Syllabus
Class Time and Location
This class meets Wednesdays, 9:30-10:20, Room 213, St. John's Hall.
Please be aware of other events that meet outside of regular class times, including labs, field-based learning excursions, and learning community activities. All but the learning community activities are mandatory.
Course Description
This section of Discover New York will focus on the social history of New York City in the 1920’s. Topics will include immigration, the great migration, the Harlem Renaissance, the red care, prohibition, organized crime, the media, and the economic boom and bust.
Course Objectives
- To gain a greater understanding of the social currents that shaped New York City in the 1920’s.
- To develop improved research skills appropriate for higher education.
- To develop improved oral presentation skills.
Course Requirements
Your course grade will be composed of the following:
- Participation: Based on regular attendance, contribution to class discussions, and written summaries of weekly readings. (20%)
- Quizzes: You will be given 3 quizzes throughout the semester. Your top two quiz scores will count towards your grade. (20%)
- Service Learning and Reflection Paper: You are required to complete 6-9 hours of service learning work throughout the semester, and to write a short paper describing your experiences and what you learned. More information about the service learning project will be given on September 7. (15%)
- Research Project and Presentation: On November 2, you will submit an annotated bibliography (at least 5 sources) and biographical summary (3-4 pages) of an individual who figures prominently in New York City history. You will then present your research on either November 16 or 30th. Your date of presentation will be assigned. The research project will account for 15% of your grade. The presentation will account for 10%, totaling 25% of your grade.
- Final Exam: Will be held on December 14, and will consist of short answer identification questions, and an essay question. (20%)
Assigned Readings
You will be assigned weekly readings from your assigned text and/or electronic reserves. Refer to the course schedule for the required readings for a given class.
We will also be reading from the following assigned text, which is available at the St. John’s University book store:
Wallace, David. Capital of the World: A Portrait of New York City in the Roaring Twenties. Guilford, Conn: Lyons Press, 2011.
Academic Service-Learning Component (AS-L)
Academic Service-Learning at St. John’s University is a classroom/experiential site- based program that involves students in some form of required community service that benefits the common (public) good and uses service as a means of understanding course concepts. The service activity meets course objectives, and through reflection students examine issues pertaining to social justice and responsibility.
Academic Service-Learning is a requirement of this course. All students must complete six hours of service at The Jacob Riis Settlement House or Urban Impact, or nine hours of service at The Committee for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Reflection is an important component of AS-L since it provides the opportunity to link what students learn in the service project to what they learn in the classroom. Reflection of the AS-L experience will be in the form of a 3-4 page paper.
Labs
In addition to regular class meetings, you will be required to attend three labs throughout the semester.
September 21. Eric Sanderson – Author of Manahatta and director of the Welikia Project will talk about the natural history of New York City, sustainability, and conservation. 2-3pm Marillac Auditorium.
October 19. Belenna Lauto and Bob Tomes will discuss how New York’s history can be defined objectively and subjectively by the images and photographs that have documented the city’s evolution. They will also touch upon how images, in particular, photographs, have shaped our perception of New York City. 2pm – 3pm Marillac Auditorium.
November 16. Joel Berg from NYC Coalition Against Hunger and Tony Butler from St. John’s Bread and Life in Bed Stuy will discuss hunger and poverty in New York City. 2-3pm Marillac Auditorium.
Field-Based Learning Experiences
The following excursions are designed to enhance your understanding of two major themes of the course: immigration and the great migration. Admission is free of charge for each of these events. Metrocards will be provided for the Tenement Museum and Big Onion Walking Tour, and coach transportation will be provided for the Ellis Island trip. Attendance at these events is required.
Tenement Museum: Piecing it Together. See the homes & garment shop of Jewish families who lived in the tenement during the "great wave" of immigration to America. (from tenement.org) Saturday, September 10, at 1pm. 108 Orchard Street, New York, NY.
Big Onion Walking Tour: Historic Harlem. At the center of African-American history and culture, Harlem is one of New York's most significant neighborhoods, featuring a wide array of historic churches, theaters, clubs and homes. Stops could include: Abyssinian Baptist Church, Striver's Row, the Big Apple Night Club, and sites associated with the Harlem Renaissance, W.E.B. Du Bois, Madame C.J. Walker, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X and many others. (from bigonion.com) September 24, 1pm. Meet: Northwest corner of 135th Street & Lenox (Malcolm X) Avenue Ð in front of the Schomburg Center. Trains: 2/3 to 135th Street.
Ellis Island. The class will visit the immigration museum at Ellis Island, which was the primary entry point for immigrants to America in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Meet at St. John’s University at 11:30AM on Saturday, October 15.
Learning Community
This section of Discover New York will be part of a learning community with Professor Barbara Morris from the English Department and Professor Frank Servas from Computer Science. The theme of the learning community will be logic, and will consist of the following events, which are optional, and for which you will receive extra credit for attending. Lunch is also provided at each event.
A Walking Tour of Queens (Video Presentation and Discussion): Tuesday September 13 and September 20, 12:15-1:40pm. Location TBA.
Research Workshop: A hands-on workshop that explains how to complete the research for your biography assignment. Will cover finding appropriate materials, writing annotations, and citing correctly. Tuesday, September 27, 12:15-1:15pm.
Twelve Angry Men (Video Presentation and Discussion): Watch and discuss this classic court room drama. Tuesday October 4 and October 11, from 12:15 to 1:40pm.
Tentative Course Schedule
August 31. Course Introduction. America in the 1920’s.
September 7. Immigration – The Great Wave and Americanization.
Reading “Americanization,” from Strangers in the Land, by John Higham.
In-class Video: “The Biggest Jewish City in the World.”
Introduction to service learning.
September 13. Learning Community Event (Optional)
Walking Tour of Queens (Video Presentation and Discussion)
September 14. Immigration – Restriction.
Reading
“Quotas,” from Cannato.
Additional Chapter from Higham.
September 20. Learning Community Event (Optional)
Walking Tour of Queens (Video Presentation and Discussion)
September 21. The Red Scare.
Reading
“The Underlying Causes of the Red Scare,” pp. 3-18 in Pfannestiel.
“The Rand School vs. the Lusk Committee, pp. 75-96 in Pfannestiel.
Conclusion, pp. 123-34 in Pfannestiel.
Quiz #1.
Lab - Eric Sanderson – Author of Manahatta and director of the Welikia Project will talk about the natural history of New York City, sustainability, and conservation. 2-3pm Marillac Auditorium.
September 28. The Great Migration.
Reading
“Social and Political Background,” pp. 6-29 in Wintz.
October 5. The Harlem Renaissance.
“The Emergence of a Renaissance in Black Literature,” pp. 64-86 in Wintz.
“The Harlem Renaissance,” pp.217-234 in Wallace.
October 12. Prohibition.
Reading
“The Dry Crusade,” pp. 7-39 in Wintz.
“Prohibition,” pp. 15-29 in Wallace.
Quiz #2.
October 19. Organized Crime.
Reading
“New York City in the 1920’s,” pp. 138-64 in Critchley.
“The Rise of the Mafia, Pt. 1,” pp. 31-44 in Wallace.
In-class research workshop.
Lab - Belenna Lauto and Bob Tomes will discuss how New York’s history can be defined objectively and subjectively by the images and photographs that have documented the city’s evolution. They will also touch upon how images, in particular, photographs, have shaped our perception of New York City. 2pm – 3pm Marillac Auditorium.
October 26. The New Media - Radio and Magazines
Reading
“The Rise of Radio,” pp. 105-117 in Wallace.
“The Magazines,” pp.189-201 in Wallace.
“The Buyers,” pp.140-157 in Fireside Politics: Radio and Political Culture in the United States, 1920-1940, Douglas B. Craig.
Quiz #3.
November 2. Economics of the 1920’s – The Boom.
Reading
“The Rise and Fall of Business,” pp.122-41 in Goldberg.
“The Good Life,” pp. 101-20 in Klein.
Outline of Research Presentation is due.
November 9. Economics of the 1920’s – The Bust.
Reading
“Introduction – The Crash as Historical Problem,” xiii-xx in Klein.
“The Winter of Discontent, 1930” pp. 253-78 in Klein.
November 16. Research Presentations.
Lab - Joel Berg from NYC Coalition Against Hunger and Tony Butler from St. John’s Bread and Life in Bed Stuy will discuss hunger and poverty in New York City. 2-3pm Marillac Auditorium.
November 23. Thanksgiving Break. No class.
November 30. Research Presentations. Review for Final Exam.
Service Learning Reflection Papers Due.
December 7. Thursday schedule. No class.
December 14. Final Exam.
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