European History
Instructor: Steven Harris
Department: History
Course Number: HIST 201
CRN: 11980
Course Overview: Beginning with the era of silent films and D.W. Griffith’s epic Birth of A Nation and right up to the release of Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center two weeks ago, Hollywood filmmakers have turned frequently to history for their subjects. This seminar will focus on the history associated with selected films of one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed directors, John Ford.
The son of Irish immigrants, Ford followed his brother Francis to Hollywood in the mid 1910s and became quickly a prominent director during the silent film era. With the coming of “talkies” in the late 20s and early 1930s, Ford began a new career that took him to heights of acclaim that put him at the top of his profession. He won four Oscars for directing feature films and two more for World War II documentaries. He reintroduced the Western as a first-rank genre with the release of Stagecoach in 1939, and continued to direct important films well into the 1960s. He became, in the last years of his life, the first recipient of the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award. Once, in the 1950s, when asked who were the great film directors, Orson Wells, himself one of the greats, said “John Ford, John Ford, John Ford.” Therefore, we will be taking a special look at the career of a director recognized around the world for his craftsmanship behind the camera.
John Ford directed many films that were either based specifically on an historical event or the life of a prominent individual or were designed to reflect the social, political, cultural issues of a particular period. This course, with its narrow focus, will explore how Ford, through the scripts from which he worked and the films he made, commented on the social, political and cultural concerns of his and other eras and help shape the historical understanding and myths of both American and European history.
Course Requirements: A student’s final grade will be a composite of six factors. First, and of primary importance, each student will receive a grade for classroom participation that will be worth 30 % of their final average. Since the course is a seminar with virtually no lectures, participation is very important and each student must take part continuously and on a daily basis in the discussions.
Second, each participant will make two formal classroom presentations, worth 10% each. Both talks will be on films that have as their subjects an historical event, period, or individual. One of the films has to be chosen from those discussed in the Carnes text but not, obviously, any of the five Ford films that Carnes includes. The second film you present to the class can be a John Ford picture that we do not see and discuss in class, but most likely your choice will be another historical film that you have seen or heard of. I will have to approve the films you choose, though I will only be insuring that your choices are appropriate. One further point about the presentations: we cannot have two presentations on the same film. Therefore, it will be first-come, first-served. If you come to me for approval of your two topics and someone has already gotten approval for one or more of your choices, you will have to pick one or more different films.
Two of the other three factors contributing to the final grade will be writing assignments. You will have to write a two-page research paper proposal (worth 5%) on an historical film and then write an eight-page research paper. The topic of the paper can be the same as the topic of one of your oral presentations, but, again, you choose and I approve. The paper proposal will be due at the beginning of class Friday, September 29, 2006. The research paper itself (worth 20%) will be due at the beginning of class on Wednesday, December 6, 2006, the last day of class. Your papers will be graded on style as well as content. If a paper is late, its grade will be reduced ten points for each twenty-four hour period, or portion thereof. In writing them, following the instructions on the writing handouts I will provide on Blackboard or on the History Department’s website and use the format in Turabian (more about this in class).
The final grade you will receive will be for a final exam that will be given from 8:30 to 11:00 a.m. on Friday, December 15, 2006, the last day of exams. It will be worth 25% of your final grade.
The course will have the following ten point grading scale: 93 – 100 = A, 91 – 92 = A-, 88 – 90 = B+, 83 – 87 = B, 81 – 82 = B-, 78 – 80 = C+, 73 – 77 = C, 71 – 72 = C-, 68 – 70 = D+, 61 – 67 = D, 60 and below = F. Class attendance is not only expected but is required, due to the importance of class participation. Finally, do not come to class late. If you arrive late and the door to the classroom is closed, do not come in because you will interrupt the flow of the session and you will be asked to leave.
One final note: The University has designated the Office of Disability Services as the primary office to guide, counsel, and assist students with disabilities. If you receive services through that office and require accommodations for this class, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible to discuss your approved accommodation needs. Bring your accommodation letter with you to theappointment. I will hold any information you share with me in the strictest confidence unless you give me permission to do otherwise. If you believe you need accommodations, (note taking assistance, extended time for tests, etc.) and have not visited the office, I would be happy to refer you. Theywill require appropriate documentation of a disability. Their phone number is540-654-1266.
Grades:
Your final grade in this course will be a composite of the following assignment values:
- Class participation –– 30%
- Oral Presentations –– 20% (10% each)
- Research Paper Proposal –– 5%
- Research Paper –– 20%
- Final Examination –– 25%