AN3016MA AMERICAN EXPERIENCE IN WAR Spring, 2017 Time: Wednesday, 12:00-14:00 Venue: 119 Tutor: Paul Mayle. (pmayle@mvnu.edu.), Room 118; phone 06 306 582 619 Office hours: Wednesday 10:00-11:00; Thursday 13:00-14:00; other times by appointment Course description: This course is a topical and chronological seminar analyzing the causes, nature and impact of warfare in American history from the Revolutionary period to the present. It provides an analysis of the cultural milieu and popular responses in the domestic environment and the impact of technological changes over time. On one hand, the American experience leading up to involvement in warfare is unique; on the other, attitudes toward warfare and negotiations to end conflict have followed distinctive patterns. All of this sets the United States apart as an exception to practices elsewhere in the world. The seminar covers analysis and interpretation of the historical development of the United States and the specific causation of warfare and pursuit of peace-making. Among other themes, the seminar will examine, in part through modified case study technique, the various factors involved in decisions leading to the resort to conflict as well as the relevant ideological forces central to American practices in warfare and peace-making. Also, the course will examine cultural, religious, and domestic responses to warfare and peacemaking. Outline: A. French and Indian War - Treaty of Paris, 1763 B. Revolutionary War - Treaty of Paris, 1783 C. War of 1812 - Treaty of Ghent, 1814 D. Mexican War - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 1848 E. Civil War - Military Reconstruction Act, 1867 D. Spanish-American War - Treaty of Paris, 1898 Philippines E. First World War - Treaty of Versailles, 1919 Treaty of Trianon, 1920 F. Second World War European Theater - Paris Peace Treaties, 1947 Pacific Theater - Treaty of San Francisco, 1951
Atomic Era No war, no peace G. The Cold War No peace, no war H. Korean War - Armistice, 1953 I. Vietnam War - Paris Peace Accords, 1973 Nixon and Kissinger J. Desert Shield/Desert Storm Hussein and Iraq K. Afghanistan Taliban and militant Islam ISIS Course Requirements: Preparation/presentation of weekly briefing papers, and follow-up analyses of the foreign policy decisions of American presidents in response to the following question: Was the administration s foreign policy in war/peace-making in the realist or idealist tradition? Possible paradigms for analysis include attention to national interests, power politics, and ideology. Students will prepare and deliver a presentation which analyzes an American decisionmaker involved in war/peace issues. The requirements are to identify perceived national interest(s) with critique and the individual s ideology with critique. The scholarly paper will adhere to the standards of the Chicago Style Manual. There will be in-class coverage of standards and expectations. Late work will be penalized up to 20%. Students are responsible for their own work. Each and every instance of plagiarism will result in a zero score and may result, if the offense is egregious, in failure for the course. Tardiness, premature departure from class and unexcused absenteeism will result in penalty from 5-25% of final grade, depending upon severity of infraction.
Electronic devices must be used judiciously. Failure to comply will result in loss of privilege. Grading Scale: Participation/Discussion = 25%; Briefing papers = 25%; Presentation = 25%; Scholarly paper = 25% 91-100% = 5; 81-90% = 4; 71-80% = 3; 61-70 %= 2; <60% = Failure Reading List Week 1. Feb 22. Syllabus/Overview/Introduction Week 2. Mar 1. French and Indian War-American Revolution-War of 1812 Week 3. Mar 8. Mexican War-Civil War Week 4. Mar 15. Holiday Week 5. Mar 22. Spanish-American War Week 6. Mar 29. World War I Week 7. Apr 5. World War II Week 8. Consultation Week Week 9. Apr 19. The Cold War Week 10. Apr 26. Korean War Week 11. May 3. Vietnam War Week 12. May 10. Post-Vietnam Era Week 13. May 17. Scholarly Paper Due Week 14. May 24. Conclusions Selected Bibliography: American Civil-Military Relations: The Soldier and the State in a New Era. Suzanne C. Nielsen, ed. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009. American Military Tradition: From Colonial Times to the Present. John M. Carroll, ed. 2 nd ed. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
Anderson, Fred. Crucible of War: The Seven Years War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754-66. N.Y.: Vintage Books, 2001. Art of Command: Military Leadership from George Washington to Colin Powell. Harry S. Laver, ed. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2008. Axelrod, Alan. Political History of America s Wars. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2007. Bacevich, Andrew J. New American Militarism: How Americans are Seduced by War. N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 2005. Baker, Anni P. American Soldiers Overseas: The Global Military Presence. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2004.. Life in the U.S. Armed Forces: (Not) Just Another Job. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2008. Brewer, Susan A. Why America Fights: Patriotism and War Propaganda from the Philippines to Iraq. N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 2009. Fisher, Louis. Presidential War Power. 2 nd ed. Lawrence, KA: University Press of Kansas, 2004. Gelpi, Christopher, Peter D. Feaver, and Jason Reifler. Paying the Human Costs of War: American Public Opinion and Casualties in Military Conflicts. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009. Jones, Howard. Blue and Gray Diplomacy: A History of Union and Confederate Foreign Relations. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2010. Kagan, Frederick W. Finding the Target: The Transformation of American Military Policy. N.Y.: Encounter Books, 2006. Katz, Mark N. Leaving Without Losing: The War on Terror After Iraq and Afghanistan. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins, 2012. Mahnen, Thomas G. Technology and the American Way of War. N.Y.: Columbia University Press, 2008. Pelletiere, Stephen C. America s Oil Wars. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2004. Ricks, Thomas E. The Generals. American Military Command from World War II to Today. N.Y.: Penguin Books, 2012. Security v. Liberty: Conflicts Between Civil Liberties and National Security in
American History. Daniel Farber, ed. N.Y.: Russell Sage, 2008. Snow, Donald M. From Lexington to Baghdad and Beyond: War and Politics in the American Experience. 3 rd ed. Armonk: M.E. Sharpe, 2010. War Letters. Extraordinary Correspondence from American Wars. Andrew Carroll, ed. N.Y.: Washington Square Press/Simon & Schuster, 2001.