BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY PROF. MICHAEL WILLRICHHist 161b—Fall 2014 willrich@brandeis.edu; 6-2292T, F 12:30-1:50 Office Hours: T, 2-4; Olin-Sang 117

AMERICAN POLITICAL HISTORY

Building the U.S. Capitol Dome, Washington 1858

THIS ADVANCED COURSE takes a fresh look at an old subject: the political history of the United States from the creation of the American republic to the present.

Politics and the state have returned to the forefront of historical writing. The “new political historians” draw upon the methods of social and cultural history, the theoretical insights of the social sciences, and a wide range of narrative strategies to create robust accounts of public life. Through lectures, close analysis of documents, and class discussions of prize-winning books, this class will trace the historical development of the American polity: the political actors, ideas, and institutions that have defined, wielded, and struggled for public power. For our purposes, “the polity” encompasses politics (parties, elections, voters, and social movements), government (policy-making and public administration at the federal, state, and local levels), and law (courts, judges, lawyers, and the cases they make). If recent American elections have taught us anything, it is that the nation’s political past is a subject far too important to leave to the partisans of the present.

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Our goal will be to better understand the complex interplay between continuity and change that has defined the American political tradition. We will examine a particularly revealing series of major problems in the history of American public life: the politics and ideas that made the Constitution, the suffrage and the shifting boundaries of democratic participation, the creation of republican governments designed to protect liberty and govern vigorously, taxation and the fiscal state, the politics of slavery, African American political struggles during Reconstruction, the progressives’ assault upon laissez-faire capitalism, the politics of disease control, New Deal liberalism and its legacies, the civil rights movement and the unpredictable political effects of Supreme Court decisions, sexuality and citizenship, and the rise and consolidation of modern conservatism.Disclaimer: Students “shopping” this course will also want to know what it is not. Although we will proceed for the most part in chronological order, this course is not an introductory survey of American political history. Nor will this course provide an overview of American legal history (see Hist 160a/b), diplomatic history (Hist 164b), or political thought (Hist 195a/b, 196a).

Learning Goals:

1. To develop understanding about major historical problems in American politics, the legal system, and government.

2. To expose students to examples of the recent scholarly literature on the subject.

3. To foster critical reading, thinking, and analytical skills.

4. To strengthen oral communication and written expression.

Requirements and Grading:

1. Regular attendance & informed class participation. This course is organized around discussion of assigned readings. Each student is expected to read all texts by the assigned date, bring the texts to class, and to be prepared to actively discuss them. Students cannot pass this course without attending class regularly. 30 % of the final grade

2. Three analytical essays (5 pages each) based upon the course readings and lectures. Due dates are Tues., Sept. 23; Mon., Oct. 20; and Mon., Nov. 24. Topics will be posted on Latte. Essays should be placed in my mailbox, Olin-Sang, 2d floor. Each essay counts for 15 % of the final grade

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3. A research paper (10-12 pages) on some aspect of American political history during the period from 1787-2000. The essay must be grounded in the student’s own research in primary and secondary sources. Papers with thin bibliographies (fewer than six items, not counting reference works) or which do not make use of the sources listed in the bibliography are unacceptable. The essay must present a well-supported historical argument; it must not be purely descriptive. A one-page statement of the research topic and a preliminary bibliography are due on Mon., Nov. 10. The final paper is due on Mon., Dec. 8. 25 % of the final grade

Course Rules:

1. You must complete all assignments to receive a passing grade.

2. Late papers will automatically be marked down.

3. If you have a question about a grade, please come to my office hours. I will not discuss grades over the phone or via e-mail. I am happy to discuss questions about the course material via e-mail.

4. Academic Honesty: The Brandeis University policy on academic honesty is distributed annually as section 4 of the Rights and Responsibilities handbook. I take this policy very seriously. Instances of alleged dishonesty will be reported to the appropriate university authorities.

5. Accommodations: If you are a student with a documented disability at Brandeis University and wish to request a reasonable accommodation for this class, please see me immediately. Please keep in mind that accommodations cannot be provided retroactively.

6. Electronics: Because they detract from the educational environment, laptops and tablets are not allowed in this class without an accommodation. No cell phones, texting devices, recorders, etc.

Required Readings:

Please note that the volume of reading in this course is fairly heavy, and the amount of reading assigned will necessarily vary from class to class. It is your responsibility to plan ahead.

Starred (*) documents on the assignment schedule are available on Latte. The following required books are available at the Brandeis Bookstore, and I have placed one copy of each on reserve at Goldfarb Library. You are expected to obtain a copy of each text and bring it with you to class.

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Jack Rakove, Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution (1996)

Alexander Keyssar, The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States (2000)

William J. Novak, The People’s Welfare: Law and Regulation in Nineteenth Century America (1996)

Robin L. Einhorn, American Slavery, American Taxation (2006)

Eric Foner, The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery (2010)

Steven Hahn, A Nation Under Our Feet: Black Political Struggles in the Rural South from Slavery to the Great Migration (2003)

Michael Willrich, Pox: An American History (2011)

James T. Sparrow, Warfare State: World War II Americans and the Age of Big Government (2011)

Michael Klarman, Brown v. Board of Education and the Civil Rights Movement (2007)

Margot Canaday, The Straight State: Sexuality and Citizenship in Twentieth-Century America (2009).

Donald T. Critchlow and Nancy MacLean, Debating the American Conservative Movement: 1945 to the Present (2009)

SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS AND ASSIGNMENTS

F, Aug. 29 An American Songbook

T, Sept. 2 The Perils of “Originalism”: The Politics of the U.S. ConstitutionReading: Rakove, Original Meanings, Preface and Chs. 1-4

F, Sept. 5 Debating and Ratifying the ConstitutionReading: Rakove, Original Meanings, Chs. 5-6

* The U.S. Constitution (1787)

T, Sept. 9 The Constitutional Framework of the American PolityReading: Rakove, Original Meanings, Chs. 7-9

* The Bill of Rights (1789)

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F, Sept. 12 The Rise of American DemocracyReading: Keyssar, Right to Vote, Introduction and Part I

T, Sept. 16 A Crooked Line: The Suffrage in American HistoryReading: Keyssar, Right to Vote, Part II and Conclusion

F, Sept. 19 A Government “Out of Sight”: The Nineteenth Century StateReading: Novak, People’s Welfare, Introduction and Chs. 1, 3

T, Sept. 23 “Brandeis Thursday”—No Class MeetingFirst Essay Due by 12 Noon in Prof. Willrich’s Mailbox

F, Sept. 26 Rosh Hashanah Holiday—No Class

T, Sept. 30 Law, Regulation, and the Myth of Laissez FaireReading: Novak, People’s Welfare, Ch. 6 and Conclusion

F, Oct. 3 Taxation and the TariffReading: Einhorn, American Slavery, American Taxation, 1-27,

104-199

T, Oct. 7 Taxation and the “Peculiar Institution”Reading: Einhorn, American Slavery, American Taxation, 200-

256

F, Oct. 10 Slavery and the Antebellum Political SystemReading, Foner, Fiery Trial, Preface and Chs. 1-6

T, Oct. 14 Abraham Lincoln and the Politics of SlaveryReading, Foner, Fiery Trial, Chs. 7-9 and Epilogue

F, Oct. 17 Reconstructing the NationReading: Hahn, Nation Under Our Feet, Prologue and Chs. 2-3

M, Oct. 20 Second Essay Due by 12 Noon in Prof. Willrich’s Mailbox

T, Oct. 21 “A Brief Moment in the Sun”: African American Politics During Reconstruction

Reading: Hahn, Nation Under Our Feet, Chs. 4-6

F, Oct. 24 Research WorkshopReading: TBA

T, Oct. 28 State-Building in the Progressive Era

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Reading: Willrich, Pox, 1-46, 75-116

F, Oct. 31 The Contentious Politics of Public Health Reading: Willrich, Pox, 166-345

T, Nov. 4 The New Deal and World War IISparrow, Warfare State, Introduction and Part I

F, Nov. 7 War and the Age of “Big Government”Sparrow, Warfare State, Part II and Conclusion

M, Nov. 10 Research Topic Due by 12 Noon in Prof. Willrich’s Mailbox

T, Nov. 11 “The Second Reconstruction”: The Civil Rights MovementReading: Klarman, Brown v. Board of Education, Introduction

and Chs. 1-5

F, Nov. 14 The Supreme Court and American PoliticsReading: Klarman, Brown v. Board of Education, Chs. 6-9 and

Conclusion

T, Nov. 18 Building the “Straight” Federal StateCanaday, Straight State, Introduction and Part I

F, Nov. 21 Sexuality and CitizenshipCanaday, Straight State, Part II and Conclusion

M, Nov. 24 Third Essay Due by 12 Noon in Prof. Willrich’s Mailbox

T, Nov. 25 Conservatism AscendantReading: Critchlow and Maclean, Debating, Pages TBA.

F, Nov. 28 Thanksgiving Holiday—No Class

T, Dec. 2 The Politics of Punishment in Recent US History* Heather Ann Thompson, “Why Mass Incarceration Matters:

Rethinking Crisis, Decline, and Transformation in Postwar American History,” Journ. Am. Hist., 97 (2010): 703-734

F, Dec. 5 Barack Obama and the American Political TraditionReading: Keyssar, The Right to Vote, Ch. 9.

* Barack Obama’s Speech on Race, Philadelphia, 2008 * Gary Wills, “Two Speeches on Race” (2008)

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M, Dec. 8 Research Paper Due by 12 Noon in Prof. Willrich’s Mailbox