Spring 2005     IC 3113:2    Culture and the Environment: The American Empire

 

      If a global empire is going to emerge, it will be the United States. Will the U.S. dominate the world’s resources and nations for its own benefit, or will it use its power to establish a democratic, prosperous world?  This course looks at what has been called the American empire and how it has affected the social and political environment globally.  We will try to determine its motives, effects, and probable future, using a variety of sources and viewpoints.

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      Our work in this course may get confusing sometimes, but probably not boring. The course is about world conspiracies, the battle of good and evil, spying and deception, hot debate, and grand drama. Do you really know the score—beyond media hype, politicians’ word-spin, and dissidents’ rhetoric?

 

A conservative scenario: The US is an empire, and needs to be: it’s the world’s best hope. The US has spread the blessings of liberty and free trade around the globe, combating the extremist terrorism of those who oppose it and making nations free and prosperous. Economic globalism is inevitable, democracy is the wave of the future. At home, we have never been freer and more prosperous. We just need to accept our destiny as an “empire” leading the free world. (Ferguson’s book views the world this way.)

 

A progressive scenario:  The US is an empire, and this needs to change. The US has undermined foreign democracies and installed ruthless dictators so that global corporations can plunder their countries’ resources. The US has made poor nations poorer and less free. At home, politics is controlled by the wealthy; their media issue propaganda and manipulate people through fear, while citizens become poorer and less free. We need to restore justice and international cooperation as America’s goals in the world. (Johnson’s book views the world this way.)

 

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·  We’ll be reading three books, in this sequence:

                Colossus: The price of America’s empire by Niall Ferguson

                The Sorrows of Empire   by Chalmers Johnson

                Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins

We’ll read each book closely, with brief writing assigned for each reading (study questions, responses, or comparisons.)  We’ll spend about a third of the semester on each one. These readings and writings make up 50% of your grade.

 

·  Class will consist of discussion and debate, with occasional quizzes on readings. This makes up 30% of your grade.

 

·  Other readings will be occasionally assigned as necessary: some for historical or geographical background, others for more topical detail or another viewpoint.

 

·  One or two short research papers will be assigned on topics that interest you (I encourage connections to global ecological issues.) These make up 10% of your grade.

 

·  You will be asked to write a final essay that expresses your view of the United States in the world and what it ought to do. This makes up 10% of your grade.

 

·  All writings (except quizzes) must be typed, proofread, and handed in on time. I will take off one letter grade for each day a work is late.

 

·  References to other people’s words or ideas must be attributed. (Please refer to the college’s plagiarism policy, which I will enforce.) You may use any citation method you prefer.

 

·   If you, I and the course are successful, you should achieve these outcomes by the end:

 

·               Know the history of America’s 20th Century involvement with foreign nations.

·               Be familiar with different interpretations of that history and the global sociopolitical processes that have operated in that time. (Examples of processes are globalism, militarism, free trade, and internationalism.)

·               Know basic principles of recent economic history and be able to use them to interpret current world events.

·               Be able to discuss and debate competing views with civility and respect for the truth.

·               Be able to read texts closely and critically to elicit underlying viewpoints.

·               Be able to compare competing views and take your own reasoned position.

 

 

 

Chris Marshall

South Coop 208

cmarshall@unity.edu

Campus phone #254

Home phone 589-4632