Southwestern Michigan College s8

SOUTHWESTERN MICHIGAN COLLEGE DIVISION OF ACADEMIC STUDIES Dowagiac, Michigan COURSE SYLLABUS FALL 2011

COURSE TITLE: Introduction to American Popular Culture COURSE NO.: HUMA 202 SECTION NO.: 1623

CREDITS/CONTACTS: Credit Hours 3 Lecture hours/week 3 Laboratory hours/week - A-T hours/week -

INSTRUCTOR: Mr. Jack B. Crouse Office Hours: O'Leary 316B, Extension 1295 [email protected] MW: 10:30-1:30 TR: 8:00-10:00 F: 8:00-12:00

PREREQUISITE: None

COURSE DESCRIPTION: An exploration of American popular culture in the post-WWII era. The disciplines of history, anthropology, literature, music and sociology are used as the vehicles for the exploration.

CORE CURRICULUM: May be used to satisfy the SMC core requirement for Humanities.

DISTRIBUTION REQUIREMENTS: This course may be used to meet a SMC Humanities degree requirement.

TEXTBOOK REQUIRED: O’Neill, Megan. Popular Culture, Perspectives for Readers and Writers. Thompson Heinle, 2002.

METHOD OF INSTRUCTION: The method of instruction to be used in Humanities 202 will be lecture and discussion. Written assignments will be required of each student. Video will be viewed and students will hear music from the era being studied.

EVALUATION: Upon completion of this course, the student will demonstrate achievement of the course objectives by obtaining a final minimum grade of 74% as measured by the evaluation method following.

EVALUATION METHOD: Evaluation will be based on percentage distribution of tests, written assignments and the final exam as follows:

1. Tests 40% of grade 2. Written Assignments 40% of grade 3. Final Exam 20% of grade GRADING SCALE: The following grading scale will be in effect for this course: 100% - 94% A 76% - 74% C 93% - 90% A- 73% - 70% C- 89% - 87% B+ 69% - 67% D+ 86% - 84% B 66% - 64% D 83% - 80% B- 63% - 60% D- 79% - 77% C+ 59% or lower F

Every letter grade given will have a corresponding percentage value attached to ensure correctness in averaging, and to provide the student with a means to gauge his or her standing.

Criteria for assigning a grade will be based on the following factors in order of importance: 1. Correctness of answer 2. Thoroughness of answer 3. Soundness of thought 4. Style

ATTENDANCE POLICY: Since this class is predominantly a lecture class with the bulk of material presented orally and through collaborative interaction, the attendance policy will reflect this. Your percentage of missed classes will affect your grade proportionately as follows:

60% attendance – no grade higher than a 60 possible 70% attendance – no grade higher than a 70 possible 80% attendance – no grade higher than an 80 possible 90% attendance – no grade higher than a 90 possible

TESTING POLICY: As scheduled. Tests will consist of essays. Tests will not contain material from previous tests, and there will be a review for each test. There will be no surprise tests. Missed tests may be made up at the instructor’s discretion, and cannot be taken during class time.

Final exam questions will come from the material on previously taken tests. The final exam must be taken at the scheduled time. Final exam schedules will be announced as soon as possible.

CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR: Students are expected to assist in maintaining a classroom environment that is conducive to learning. In order to assure that all students have the opportunity to gain from time spent in class; students are prohibited from engaging in any form of distraction. Inappropriate behavior in the classroom shall result, minimally, in a request to leave class.

OTHER COURSE EXPECTATIONS: Five in-class written projects will constitute the written component of this course. Students are expected to independently complete the written assignments contained within the course schedule.

EXTRA CREDIT IS NOT AVAILABLE. ACCEPTABLE USE OF PERSONAL COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY: All phones, iPods, BlackBerries, Palm Pilots, pagers, laptops and other technological devices including devices capable of taking photographs must be turned off or placed on vibrate mode and may not be brought out during class. If you are expecting or receiving an urgent call, you are required to leave the classroom before answering. Violation of this policy will result in your removal from the classroom for the class period. Multiple violations of this policy will be referred to the appropriate dean for disciplinary action.

HONESTY POLICY: Cheating or plagiarizing will absolutely not be tolerated at Southwestern Michigan College. Any student found cheating or plagiarizing material in any manner may be assigned a failing semester/session grade in this course. A second such incident while at SMC could result in suspension or expulsion from the institution. A student found in violation of this section of the syllabus will not be allowed to drop this course. Additional detail regarding cheating and/or plagiarism may be found elsewhere in this syllabus.

NOTICE: Information in this syllabus was, to the best knowledge of the instructor, considered correct and complete when distributed for use at the beginning of the semester. The instructor, however, reserves the right, acting within the policies and procedures of Southwestern Michigan College, to make changes in course content or instructional techniques without notice or obligation. Representative student work will be used as part of SMC’s on-going curriculum assessment program.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

At the conclusion of the course the learner will be able to:

1. Demonstrate knowledge of the social changes to American culture begun during WWII. 2. Demonstrate knowledge of social attitudes that developed during the 1950’s because of the onset of the Cold War. 3. List and explain the impact of rapidly developing transportation systems during the 1950’s on American culture. 4. Demonstrate knowledge of the birth of rock and roll in the 1950’s and its impact on American popular culture during the second half of the 20th century. 5. Know and be able to explain the impact of the 1960’s on American culture from the perspective of protest and civil disobedience. 6. Demonstrate knowledge of the civil rights movement and the rise of feminism during the decade of the 1960’s. 7. Know and be able to explain the impact of the Vietnam War on America’s perception of its world role. 8. Demonstrate knowledge of the evolution of popular language usage during the decade of the 1970’s. 9. Demonstrate knowledge of the effects of mass media on American social values. 10. Demonstrate knowledge of the development of American icons and their commercial value in American society. 11. Know and be able to explain the impact of Baby Boomers on American popular culture. 12. Know and be able to explain the impact of Generation X, Y, and Millenials on American pop culture. COURSE OUTLINE

Humanities 202 is a comprehensive survey of American popular culture in the post-World War II period. This course will be taught using a decade approach in the following order:

 World War II - It changed American culture.  Happy Days - The 50’s (were they really?)  The Decade of Upheaval – The 60’s.  That 70’s Show.  The 80’s – The Baby Boomers take over.  The 90’s – Generation X, Y and the Millenials.

Each decade will be examined from the perspective of:

 Social Change  Politics and Warfare  Language and Communication  Popular Music  Popular Icons  Transportation  Modern Media CLASS SCHEDULE AMERICAN POPULAR CULTURE JACK B. CROUSE

1. Session #1 Introduction and lecture #1 – The Significance of WW2

2. Session #2 Lectures #2 – The coming of Television Lecture #3 – Pop music post swing era. READ CHAPTER 1

3. Session #3 Lecture #4 – Happy Days – the 50s Lecture #5 – Movies and a TV in every home. Lecture #6 – Tailfins, the beginning of American car culture.

4. Session #4 Lecture #7 The birth of Rock and Roll Lecture # 8 The background of American pop music Lecture #9 Political trends of the 50s. READ CHAPTER 2

5. Session #5 Lecture #10 The 60s, decade of revolution Lecture #11 Movies and television change in the 60s. Test The 50s

6. Session #6 Lecture #12 Transportation the era of American muscle Lecture # 13 Politics and assassination in the 60s Lecture # 16 The impact of Vietnam on American culture

7. Session #7 Lecture # 17 The civil right movement in the 60s. Lecture # 18 The attainment of the Moon Lecture # 19 The sexual revolution READ CHAPTER 3

8. Session #8 Test #2 The 60s Lecture # 20 That 70s Show Lecture # 21 The fragmentation of pop music 9. Session #9 Lecture # 22Movies and TV in the 70s Lecture # 23 Transportation and the first gas shortages.

10. Session #10 Lecture # 24 Watergate politics Lecture # 25 Bicentennial America Test the 70s

11. Session #11 Lecture # 26 The further fragmentation of pop music in the 80s Lecture # 27 Transportation in the 80s. Imports.

12. Session #12 Lecture # 28 Movies and TV in the 80s, the media explosion Lecture # 29 The polarization of politics Test the 80s READ CHAPTER 4

13. Session #13 Lecture #30 The 90s End of a Century Lecture #31 The diversity of entertainment in the 90s Lecture #32 Politics and oil READ CHAPTERS 5

14. Session #14 Lecture # 33 Transportation in the 90s, the SUV Lecture # 34Y2K Test the 90s

15. Session #15 Review for Final Exam Final Exams