Pursuing American Ideals - Unit Overviews

Page 1

Student Edition

Equality Rights Liberty Opportunity Democracy


Establishing an American Republic 1492–1896 1

What Is History?

1

What is history, and why should we study it?

2

Defining and Debating America’s Founding Ideals

9

What are America’s founding ideals, and why are they important?

3

Setting the Geographic Stage

17

How has geography influenced the development of the United States?

4

The Colonial Roots of America’s Founding Ideals 1607–1754

Americans Revolt 1754–1783

29

Creating the Constitution 1776–1791

39

51

What is the proper role of a national government?

7

An Enduring Plan of Government 1789–Present

Changes in a Young Nation 1790–1860

63

79

A Dividing Nation 1819–1861

93

Was the Civil War inevitable?

10 The Civil War 1860–1865

105

How did the Civil War affect the United States and its people?

11 Reconstruction 1864–1896 How was the nation’s commitment to its founding ideals tested during Reconstruction?

143

14 Labor’s Response to Industrialism 1870–1920

157

Was the rise of industry good for American workers?

167

What was it like to be an immigrant to the United States around the turn of the century?

16 Uncovering Problems at the Turn of the Century 1890–1920

181

What social, political, and environmental problems did Americans face at the turn of the 20th century?

Did changes in the young nation open the door to opportunity for all Americans?

9

13 The Age of Innovation and Industry 1840–1920

15 Through Ellis Island and Angel Island: The Immigrant Experience 1840–1920

Does the Constitution support the ideals in the Declaration of Independence?

8

131

Was the rise of industry good for the United States?

Were the American colonists justified in rebelling against British rule?

6

12 Change and Conflict in the American West 1840–1896 What opportunities and conflicts emerged as Americans moved westward?

How did the colonial period help shape America’s five founding ideals?

5

Industrialism and Reform 1840–1920

17 The Progressives Respond 1890–1920

18 Progressivism on the National Stage 1890–1920

119

195

Who were the progressives, and how did they address the problems they saw?

205

How well did Presidents Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson promote progressive goals in national policies?

vii


Expanding American Global Influence 1796–1921 19 Foreign Policy: Setting a Course of Expansionism 1796–1896

215

Was American foreign policy during the 1800s motivated more by realism or idealism?

20 The Spanish-American War 1895–1902

225

Why did the United States go to war against Spain in 1898, and why was the outcome significant?

21 Acquiring and Managing Global Power 1890–1917

235

247

257 267

How did Americans on the home front support or oppose World War I?

25 The Treaty of Versailles: To Ratify or Reject? 1918–1921 Should the United States have ratified or rejected the Treaty of Versailles?

27 The Politics of Normalcy 1914–1930

299

28 Popular Culture in the Roaring Twenties 1914–1933

309

What social trends and innovations shaped popular culture during the 1920s?

How was World War I different from previous wars?

24 The Home Front 1914–1919

287

Did the Republican Era of the 1920s bring peace and prosperity to all Americans?

Was it in the national interest of the United States to stay neutral or declare war in 1917?

23 The Course and Conduct of World War I 1915–1918

26 Understanding Postwar Tensions 1914–1930 What effects did postwar tensions have on America’s founding ideals?

Were U.S. interventions abroad between 1890 and 1917 motivated more by realism or idealism?

22 From Neutrality to War 1914–1917

The Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression 1914–1944

29 The Clash Between Traditionalism and Modernism 1916–1933 How did social, economic, and religious tensions divide Americans during the Roaring Twenties?

30 The Causes of the Great Depression 1929–1933

277

325

335

What caused the most severe economic crisis in American history?

31 The Response to the Economic Collapse 1932–1933

343

How did the federal government respond to the economic collapse that began in 1929?

32 The Human Impact of the Great Depression 1929–1939

351

How did ordinary Americans endure the hardships of the Great Depression?

33 The New Deal and Its Legacy 1933–1944 How did the expansion of government during the New Deal affect the nation?

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363


World War II and the Cold War 1917–1960 34 Origins of World War II 1917–1941

379

Could World War II have been prevented?

35 The Impact of World War II on Americans 1941–1945

393

What kinds of opportunities and hardships did the war create for Americans at home and abroad?

36 Fighting World War II 1939–1945

409

What military strategies did the United States and its allies pursue to defeat the Axis powers in World War II?

37 The Aftermath of World War II 1943–1955

423

Did the United States learn from past mistakes at the end of World War II?

38 Origins of the Cold War 1945–1949

41 Peace, Prosperity, and Progress 1945–1960

431

How did the United States and the Soviet Union become Cold War adversaries?

39 The Cold War Expands 1948–1960

443

How did the anxieties raised by the Cold War affect life in the United States?

481

Why did poverty persist in the United States in an age of affluence?

43 Segregation in the Post-World War II Period 1945–1954

457

465

Why are the 1950s remembered as an age of affluence?

42 Two Americas 1950–1962

Were the methods used by the United States to contain communism justified?

40 Fighting the Cold War at Home 1945–1960

The Search for a Better Life 1945–1990

487

How did segregation affect American life in the postwar period?

44 The Civil Rights Revolution: “Like a Mighty Stream” 1955–1965

497

How did civil rights activists advance the ideals of liberty, equality, and opportunity for African Americans?

45 Redefining Equality: From Black Power to Affirmative Action 1965–1980

511

How did civil rights activists change their strategies and goals in the 1960s and 1970s, and how successful were they in achieving racial equality?

46 The Widening Struggle 1960–1990

523

Why and how did the civil rights movement expand?

ix


Tumultuous Times 1954–1980 47 The Age of Camelot 1961–1963

537

Was John F. Kennedy a great president?

48 The Great Society 1963–1968

549

What is the proper role of government in shaping American society?

49 The Emergence of a Counterculture 1962–1969

559

What was the impact of the counterculture on American society?

50 The United States Gets Involved in Vietnam 1954–1967

56 Ending the Cold War 1980–1991

565

577

What made the Vietnam War difficult to win?

52 Getting Out of Vietnam 1969–1975

589

What lessons for Americans emerged from the Vietnam War?

53 The Rise and Fall of Richard Nixon 1968–1974

625 637

What were the effects of Ronald Reagan’s and George H. W. Bush’s foreign policy actions?

57 U.S. Domestic Politics at the Turn of the 21st Century 1992–Present

649

How have recent presidents tried to fulfill their domestic policy goals?

58 U.S. Foreign Policy in a Global Age 1991–Present

669

How well have U.S. foreign policy decisions met the challenges of the global age?

599

What events influenced Richard Nixon’s rise to and fall from power?

54 Politics and Society in the “Me Decade” 1974–1980

55 A Shift to the Right Under Reagan 1980–1993 How did the Reagan Revolution impact the nation?

Why did the United States increase its military involvement in Vietnam?

51 Facing Frustration in Vietnam 1965–1971

The Making of Modern America 1980–Present

59 Moving Forward: Debating America’s Founding Ideals 2008–Present

687

How does our nation define and debate progress as we work to preserve American ideals?

609

How should historians characterize the 1970s?

Resources Atlas The Declaration of Independence The Constitution of the United States Glossary Index Notes Credits

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696 702 706 726 751 777 787


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