A full-year (1 unit) MA Field of Study

Course Teacher: Dr Adam Smith

This course explores the relationship between the writing of American history and the idea of America. It will also serve as an introduction to some of the main issues in American historiography. We will examine the theoretical and methodological approaches of successive generations of historians; we will assess the impact on American historical writing of the professionalisation and institutional development of the discipline and the impact of concepts and methodologies from other disciplines; we will explore the relationship between academic history and a broader popular historical consciousness; and we will address the issue of the relationship between historiographical developments and the political contexts in which scholars were working. The organising theme will be the way in which American historians have sought – sometimes from very different perspectives – not only to find new ways of approaching the study of the past but at the same time to explain and define America. American identity is, after all, grounded in narratives – of the pilgrim fathers, of the frontier, of the “progress of freedom” – and US historians have often self-consciously played a role in the construction of the American present even while pursuing a better understanding of its past. The reading ranges from George Bancroft’s nineteenth-century romantic nationalism to the present-day debates over “transnational” approaches to writing United States history.

The course would ideally suit students who have taken or are taking other courses in United States history and especially those interested in pursuing doctoral research in this field.

Teaching
The course will be taught in a weekly seminar beginning at 4pm on Tuesdays. Students will take it in turns to lead the seminar.

Assessment
The course will be assessed by two essays totalling about 8000 words.
Your first essay should be selected from the list below. The second can either be from this list or it can be an independent piece of writing based on, and related to, the themes of this course. If you chose the latter option, you are strongly advised to discuss your idea with me before you undertake any serious work.

Essay Questions
1. “Even the best American historians usually have at least one eye on the present.” Discuss
2. Why have American historians found it so hard to break away from a “Whiggish” narrative?
3. Examine the evolution of the idea of American exceptionalism in American historiography.
4. (Why) has class been subordinate to race in nearly all accounts of the American past?
5. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the “republican synthesis” for our understanding of American history?
6. How, why, and with what consquences has the relationship between professional historians and the public changed over the last two centuries?
7. Should historians always search for synthesis and a “master narrative”?
8. Is it possible to place American history in an international context without undermining the foundations on which both radical and conservative versions of the American past have been based?

Two copies of each essay must be handed in to the History Department reception, with a completed 3-part coversheet, which will be date stamped. The pink copy of the cover sheet will be returned to you as a receipt/proof of submission. Please keep this in case of any query. Essays that are not stamped will receive a mark of 0.

Deadlines
For Full time and second year Part-time Students
Your essays should handed in by the following deadlines:
First essay: Monday 8th December, 2008
Second essay: Friday, 27th March, 2009
These are unofficial deadlines which I have set to help you to space out your essay writing assignments. You will not be penalised if you fail to meet these deadlines. However, I may not be able to provide one-to-one tutorial feedback for essays that are submitted after these deadlines. The official deadline for your essays is 5 pm on Monday 27th April. You will be penalized if you fail to meet this deadline, unless you have been granted an extension by the Chair of the Board of Examiners.

For First Year Part time Students: Your essays should handed in by the following deadlines:
First essay: Monday 8th December, 2008
Second essay: Friday, 27th March, 2009
These are unofficial deadlines which I have set to help you to space out your essay writing assignments. You will not be penalised if you fail to meet these deadlines. However, I may not be able to provide one-to-one tutorial feedback for essays that are submitted after these deadlines. The official deadline for your essays is 5 pm on Monday 18th May. You will be penalized if you fail to meet this deadline, unless you have been granted an extension by the Chair of the Board of Examiners.

If my unofficial deadlines clash with other unofficial deadlines set by your other teachers, please bring this to my attention and we will try to negotiate different dates.

You should aim to get your essays in well before the deadlines, not least because of delays caused by faults with computers, printers, photocopiers etc. Do not expect everything to work smoothly. You are expected to plan accordingly. If printing at home, make sure you have a spare toner cartridge for your printer. Computer problems are not accepted as grounds for an extension.

Penalties
Any essay submitted after these dates will be penalised by 10 MARKS PER WEEK (OR PART THEREOF) LATE, up to a maximum of FOUR weeks, after which it will receive a mark of 0. This will be included in the calculation of the overall mark.

Extensions to these deadlines can only be granted by the Chair of the Board of Examiners on the recommendation of your Course Tutor. He is only likely to do so in cases of serious illness, which must be evidenced by a doctor's certificate, or bereavement. In particular, it is normal to expect up to two weeks’ illness in the course of the two teaching semesters and applications for extensions on medical grounds received in the last two weeks of the second term, where the illness was clearly of less than two weeks’ duration, will not be granted. Students wishing to apply for an extension should complete a form (available from the Departmental reception) and make an appointment to see their Course Tutor. Please note that applications for extensions will not be accepted on the deadline day itself, or subsequently, except in cases of severe illness or bereavement.

Legibility
All essays must be well presented and clear. Please leave wide margins and use double-spacing to allow teachers to write comments. Proof-read word-processed work carefully, and do not rely entirely on spell-checkers - they can introduce mistakes, particularly with proper names.

Plagiarism
Essays, while based upon what you have read, heard and discussed, must be entirely your own work. It is very important that you avoid plagiarism, that is the presentation of another person’s thoughts or words as though they were your own. Plagiarism is a form of cheating, and is regarded by the College as a serious offence, which can lead to a student failing a course or courses, or even deregistration. Please see the departmental graduate handbook for further guidance on avoiding plagiarism. (Students not registered in the History Department should ask at the Departmental Office for a copy of the Department’s guidelines or download a copy of the departmental graduate handbook from the ‘current students’ section of the history website www.ucl.ac.uk/history).
Any quotation from the published or unpublished works of other persons must be clearly identified as such by being placed inside quotation marks and students should identify their sources as accurately and fully as possible in footnotes.
Recourse to the services of “ghost-writing” agencies (for example in the preparation of essays or reports) or of outside word-processing agencies which offer correction/improvement of English is strictly forbidden and students who make use of the services of such agencies render themselves liable for an academic penalty.

You should note that UCL has now signed up to use a sophisticated detection system (Turn-It-In) to scan work for evidence of plagiarism, and the Department intends to use this for assessed coursework. This system gives access to billions of sources worldwide, including websites and journals, as well as work previously submitted to the Department, UCL and other universities.