History and Social Sciences (HSS) 2058: The Modern American City

Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9:45 to 11:20 a.m.Classroom: Trim 202Instructor: Prof. Paul SchmitzEmail: pschmitz@babson.edu

Course Description: Throughout the course of American history, cities have stimulated economic innovation, cultural creativity, and ethnic diversity. At the same time, cities have symbolized public fears about social changeespecially in regards to community, morality, and identity. In this course, an intermediate Liberal Arts elective, we will examine how cities have served as catalysts for Americas economic, cultural, and social development. We will analyze how cities have revolutionized American society-- serving as centers of culture and engines of economic development while welcoming fortune-seekers, immigrants, artists, intellectuals, and bohemians. Finally, this class will consider how urban life has embodied changing notions of race and gender in American life.

Intermediate-Level Course Goals and Objectives: HSS courses in this category focus on frameworks for understanding historical, social, and individual structures, processes, and patterns of continuity and transformation. These courses introduce various methods for understanding how the individual is connected to groups, communities, nations, and other institutional arrangements. Disciplines typically represented in the HSS category: Anthropology (ANT), History (HIS), Media Studies (MDS), Politics (POL), Psychology (PSY), and Sociology (SOC). Students are required to take one LVA, one CVA, one HSS and a fourth course from one of these three categories.

Office Hours: My office hours will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from noon to 1:00 p.m. at Hollister 328. You may also contact me via e-mail or phone if you have questions regarding any aspect of this course. My office phone is (781) 239-4975.

Required Readings:

Mark Binelli, Detroit City is the Place to Be: The Afterlife of an American MetropolisF. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby John Kasson, Amusing the Million Upton Sinclair, The Jungle Richard Wright, Twelve Million Black Voices

In addition, students will be assigned a number of articles or individual chapters from other texts, as noted in the syllabus (*). All of these readings will be available on the courses Blackboard site. Please read the syllabus carefully for specific reading assignments. Note that study questions for every set of readings will also be posted on the HSS 2058 Blackboard site.

Attendance and Responsibilities: Students are expected to attend every class session, read all assignments, and actively participate in class discussions. Arrive to class on time and ready to talk thoughtfully about the assigned materials. More than two absences or continual tardiness will reduce your class participation grade (please note that absences will only be excused in the case of a documented illness or personal issue, or religious or professional conflict). Class participation grades will be formulated according to the following criteria:

0-2 absences (with outstanding participation): A3-4 (with strong participation):B5-6:C7 or more:F

Grading: All assignments must be turned in to pass the class. Late assignments will be penalized one grade level (e.g., from a B to a B-). Final grades will be determined by the following formula:

Class Participation: 20%Midterm Exam: 20%Paper 1: 20%Paper 2: 20%Final Exam: 20%

Class Participation: As stated above, as part of their participation grade, students are expected to attend every session, read the assigned texts, and discuss them thoughtfully in class. The quality, as well as the frequency, of students input will be factored into their final grades.

Papers: There are two written assignments, each stapled, double-spaced, in 12 point font with standard 1-1 margins. These papers, due Friday, February 20 and Friday, April 17 should be at least four pages in length. They should be e-mailed directly to Professor Schmitz by 5:00 p.m. (PST) on the given due dates. Potential topics will be posted on the course Blackboard site. Specific details related to the papers will be discussed in class.

Exams: The midterm examination on March 12 will ask you to draw on the readings and lectures from the first half of the course, and it will consist of short-answer and essay questions. The final examination, scheduled during the final exam period, will be structured like the midterm. It will focus on the second half of the course. Documentation and Appropriate Style: All work submitted in this course must be your own and written for this class alone. All sources must be cited, including course texts, internet sources, and ideas that are paraphrased. Please use Modern Language Association (MLA) documentation style for your papers. Lack of proper citation suggests academic dishonesty, or plagiarism. Please know that I take the issue of academic integrity seriously, and I expect that you will as well. It is my policy to forward all plagiarism cases to the campus Judicial Board.Guidelines for this documentation style can be found in Diana Hackers A Writers Reference; online at http://libguides.babson.edu/citing, http://libguides.babson.edu/citing; and at Babsons Writing Center (Babson Hall 205) and Speech Resource Center (Horn 209).Honor Code and Academic Integrity:The standards and expectations of the Babson Honor Code and its academic honesty and integrity policies apply to this course as well as to any other course you take at Babson. The policy is articulated in your Undergraduate Handbook. Failure of any student to take appropriate steps to fully understand the Code will not be an acceptable excuse for any violations. For your coursework, you will need to affirm your understanding of and commitment to the academic honesty and integrity expectations set forth in the Code. You will be required to write the following pledge on every exam, paper, project, or other academic exercise: I pledge my honor that I have neither received nor provided unauthorized assistance during the completion of this work. Religious Observance: Any student who faces a conflict between the requirements of the course and the observance of his or her religious faith should contact the instructor as early in the semester as possible. In such cases, the instructor will provide reasonable accommodations that do not unduly disadvantage the student.Statement on Disabilities: Any student who feels she or he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact Mary Powell, Director of the Learning Center, privately to discuss your specific needs. She can be reached at (781) 239-4508 in Hollister Hall, suite 122 to coordinate reasonable academic accommodations.

Week 1: The City and the Birth of Modern America

Tues., Jan. 20: COURSE INTRODUCTION

Thurs., Jan. 22: Steven Gillon and Cathy Matson, The New Urban Nation, 1865-1910, The American Experiment: A History of the United States (pp. 678-705)*

Week 2: The City of Big Shoulders: Chicago and Americas Industrial Age

Tues., Jan. 27:Upton Sinclair, The Jungle (pp. 3-58; chaps. 1-4)

Thurs., Jan. 29: Sinclair, The Jungle (pp. 59-119; chaps. 5-10)

Week 3:

Tues., Feb. 3:Sinclair, The Jungle (pp. 120-211; chaps. 10-19)

Thurs., Feb. 5:Jane Addams Explains Why the Ward Boss Rules in Major Problems in American Urban and Suburban History (pp. 296-99)*

Gunther Barth, Ball Park in American Urban History (pp. 141-72)*

Week 4: Metropolis: New York and the Making of Modern Culture

Tues., Feb. 10: Coney Island (film)

Thurs., Feb. 12: John Kasson, Amusing the Million (pp. 3-55 chaps. 1-4)

Week 5:

Tues. Feb. 17:NO CLASS: BABSON MONDAY

Thurs., Feb. 19: Kasson, Amusing the Million (pp. 56-113; chaps. 5-6)

PAPER #1 DUE: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20 BY 5:00 P.M.

Week 6:

Tues., Feb. 24:F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (pp. 1-80; chaps. 1-4)

Thurs., Feb. 26: Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (pp. 81-180; chaps. 5-9)

Week 7:

Tues., Mar. 3: Alain Locke, Enter the New Negro, Survey Graphic (pp. 1-6)*

Thurs., Mar. 5: Ann Douglas, Skyscrapers, Airplanes, and Airmindedness: The Necessary Angel in Terrible Honesty (pp. 434-61; chap. 11)*

Week 8:

Tues., Mar. 10: Richard Wright, 12 Million Black Voices (chaps. 3-4; pp. 92-147)

Thurs., Mar. 12: MIDTERM EXAMINATION

Week 9:

Monday, March 16 to Friday March 20: NO CLASS: SPRING BREAK

Week 10:The Post-War City: From Golden Age to Urban Crisis

Tues., Mar. 24: Kenneth T. Jackson, The Drive-in Culture of Contemporary America, The Crabgrass Frontier from The Making of Urban America (pp. 228-51)*

Jane Jacobs, The Uses of Sidewalks: Safety, The Death and Life of Great American Cities from The City Reader (pp. 114-118)*

Thurs., Mar. 26: Alan Ehrenhalt, The Lost City (pp. 90-110; chap. 4)*

A Real Estate Speculator Explains the Fine Art of Blockbusting, 1962 in Major Problems in American Urban and Suburban History (pp. 394-401)*

Week 11:

Tues., Mar. 31: Eyes on the Prize II: Two Societies (1965-68) (film)

Robert Fogelson, An Explanation for Ghetto Violence, Major Problems in American Urban History (pp. 459-475)*

Thurs., Apr. 2: Mike Davis, Fortress L.A., City of Quartz (223-60; chap. 4)*

Week 12:Cities of the Future: Fortress L.A., Detroit, and the Urban Gentry

Tues, Apr. 7: Davis, The Hammer and the Rock, City of Quartz (pp. 267-322, chap. 5)*

Thurs., Apr. 9: Blake Fleetwood, The New Elite and an Urban Renaissance, The New York Times Magazine 14 January 1979 (pp. 16-20+)*

Frances FitzGerald, The Castro, The New Yorker 21 July 1986 (pp. 34-70)*

Week 13:

Tues., Apr. 14: Andres Duany Applauds Gentrification, 2001 in Major Problems in American Urban and Suburban History (pp. 495-497)*

Richard D. Lloyd, Neo-Bohemia: Art and Neighborhood Development in Chicago, Journal of Urban Affairs Winter 2002 (pp. 517-532)*

Thurs., Apr. 16: Mark Binelli, Detroit City is the Place to Be (Selections TBA)

PAPER #2 DUE: FRIDAY, APRIL 17 BY 5:00 P.M.

Week 14:

Tues., Apr. 21:BABSON MONDAY: NO CLASS

Thurs., Apr. 23: Mark Binelli, Detroit City is the Place to Be (Selections TBA)

Week 15:

Tues., Apr. 28:CONCLUSION, FINAL EXAM TBA

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