History 431
Paper Assignments

Paper topic one. The papers are designed to get you thinking about, and critically analyzing, the documents. You should feel perfectly free to bring in other reading that you've done for class; it is not my expectation that you do any outside research beyond the documents mentioned in the assignment. The paper should run roughly 6-8 pages; you can go longer if you need to.

  1. Did the Great War change American anti-imperialism? Compare and contrast the prewar examples of anti-imperialism we read (such as the George Hoar speech and the Isidor Rayner speech in the course packet) with Asle Gronna's remarks on the League of Nations (if you do this question, ask me for copies of the Gronna and Rayner speeches).

  2. How wide an ideological gulf separated the three sides in the League of Nations/Versailles debate? Compare and contrast the perspectives of Wilson, Lodge, and Gronna (if you do this question, ask me for copies of the Gronna speech).

Paper topic two. You should feel perfectly free to bring in other reading that you've done for class; it is not my expectation that you do any outside research.

  1. To what extent did the British/American war aims during World War II, as embodied in the Atlantic Charter, reflect the thinking of either (or both) nations during World War I. Compare and contrast the charter with Wilson's ultimate statement of war aims--the 14 Points--and a similar document offered by British Prime Minister David Lloyd George.

  2. The US decision to drop the bomb remains one of the most controversial foreign policy actions ever taken by the United States. What motivated US policymakers to act as they did? Begin with this review article, and then examine the historiographical controversy around the Alperovitz thesis, complete with ample documentation. (Warning: This topic is an interesting one, but there's a decent amount of supplementary reading, especially in the second site.)

Paper topic three. We enter the Cold War era.

  1. To what extent did the Middle East fit into US Cold War strategy? Analyze the basic principles of containment as seen through NSC 68, and then discuss its relationship (or lack thereof) to Truman's and Eisenhower's policies in Iran, Egypt, and Israel.

  2. Was Vietnam typical of US Cold War policy? Analyze the documents assigned for our class on JFK and Vietnam, with an eye toward determining whether the administration had any clear motive in its approach to Vietnam.

 Paper topic four. Vietnam and after.

1. How did Vietnam affect the media, and vice versa? Discuss, with reference to these recollections by journalists who covered the war. Compare the Vietnam/media relationship to that discussed by CNN reporters Bernard Shaw and Peter Arnett in Gulf War I, which is also discussed in this NYT article.

2. Did the Bush administration have a clear and consistent policy regarding Iraq? Compare and contrast NSD 26, NSD 45, and the Powell Doctrine.