UCC1: New Course Transmittal Form

Department Name and Number

Recommended SCNS Course Identi cation Pre x Level Course Number Lab Code Full Course Title Transcript Title (please limit to 21 characters)

Eective Term and Year Rotating Topic yes no

Amount of Credit Contact Hour: Base or Headcount S/U Only yes no

Repeatable Credit yes no If yes, total repeatable credit allowed

Variable Credit yes no If yes, minimum and maximum credits per semester

Course Description (50 words or less)

Prerequisites Co-requisites

Degree Type (mark all that apply) Baccalaureate Graduate Professional Other

Category of Instruction Introductory Intermediate Advanced

Rationale and place in curriculum

Department Contact Name Phone Email

College Contact Name Phone Email

Rev. 10/10 AMH 2----

American History through Films

Instructor Contact Information

Dr. Louise Newman, [email protected] Course meets T/R: Office Hours in Keene Flint 224 (and by appointment) Office Telephone: 352 273-3377

Course Description

This is an introductory history course that uses Hollywood films to examine cultural anxieties concerning racial identities, gender roles, and sexual behaviors in the postwar period, from the mid 1940s to the present. Topics usually draw from the following issues: World War 2, the Cold War, Civil Rights, Vietnam War, Women’s Liberation, Social Protest movements of the 1960s, Indian Rights, and liberalism/multiculturalism, but may also include nineteenth century topics, depending on what films have recently been released. In addition to viewing six- to-eight dramatic films, the course also treats documentaries and historiography in order to analyze the relative advantages/disadvantages of different media in constructing the past (e.g., Hollywood film v. historical documentary v. academic historiography).

Students will learn how to situate films in their historical context so as to speculate about how they were understood by audiences at their original release dates. One of our central concerns will be to ask whether the meanings of these films have changed over time—taking us into the thorny area of how best to interpret cultural texts that are produced in one historical moment but continue to circulate in another. We will also explore what makes a Hollywood film “good” from a historical, as opposed to aesthetic, perspective—is it some correspondence/affirmation of an already-known past, or an ability to offer new insights and perspectives about history? Or is it because it lends itself to competing interpretations or because it generates meaningful reflection? Or perhaps the historical value of a film lies elsewhere— playing a role, not just in changing our understanding of the past, but also changing how we think about the present and the possibilities for the future.

Course Objectives

• To gain an appreciation for how films shape historical narratives by drawing on popular ideologies

• To increase awareness of how historical memory is influenced by popular culture

• To complicate conventional understandings of the tools of the historian’s trade: truth, objectivity, causality, reality, facts, evidence, etc.

• Further develop students’ critical reading, writing, and thinking skills

Required readings

Required Textbook

• Benshoff, Harry M. and Griffin, Sean. America on Film: Representing Race, Class, Gender and Sexuality at the Movies. 2nd edition. MA: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. This is the main text for the course. There is one copy on course reserve.

Newman, American History and Hollywood Films 2

Required Articles

Electronic copies are available online through Smathers’ Library/ARES system (course reserves). Actual articles depend upon the films chosen. In this version of the course, there is an emphasis on westerns, and the following articles are required reading.

• Burgoyne, Robert. “Native America, Thunderheart, and the National Imaginary” in Film Nation (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1997), pp. 38-56. • Eckstein, Arthur M. “Darkening Ethan: John Ford’s The Searchers (1956): From Novel to Screenplay to Screen.” Cinema Journal 38.1 (Autumn 1998): 3-24. • Klopotek, Brian. “’I Guess Your Warrior Look Doesn’t Work Every Time’: Challenging Indian Masculinity in the Cinema.” Across the Great Divide: Cultures of Manhood in the American West. Eds. Matthew Basso, Laura McCall and Dee Garceau. New York: Routledge, 2001, 251-273. • Leung, William. “So Queer yet so Straight: Ang Lee’s The Wedding Banquet and Brokeback Mountain.” Journal of Film and Video 60.1 (2008): 23-43. • Magowan, Kim. “’Blood Only Means What You Let It:’ Incest and Miscegenation in John Sayles’ Lone Star.” Film Quarterly 57 (Fall 2003): 20-31. • Modleski, Tania. “Our Heroes Have Sometimes Been Cowgirls.” Film Quarterly 49.2 (Winter 95): 2-11

Required screening of films (I will place one copy of each film on course reserve so that you can (re)watch these films in Library West. All are available from Amazon.com and most can be streamed for free if you have a membership to Netflix.

• The Searchers (John Ford, 1956) • The Ballad of Little Jo (Maggie Greenwald, 1993) • Thelma & Louise (Ridley Scott, 1991) • Lone Star (John Sayles, 1996) • Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee, 2005) • Thunderheart (Michael Apted, 1992) • Smoke Signals (Chris Eyre, 1998)

Documentaries (Excerpts will be screened in class; purchase isn’t necessary)

• Hollywood: An Empire of Their Own (1997) • Incidents at Oglala: The Leonard Peltier Story (Michael Apted, 1992)

Policies and expectations

• Attendance is mandatory Students are expected to attend all classes and should let the instructor know if they will be absent from class (For the university’s policy on attendance and make-up work, see http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog1011/policies/regulationattendance.html). There are two “free” absences, and after that a one-third course deduction will be taken from the final course grade for every class missed (e.g. an A will be reduced to an A-; an A- to a B+, a B+ to a B, etc.)

• Format This course is taught in a mixed lecture/seminar format. Most lectures will take place on Tuesdays. On Thursdays, students will be expected to have completed all assignments for the week and participate fully in class discussions. Quizzes may be given to ensure students are preparing for class discussion.

• General Courtesy Newman, American History and Hollywood Films 3

Please remember to turn cell phones to vibrate during class. Please do not come late to class. If there are special circumstances that prevent you from being on time, please let the instructor know.

• Making Up Missed Assignments/Extension of Deadlines Assignments not turned in before or by the stated due date are late and will not be accepted unless circumstances are severe and beyond the student’s control (see the university’s attendance policy noted above). Please let the instructor know of any circumstances that may affect your ability to complete assignments on time. Students will need to provide appropriate documentation to extend deadlines and make up missed assignments. Assignments not completed earn a 0. If you miss a class or an assignment due to an excused absence for which you have documentation (e.g. a doctor’s appointment), then please see the instructor about making up the assignment.

• Special Accommodations: Please do not hesitate to contact the instructor during the semester if you have any concerns or issues that need to be discussed. Students requesting special accommodation must first register with the Dean of Students Office (http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drc), who will provide documentation for the student to give to the instructor when requesting special accommodation. You must submit this documentation prior to submitting assignments or taking the quizzes or exams. Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the office as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations.

• Workload: This course demands roughly 6 hours of preparation time, in addition to the 3 hours of class meetings, each week. On average, 50-100 pages of reading are assigned each week and every other week students will also have to watch one film.

• Academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the University community. Plagiarism is a serious violation of the Student Honor Code. Penalties for plagiarism range from a grade deduction to failing the course. Students are responsible for understanding the University's definitions of plagiarism and academic dishonesty. For the full university policy regarding plagiarism, read the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/students.php.

• Students are expected to provide feedback on the quality of instruction in this course based on ten criteria. These evaluations are conducted online at https://evaluations.ufl.edu. Evaluations are typically open during the last two or three weeks of the semester, but students will be given specific times when they are open. Summary results of these assessments are available to students at https://evaluations.ufl.edu.

Written Assignments (see accompanying schedule for due dates)

• Reading Responses to four films -- choose four of the assigned films and write an analysis of 300- 500 words, due the week the film is taught (50 points each, totaling 200 points, 40% of grade) • Midterm take-home paper (100 points, 20% of course grade); detailed instructions, with grading rubric, to be distributed two weeks in advance of the deadline • Final Project—oral presentation plus 5-7pp essay (200 points, 40% of course grade)

All written work submitted for the course must be typed or computer generated and in 12-point double- spaced print with one-inch margins. All assignments must be in hard copy. Emailed assignments will not be accepted. Detailed instructions and grading rubrics will be distributed in class two weeks in advance of deadlines.

Grading Scale

Grade Total Points GPA Equivalent Newman, American History and Hollywood Films 4

A (93-100) 475-500 4.0 A- (90-92) 450-474 3.67 B+ (87-89) 435-449 3.33 B (83-86) 425-434 3.0 B- (80-82) 400-424 2.67 C+ (77-79) 385-399 2.33 C (73-76) 375-384 2.0 C- (70-72) 350-374 1.67 D+ (67-69) 335-349 1.33 D (63-66) 325-334 1.0 D- (60-62) 300-324 0.67 E (0-59) <300 0 E1 (stopped attending) <300 0

Note: A grade of C− is not a qualifying grade for major, minor, Gen Ed, or College Basic distribution credit. For additional information on grades, including UF’s grading policy, please see: https://catalog.ufl.edu/ugrad/current/regulations/info/grades.aspx

Schedule of Topics and Assignments

Week 1 (8/23) Introduction to the History of Hollywood Filmmaking

America on Film, 30-43, 65-70

Week 2 (8/28, 8/30) Genre and Technical Considerations—The Western, Melodrama and Social Problem Films

Hollywood: An Empire of Their Own (excerpts from this documentary are shown in class)

America on Film, 3-28, 78-87, 238-252

Week 3 (9/4, 9/6) Cold Wars/Red Scares/White Saviors: White Masculinity in the 1950s

The Searchers (John Ford, 1956)

America on Film, 52-55, 102-110, 274-77 Eckstein

Week 4 (9/11, 9/13) Feminist Reimaginings, part 1

The Ballad of Little Jo (Maggie Greenwald, 1993)

America on Film, 278-301, esp. 296-7 Modleski

Week 5 (9/18, 9/20) Feminist Reimaginings, part 11

Newman, American History and Hollywood Films 5

Thelma & Louise (Ridley Scott, 1991)

Readings to be chosen by students

Week 6 (9/25, 9/27) Interracial Romances and White Liberal Guilt

Lone Star (John Sayles, 1996)

Magowan

Week 7 (10/2, 10/4) Queering the Cowboy

Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee, 2004)

America on Film, 347-353, esp. 406-7 Leung

Week 8 (10/9, 10/11) Indians in U.S. Films

Thunderheart (Michael Apted, 1992)

Incidents at Oglala: The Leonard Peltier Story (Michael Apted, 1992) (excerpts from this documentary are shown in class)

Burgoyne

Week 9 (10/16, 10/18) Redefining Indian Masculinity/Rewriting Indian History

Smoke Signals (Chris Eyre, 1998)

America on Film, 110-121, esp. 118

Klopotek

Week 10 (10/23, 10/25) Midterm take-home essay due

Week 11 (10/30, 11/1) Workshop—Final Projects

Week 12 (11/6, 11/8) Workshop—Final Projects

Week 13 (11/13, 11/15) Workshop—Final Project

Week 14 (11/24, 11/26) Presentations of Final Projects

Thanksgiving

Newman, American History and Hollywood Films 6

Week 15 (11/27, 11/29) Presentations of Final Projects

Week 16 (12/4) Written version of final assignment due (100 pts)