Supporting standards comprise 35% of the U. S. History Test

25 (A)

Supporting Standard (25)The student understands the relationship between

the arts and the times during which they were created.The Student is expected to:

(A) Describe how the characteristics & issues in U. S. history have been reflected in

various genres of art, music, film, & literature

Clio’s Web is a Seamless Garment

Clio means “proclaimer” & she is the Greek muse of history. The expression above suggests that the fabric of history is a unified whole in which everything is tied or related to everything else. The historian is left with the dilemma of where to cut into that fabric to tell the

story.Many of the TEA standards on culture, citizenship, government, economics, & geography present that very challenge. The broad, general standards like

the present one present the nigh impossible task of selecting representative examples.

Nevertheless . . . here are a few that hopefully will prepare you for the upcoming STAAR exam

regarding Supporting Standard 25 A.

Welcome to class Clio!

Supporting Standard (25)The student understands the relationship

between the arts and the times during which they were created.

The Student is expected to:(A) 1 Describe how the characteristics &

issues in U. S. history have been reflected in various genres of art

Mathew Mathew BradyBrady

Ansel Ansel AdamsAdams

Mathew Brady, 1822-1896

Mathew B. Brady was one of the most celebrated 19th-century American

photographer, best known for his portraits of

celebrities and his documentation of

the American Civil War. He is credited with being

the father of photojournalism.

Brady’s May 16,

1861 Lincoln Photo

. . . and in Feb. 1865

Ansel Adams, 1902-1984

Ansel Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist.

His black-&-white landscape photos of the American West, especially Yosemite

National Park, have been widely reproduced on calendars, posters, and in books.

With Fred Archer, Adams developed the Zone System as a way to determine

proper exposure and adjust the contrast of the final print. The resulting clarity and

depth characterized his photographs. Adams primarily used large-format cameras

because their high resolution helped ensure sharpness in his images.

Supporting Standard (25)The student understands the relationship between

the arts and the times during which they were created.

The Student is expected to:(A) 2 Describe how the characteristics & issues in U. S. history have been reflected in various genres of music

Steven Steven FosterFoster

Rogers & Rogers & HammersteinHammerstein

Elvis Elvis PresleyPresley

Stephen Foster, 1826-1864

Stephen Foster , known as the “father of American music,” was an

American songwriter primarily known for

his parlor and minstrel music. Foster wrote over 200 songs reflecting the

spirit and concerns of mid-19th century America. Among his best-

known are “Oh! Susanna,” “Camptown Races,” “Old Folks at

Home,” “My Old Kentucky Home,” “Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair,”

and “Beautiful Dreamer.” Many of his compositions remain popular

more than 150 years after he wrote them.

Jazz Music of the 1920s

Jazz is a music genre that originated at the beginning of the 20th century, arguably

earlier, within the African-American communities of the Southern United States.

Its roots lie in the combining by African-Americans of certain European harmony

and form elements, with their existing African-based music. Its African musical

basis is evident in its use of blue notes, improvisation, polyrhythms, syncopat

ion and the swung note. The loosely structured nature of this musical style

mirrored the free & easy lifestyle lived by many urban Americans of this period.

Rodgers & Hammerstein, 1940s & 50s

Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960) were an influential, innovative and

successful American musical theatre writing team, usually referred to as Rodgers and Hammerstein. They created a

string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s, initiating what is considered the “golden age” of

musical theatre. With Rodgers composing the music and Hammerstein writing the lyrics, five of their Broadway

shows, Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and The Sound of Music, were outstanding successes, as

was the television broadcast of Cinderella. Among the many accolades their shows (and film versions) garnered were thirty-four Tony Awards, fifteen Academy Awards,

the Pulitzer Prize, and two Grammy Awards.

Their plays reflect Their plays reflect the character, the character, norms, & values of norms, & values of the periodthe period

Elvis Presley, 1935-1977

Elvis Presley was an American singer, musician, and actor. Regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century, he is often referred to as

“the King of Rock and Roll,” or simply, “the King.” Presley reflected an

America undergoing cultural movement and change through his high

energy level, instincts, gyrating movement onstage, and combination & blending of rhythm and blues, African-American jazz, country forms of music.

1776, the Musical

1776 is a musical with music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards and a book

by Peter Stone. The story is based on the events surrounding the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It

focuses on, and partly fictionalizes, the efforts of John Adams to persuade his

colleagues to vote for American independence and to sign the

document. It premiered on Broadway in 1969, earning warm reviews, and ran

for 1,217 performances. The production was nominated for five Tony Awards and

won three, including the Tony Award for Best Musical. The musical was

revived on Broadway in 1997.

Supporting Standard (25)The student understands the relationship between

the arts and the times during which they were created.

The Student is expected to:(A) 3 Describe how the characteristics & issues in

U. S. history have been reflected in various genres of film

198919891960196019621962

19981998

And the evolving American perception of And the evolving American perception of & attitude about U. S. involvement in war& attitude about U. S. involvement in war

Perception of Vietnam

The Vietnam War has been the subject of many films. One of the first major films based on the Vietnam War was John Wayne’s The Green Berets (1968). Further cinematic representations were released during the 1970s and 1980s, including Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter (1978),Francis

Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now (1979), Oliver Stone’s Platoon (1986)— based on his service in the U.S. Military during the Vietnam War, Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket (1987), Hamburger

Hill (1987) and Casualties of War (1989). Later films would include We Were Soldiers (2002) and Rescue Dawn (2007). Today, the viewpoint of many Americans regarding the Vietnam War often

reflects the common perception shared by most Americans born after the war, a perception powerfully shaped by such movies. Some argue that the depiction of the Vietnamese in American war films is woefully stereotyped. Vietnamese civilians are usually shown as passive victims, prostitutes, or conniving with the enemy, while North Vietnamese or NLF guerilla fighters are frequently drawn as cruel torturers or effeminate cowards, and the ARVN are described as incompetent.” The ideology of

such films speaks of several basic and widespread public attitudes towards the war.

Television in the 1950sThe programming offered to the post-

World War II painted a wonderful,

idealistic, but often inaccurate of the model American

family as it existed in the American mind.

A more accurate representation

probably exists in our own historical

context

The ContrastThe Contrast

• Patriarchal 1950s nuclear family vs. Patriarchal 1950s nuclear family vs. family patriarch (Jay) still locked into family patriarch (Jay) still locked into 1950s values1950s values

• Faithful husband-wife unions vs. Faithful husband-wife unions vs. passionate trophy wife (Gloria) from passionate trophy wife (Gloria) from Columbia & nerdy stepsonColumbia & nerdy stepson

• Father knows best vs. Bumbling doofus Father knows best vs. Bumbling doofus Dumfries Daddy (Phil)Dumfries Daddy (Phil)

• Subordinate, dutiful wife with nary a Subordinate, dutiful wife with nary a hair ever out of place vs. Menopausal hair ever out of place vs. Menopausal midlife Mom (Claire) who runs the midlife Mom (Claire) who runs the familyfamily

• Obedient model children who always Obedient model children who always eventually do the right thing vs. ditzy eventually do the right thing vs. ditzy perpetual rule breaker Haley; nerdy, perpetual rule breaker Haley; nerdy, jealous middle child Alex; & offbeat jealous middle child Alex; & offbeat son Lukeson Luke

• Intact Anglo-Saxon nuclear family units vs. adopted Asian Intact Anglo-Saxon nuclear family units vs. adopted Asian child (Lily)child (Lily)

• Heterosexual unions vs. Gay marriage (Mitchell & Cameron)Heterosexual unions vs. Gay marriage (Mitchell & Cameron)• ART IMITATING LIFE???ART IMITATING LIFE???

Are Are both both representative representative of their own of their own respective respective

times? times?

Supporting Standard (25)The student understands the relationship between

the arts and the times during which they were created.

The Student is expected to:(A) Describe how the characteristics & issues in U. S. history have been reflected in various

genres of literature

F. Scott F. Scott FitzgeraldFitzgerald

Ernest Ernest HemingwayHemingway

John Dos PasosJohn Dos Pasos

Lost Generation Literature, 1920s

The “Lost Generation” was the generation that came of age during World War I. The

term was popularized by Ernest Hemingway, who used it as one of two contrasting

epigraphs for his novel, The Sun Also Rises.  This generation included distinguished artists such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, T. S. Eliot, John

Dos Passos, Waldo Peirce, Isadora Duncan, Abraham Walkowitz, Alan Seeger, and Erich Maria Remarque. The literature

produced by this group reflected the disillusionment and skepticism imbued in that postwar generation because of the war itself.

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