Liberal Arts Global Campus
Permanent URI for this community
The Global Campus Liberal Arts programs include graduate and undergraduate degrees such as the Communication, M.A. (with concentration
option), History, M.A. (with concentration option), Communication, B.A. (with concentration option), Graphic Design and Media Arts, B.A. (with concentration option), History, B.A. (with concentration option), General Studies, B.A., and Liberal Arts, A.A., as well as oversight for the Global Campus General Education program.
Browse
Browsing Liberal Arts Global Campus by Subject "American history"
Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Backwoods cures: An exploration of Southern Appalachian folk medicine(Southern New Hampshire University, 2018-07) Perry, Katherine E.; Berrios, Katherine E.; Denning, Robert; Chung, Yun; Chan, ChristopherThe people of the Southern Appalachians have a unique culture all their own. An important component of this culture can be observed in the manner in which these individuals chose to combat that enemy of all mankind: disease. A beautiful amalgamation of cultures including Cherokee, Scotch-Irish, and other European ancestries is present in this region and exhibited through the rural remedies utilizing a rich local pharmacopeia and magico-religious folklore related to healing. However, the people of the Southern Appalachians, while geographically isolated, did not exist in a vacuum. Exciting discoveries of local primary sources demonstrate the employment of contemporary medicine in tandem with what was available locally. This project also examines the utility of virtual museums. Together with the research on the subject of Southern Appalachian Folk Medicine, the research on virtual museums culminates in the creation of a digital exhibition using the Omeka exhibit building platform. This exhibition can be visited at the following link: http://backwoodscures.omeka.net (Author abstract)Item China elephants and orphans: Operation Babylift and the white savior complex(Southern New Hampshire University, 2019-02) Thompson, Jonathan Patrick; Averill, Stephanie; Denning, Robert; Irvine, RobertAs the Vietnam War drew to a close during the spring of 1975, the United States determined it had a responsibility to save South Vietnam’s at-risk children from the communists. Americans largely pushed for this humanitarian act as a chance to do one thing right in Vietnam. Collaborating with Western-run orphanages in Vietnam, the U.S. initiated Operation Babylift evacuated thousands of children. This was not without consequences, some of which are still felt today. The evacuation was an emotional event that captivated the United States at the end of a long war. It is also an historic example of white savior complex at work. As a subconscious aspect of Western culture, the white savior complex enables white people to take the actions they deem best in helping non-white people. They then benefit from the experiences, while potentially doing nothing about the systemic causes of the problems they temporarily address. The white savior complex played a key role in the conception of Operation Babylift and creating the need for it through years of American intervention in Vietnam. Applying Teju Cole’s “White Savior Industrial Complex” framework with Jordan Flaherty and Caitlin Breedlove’s savior mentality concepts to the Western individuals and entities involved in Operation Babylift will illustrate their motivations and the outcomes, both negative and positive. This analysis will demonstrate why and how Operation Babylift came to fruition, played out, and concluded for the benefit of white Westerners. It will also highlight long-term, systematic repercussions faced by non-white people when the white savior complex is not acknowledged. The evidence will illustrate for white Westerners the importance of making informed decisions in helping non-white people by decentering themselves from their privilege and acknowledging their cultural understandings and motivations. (Author abstract)Item Cicero and Caesar in America: John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, and the political war of the 1820s(Southern New Hampshire University, 2018-09) Bayer, Michael Ryan; Denning, Robert; McConnell, StephanieThe election of Andrew Jackson over the incumbent president, John Quincy Adams, in 1828, led to a fundamental change in American politics. The following study argues that the results of the presidential elections of 1824 and 1828 redefined America’s earlier definition of republicanism and democracy, effectively ending the political ideology of the Revolutionary generation. Furthermore, this study argues that the emergence of Andrew Jackson, and his subsequent accumulation of executive power—the greatest fear of Jeffersonian Republicans—was made possible through the very ideology embraced by the Republican faction. To complete this study a wide assortment of primary and secondary sources will be utilized. Included within the primary sources are the Adams Family Papers, courtesy of the Massachusetts Historical Society, and the personal diary of John Quincy Adams. Political and personal correspondence, speeches, government documents, and political cartoons, courtesy of the Library of Congress, National Archives, and the Founders Online databases, will also be incorporated. Secondary sources will be predominantly used throughout this study and address the historical background of individuals and events pertaining to the thesis. The presidential elections between John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson led to a shift in politics that drastically transformed the socio-political ideology in America. Bitterly fought campaigns, wide-ranging personalities, growing sectional divide, the expansion of voting rights, populist rhetoric favoring the “common man,” and the emergence of party politics, all led to the transition of what became known as Jacksonian Democracy. (Author abstract)Item “If That’s Art Then I’m a Hottentot!”: American art’s divorce from the American people(Southern New Hampshire University, 2018-09) Loraditch, Timothy Frederick; Denning, RobertIn the second half of the twentieth-century American Art experienced significant changes. Despite the rapid development of modernism in Europe, American Artists continued in a very representative style of painting. After World War II and with the advent of the Cold War came the rise of the Abstract Expressionist artists like Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Robert Motherwell. These artists painted in a new style that was not at all representative and was not understood by large segments of the American population. This new style of American Art was called Abstract Expressionism and it came to dominate the international art scene and change the direction of American Art. During the Great Depression many American were out of work and the WPA’s Federal Arts Project, paid many artists just to paint. These WPA artists benefitted from the opportunity to be paid by the government to work without regard to marketability, patron expectations or even personal financial needs. Following World War II America was left with significant wealth while Europe was struggling to recover physically and economically. Paris was unable to maintain its reputation as the artistic cultural center, relinquishing that status to New York City which had become a vibrant and supportive artistic community that the Abstract Expressionist could continue benefit from. Additionally, Abstract Expressionism enjoyed the unique benefit of the political situation created by the Cold War years following WWII. Abstract Expressionism was covertly supported by the Central Intelligence Agency to be used as a Cold War weapon to combat communist ideology and demonstrate the freedom of expression possible under democracy. Yet despite these advantages, many Americans did not exhibit an appreciation for the work of these new artists. There were protests to exhibitions, public sculptures and government funding of the arts. There was also much criticism, both from recognized scholars and the general public. These changes in American Art produced a significant shift in the public’s attention away from contemporary art and towards more traditional styles of painting. This shift resulted in a dramatic split in the culture of the American people that remains to this day. (Author abstract)Item Nathaniel and Armenia White’s city: Concord, New Hampshire’s history retold(Southern New Hampshire University, 2018-09) Fisher, Elaina M.; Chung, Yun Shun Susie; Denning, Robert; Irvine, RobertNathaniel and Armenia White were nineteenth-century citizens of Concord, New Hampshire, whose business endeavors and philanthropic activities had a substantial social impact on the city that is still visible today. This research uses a social history approach to show that Nathaniel White was significantly responsible for the retention of the state capital at Concord, as well as the funding and organization of numerous public works projects, real estate developments, and charitable endeavors throughout the city. Armenia White’s involvement with abolition and the women’s suffrage movement is well-documented, and connects her activism to the physical places within the city that are known for these social movements. The final product of this research is a proposed exhibit trail that highlights the Whites and their legacy through the city’s built environment and social consciousness, and proposes a retelling of Concord’s history with a focus on the nineteenth-century developments that are visibly evident in the city today. (Author abstract)Item Nativism and discriminatory laws: The Chinese Exlusion Acts' effects on immigration laws and immigrants during the 19th and 20th century(Southern New Hampshire University, 2019-05) Ippolito, Sandra; Bartee, Seth; Denning, RobertDuring the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Immigration laws would be drastically changed due in part to nativism and other factors. It would be the first time in history that the federal government would get involved in any type of immigration action and it would all start with the Chinese Exclusion act of 1882. This act would set up a chain of events that would shape laws on immigration that would get progressively worse for all immigrants that were deemed "un-desirable." (Author abstract)Item “They did not feel like the Enemy”: German prisoners of war in Michigan(Southern New Hampshire University, 2018-09) Runk, Abigail; Denning, Robert; Chan, ChristopherSeventy years after the end of World War Two, many topics concerning the United States’ involvement are rarely discussed. One of these topics is the German Prisoner of War (POW) camps that dotted the United States from 1942-1945/46. The United States began transporting POWs to the United States due to pressure from its Allies in Europe. Allied camps could no longer house captured troops. Land and economic food supplies within Allied camps were lacking, due to the British being unable to financially supply these necessities. With misgivings, due to the proximity to the American people, the United States began to erect camps. Approximately, 378,000 prisoners of war arrived from the European theater. Of those, 4,000-5,000 prisoners arrived in Michigan to begin a process of becoming economic laborers. Viewed as workers, according the residents, these men did not feel like the enemy. These laborers, though prisoners, allowed Michigan to maintain its economic stability. Utilizing unpublished letters, contemporary newspaper articles, personal interviews, National Archive records, and secondary sources, it is possible to review how the camps and the prisoners in Michigan were viewed. These camps followed the confines of the Geneva Convention. However, escapes still happened from the camps. Despite these instances, without the prisoners during the war, Michigan’s economy would have suffered due to the lack of farming crops. Without these prisoners, Michigan civilians would have been unable to realize the average German soldier was not the same enemy as a Nazi. (Author abstract)Item Trans-Appalachian America and the National Road(Southern New Hampshire University, 2018-07) Boyd, Edward L.; Denning, Robert; Chan, ChristopherFollowing the Revolutionary War, the British ceded the Northwest Territory to the United States. This territory was the land north and west of the Ohio River to the Mississippi. The territory corresponds to the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and an eastern portion of Minnesota. With Britain controlling the Great Lakes to the north and Spain to the south and west, this remained a landlocked territory whose only access to the eastern seaboard was over rugged mountain trails. In 1784, George Washington wrote of the need to link the western territory to the eastern states. He proposed an improved road to link an eastern river with the Ohio. Washington’s vision was accomplished as Congress enacted legislation during the Jefferson Administration for this infrastructure project. In 1811, work began at Fort Cumberland on the Potomac River in Maryland. The road conquered the mountains and reached the Ohio River in 1818. Originally known as the Cumberland Road, the National Road was eventually extended to Columbus, Ohio, Indianapolis, Indiana and finally Vandalia, Illinois in 1837. The federal funding and oversight of the road faced challenges from narrow readings of constitutional authority. Proponents of the road resorted to alarmist rhetoric, portraying the road as necessary, even vital, to prevent the nation becoming divided and separated by the mountainous terrain. This paper will evaluate the alarmist rhetoric in relation to the potential threats of disunion. Primary and secondary sources will be used in an ethnographical analysis of western culture and nationalism to demonstrate that the western settlers were patriots. The threat of disunion was used to justify federal control and funding for the National Road. (Author abstract)Item “Wade in the water”: Jim Crow scenes from Maysville, Kentucky(Southern New Hampshire University, 2019-04) Maley, George S.; Bartee, SethThis research explores Jim Crow scholarship in real estate, entertainment, policing, and recreation. The thesis of this research is that outside forces came to bear on Jim Crow laws and customs. This research will show that without that outside pressure, a more equal society may not have evolved organically. In addition, this research highlights scenes from the small town of Maysville, Kentucky to more fully illustrate the power and tenacity of Jim Crow. This research is not meant to belittle the efforts of thousands of brave Americans, of all colors, who risked and sometimes lost their lives in the face of racial bigotry and oppression. It is rather to suggest that without the full power of the federal government behind them, their heroic struggle might not have happened and most certainly would have been more burdensome. The methodology employed in this project was to locate primary and secondary sources related to the topic and apply those sources to the central argument of the thesis. These sources were used to gain an understanding of Jim Crow as a social and political phenomenon and demonstrate that Jim Crow was so engrained into the fabric of American life that it took a national effort spearheaded by all three branches of the federal government to wrench it away from the American experience. (Author abstract)