Checking date: 28/04/2023


Course: 2023/2024

History and politics of the United States
(17724)
Bachelor in History and Politics (Plan: 394 - Estudio: 352)


Coordinating teacher: HUGUET SANTOS, MONTSERRAT

Department assigned to the subject: Humanities: History, Geography and Art Department, Social Sciences Department

Type: Electives
ECTS Credits: 6.0 ECTS

Course:
Semester:




Requirements (Subjects that are assumed to be known)
None
Objectives
The aim of this class is students to acquire knowledge and skills that enable them to critically understand the past and present of the United States. Regarding the specific objetives, the student, after taking this subjet: 1. Will know the historical context of the country from the politica, economic, social and cultural point of view. 2. It must be acquired a deep and complex vision of the current questions and of those that might be appear in a near future. 3. The course will provide a transdisciplinary vision of the History and Politics of the United States.
Skills and learning outcomes
Description of contents: programme
PART 1: HISTORY 1. The creation of the United States. Revolution and independence of the Thirteen Colonies (1773-1815). 2. Border, migrations and reorganization of the system in the first half of the nineteenth century. 3. Secession and civil war (1861-1965). The end of slavery and the consolidation of contemporary American society. 4. Reconstruction and growth (1865-1914). International politics and birth of the American Empire. 5. United States and world wars in the twentieth century (1914-1945). Technological take-off and the welfare society (1945-1975). 6. Civil rights and social changes. The crisis of the American Empire in the last quarter of the 20th century (1975-1991). 7. The United States in the post-Cold War period. The reorientation of American hegemony in the face of the challenges of the new century (1991-2001). PART 2: POLITICS 8. Electoral behaviour and party politics in the USA. Internal debates and conflicts in the Democratic and Republican parties. The growing level of politi- cal polarization in the USA. 9. US foreign policy since the Cold War. The political, economic and military power of the USA in global perspective. Evolution of US relations with mul- tilateral organizations such as the United Nations and NATO. 10. The evolution of the modern Presidency in the USA. Principal problems of relations between the Executive and Legislative branches of government. 11. Interest groups in contemporary US politics. The influence of the private sector, organized labour, and religious organizations on the legislative pro- cess. 12. The role of race, ethnicity and immigration in contemporary US politics. 13. Trends in economic and social inequality in the USA. 14. Judicial politics in the USA. Principal debates on the power and political role of the Supreme Court.
Learning activities and methodology
Theoretical and practical classes. The classes are master and practical sessions. The practical classes are based on audio-visual documents and reading on significant texts for the period of time and the circumstances under study. Students must question about problems given in documents and sources; so that they have to practice the competences that are intended to be developed: capacity for synthesis, critical analysis, understanding the complexity of historical phenomena. Active learning is intended. Students will receive information, but they will also research in the provided files. Theoretical classes organize the materials to adapt them to the students learning, and provide the students the knowledge that they could not get by their own. IN CASE OF SPECIAL MEASURES FOR A NEW HEALTH EMERGENCY SCENARIO TEACHING IS FULL TAUGHT IN THE SYNCHRONOUS AND INTERACTIVE ONLINE MODALITY THROUGH BLACKBOARD COLLABORATE THERE ARE NO SPECIAL MEASURES DIFFERENT FROM THOSE CONTEMPLATED IN THE REGULAR REINA PROGRAM
Assessment System
  • % end-of-term-examination 60
  • % of continuous assessment (assigments, laboratory, practicals...) 40
Calendar of Continuous assessment
Basic Bibliography
  • Richard D. Heffner, Alexander B. Heffner. A Documentary History of the United States. Editorial Signet Classics . 2022
  • GRANT, S-M.. Historia de los Estados Unidos de América. AKAL. 2016
  • GUARDIA, C. de la. . Historia de los Estados Unidos. Silex. 2009
  • HUGUET, M.. Washington, la ciudad del barro y los esclavos. Comares. 2020
  • HUGUET, M.. Estados Unidos. De la Comunidad de Americanos a la Sociedad Estadounidense. UAH, Instituto Franklin. 2016
  • Howard Zinn. A People's History of the United States. Harper Perennial Modern Classics. 2015
  • John Sides and Daniel J. Hopkins (eds). Political Polarization in American Politics. Bloomsbury Academic. 2015
  • Nolan McCarty. Polarization: What Everyone Needs To Know. Oxford University Press USA. 2019
  • PONS, A. . Historia de los Estados Unidos, 1776-1975 . Crítica. 2010
  • Richard Vague. An Illustrated Business History of the United States. University of Pennsylvania Press. 2021
  • Smithsonian. American History: A Visual Encyclopedia. Smithsonian. 2019
  • Stephen J. Wayne. The Biden Presidency: Politics, Policy, and Polarization. Routledge. 2022
Recursos electrónicosElectronic Resources *
Additional Bibliography
  • Jason C. Bivins. Embattled America: The Rise of Anti-Politics and America's Obsession with Religion. Oxford University Press. 2022
  • LaFleur Stephens-Dougan. Race to the Bottom: How Racial Appeals Work in American Politics. University of Chicago Press. 2020
  • Luke Mogelson. The Storm is Here: America on the Brink. Riverrun. 2022
  • Stephen Marche. The Next Civil War: Dispatches from the American Future. Avid Reader Press / Simon and Schuster. 2022
(*) Access to some electronic resources may be restricted to members of the university community and require validation through Campus Global. If you try to connect from outside of the University you will need to set up a VPN


The course syllabus may change due academic events or other reasons.