Professor Mark Stoll
742-3744 Holden Hall 135
E-mail: mark.stoll@ttu.edu Web:
http://courses.ttu.edu/mstoll/
Office Hours: Tuesday 11:00-1:00 and Thursday 8:30-9:30
and by appointment
Through lectures, readings, and film, the course explores two evolving topics in American history: the interrelationship and mutual impact of humans with the land and its plant and animal life; and cultural attitudes and thinking about nature and the environment.
William Cronon, Changes in the Land |
Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac |
| John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra |
Andrew Hurley, Environmental Inequalities |
| Donald Worster, Dust Bowl | Rachel Carson, Silent Spring |
| 17.5% ea. | Two midterm examinations |
| 25% | Final examination |
| 30% | Six book quizzes |
| 10% | Analytical book review |
Exams: Exams will be essay exams. Students will have an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge of environmental history as well as to engage issues raised in lectures, discussions, and readings. The final exam will have the same format as midterms, with the addition of a cumulative section.
Book quizzes: Short quizzes given on the discussion day for each book will encourage students to have read the books and be ready to discuss them.
Papers: Course assignments include contains one analytical book review. For each review, students will select a book on environmental history from a bibliography on the professor's Website. (Note that biographies and edited collections or collections of essays are not appropriate for the assignment and should not be chosen for the book review.) Students may select another book if the professor approves it. Four to six pages long, the book review will have three sections:
Papers will be printed in 12-point Times New Roman, double spaced, with 1" margins all around (or 1-1/4" right and left margins, with 1" margins top and bottom). Do not add space between paragraphs (and if your word-processing program does so automatically, adjust the Paragraph settings). If you quote directly from the text of your book, cite your source by adding the page number or numbers in parentheses immediately after the quotation. For example: "That is when the world will end" (42). No footnotes or bibliography are necessary.
Attendance: The professor will call roll at the beginning of each class. Students with a perfect attendance record will receive three bonus points on their final grades. Students with more than two absences will receive one point off their final grades for each absence over two. The instructor will accept excuses in cases of true need if appropriately documented.
Plagiarism: Using text written by someone else (even in a close paraphrase) is academic dishonesty. It is strictly against university and departmental policy. Papers that have been plagiarized in whole or in part receive a 0 for the assignment, and a further penalty of 10 points will be deducted from the student's final grade average.
The professor reserves the right to change this syllabus at his discretion. Changes will be announced in class and posted on the course Website.
| Date | Assignment |
| Jan 14 | Introduction |
| Jan 19 |
Were
Indians environmentalists? |
| Jan 21 | Attitudes towards nature in Indian creation stories |
| Jan 26 | Reading: Cronon,
Changes in the Land For further reading: Brian Donahue, The Great Meadow: Farmers and the Land in Colonial Concord |
| Jan 28 | Genesis and nature For further reading: Clarence J. Glacken, Traces on the Rhodian Shore; Nature and Culture in Western Thought from Ancient Times to the End of the Eighteenth Century H. Paul Santmire, The Travail of Nature: The Ambiguous Ecological Promise of Christian Theology Robert Booth Fowler, The Greening of Protestant Thought Mark Stoll, Protestantism, Capitalism, and Nature in America |
| Feb 2 |
Arrival of the
Europeans: ecological imperialism For further reading: Alfred W. Crosby, Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe Jared M. Diamond, Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (Pulitzer Prize winner) |
| Feb 4 |
Slavery
and the Southern environment For further reading: Timothy Silver, A New Face on the Countryside: Indians, Colonists, and Slaves in the South Atlantic Forests, 1500-1800 Mart A. Stewart, "What Nature Suffers to Groe": life, labor, and landscape on the Georgia coast, 1680-1920 Mikko Saikku, This Delta, This Land: An Environmental History of the Yazoo-Mississippi Floodplain Albert E. Cowdrey, This Land, This South: An Environmental History Jack Kirby, Mockingbird's Song |
| Feb 9 |
American Romanticism For further reading: Hans Huth, Nature and the American: Three Centuries of Changing Attitudes Leo Marx, The Machine in the Garden: Technology and the Pastoral Ideal in America Lawrence Buell, The Environmental Imagination: Thoreau, nature writing, and the formation of American culture |
| Feb 11 | Reading: Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra Click here for a map of Muir's route For further reading: Roderick Nash, Wilderness and the American Mind, 4th ed. Stephen Fox, The American Conservation Movement: John Muir and His Legacy |
| Feb 16 | First Midterm Exam |
| Feb 18 |
Industrialization and the rise of the cities For further reading: Theodore Steinberg, Nature Incorporated: Industrialization and the Waters of New England William Cronon, Nature's Metropolis: Chicago and the Great West |
| Feb 23 |
Transformation
of the West: The Spanish, Russians, and Mormons For further reading: DeBuys, William. Enchantment and Exploitation: The Life and Hard Times of a New Mexico Mountain Range |
| Feb 25 |
Transformation
of the West: Mining & Settlement of the Plains For further reading: Isenberg, Andrew C., Mining California: An Ecological History Isenberg, Andrew C. The Destruction of the Bison: An Environmental History, 1750-1920 Flores, Dan. Caprock Canyonlands: Journeys into the Heart of the Southern Plains West, Elliott. The Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers, & the Rush to Colorado Cronon, William. Nature's Metropolis: Chicago and the Great West Igler, David. Industrial Cowboys: Miller & Lux and the Transformation of the Far West, 1850-1920 |
| Mar 2 |
Reading: Worster, Dust Bowl For further reading: Lookingbill, Brad D. Dust Bowl, USA : Depression America and the Ecological Imagination, 1929-1941 |
| Mar 4 |
Urban
environmental problems For further reading: Stradling, David. Smokestacks and Progressives: Environmentalists, Engineers and Air Quality in America, 1881-1951 Melosi, Martin V. Garbage in the Cities: Refuse, Reform, and the Environment: 1880-1980 Black, Brian. Petrolia: The Landscape of America's First Oil Boom |
| Mar 9 |
The
Progressive Conservation Movement: First Calls for
Conservation For further reading: Fox, Stephen. The American Conservation Movement: John Muir and His Legacy Nash, Roderick. Wilderness and the American Mind |
| Mar 11 | Class cancelled |
| Mar 13-21 | Spring Break |
| Mar 23 |
Reading: Leopold, A Sand County Almanac For further reading: Dunlap, Thomas R. Saving America's Wildlife Reiger, John F. American Sportsmen and the Origins of Conservation |
| Mar 25 |
The
Progressive Conservation Movement: Conservation
Achieved For further reading: Hays, Samuel P. Conservation and the Gospel of Efficiency: The Progressive Conservation Movement, 1890-1920 Pyne, Stephen J. Year of the Fires: The Story of the Great Fires of 1910 Jacoby, Karl. Crimes Against Nature: Squatters, Poachers, Thieves, and the Hidden History of American Conservation Righter, Robert W. The Battle over Hetch Hetchy: America's Most Controversial Dam and the Birth of Modern Environmentalism Runte, Alfred. National Parks: The American Experience Steen, Harold K. The U.S. Forest Service: A History Dorsey, Kurkpatrick. Dawn of Conservation Diplomacy: U. S.-Canadian Wildlife Protection Treaties in the Progressive Era Schrepfer, Susan. Nature's Altars: Mountains, Gender, and American Environmentalism |
| Mar 30 | Second Midterm Exam |
| Apr 1 |
After the Progressives: The
1920s For further reading: Clements, Kendrick A. Hoover, Conservation, and Consumerism: Engineering the Good Life. Reiger, John F. American Sportsmen and the Origins of Conservation. The New Deal For further reading: Owen, A. L. Riesch. Conservation under F.D.R. Maher, Neil M. Nature's New Deal: The Civilian Conservation Corps and the Roots of the American Environmental Movement Utley, Dan K., and James W. Steely. Guided with a Steady Hand: The Cultural Landscape of a Rural Texas Park |
| Apr 6 |
The New Science of Ecology For further reading: Worster, Donald. Nature's Economy: A History of Ecological Ideas. 2nd ed. Tobey, Ronald C. Saving the Prairies: The Life Cycle of the Founding School of American Plant Ecology, 1895–1955 |
| Apr 8 |
World War, Cold War,
and the Environment Book review due For further reading: Ackland, Len. Making a Real Killing: Rocky Flats and the Nuclear West Gerber, Michele Stenehjem. On the Home Front: The Cold War Legacy of the Hanford Nuclear Site Kuletz, Valerie L. The Tainted Desert: Environmental and Social Ruin in the American West Kirsch, Scott. Proving Grounds: Project Plowshare and the Unrealized Dream of Nuclear Earthmoving Hirt, Paul W. A Conspiracy of Optimism: Management of the National Forests since World War Two Pearson, Byron E. Still the Wild River Runs: Congress, the Sierra Club, and the Fight to Save Grand Canyon Reisner, Marc. Cadillac Desert: The American West and Its Disappearing Water Nash, Roderick. Wilderness and the American Mind. 4th ed. |
| Apr 13 |
The 1960s: The Rise of the
Environmental Movement For further reading: Hurley, Andrew. Environmental Inequalities: Class, Race, and Industrial Pollution in Gary, Indiana, 1945-1980 Sutter, Paul S. Driven Wild: How the Fight against Automobiles Launched the Modern Wilderness Movement |
| Apr 15 |
The 1960s: Johnson and the Great Society and
Environmental Crisis For further reading: Hays, Samuel P. A History of Environmental Politics since 1945 Dewey, Scott Hamilton. Don't Breathe the Air: Air Pollution and U.S. Environmental Politics, 1945-1970 |
| Apr 20 |
Reading: Carson, Silent Spring For further reading: Russell, Edmund. War and Nature: Fighting Humans and Insects with Chemicals from World War I to Silent Spring Whorton, James. Before Silent Spring: Pesticides and Public Health in Pre-DDT America Dunlap, Thomas R. DDT: Scientists, Citizens, and Public Policy |
| Apr 22 |
The
1970s: A New Mood and a New Will to Act For further reading: Price, Jennifer. Flight Maps: Adventures with Nature in Modern America Mitman, Gregg. Reel Nature: America's Romance with Wildlife on Film Fox, Stephen. The American Conservation Movement: John Muir and His Legacy Hays, Samuel P. Beauty, Health, and Permanence: Environmental Politics in the United States, 1955-1985 Flippen, J. Brooks. Nixon and the Environment Markowitz, Gerald, and David Rosner. Deceit and Denial: The Deadly Politics of Industrial Pollution Sellers, Christopher C. Hazards of the Job: From Industrial Disease to Environmental Health Science |
| Apr 27 |
The 1970s:
Carter and the Energy Crisis, Toxic Waste, and Nuclear Power For further reading: Walker, J. Samuel. Three Mile Island: A Nuclear Crisis in Historical Perspective Colten, Craig E., and Peter N. Skinner. The Road to Love Canal: Managing Industrial Waste before EPA Murchison, Kenneth M. The Snail Darter Case: TVA versus the Endangered Species Act |
| Apr 29 |
The 1980s:
Reagan and the End of an Era; Environmental Justice; International Solutions
to Acid Rain and Ozone Depletion, but Not Global Warming For further reading: Zakin, Susan. Coyotes and Town Dogs: Earth First! and the Environmental Movement |
| May 4 | Reading: Andrew Hurley,
Environmental Inequalities For further reading: Gottlieb, Robert. Forcing the Spring: The Transformation of the American Environmental Movement Pulido, Laura. Environmentalism and Economic Justice: Two Chicano Struggles in the Southwest Allen, Barbara L. Uneasy Alchemy: Citizens and Experts in Louisiana's Chemical Corridor Disputes Lerner, Steve. Diamond: The Struggle for Environmental Justice in Louisiana's Chemical Corridor McGurty, Eileen Maura. Transforming Environmentalism: Warren County: PCBs, and the Origins of Environmental Justice |
| May 7 | Friday, 1:30-4:00 p.m.: FINAL EXAM |
Note also these university deadlines:
Jan 25: Last day for student-initiated drop on the Web. Mar 12: Last day to drop
a course.
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times.
Last edited: 05/05/2010 10:37 AM