/complementary books must read but need not write a review of the globally-assigned one). I will grade all reviews "excellent," "satisfactory" or "unsatisfactory" ("check +", “check", or "check -"). Needless to say, failure to submit reviews on time will adversely affect the quality of the commentaries and general discussion; thus I will not take kindly to such behavior. You will pay the price.
The final assignment will be a comparative review essay of FOUR BOOKS (excluding those already reviewed in class). It should run ten to fifteen double-spaced pages. The selections are yours to make and should, of course, be related to one another in some manner. I encourage you to base your choices on a theme, topic, or even individual that is of interest to you and/or is valuable for your respective areas of research. As part of the assignment, I want you to develop a list of six books that you consider potentially appropriate for your comparative review essay, using the library, on-line data bases, bibliographies, historiographic essays, footnotes from related works, or any other means--just as you would if I asked you to prepare a research paper. I will evaluate your list after you have compiled it and together we will pare it down to four books. For this reason let's agree that you will bounce your proposals off me. Because the papers will be due (and I mean it) no later than 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 4 (at 909 Gladfelter Hall), you should make an appointment with me, either at TUCC or the Main Campus, no later than April 6. When we meet we can also discuss your performance and progress. In order that you can plan ahead, jot down on your calendar now that the class will probably meet for a final time at my house on Sunday, May 16, where we can collectively break bread to celebrate how far we have journeyed together.
On
a more mundane level, as a normative guideline I will base your course
grade on
an even division between your written and oral work. I may reward
exceptional
performance in one area by giving it extra weight in my calculations;
don't
count on it, however. Hence never rest on your laurels. And FYI,
I am a
fanatic when it comes to class participation. The success of any
graduate
course is contingent on the collective contributions of everyone. If
you are
uncomfortable speaking out, or for that matter encounter any other
problems,
see me sooner rather than later. Under any circumstances, feel free to
check
with me whenever the spirit moves you.
Required Reading (available at the
TUCC
Bookstore)
Hogan,
Michael & Thomas Paterson, Explaining the History of American
Foreign
Relations
Gilbert, Felix, To the Farewell
Address
Kukla, John, A Wilderness So Immense
Lewis, James, John Quincy Adams
Stephanson, Anders, Manifest
Destiny
Ninkovich, Frank, The United
States and
Imperialism
Hoganson, Kristen, Fighting for
American
Manhood
Rosenberg, Emily, Financial
Missionaries to
the World
Cooper, John M., The Warrior and
the Priest
Iriye, Akira, The Globalizing of
America
Dallek, Robert, Franklin D. Roosevelt
Kimball, Warren, Forged in War
Walker, J. Samuel, Prompt and
Utter
Destruction
Schedule of Sessions
January 20 Introduction
January 27
Class Reading: Hogan and Paterson and distributed essays: LaFeber and Leffler
Reviews: Individual essays
Commentaries:
Everyone
February 3
Class Reading: Gilbert
Reviews:
Bemis, Sam Flagg, Diplomacy of the American Rev.
Marks, Frederick, Independence on
Trial
Hendrickson, David, Peace Pact
Commentaries:
February 10
Class
Reading: Kukla
Reviews: Combs, Jerald, The
Jay
Treaty
Kaplan, Lawrence, Alexander
Hamilton
Tucker Robert W., and David C.
Hendrickson, Empire
of Liberty
Commentaries:
February 17
Class Reading: Lewis
Reviews:
Johnson, John, A Hemisphere Apart
Stagg, J. C., Mr. Madison's War
Weeks, William, John Quincy Adams
and
American Global Empire
Commentaries:
February 24
Class
Reading: Stephanson
Reviews: Graebner, Norman,
Empire
on the Pacific
Horsman, Race and Manifest Destiny
Hietala, Thomas, Manifest Design
Commentaries:
March 2
Class Reading: Ninkovich (and Crapol essay)
Reviews:
LaFeber, Walter, The New Empire
May, Ernest, Imperial Democracy
Perez, Louis, War of 1898
Commentaries:
March
9: Spring Recess
March 16
Class Reading: Hoganson
Reviews:
Henning, Joseph, Outposts of Civilization
Hunt, Michael, Making of a Special Relationship
Zimmermann, Warren, First Great
Triumph
Commentaries:
March 23
Class Reading: Rosenberg
Reviews:
Calder, Bruce, The Impact of Intervention
Renda, Mary, Taking Haiti
Veeser, Cyrus, A World Safe for
Democracy
Commentaries:
March 30
Class Reading: Cooper
Reviews:
Ambrosius, Lloyd, Wilson and Diplomatic Tradition
Knock, Thomas, To End All Wars
Widenor, William, Henry Cabot
Lodge
Commentaries:
April 6
Class Reading: Iriye
Reviews:
Costigliola, Frank, Awkward Dominion
Dingman, Roger, Power in the
Pacific
Hogan, Michael, Informal Entente
Commentaries:
April 13
Class Reading: Dallek
Reviews:
Heinrichs, Waldo, Threshold of War
Thorne, Christopher, Limits of
Foreign
Policy
Reynolds, David, Creation of the
Anglo-American Alliance
Commentaries:
April 20
Class Reading: Kimball
Reviews:
Dower, John, War Without Mercy
Gallicchio, Marc, The African
American
Encounter With Japan and China
Stoler, Mark, Allies and
Adversaries
Commentaries:
April 27
Class Reading: Walker
Reviews:
Alperovitz, Gar, The Decision to Use the Atomic Bomb
Maddox, Robert, Weapons for
Victory
Sherwin, Martin, A World Destroyed
Commentaries: