Introduction to African-American Studies
AFA 2000 Professor: Evan Hart, Ph.D. Spring, 2015 E-Mail:
MWF, Period 3 Office: Keene Flint, 20
LIT, 219 Office Hours: MW, 2:00-
3:00 and by appt.
The experience of Africans in America and the Disapora has been broad and deep. Our study of these experiences will begin in Africa, the birthplace of civilization and humanity, and will extend to the experiences of peoples of African descent throughout the Americas. It is, of course, impossible to capture every element of this journey, but we will take an interdisciplinary approach to explore many of the political, cultural, economic, artistic, and social themes that have influenced the construction of African American realities in the past and present. Class sessions will consist of lectures, discussions, various academic exercises, film screenings, media and textual analyses, and attendance at a minimum of one outside lecture or panel discussion.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
John Hope Franklin and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African Americans, 9th edition (ISBN: 978-0077407513)
Frederick Douglass, Narrative Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave (ISBN: 9780486284996) OR available at: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/23/23-h/23-h.htm
W.E.B. DuBois, The Souls of Black Folk (ISBN: 9780486280417) OR available at: http://www.bartleby.com/114/
Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (ISBN: 9780486419312) OR available at: http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/jacobs/jacobs.html
Articles and primary sources available through Course Reserves
Requirements: Date % of Final Grade
Discussion/Participation 10%
Identity Paper Mon. Jan. 16 10%
Douglass/Jacobs Paper Weds. Feb 11 15%
Midterm Mon. Feb. 16 15%
DuBois Paper Mon. March 9 15%
Research Paper Mon. April 6 20%
Final Exam Thurs. April 30 15%
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
Throughout this course students will:
- gain a general introduction to the origins of African American Studies
- learn some of the theories and theorists of Black Studies
- be exposed to the interdisciplinary approaches to the study of peoples of African descent, their experiences, beliefs, cultures, and conditions
- be able to present a general historical overview of the history of African Americans
- be exposed to some of the contemporary issues facing African Americans
- enhance their critical analysis, research, and writing skills
CLASS POLICIES:
Attendance: Student participation is an essential component to this course. As such, attendance will be taken daily. If you arrive 10 or more minutes late, do not expect to be counted as present for the day. It is assumed that enrollment in the class means that there are no conflicts with other obligations (weddings, work, travel, meetings, etc.) during class time. Simply telling me or e-mailing a message indicating that you’ll be absent does not automatically become an “excused absence.” If you have an official excuse for an absence, provide me with a written excuse on official letterhead (either physician or university) which includes information regarding your absence (dates and times). Poor attendance will impact your final grade. Missing more than three (3) class sessions will result in an automatic one-letter deduction in the final grade.
Additionally, regardless of points, any student missing more than 20% of the total classes will automatically fail the course. You cannot pass this course if you do not attend regularly.
Classroom Policies: Be courteous and professional toward your classmates. Turn off cellphones, engage with the course material, respond to classmates in discussions, and refrain from using laptops unless the use of a laptop is a medical necessity (see section on “accommodations for disabilities”). If a student is found texting or otherwise using their phone during class, there will be a verbal warning. If cellphone usage continues, the student will be asked to leave the classroom and will not be counted as present for that day.
Communication: I welcome student emails and will respond to them in a timely manner. However, I do not access my email 24 hours a day, so allow 24 hours for a response. Also, please use proper capitalization, grammar, and punctuation in your emails. Your correspondence reflects on you as student, and proper emailing etiquette will serve you well in your career at UF and beyond. Finally, emailed questions which can easily be answered by reading the syllabus will receive a simple SYS (see your syllabus) as a response.
Late work: To be eligible for full credit, any missed assignments, exams, or papers must be accompanied with proper documentation, i.e. a doctor's excuse, etc. Late papers without documentation will fall one letter grade per day late. Assignments will not be accepted after three days. No exceptions. If an assignment is due on Wednesday, for example, and is handed in on Friday (the next class period) it is considered 2 days late and 20 points will be deducted. These policies are consistent with university policies concerning attendance. You can find these policies at: https://catalog.ufl.edu/ugrad/current/regulations/info/attendance.aspx
Grading: Grading policies follow the policies laid out by UF. To understand how UF assigns grade points see: https://catalog.ufl.edu/ugrad/current/regulations/info/grades.aspx. I use a standard grading scale.
A = 93-100
A- = 90-92
B+ = 87-89
B = 83-86
B- = 80-82
C+ = 77-79
C = 73-76
C- = 70-72
D+ = 67-69
D = 63-66
D- = 60-62
ACCOMMODATIONS FOR DISABILITIES:
Students who require specific accommodations for a disability should speak with me within the first two weeks of class to ensure these accommodations are met. Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with the Dean of Students Office. The office will provide documentation to the student who must provide this documentation to the instructor.
PLAGIARISM AND CHEATING:
According to UF's Student Conduct Honor Code, plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:
“1. Quoting oral or written materials including but not limited to those found on the internet, whether published or unpublished, without proper attribution.
2. Submitting a document or assignment which in whole or in part is identical or substantially identical to a document or assignment not authored by the student.
This can include, but is not limited to, papers on the internet, friends’ papers, websites, or any other source you do not cite. As noted in the Student Conduct Code, there are a number of possible penalties for plagiarism or cheating. In this course, a student who is discovered plagiarizing on any assignment will automatically receive a grade of zero (0) for that assignment and the assignment cannot be redone to obtain a different grade on the plagiarized assignment. A second incidence of plagiarism will result in automatic failure of the course. If on any of the exams you quote directly from the textbook or readings without attributing them to the source, the professor has the option of assigning a failing grade to the exam. For further details on the issue of academic misconduct, including plagiarism, see the Student Conduct and Honor Code available on UF's website at: https://www.dso.ufl.edu/sccr/process/student-conduct-honor-code/
EXPLANATION OF ASSIGNMENTS
Discussion/Participation (10%)
For this class to be successful, students must take responsibility for actively participating each day in the course. Discussion of course materials allows for a higher degree of interaction and collaboration than the traditional lecture format. And, let's be honest, no one wants to sit through 16 weeks of solid lectures! For these reasons, discussion and participation is worth 10% of your grade. This means you MUST attend class regularly and participate in the discussions. Attendance will be taken every day, and unexcused absences will lower your grade. At a bare minimum, participation requires you to ask an occasional question and display attentiveness to both the lectures and discussions. At least once a week, if not more, we will engage in various activities to get students more involved in the material. Throughout the semester, you will have opportunities to give informal presentations, lead discussions on particular readings, and participate in a host of small-group activities. I will be keeping track of who is keeping up with the readings and is actively involved and those who remain passive. I can't stress this enough: discussion is integral to the success of the course and to your final grade.
Identity Paper (10%)
Write a 2-3 page (500-750 words) essay that answers the following questions: What kind of racial and/or ethnic labels do you use to “identify” and/or describe yourself? Why? Do you believe that your label is readily accepted by others? Why or why not?
This is a place for you to express yourself, but a word of caution: proper grammar is important and impacts your grade!
Times New Roman, 12 pt font, double spaced, 1 inch margins
Midterm and Final Exams (each worth 15% for a total of 30%)
Both of the exams will be in-class exams. Each exam will cover lectures, discussions, and readings. Questions will consist of both short response and a longer essay question. The exams will be discussed in greater detail as we approach the dates for the exams.
Douglass/Jacobs and DuBois Papers (each worth 15% for a total of 30%)
You will write two 4 page (1,000 words) papers on the Douglass/Jacobs books and the DuBois books. You will receive a paper prompt at least a week in advance. The papers will be discussed in greater detail as we approach the dates for the papers.
Research Paper (20%)
Your research paper should focus on some aspect of the African American experience. Your paper should be 5-6 pages (roughly 1,250-1,500 words). Your paper should utilize outside research as well as relevant readings from the required course texts. My suggestion to you all is this: peruse the syllabus and begin looking for topics that are of interest to you. Start doing preliminary research to see what other sources (both primary and secondary) are available to you. Don't paint yourself in a corner by choosing a topic where you can't find many sources. Additionally, don't choose a topic so broad that you are overwhelmed with potential sources. I'm happy to speak with you about potential topics, and we will discuss the research paper in great detail throughout the semester.
Your paper will be evaluated on these criteria:
1. Your ability to articulate a strong argument
2. The clarity of your prose
3. The quality of your sources and how you use them to support your arguments
4. You organization and writing (do you use proper grammar? Is everything spelled correctly? Does your paper flow well?)
5. The quantity/quality of your citations. (i.e. in a 5 page paper do you only cite two sources? Is the majority of your paper simply direct quotes from your sources?)
CLASS SCHEDULE
This class schedule is tentative and subject to change. Any alterations to the schedule will be announced to the class.
FSTF: indicates the reading is from From Slavery to Freedom
CR: indicates the reading is available through Course Reserves online
Week One: Introductions
Jan. 7 Introduction to Course
Jan. 9 Defining African-American Studies
Alkalimat, et. al., Introduction to Afro-American Studies, Ch 1.
(Introduction). Available for free at: http://eblackstudies.org/intro/contents.htm
History of the UF African American Studies Program, available for
free at: https://afam.clas.ufl.edu/history/
Week Two: African Origins and the Atlantic Slave Trade
Jan. 12 Africans and the Atlantic World, Pt. I
FSTF: Chapter 1
START READING BOTH DOUGLASS AND JACOBS
Jan. 14 Africans and the Atlantic World, Pt. II
FSTF: Chapters 2
Jan. 16 Establishing Slavery
FSTF: Chapter 3
Identity Paper Due at the Beginning of Class
Week Three: The Entrenchment of American Slavery
Jan. 19 No Class in Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Jan. 21 Slave Societies
FSTF: Chapter 4
Jan. 23 An American Revolution?
FSTF: Chapter 5
CR: Petition of Slaves to the Massachusetts Legislature
Week Four: Building a Life in America
Jan. 26 Developing Communities
FSTF: Chapter 6
Jan. 28 Defining Characteristics of Southern Slavery
FSTF: Chapter 7
CR: Rules of Highland Plantation
Jan. 30 Southern Slavery, Pt. II
Week Five: Battling America's Slave System
Feb. 2 Life for Those with Freedom
FSTF: Chapter 8
Feb. 4 Abolitionism
FSTF: Chapter 9
Feb. 6 Abolitionism Continued
CR: Excerpts from Speeches from Maria W. Stewart
Week Six: The Civil War
Feb. 9 The Importance of Slave Narratives
START READING DUBOIS
Feb. 11 Discussion of Douglass and Jacobs
Reflection of Douglass and Jacobs Due
Feb. 13 Societies at War: America's Civil War
FSTF: Chapter 10
Week Seven: Reconstruction or Deconstruction?
Feb. 16 Midterm Exam
Feb. 18 America's Reconstruction
FSTF: Chapter 11
Feb. 20 Reconstruction, Continued
CR: “Not Free Yet”
CR: A Sharecropping Contract
Week Eight: Life During the Time of “Freedom”
Feb. 23 Life During the Nadir
FSTF: Chapter 12
Feb. 25 Competing Conceptions of Self-Help
FSTF: Chapter 13
CR: Atlanta Compromise Speech
CR: On Booker T. Washington and Others
Feb. 27 Still Fighting for Freedom
FSTF: Chapter 14
Week Nine: Spring Break!!
March 2 No Class
March 4 No Class
March 6 No Class
Week Ten: New Responses and a Cultural Renaissance
March 9 Discussion of The Souls of Black Folks
Paper on The Souls of Black Folks Due
March 11 The Harlem Renaissance and the “New Negro”
FSTF: Chapter 15
March 13 Harlem Renaissance, Continued
FSTF: Chapter 16
CR: Selection of Harlem Renaissance Poetry
Week Eleven: Economic Hardships
March 16 Gender, Race, and Culture
Film Viewing: Wild Women Don't Have the Blues
March 18 The Great Depression's Impact on African Americans
CR: “Negro Women in Our Economic Life”
March 20 A New Deal for Americans?
FSTF: Chapter 17
CR: “Will the New Deal be a Square Deal for the Negro?”
Week Twelve: The Fight for Democracy Abroad and at Home
March 23 Double V Campaign: African Americans in World War II
FSTF: Chapter 18
March 25 Postwar Dilemmas
FSTF: Chapter 19
March 27 Postwar Dilemmas Continued
Week Thirteen: Civil Rights
March 30 The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement
FSTF: Chapter 20
April 1 Civil Rights or Black Freedom Movement?
April 3 Black Power
FSTF: Chapter 21
Week Fourteen: New Challenges, New Responses
April 6 Black Power Continued
Research Paper Due
April 8 The Emergence of Black Feminism
April 10 New Challenges: The Last Decades of the 20th Century
FSTF: Chapter 22
Week Fifteen: Contemporary Issues
April 13 Contemporary Issues (TBA)
We will discuss topic possibilities throughout the semester. Readings will
be posted at least a week in advance.
April 15 Contemporary Issues (TBA)
April 17 Contemporary Issues (TBA)
Week Sixteen: Conclusions
April 20 Where Do We Go From Here?
April 22 Final Exam Review
No required readings
April 24 No Class, Reading Day
FINAL EXAM: Thursday, April 30: 5:30-7:30 pm