American History, Memory, and Myth!

This course will explore themes that cut across US history and human experience. We will tease out the various strands of culture, class, geography, and identity that shape US history. Even more, we will analyze how writers—historians and otherwise—draw on the entangled past to make sense of the world. We will think about what happened in the past while exploring the many ways that we have of interpreting and depicting that past. By considering academic texts alongside novels and film, the class will gain an appreciation for diverse forms of historically-engaged narrative. Through readings, discussions, and papers, we will pay close attention to ways of crafting and analyzing stories that set historians apart from (or connect them to) other writers and thinkers.