Final exams are due in my office (King Hall C4076A) by 7:30 pm on Wednesday, 16 March.  If you would like to turn in the exam earlier, please contact me so I will know when to look for it.  Papers received after 7:30 on Wednesday will be considered late.

Please answer two of the following three questions in two separate four-to-five page essays (typed, double spaced, 250-300 words per page).  See the syllabus for more instructions on writing papers in this class.
 

1. In conventional history textbooks, the passage of the women’s suffrage amendment in 1920 usually represents a positive turning point in women’s history.  But what about afterwards?  How much progress did American women make in the twenty-five years after the amendment?
 • Draw your evidence from class lecture materials, the Harlem Renaissance readings, Paredes, and Erenberg/Hirsch (this last book will be especially important).  Do not write about women’s suffrage itself (assume your readers are already familiar with this episode).
 • Be sure to consider different kinds of progress (economic, political, cultural, etc.) and make sure you explain to readers what kind of progress you see in different cases.

2. Racial or ethnic minorities in the United States have for a long time faced a choice about whether to identify with mainstream politics and culture or whether to pursue separatist strategies aimed at distancing oneself from the American mainstream.  What have been the pros and cons of the assimilationist strategy?  What have been the pros and cons of the separatist strategy?  In your opinion, which strategy proved most effective for racial and ethnic minorities in the first half of the twentieth century?
 • Draw your evidence for this question from the Harlem Renaissance readings, Paredes, Gallicchio, Erenberg/Hirsch, and any relevant class lecture materials.

3. The federal government has at times promoted and protected freedom for its citizens.  At other times, the federal government has restricted freedoms for some or all citizens.  Develop a thesis that offers a general historical rule to explain the federal government’s relationship to freedom.  When and why has the government promoted freedom at home; and when and why has it denied freedom at home?
 • Draw your evidence from the Prohibition and women’s suffrage readings, the Shi/Mayer Great Depression readings, the Wheeler/Becker HUAC readings, and at least one chapter from the Erenberg/Hirsch anthology.
 • In answering this question, you might find it useful to think about which types of Americans have seen the federal government as an ally (or enemy) in their quest for freedom.  Another approach would be to think about whether the federal government deserves principal credit for any advances in freedom that occurred during this period (or principal blame for any setbacks).
 • As with all the essays, there is no one right way to answer this question.  Just make sure that your argument is clearly articulated and well-supported with specific examples and brief quotations from the readings.