Instructor:                              Dr. G. Jason Bell

Contact Information:              gregory.bell@fpf.slu.cz

Office Hours:                          Wednesdays, 13:30 – 14:30, by appointment


Course:                       American History 2: Since 1877

Course Code:              UCJAJNP039

Dates:                          21/02/2024 – 21/05/2024

Day:                            Wednesdays, 14:45-16:20


General Description:

Using history as a foundation, we will explore the politics, religion, economics, law, ideologies,
attitudes, cultures, traditions, and “constructs” in the United States since 1877 in an attempt to
identify and understand key American characteristics.


General Topics:

The West

The Gilded Age and the Progressive Era

The Roaring ’20s and the Great Depression

World War II and the Start of the Cold War

The Lives of the Baby Boomers

America Polarized

The Obama and Trump Presidencies


Required Readings:

1.  Documents posted on IS.

2. Read The Jungle by Upton Sinclair.

3. Watch Meet Me in St. Louis (1944).


Optional Readings:


It would benefit you greatly to read a general American history textbook, such as Alan Brinkley’s
The Unfinished Nation.


Grading:

Mid-term exam: 25%

Final exam: 50%

Class Participation: 25%


Cheating:

The use of a cheat sheet (tahák) or electronic device during an exam will earn you an automatic F
on that exam.