Response Paper Questions for Schweikart/Allen and Zinn

Each response paper is due in class, the day noted on the syllabus.  They should be typed, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins, 10-12 pt font, no spaces between paragraphs, and 1-2 pages (usually 2) in length.  If you quote or closely paraphrase either Schweikert and Allen or Zinn, you must use footnotes (see the Writing Guide on our course website). 

Choose and answer only one of the multi-part questions listed for each response paper.

First Response Paper

a) How do the two narratives differ in their interpretation of nineteenth-century industrial leaders?  What does this say about the authors’ broader view of American history?

b) What distinguishes Zinn’s interpretation of late nineteenth-century labor unions and strikes from Schweikart and Allen’s view?  What does this say about their particular perspectives?

Second Response Paper

a) What explanations do Schweikart and Allen and Zinn provide for US entry in World War I?  Do they agree on the precipitating events, underlying reasons, and purpose of the war?  How do they portray its costs and benefits?

b) According to the two narratives, was the 1920s a decade of increasing prosperity and leisure or a decade of growing inequality and misery?  What evidence do they marshal to make their case?

c) Does Zinn agree or disagree with Schweikart and Allen about the origins, purpose, and impact of the New Deal?  What do their interpretations of the various agencies and programs have in common?  How do they differ?

Third Response Paper

a) According to Zinn and Schweikart and Allen, why did the U.S. drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima ?  What explains use of the second bomb?  Who do you agree with?  Why?

b) What were the origins of the Cold War and “McCarthyism”?  Why did they happen?  What most distinguishes the two narratives on this subject?