History 296.004: The United States and Vietnam
Spring, 2000

THE  SYLLABUS

Lecture: Discussion: Monday-Thursday, 11:20 a.m. - 12:35 p.m.
Place: Ward Circle Building, Room 103
 
Instructor:  Robert Griffith        Office: 209 McCabe
Office Hours: Monday, 4:00 - 5:00 p.m.; Thursday, 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.; 
and by appointment.
Tel: 202-885-2419   e-mail: bgriff@american.edu

Click on these to navigate the web site for History 296:
About the Course The Schedule Readings The Assignments
The Team  Projects The Teams Assessment  Guide to Web Resources
HELP Using Lotus Databases Go to Lotus Databases Griffith's Home Page


About the Course:  The goal of this course is to  provide students with a basic understanding of the intertwined histories of Vietnam and the United States, including: the rise of Vietnamese nationalism and communism;  the international and domestic politics of the Cold War; the war in Vietnam, including its military and political aspects, as well as its impact on Vietnamese and American society.   The course is based on extensive readings, on lectures and discussions, as well as on the use of the AU Library, museums and the world wide web. You will be expected: Top of syllabus

Required Readings: Other Important Resources: Top of syllabus

SCHEDULE:

Click here to navigate the Schedule for week beginning:
January 20 January 24 January 31 February 7 February 14
February 21 February 28 March 6 March 20 March 27
April 3 April 10 April 17 April 24 Final Examination

Thursday, January 20:  Introduction to the Course
Monday, January 24:  Lecture: United States, the U.S.S.R. and the Origins of the Cold War
For an outline of the lecture, click on Cold War Outline.
Thursday, January 27:  Lecture: The Origins of the Cold War in Asia

Monday, January 31: Vietnam: Early History, Colonialism, Nationalism and Communism

Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 2
Timeline: timeline for Vietnamese History to 1900.
Assignment One: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, January 30
Thursday, February 3: The Origins of U.S. Intervention in Vietnam
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 3; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 1.
Assignment Two: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 2
Monday,  February 7:  Dienbienphu, Geneva and and the Deepening U.S. Commitment
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 4; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 2.
Assignment Three: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 6

Exercise: Geneva, 1954

Thursday,  February 10:  New Frontiers on the Mekong: John F. Kennedy and Vietnam
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 5; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 3.
Assignment Four: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 9
Monday,  February 14: Lyndon Johnson and the Expansion of the War
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 6; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 4.
Assignment Five: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 13
 

H-DIPLO ROUNDTABLE REVIEW

On February 1, a group of U.S. diplomatic historians began a roundtable discussion of a recently published book on Lyndon Johnson's decision to escalate the Vietnam War:

If you would like to follow this debate, in which historians argue the strengths and weaknesses of this important new book,  click on HDiplo Roundtable on Logevall,    Scroll down the page and click on the introduction to the debate, by Rutgers historian Lloyd Gardner, who has himself written a book on Johnson's decision, entitled Pay Any Price.  Subsequent messages are posted by historians Jervis, Kimball and Young, by Logevall himself, and by a variety of others.  Not only is this a good way to better familiarize yourself with the issues raised in McMahon, Chapter 6, but it is a good chance to follow a vigorous historical debate.  I will assign double credit for any one who uses this resource to comment on Monday's assignment.

Fredrik Logevall, Choosing War: The Lost Chance for Peace and the
Escalation of War in Vietnam (University of California Press, 1999).
Roundtable Editor: Lloyd C. Gardner
Reviewers: Robert Jervis, Jeffrey Kimball, and Marilyn B. Young
Thursday, February 17: The Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 8
Assignment Six: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on on Wednesday, February 16
Monday, February 21:  The Republic of Vietnam
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 10
Assignment Seven: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 20
Thursday, February 24:  U.S. Military Strategy in Vietnam
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 7; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 5.
Assignment Eight: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 23.
Top of  Schedule

Team Projects (I) The week of February 28 - March 2 will be devoted to work on your team projects.  In addition, I have scheduled two "laboratories."  One will provide you with an advanced orientation to the Library, with a special emphasis on how to find materials related to your projects.  TThe other, to be held at the New Media Center, is designed to help you learn some of the skills necessary to produce your team project in the form of a web site.  For more details on this assignment, click on Team Projects.

Monday, February 28:  New Media Center Orientation
On Monday, February 28, the class will meet in the New Media Center in Room 231 Mary Graydon Center for an introduction to the Center's resources and how to use them.  (For a preview, click on New Media Center.)
Thursday, March 2:  Library Orientation
On Thursday, March 2 the class will meet in the Library's Electronic Classroom in the basement of Bender Library to learn more about the library's collections and how to use them.  (For a preview, click on AU Library Virtual Tour.)
Presentation of Team Projects (I)
Monday, March 6:  Presentation of Team projects
Thursday, March 9:  Presentation of Team projects
The first set of team projects are due on March 6 and March 9, respectively.  By this time, your project should be posted to your Team Web site.  You should also bring a disk version to class as a backup.  Your team must be prepared to present a brief 10-15 minute overview and respond to questions from the class.  All members of the class will be responsible for subsequently studying the projects and posting meaningful comments on them.  For more details on how this will work, click on Team Projects.
Top of  Schedule
 

SPRING BREAK:  MARCH 13 - 17
 

Monday, March 20:  Discussion of Web Sites (Continued).
 

Thursday, March 23: The Tet Offensive

Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 9; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 6.
Also see Timeline:1968, part of a Brown University/South Kingston High School project entitled The Whole World Was Watching.
Assignment Nine: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 22
Monday, March 27: My Lai
Required Reading: Olson and Roberts (eds.) My Lai: A Brief History with Documents
Also see the BBC's My Lai Web Site, which accompanied a BBC documentary.
Assignment Ten: Due no later than 5:00 p.m.on  Sunday, March 26
Thursday, March 30:  Give Peace a Chance: The Anti-War Movement
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 12
Assignment Eleven: (OPTIONAL)
Monday, April 3: Nixon and Vietnam: Lecture
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 11; Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 7.
Assignment Twelve: (OPTIONAL)
Thursday, April 6: The Living Room War: The Role of the Media in Vietnam
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 13
Assignment Thirteen: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5
Monday, April 10:  The Paris Peace Accords and the Four Critical Turning Points
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapter 14
Assignment Fourteen: (OPTIONAL)

Class time will be devoted to work on the Final Examination and on planning for your second web project.  Attendance is mandatory.
 

Thursday, April 13:  Vietnam: Meanings and Memories
The Vietnam War on Film -- an exhaustive list of films on the war, together with a collection of useful links.

Assignment Fifteen:  Due no later than 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 12

Monday, April 17: Vietnam: Meanings and Memories (cont.)
Class time will be devoted to work on the Final Examination and on planning for your second web project.  Attendance is mandatory.
Thursday, April 20: Vietnam: Meanings and Memories (Cont.)
Required Reading: McMahon, Major Problems, chapters 1, 15; and
                               Herring, America's Longest War, chapter 8.
                               See also, The Virtual Wall
Assignment Sixteen: Due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 19.
Top of  Schedule

Preparation and Presentation of Team Projects II

Monday, April 24: WORKSHOPS ON TEAM PROJECT II. Meet at New Media Center.
Thursday, April 27:  Presentation of  Team Projects
Monday, May 1:  Presentation of  Team Projects
The second set of team projects are due on April 27 and May 1, respectively. By this time, your project should be posted to your Team Web site.  You should also bring a disk version to class as a backup.  Your team must be prepared to present a brief five minute overview and respond to questions from the class.  All members of the class will be responsible for subsequently studying the projects and posting meaningful comments on them.  For more details on how this will work, click on Team Projects.
Top of  Schedule
 

FINAL EXAMINATION:   Monday, May 8, 2000.  11:20 a.m. - 1:50 p.m.  Ward 103.

The final examination will be in two parts:   The first part will feature identification and short answers drawn from the lectures, discussions, textbooks and team projects.  There will also be an essay section designed to test  your ability to integrate and communicate what you have learned during the semester.   For additional information, click on Assessment.
Return to Top of  Syllabus
 
 

 Web site created by Robert Griffith
Last Updated: April 4,  2000
For comments, e-mail bgriff@american.edu