Students

MHIS372 – America's Wars/America's Empire

2018 – S2 External

General Information

Download as PDF
Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Chris Dixon
Daniel Fleming
Credit points Credit points
3
Prerequisites Prerequisites
39cp at 100 level or above or (6cp in HIST or MHIS or POL units at 200 level including 3cp in HIST or MHIS units)
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
The United States is reportedly a nation in decline, as it confronts a multiplicity of global military and economic challenges. By examining the global ascent of the United States, and the enduring tension between isolationism and internationalism, this unit provides historical context for understanding the current crises facing the United States. As well as paying specific attention to the role of military power in driving US foreign policy, this unit considers the ideological, political, and cultural imperatives that have underpinned the American Empire. Specific topics include American exceptionalism and Manifest Destiny, the Indian Wars, the Spanish-American War and America's acquisition of empire, the United States and the two World Wars, the Cold War, the post-Cold War world, and 9/11 and the War on Terror.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

General Assessment Information

Penalties for late submission of work.

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted more than seven (7) days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments – e.g. quizzes, online tests.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Tutorial Participation 10% No Various
Essay Proposal & Bibliography 15% No Week 4
Research Essay 35% No Week 10
Annotated Bibliography 10% No Week 10
Take Home Exam 30% No Week 13

Tutorial Participation

Due: Various
Weighting: 10%

Students will be assessed on their class contribution. They will be marked on the basis of their contribution to discussion, their engagement with others, as well as their level of class preparation.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Essay Proposal & Bibliography

Due: Week 4
Weighting: 15%

 

This task will assess your ability to develop a research question and approach, as well as your ability to locate and analyse primary and secondary sources. It is the first step towards developing your research essay.

You should proceed as follows:

Thinking about a topic: It is best to start this process as early as possible. Look at the weekly lecture and tutorial schedule. What themes in this course do you find most interesting? What questions are you interested in exploring?  A time period?

Developing a question: Your question needs to be direct and focused, because you will be assessed on how you answer it.

Submitting your proposal:  The proposal is due WEEK 4 via turnitin on iLearn. 

Your proposal should be 500 words and must include the following:

  1. Your research question, clearly framed as an essay question, rather than simply as an idea.
  2. Your approach to the question. In outlining your approach, consider the following questions:
    • What is your topic about? What are the key issues and themes? Why are they important?
    • What might your main primary and secondary sources be? Are they accessible? Why are they important?
    • Are there questions about evidence or methodology you need to consider?
  3. A list of sources. 
  4. The proposal enables you to start thinking about your research essay at an early stage and understand where your work will fit within the relevant field of study. If you are unsure what an annotated bibliography looks like, see the following websites: 

On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Research Essay

Due: Week 10
Weighting: 35%

This assessment task evaluates your ability to construct an argument in response to your own self-devised research question, based on primary and secondary sources. You need to observe the conventions of writing and referencing as outlined in “Writing Essays in History" 

Your final essay should be 2,500 words, not including referencing. 

This assessment is to submitted via turnitin on iLearn. Remember to submit the essay self-assessment (available on iLearn) sheet with your essay. You must also append a short statement, about one paragraph, on how you have utilised the feedback you have received for your essay proposal in completing your final research project. 

There is a rubric for this assessment task included as a PDF download in the "Assessments" section on iLearn. 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Annotated Bibliography

Due: Week 10
Weighting: 10%

This exercise consists of a brief (two or three sentences will be sufficient in most cases) discussion of the value – or otherwise – of each of the sources you have consulted. 

The purpose of this exercise is to encourage you to think critically about the books and articles you use.  The Annotated Bibliography must be submitted at the same time as your essay.    

I appreciate that many of you will not have written an Annotated Bibliography before, so I’ll discuss the exercise in more detail in lecture and tutorials.  In other words, don’t be intimidated.

 Please note: you are also required to include a “normal” Bibliography, appended to the end of your essay.

If you are unsure what an annotated bibliography looks like, see the following websites: 

https://student.unsw.edu.au/annotated-bibliography 

http://guides.library.cornell.edu/annotatedbibliography

http://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/write/annotatedbibliography.jsp

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.

Take Home Exam

Due: Week 13
Weighting: 30%

An end-of-semester take home exam will cover content drawn from the entire unit. The exam will consist of 2 questions and the maximum word length will be 1,500 words. Late submission of the exam will not be accepted.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Delivery and Resources

The textbook for this unit is: Dennis Merrill and Thomas G. Paterson, eds., Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II: Since 1914: Documents and Essays, 7th edition (Belmont, Ca.: Wadsworth, 20-10) 

Unit Schedule

 

Week

Lecture

Tutorial

Assignments

1

“An Exceptional Nation”?: The United States and the World, 1776-1898 (CD)

No Tutorial

 

2

Onto The World Stage: US Foreign Relations 1898-1914 (DF)

Themes and Issues in US Foreign Relations

 

3

Isolationism Challenged: The US, World War I, and the League of Nations (DF)

The Spanish-American War & the beginning of American Empire

 

4

US Foreign Policy during the Interwar Period  (DF)

Woodrow Wilson and US Entry into World War One

Essay Proposal

24 Aug

5

The End of Isolationism?: The United States and World War II (DF)

Franklin D. Roosevelt, Pearl Harbor, and US Entry into World War II

 

6

The Cold War I (CD)

The United States and the Origins of the Cold War

 

7

The Cold War II (DF)

The United States and the Korean War

 

Mid-semester Break

8

The US, the Third World, and the Middle East (DF)

On the Brink: The Cuban Missile Crisis

 

9

The Making of a Quagmire: The US & Vietnam (CD)

The Vietnam War

 

10

Guest: Donald Maynard (US Consulate, Sydney)

No Tutorial

Essay Due

19 Oct

11

“Tear Down the Wall, Mr Gorbachev”! Détente to The End of the Cold War(1970s & 1980s)  (DF)

The End of the Cold War

 

12

To 9/11 and Beyond: The US and the World Since the End of the Cold War (DF)

9/11 and the War on Terror

 

13

Summing Up (CD & DF)

No Tutorial

Take-home test

 

Week 1

Lecture:

“An Exceptional Nation”?: The United States and the World, 1776-1898

No Tutorial

 

Week 2

Lecture:

Onto The World Stage: US Foreign Relations 1898-1914

Tutorial:

Themes and Issues in US Foreign Relations

Readings:

  • Dennis Merrill and Thomas G. Paterson, eds., Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II: Since 1914: Documents and Essays, 7th edition (Belmont, Ca.: Wadsworth, 20-10) pp.10-20 (essays by Walter L. Hixson, Laura McEnany, and Michael L. Krenn)
  • “Governor John Winthrop Envisions a City Upon a Hill” (available via iLearn)
  • “The Monroe Doctrine Declares the Western Hemisphere Closed to European Intervention, 1823” (available via iLearn)
  • “The Cherokee Nation Protests the Removal Policy, 1830” (available via iLearn)
  • “President Jackson Defends Removal, 1830” (available via iLearn)

 

 

Week 3

Lecture:

Isolationism Challenged: The US, World War I, and the League of Nation

Tutorial:

The Spanish-American War & the beginning of American Empire

Readings:

  • Dennis Merrill and Thomas G. Paterson, eds., Major Problems in American Foreign Relations, Volume 1: to 1920: Documents and Essays, 6th edition (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2005), Chapter 12 (available via iLearn)

 

Week 4

Lecture:

US Foreign Policy during the Interwar Period 

Tutorial:

Woodrow Wilson and US Entry into World War One

Readings:

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 2.

 

Week 5

Lecture:

The End of Isolationism?: The United States and World War II

Tutorial:

Franklin D. Roosevelt, Pearl Harbor, and US Entry into World War II

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 4.

 

Week 6

Lecture:

The Cold War I

Tutorial:

The United States and the Origins of the Cold War

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 6.

 

Week 7

Lecture:

The Cold War II

Tutorial:

The Korean War

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 7.

 

Week 8

Lecture:

The US, the Third World, and the Middle East

Tutorial:

On the Brink: The Cuban Missile Crisis

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 10.

 

Week 9

Lecture:

The Making of a Quagmire: The US and Vietnam

Tutorial:

The Vietnam War

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 11.

 

Week 10

Lecture: Visit from Donald Maynard, US Consulate, Sydney

          

No Tutorial

 

Week 11

Lecture:

  “Tear Down the Wall, Mr Gorbachev”! Détente to The End of the Cold War (1970s & 1980s) 

Tutorial:

End of the Cold War

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 13.

 

Week 12

Lecture:

To 9/11 and Beyond: The US and the World since the end of the Cold War

Tutorial:

9/11 and the War on Terror

Readings

  • Merrill and Paterson, Major Problems in American Foreign Relations Vol II, 7th ed. Chapter 14.

 

Week 13

Lecture: Summing Up

No Tutorial

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Undergraduate students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Graduate Capabilities

Creative and Innovative

Our graduates will also be capable of creative thinking and of creating knowledge. They will be imaginative and open to experience and capable of innovation at work and in the community. We want them to be engaged in applying their critical, creative thinking.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Capable of Professional and Personal Judgement and Initiative

We want our graduates to have emotional intelligence and sound interpersonal skills and to demonstrate discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgement. They will exercise initiative as needed. They will be capable of risk assessment, and be able to handle ambiguity and complexity, enabling them to be adaptable in diverse and changing environments.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Commitment to Continuous Learning

Our graduates will have enquiring minds and a literate curiosity which will lead them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. They will continue to pursue learning in their careers and as they participate in the world. They will be capable of reflecting on their experiences and relationships with others and the environment, learning from them, and growing - personally, professionally and socially.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Research Essay
  • Take Home Exam

Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills

Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Problem Solving and Research Capability

Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Effective Communication

We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Engaged and Ethical Local and Global citizens

As local citizens our graduates will be aware of indigenous perspectives and of the nation's historical context. They will be engaged with the challenges of contemporary society and with knowledge and ideas. We want our graduates to have respect for diversity, to be open-minded, sensitive to others and inclusive, and to be open to other cultures and perspectives: they should have a level of cultural literacy. Our graduates should be aware of disadvantage and social justice, and be willing to participate to help create a wiser and better society.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Socially and Environmentally Active and Responsible

We want our graduates to be aware of and have respect for self and others; to be able to work with others as a leader and a team player; to have a sense of connectedness with others and country; and to have a sense of mutual obligation. Our graduates should be informed and active participants in moving society towards sustainability.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the history of US foreign relations and the role of the military in the projection of American power.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about US foreign policy and military power with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Examine historical issues by undertaking research according to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Construct complex historical arguments, and defend and modify them rigorously and persuasively, both in class and in written form.

Assessment tasks

  • Tutorial Participation
  • Essay Proposal & Bibliography
  • Research Essay
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Take Home Exam

Changes from Previous Offering

This is a new unit.

Changes since First Published

Date Description
22/07/2018 Date altered for guest lecture.
07/07/2018 Assessment modified.