American material culture from 1650 to 1950. Explores manmade
objects and their relationship to United States history. Topics
include architecture, gardens, decorative arts, textiles,
metalwork, cemeteries, jewelry, painting, sculpture,
photographs, and prints.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students: Graduate students will be expected to attend all undergraduate
class sessions, pursue further in-depth readings and research
appropriate to the graduate curriculum, and meet regularly with
the instructor to discuss their research. In addition to
preparing a more extensive research paper than the
undergraduates, graduate students will draft weekly critical
assessments of the readings. Graduate students will also be
expected to lead discussions and to formally present their
research to the class.
Athena Title
Amer Materia Culture 1650-1950
Prerequisite
Any HIST course or ENGL 1101 or ENGL 1101E or ENGL 1101S or ENGL 1102 or ENGL 1102E or ENGL 1102S or POLS 1101 or POLS 1101E or POLS 1101H or POLS 1101S
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to arrive at conclusions about American material culture by gathering and weighing evidence, logical argument, and listening to counter argument.
By the end of this course, students will be able to write stylistically appropriate papers and essays. Students will be able to analyze ideas and evidence, organize their thoughts, and revise and edit their finished essays.
By the end of this course, students will be able to identify how the history of material culture in America shaped diverse social and cultural attitudes toward race, gender, labor, immigration, environment, and values, encouraging them to understand diverse worldviews and experiences.
By the end of this course, students will be able to apply appropriate methodological approaches to their analysis of objects of material culture (including architecture, cemeteries, parks, gardens, clothing, fine art, furniture, coins, metalwork, jewelry, glass, photographs, public monuments, broadsides, trade cards, sheet music, and panoramas), using such sources to support their own original analysis of selected historical topics and organizing their evidence to show historical continuities and discontinuities.
By the end of this course, students will be able to generate their own research question or topic, locate suitable primary and secondary sources, and synthesize their ideas in novel ways.
By the end of this course, students will be able to initiate, manage, complete, and evaluate their independent research projects in stages and to give and receive constructive feedback through the peer review process.
Topical Outline
Introduction to material culture
Material culture of colonial America
Decorative arts in the 17th and 18th centuries
Vessels and buildings in the 17th and 18th centuries
18th-century portraiture and African American material culture
Material culture in the early republic
Cemeteries and public parks in the 19th century
Material culture of the 19th century
Women as consumers in the 19th century
Prints and ephemera in the 19th century
Photographs and quilts
Decorative arts and painting in the gilded age
Household technology in the 20th century
20th-century material culture and the great depression
Post-war material culture
Institutional Competencies Learning Outcomes
Analytical Thinking
The ability to reason, interpret, analyze, and solve problems from a wide array of authentic contexts.
Communication
The ability to effectively develop, express, and exchange ideas in written, oral, interpersonal, or visual form.
Critical Thinking
The ability to pursue and comprehensively evaluate information before accepting or establishing a conclusion, decision, or action.
