Module Information
Module Identifier
HYM5520
Module Title
The American Public, Washington and the World
Academic Year
2017/2018
Co-ordinator
Semester
Semester 2
Other Staff
Course Delivery
| Delivery Type | Delivery length / details |
|---|---|
| Seminar | 10 x 2 Hour Seminars |
Assessment
| Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
|---|---|---|
| Semester Assessment | Essay 1 2,500/3,000 word essay | 50% |
| Semester Assessment | Essay 2 2,500/3,000 word essay | 50% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Essay 1 2,500/3,000 word essay | 50% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Essay 2 2,500/3,000 word essay | 50% |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
Demonstrate a critical understanding of relevant themes and approaches in the history and historiography of modern American international relations (broadly defined), in particular the relationship between public opinion, political participation and the policymaking process.
Marshal and understand the use of appropriate evidence in formulating historical arguments regarding modern American international relations.
Demonstrate through written work an ability to integrate methodological themes into their own research.
Brief description
Academic rationale of the proposal:
The module will address how the American public influenced the policymaking process at Washington regarding international affairs (broadly understood) between the 1930s and the 1990s. It will examine the successes and failures of American presidents, presidential candidates, members of Congress and foreign policy opinion leaders in responding to, and shaping, public opinion. Students will be encouraged to test common assumptions regarding the relationship between presidential leadership and public opinion, the role of the media, and the degree and nature of consensus between different branches of the American policymaking establishment. The module will introduce a range of primary and secondary sources suitable for advanced study in this field.
Brief Description:
This module explores the dynamic interaction between the American public and policymakers in Washington between the 1930s and the 1990s, a period in which Americans faced significant new international challenges as they grappled with their country'r new role as a global superpower. The module focuses not just upon headline conflicts (the Korean War, the Vietnam War), but also upon case studies such as America'r foreign relations in the 1930s, including the `Good Neighbor policy? towards Latin America, and the handling of successive European refugee crises from the 1930s to the 1950s.
Content (indicative):
1. Introduction: the public, political participation and the policymaking process
2. The 1930s: `Isolationism? and the Good Neighbor policy
3. Building support for the United Nations in war and peace
4. Responding to European refugee crises at mid-century
5. The Korean War and the challenge of the right
6. Civil rights and immigration
7. Vietnam and domestic dissent
8. Detente and its demise
9. Reagan and public opinion
10. Post-Cold War crises policymaking
The module will address how the American public influenced the policymaking process at Washington regarding international affairs (broadly understood) between the 1930s and the 1990s. It will examine the successes and failures of American presidents, presidential candidates, members of Congress and foreign policy opinion leaders in responding to, and shaping, public opinion. Students will be encouraged to test common assumptions regarding the relationship between presidential leadership and public opinion, the role of the media, and the degree and nature of consensus between different branches of the American policymaking establishment. The module will introduce a range of primary and secondary sources suitable for advanced study in this field.
Brief Description:
This module explores the dynamic interaction between the American public and policymakers in Washington between the 1930s and the 1990s, a period in which Americans faced significant new international challenges as they grappled with their country'r new role as a global superpower. The module focuses not just upon headline conflicts (the Korean War, the Vietnam War), but also upon case studies such as America'r foreign relations in the 1930s, including the `Good Neighbor policy? towards Latin America, and the handling of successive European refugee crises from the 1930s to the 1950s.
Content (indicative):
1. Introduction: the public, political participation and the policymaking process
2. The 1930s: `Isolationism? and the Good Neighbor policy
3. Building support for the United Nations in war and peace
4. Responding to European refugee crises at mid-century
5. The Korean War and the challenge of the right
6. Civil rights and immigration
7. Vietnam and domestic dissent
8. Detente and its demise
9. Reagan and public opinion
10. Post-Cold War crises policymaking
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 7