FRS 001U - Sec. 001 - (1 unit) - CRN 93087 - W 4:10 – 5:00 pm - 5 Wellman

Approaches to American History: The Historian’s Craft

Instructor: David Hendricks, Department of History, College of Letters and Science

Description: The common view of the historical profession is that it involves only the uncovering and retelling of "facts." But history is much more than just "what happened." The historian must combine detective work and storytelling, finding ways to "read" and interpret evidence from the past, and make it accessible to the modern reader. This course will focus on how historians write history by using evidence to construct a narrative. It will also explore some of the major approaches to history, including biography, social and cultural history, environmental history, community history, and oral history. This course will focus on American history from the colonial period through Reconstruction. The goal of the seminar is to introduce students to the ways in which history is "produced."

Format: Students will be required to read James Davidson and Mark Lytle, Eds. After The Fact: The Art of Historical Detection, Vol. 1. Each course meeting will focus on one chapter of this book, which gives examples of different approaches to American history. Students will also read one other book of their choosing, a historical monograph, from a list provided by the instructor. Students will write a 4-5 page paper discussing the historical approach used in the book they choose. Grading: Participation and presentations during weekly discussions (50%), and the final paper assignment (50%).

About the Instructor: David Hendricks is a Lecturer in the Department of History. His research interests include the history of the American Environmental Movement and Public History. His teaching interests include colonial and nineteenth-century American political, social, and cultural history, historiography and public history, and twentieth century American cultural and environmental history.