History 367
The American Civil War

Professor Hugh Dubrulle
Class Time:  TTh 10:00AM-11:30AM
Classroom:  Wyatt 306
Office:  Wyatt 138 
Office Hours:  MW 2:00PM-4:00PM and by appointment
E-mail:  hdubrulle@ups.edu 
Telephone:  (253) 879-3518
website: www.ups.edu/faculty/hdubrulle/home.htm

Themes of the Course

In this course, we will investigate the origins, conduct, and consequences of the American Civil War. To make sense of the conflict, we will spend the first six weeks of the semester surveying the political, social, economic, and cultural factors that accounted for increasing tension within the Union and how they accounted for its disintegration. As we study the war, we will look at the ongoing debate in both sections over war aims, how these aims changed over time, and how successful each side was at achieving them. Along the way, we will pursue the following themes that have featured prominently in Civil War historiography: the character of slavery; the role played by slavery in precipitating the conflict; the social and political divisions that plagued both North and South; the role of nationalism in both sections; the war as a vehicle for social and political change; the reasons for the Confederacy's demise; the place the conflict assumed in the general development in warfare; and the character of Reconstruction.

Required Readings

James M. McPherson, Ordeal by Fire (textbook)
Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave
Sam Watkins, Co. Aytch: A Confederate's Memoir of the Civil War
James M. McPherson, What They Fought For
Web Documents (Primary Sources Posted on the Course Website)
Coursepack

Viewings

You are required to view both of these movies and write a short homework assignment on each.

Glory (1989) (Thursday, April 4, 7PM, Wyatt 109)
Gone with the Wind (1939) (Thursday, April 25, 7PM, Wyatt 109)

Student Requirements and Assignments

My Policy regarding Academic Honesty

To fulfill its mission, a university must demand honesty from all its members. If you wish to understand more fully what honesty requires of you both inside and outside the classroom, please consult the "Academic Honesty" section of The Logger. Any violation of the rules set out in this section constitutes a grave matter. If I detect such a violation on your part, I reserve the right to inflict any punishment I deem necessary—from a zero on a particular assignment to an F for the class.

Class Participation (10%):  I will base your class participation grade on the frequency and quality of your contribution to classroom discussion. Positive contributions consist not merely of answering the professor's questions. They also include:

• Asking questions concerning the reading, the discussion, or the class in general
• Challenging what either the professor or your peers have said
• Making pertinent observations of all sorts
• Using office hours
• Displaying a positive attitude toward learning and the course

Furthermore, if you are a student, your job consists of learning. I expect you to come to class prepared to learn.

• Come to class having completed the readings assigned for that day (including the textbook readings).
• If we are scheduled to discuss a book or an excerpt out of the coursepack, bring the reading to class so that you can refer to it.
• Bring the textbook to class.
• Also, please arrive on time if not a little early. If you must leave class early, let me know in advance.

Remember, if you are not attending class, you are not participating.

My rule of thumb for class participation grades is as follows:

If you attend and participate regularly, you will receive an A.
If you attend regularly but never participate, you will receive a C.
If your attendance and participation fall between an A and C, you will receive a B.
If you attend irregularly and never participate, you will receive a D.

Leading Class Discussion (5%): I have set aside ten particular topics—each on a specific day—in which groups consisting of two students will lead classroom discussion. I will circulate a sign-up sheet in class. Sign up as soon as possible for the topic of your choice. If you have not volunteered for a discussion by the end of class on Tuesday, January 29, I will assign you one at random.

Although circumstances will vary according to the topic, I expect you to relate the sources to the themes of the course. As you plan the discussion, feel free to employ some creativity.

For this assignment, not only will you be responsible for leading discussion, but you will also be required to produce a Food for Thought homework assignment for your peers in the class. Furthermore, your grade on this assignment will depend not only on my evaluation of your presentation, but on the opinion of your fellow students. After each presentation, I will ask your peers to provide a short written assessment of your performance, which I will forward to you with my own comments. I will provide more information about this assignment on the website. Here are your options:

• Thursday, February 7: The Mexican-American War
• Tuesday, February 12: The Ostend Manifesto
• Thursday, February 14: The Kansas-Nebraska Act
• Thursday, February 14: Bleeding Kansas
• Tuesday, February 26: John Brown's Raid
• Tuesday, February 26: The Election of 1860
• Tuesday, April 9: The Origins of Reconstruction
• Tuesday, April 16: Southern Women and the Confederate Home Front
• Tuesday, April 23: The Confederate Debate over Arming Black Slaves
• Thursday, May 2: The Retreat from Reconstruction and the Compromise of 1877

Food for Thought Reading Assignments (20%):

For almost every class meeting, I will assign you a series of questions that will help you understand the readings. You must provide short written responses to these questions that appear in the "Food for Thought" section of the website. These written responses are due in class on the day we discuss the readings to which they pertain—no exceptions. If you are not in class, you will not get credit for the assignment that day.

Final Paper (40%):

Over the course of the semester, you will produce a number of assignments associated with a final paper—a "what if" paper, known in the history business as "counterfactual history." I will provide more details about the following assignments associated with this final paper. You must complete all of these assignments to obtain a passing grade.

• Selection of Topic (due Tuesday, January 29): First come, first served. If you have not selected a topic by January 29, I will select one for you. If you would like to create your own topic, feel free to do so. You must, however, run it by me by January 29. You can choose from the following:
  • What if Winfield Scott's drive on Mexico City had failed, and the Mexican-American War had ended in a draw?
  • What if the Democratic Party had successfully reached a compromise and not broken in two in 1860?
  • What if McDowell's Federal army had won the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861?
  • What if the Confederates had allowed the Federal garrison to abandon Fort Sumter due to lack of supplies—instead of opening fire on the post?
  • What if the Federal government had not given up Mason and Slidell to the British government during the Trent affair?
  • What if McCellan had defeated and destroyed Lee's army outside of Richmond in July 1862?
  • What if Ulysses S. Grant had gotten killed at Shiloh?
  • What if Robert E. Lee had become the commander of the Army of Mississippi (later known as the Army of Tennessee) in June 1862 instead of the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia?
  • What if the British government had successfully organized a European offer to mediate the Civil War in November 1862?
  • What if Robert E. Lee's heart attack of December 1862 had proven fatal?
  • What if Private B.W. Mitchell of the 27th Indiana had not found Robert E. Lee's lost dispatch, "Special Orders No. 191" four days before the battle of Antietam?
  • What if Stonewall Jackson had not been accidentally shot by his own men at Chancellorsville?
  • What if Robert E. Lee had pursued operations differently at Gettysburg and won?
  • What if Jefferson Davis had not replaced Joseph Johnston with John Bell Hood in 1864?
  • What if the Confederate government had followed Patrick Cleburne's suggestion and armed black slaves in 1864?
  • What if Lincoln had died just before the election of 1864?
  • What if the Democrats had put together a "war" platform for the election of 1864?
  • What if John Wilkes Booth had fallen off his horse and fractured his skull on the night he set out to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln?
  • What if Robert E. Lee had committed the Army of Northern Virginia to guerrilla warfare instead of surrendering at Appomattox?
  • What if the Senate had convicted President Andrew Johnson?
  • What if Rutherford B. Hayes had won the election of 1876 outright?
• Tentative Proposal (5%) (due Tuesday, February 12): This assignment will require you to submit a series of questions that your essay will have to address—as well as any preliminary answers you have reached on these questions.
• Bibliography (5%) (due Tuesday, February 26): The bibliography will consist of a list of works you intend to use for your project.
• Prospectus (5%) (due Tuesday, March 5): This assignment will consist of two parts. First, you will provide more specific answers to the questions you provided in your tentative proposal. Second, you will have to review a fellow student's propectus and grade it just as I would. I will grade both your prospectus and your review.
• Draft (10%) (due Tuesday, April 16): In this case, you will have to write a draft of your essay and grade a fellow student's draft.
• Final Paper (15%) (due Tuesday, May 7): Consists of your final paper. There are no exceptions to the May 7 deadline.
  

Extensions: I will grant NO extensions on or after the due date. I will provide an extension only if:

• You produce a doctor's note indicating you are physically incapable of finishing the assignment on time.
• You produce a note from one of your parents indicating you suffered a death in your immediate family.   

Turning in Assignments: I will not accept paper assignments submitted to me via e-mail. You must give the assignment to me in person on the day it is due—before I leave campus.

Late Assignments:  Late assignments will suffer a penalty of 10% for each day they are late. Thus, a B- assignment turned in a day late will become a C- assignment. The meter runs on weekends just as on weekdays. If an assignment is due on a Friday, it will be one day late on Saturday (10% off), two days late on Sunday (20% off), and three days late on Monday (30% off). The meter also keeps running during holidays and breaks. It is your responsibility to get the assignment to me in such a manner that I can verify you completed it by a certain time.   

Completing Assignments and Obtaining a Passing Grade:  You must obtain a passing grade on ALL paper assignments to pass the class. In other words, if you turn in a C assignment (75%) two days late (20% penalty), you will get an F (55%) for the assignment and fail the course.

Examinations (25%):

Both examinations in this class will consist exclusively of essay questions.

• Midterm Examination (10%): This examination will take place on Thursday, March 14.
  
• Final Examination (15%): This examination will take place on Thursday, May 16, 8:00AM-10:00AM.

Suggestions for Success in This Class

Although the professor figures prominently in the failure or success of his students, the students themselves bear much responsibility for their own education. What follows is a series of suggestions about how you can make the most of the opportunities this class offers.

Attendance:  It is impossible to learn anything or obtain a more than mediocre grade unless one attends class. The following assertion may sound trite, but it remains true: those who come to class enjoy a huge advantage over those who do not.

Attitude:  If you come prepared to work hard and learn something, you will enjoy yourself and have a enjoyable experience. On the other hand, if you are determined to dislike this course or cruise through with a minimum of effort, you will suffer through a long and miserable semester.

Attentiveness:  Pay attention to the syllabus, to the website, and to what I say. By doing so, you will spare yourself (and me) a great deal of trouble later on. 

Reading:  No matter how smart you are, you must read to learn. If you do not read, you will not encounter ideas and perspectives that differ from your own. Your mind will remain insular and undeveloped, and you will have succeeded in defeating the purpose of the liberal arts education for which you have paid so much.     

Thinking:  It is absolutely imperative that you think while you read and write. Glancing at a page in a book is not reading. At the same time, merely typing a series of words is not writing. Only the thinking that takes place during these activities gives them any meaning or value. Always think before doing. If anything, a liberal arts education ought to teach you to think.   

Care:  Anybody can conceive of a great idea. Very few show the care necessary to realize that idea elegantly. You can only learn these qualities through practice, patience, and diligence. The more care you show for your work, the more you will achieve. 

Initiative:  Take some initiative in your own education. If you encounter an obstacle, find a way to surmount it rather than an excuse to succumb to it. One of Aesop's fables concludes with the moral,  "God helps those who help themselves," which is just another way of saying that people who help themselves will meet with more success than those who complain, whine, cry, or simply give up.

Consultation:  If you have ANY questions about the class that the website or syllabus do not answer, please consult me. Send me an e-mail, come to my office hours, or set up an appointment with me. One of the advantages associated with attending a small, private, liberal arts college is that you have easy access to the faculty. Take advantage of that access to ask the professor for help.

And Finally. . . :  Look at this class as an opportunity to impress me with your application and thought.  Seize that opportunity. If you do not, somebody else invariably will. In this context, merely "adequate" performances will not make much of an impression and will lead to mediocre grades.

Schedule

WEEK 1

Tuesday, January 22

Thursday, January 24

WEEK 2

Tuesday, January 29

Thursday, January 31

WEEK 3

Tuesday, February 5

Thursday, February 7

WEEK 4

Tuesday, February 12

Thursday, February 14

WEEK 5

Tuesday, February 19

Thursday, February 21

WEEK 6

Tuesday, February 26

Thursday, February 28

WEEK 7

Tuesday, March 5

Thursday, March 7

WEEK 8

Tuesday, March 12

Thursday, March 14: MIDTERM EXAMINATION

SPRING RECESS (March 18-March 22)

WEEK 9

Tuesday, March 25

Thursday, March 27

WEEK 10

Tuesday, April 2

Thursday, April 4

WEEK 11

Tuesday, April 9

Thursday, April 11

WEEK 12

Tuesday, April 16

Thursday, April 18

WEEK 13

Tuesday, April 23

Thursday, April 25

WEEK 14

Tuesday, April 30

Thursday, May 2

WEEK 15

Tuesday, May 7

FINAL EXAMINATION: Thursday, May 16, 8:00AM-10:00AM