• “DEVELOPMENT OF THE U.S. & ITS PEOPLE”
  Section S (58454) Tue & Thu, 5:00-6:15PM
  Shepard Hall, Room S-204

CURRENT: WEEK 6 & 7
Classes on Tue 6, Thu 8 Oct, and Thu 15 Oct
Readings for Midterm (20 Oct):
– PRINT PACKAGE: “US Constitution – A Brief History for Students.” This is the most important reading to complete and understand in studying for the Midterm. Part 1 is online and so are Parts 2 and 3. The “Bonus Sections” at the end include common answers to old midterms and a sample test from 2021.
– FOR REFERENCE: One of the best sites for reading and understanding the Constitution is provided by Cornell Law School. Includes annotations for each section, and summaries of the jurisprudence (the history of constitutional court cases).
– TEXTBOOK: American Yawp, ch. 7, “A New Nation” & ch. 8, “The Early Republic” in full, including the primary sources.
– FILM: In class we watched 15 minutes of Plutocracy I (2015), on Shay’s rebellion of 1786, the framing of the Constitution in 1787, and the views of James Madison as expressed in the 1788 essay known as “Federalist No. 10.”
– NOTE: No class on Tue 13 Oct. CUNY is following a Monday schedule. However, this an excellent opportunity to spend 15-30 minutes in office hours (remote meetings) to talk about your group assignments and papers. Write to me by e-mail to make an appointment.
– Smart Option: If you have completed all of the above readings, it’s never a bad idea to get ahead of the course by continuing to American Yawp, ch. 9, “Getting Forward,” and ch. 10, “American Democracy.”

WEEK 8
Tue 20 Oct: MIDTERM
Thu 22 Oct: SECOND HALF BEGINS (Class 15 of 28)

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Past Weeks

AMERICA BEFORE COLUMBUS (National Geographic documentary)

UPDATES OF 3 SEPTEMBER

• For USSO 10100:
  Before the next class, Tue 8 Sept, read the two lectures by John Gillooly:
  1. Turtle Island (Americas before the Europeans)
  2. Colonists Arrive (mainly about the English & development of capitalism)
  Take notes & have several of your own points ready to discuss in class.

READING FOR 15 & 17 SEP:
Note: All American Yawp readings must include the primary sources section, as described in class. Contact me if you missed class on September 10th.
1 – American Yawp, Chapter 3 (“Colliding Cultures”) on the beginnings of the English colonies in North America and the clash with the indigenous peoples.
2 – American Yawp, Chapter 4 (“British North America”) on the evolution of the British colonies into the 1700s.
3 – Optional but for a different perspective:
Alan Taylor, Introduction to American Colonies (2001).

HOMEWORK FOR WEEK 4, DUE IN CLASS TUE 22 SEP:

• 1. Read American Yawp, Chapter 5 (“Colonial Society”) and Chapter 6 (“The American Revolution”).
• 2. Chapter 6 is required. Any quiz questions will be about events described and facts given in Chapter 6. But you really need to also first read Chapter 5 to understand what’s going on.
• 3. Complete the written exercises on the sheet handed out in class (relates to the Introduction of Alan Taylor, American Colonies).