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Honors 4920: The First World War (Spring 2018) “By 1918 all but one of my close friends were dead.” J.R.R. Tolkien.1 Assoc. Prof.: Branden Little, Ph.D. Email: jblittle@weber.edu (allow 24 hours for a reply) Phone: 801.626.6710 (email is always best) Office: Rm. 409 Old Science Laboratory. Hours: Thurs., 12:00-1:00; Fri., 11:30-12:30; and also by appointment Course Site: https://weber.instructure.com/courses/460151 Meetings: CRN 30433; Tues. & Thurs., 0900-1015, Library Rm. 325 Course Description: A century ago a global cataclysm, the First World War, erupted and permanently transformed the world. Why did it explode? What did its conduct reveal? What are the echoes of this war that resonate today? Honors 4920 endeavors to answer these questions. It illuminates the war’s global dimensions, the statecraft and strategy of warring and neutral powers, battlespace operations and technologies, and humanitarian responses to industrialized killing, mass casualties, imprisonment, and population displacement. It considers the dynamics of homefront participation in war, including the cultivation of war cultures, the mobilization of children, the demobilization of wounded soldiers, and rituals of commemoration. The course also investigates the improbable resolution of such a vast conflict that shattered empires, inspired the ascent of new ones, and awakened powerful forces across the world. Join us for an exploration of one of the most pivotal events in the history of the world. Content Advisory: This course neither seeks to glamorize war, nor to dismiss its object: killing. Course materials (readings, lecture, and discussion) feature graphic violence, industrialized killing, sexual assault, genocide, trauma, and other horrifying subjects. Course Learning Objectives: This course cultivates a deeper understanding of the First World War. Students will learn to critically interrogate primary sources and secondary texts and be introduced to their historiographical relevance within the multifaceted and interdisciplinary field of First World War studies. A student who passes the class should be able to demonstrate:

1. Familiarization with the war’s contours and its global reach. 2. Familiarization with leading scholarly interpretations of the war’s origins, conduct,

and consequences. 3. An ability to engage with and critically analyze primary sources from the war era. 4. An ability to present their own research findings in a public forum.

1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2004), xxiv.

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Class Meetings: Class meetings are an invaluable and mandatory part of Honors 4920. They are designed to encourage student discussion and learning in an interactive environment. In class we will learn to critically examine the materials we read, actively work to improve our verbal and written communication skills, and strengthen our capacity for analyzing the history of the First World War. Please come prepared to participate actively in every class meeting. Attendance and Participation: Active attendance and engagement in the classroom is essential for successful completion of the course. Be punctual to class! Chronic tardiness, early departures, and absences may automatically result in a failing grade. Continuity of Operations & Communications: In event of a major disaster or pandemic that disrupts classroom attendance, instruction will likely continue via email and Canvas. Note: All email communications during the semester concerning student grades and performance should be sent from and will only be sent to the student’s Weber State email account to ensure compliance with FERPA guidelines. Required Texts:

1. Hew Strachan, The First World War (New York: Penguin, 2003) [FWW]. ISBN-13:

2. Allan Kent Powell, Utah and the Great War: The Beehive State and the World War I Experience (Salt Lake City: Utah State Historical Society & the University of Utah Press, 2016). [UGW]

3. Tammy M. Proctor, Civilians in a World at War, 1914-1918 (New York: New York

University Press, 2010). [CWW]

4. Henri Barbusse, Under Fire, trans. Robin Buss (New York: Penguin, 2003 / 1916). [UF]

5. Additional readings and historical documents as assigned and posted on Canvas. Class Requirements:

1. Read your syllabus and rely on it to answer many questions throughout the semester. 2. Attend all class meetings—this is not an online course! I encourage you to take

extensively detailed notes in class and to forge alliances with classmates with whom you can study, proofread each other’s papers, and borrow notes from in the rare event of being absent from class. I do not share my notes with students who miss class.

3. Complete the required reading assignments before class. I encourage you to take notes while you read.

4. Complete all assignments. Grade Criteria:

1. Active participation (including consistent attendance, punctuality, preparation for all meetings, and adhering to an unimpeachable code of classroom conduct that includes

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but is not limited to treating students, staff, and faculty with courtesy by not engaging in disruptive acts and behavior) and fulfillment of class requirements.

2. Quality of the assignments completed. Late writing assignments will receive a letter grade deduction per day the assignment is late.

Opportunities to Excel:

Percent Opportunity Deadline 10 Active Participation in Class n/a 20 Paper 1: Read professor’s review in UHQ + 5 assigned essays in

Powell’s UGW anthology and write a 5-page paper on the theme: The local is global. Answer the question: How did Utah communities participate in an international conflict?

30 January

20 Paper 2: Read Barbusse and write book review of Under Fire according to HNET guidelines—750 words maximum. Although the review should discuss the entire book, it would be wise to focus on a couple of the chapters in Under Fire to exemplify the themes you wish to emphasize.

1 March

10 Read Intro, Chapter 1 + 3 assigned chapters in Tammy Proctor’s CWW monograph and develop list of 5 questions (to be posted on Canvas and brought to class) to ask Dr. Proctor about her Civilians book.

TBA

30 Capstone Project: Research assigned topic and present it during the end-of-semester symposium (includes: developing a 750- to 1,000-word script, a 10-minute oral presentation, and creating a PowerPoint).

17 April

10 Read/listen to songs & lyrics and ponder their relationship to primary source readings by writing 250-word responses to 3 of the topical modules (e.g., Injury, Atrocity, Homefront, etc.).

24 April

Papers: Detailed paper instructions and grading criteria will be circulated at the beginning of the semester and posted online. Plagiarism will result in failure for the course and additional disciplinary action. Students with Disabilities: Any student requiring accommodations or services due to a disability must contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) in Room 181 of the Student Service Center. SSD can also arrange to provide materials (including the syllabus) in alternative formats. You do not need to divulge specific details of your disability to your professor. All discussions concerning disabilities will be treated with the utmost confidence; your professor is happy to assist you. Additional Resources: The professor holds regularly scheduled office hours and will schedule additional time to meet with students by appointment to answer questions and concerns you may have about

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the course, strategize on ways to improve your performance on future assignments, and is available to discuss professional interests and other matters. You are highly encouraged to come to office hours throughout the semester. ORIGINS & EVOLUTION

9 Jan 1. Course Introduction: Fragments of a Total War

11 Jan 2. Sleepwalkers & Suicide Bombers: War’s Outbreak

Read: FWW Intro & Chap. 1; Annika Mombauer, “Guilt or Responsibility? The Hundred-Year Debate on the Origins of World War I,” Central European History, 48 (2015): 541-64; PS: Francis Sheehy Skeffington, “The Writing on the Wall,” unspecified article, 1914, MS 33,622 (6), Sheehy Skeffington Papers, National Library (Dublin), Ireland. Listen—Themes of Inevitability: Franz Ferdinand, “Take Me Out”; Nirvana, “Smells Like Teen Spirit”; White Stripes, “Seven Nation Army”

16 Jan 3. Theatres of War: 1914

Read: FWW Chaps. 2-3; UGW 2 chaps.; Branden Little, Review of UGW, UHQ, 2017. Listen—Themes of Nationalism: Liam Clancy or Rebel Lyrics, “Patriot Game”; Beach Boys, “Be True to Your School”; Clash, “London Calling” and “Death or Glory”

18 Jan 4. Theatres of War: 1915

Read: FWW Chap. 4; PS: “In the Chalk Trenches of Champagne” chapter in Ernst Jünger, Storm of Steel (New York: Penguin 2004 / 1920), 5-15 [pdf].

23 Jan 5. Theatres of War: 1916

Read: FWW Chaps. 5-6; UGW 3 chaps. Listen—Themes of War Management: Bob Dylan, “Masters of War”; Cake, “War Pigs” cover; Rolling Stones, “Paint it Black”; The Cure, “Fire in Cairo”; Clash, “Guns of Brixton”

25 Jan 6. Theatres of War: 1917

Read: FWW Chap. 7; Martin Quinn and William J. Jackson, “Accounting for war risk costs: management accounting change at Guinness during the First World War,” Accounting History Review, 24.2-3 (2014): 191-209.

30 Jan 7. Theatres of War: 1918

DUE: Essay on UGW

Read: FWW Chap. 8

1 Feb 8. Problems of Peacemaking

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Read: FWW Chaps. 9-10 Listen—Themes of Overthrow & Finality: The Cure, “Grinding Halt”; James, “Sit Down”; Nina Simone, “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”; Run DMC, “Down with the King”; Lorne Greene, “I’m a Gun”

CONDUCT & CONTOURS

6 Feb 9. Industrialized Killing I: Sea Warfare

Read: UF Intro-Chap. 4; PS: Deposition of Captain Thomas Andersen’s account of the loss of the SS Storstad, Hoover Institution Library and Archive, Stanford, CA.

8 Feb 10. Industrialized Killing II: Land Warfare

Read: UF Chaps. 5-7

13 Feb 11. Battle & Its Accoutrements

Read: UF Chaps. 8-11

15 Feb 12. The Trench

Read: UF Chaps. 12-15; Nathan Wise, “ ‘Dig, dig, dig, until you are safe’: constructing the Australian trenches on Gallipoli,” FWWS, 3.1 (Mar. 2012): 51-64; PS: Entries from the “War Journal” diary of Norman Leslie, 1914, folder 2 / 2/132, MS 49,495, National Library, Dublin, Ireland + Ian d’Alton, “Norman Leslie and the Great War,” Irish Times, Oct. 13, 2014 (7 pps.).

20 Feb 13. Injury

Read: UF Chaps. 16-18; Fiona Reid, “ ‘My Friends Looked at Me in Horror’: Idealizations of Wounded Men in the First World War,” Peace & Change, 41.1 (Jan. 2016): 64-77; Caroline Alexander, “ ‘Shell-Shock’—The 100 Year Mystery May Now Be Solved,” National Geographic online, June 9, 2016; Caroline Alexander, “Blast Force: The Invisible War on the Brain,” National Geographic online (2017). Listen—Themes of Confusion: Ingrid Michaelson, “Breakable”; Pixies, “Where is my Mind?”; Johnny Cash, “Hurt”; Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine”; Velvet Underground, “Pale Blue Eyes”; Elliot Smith, “Needle in the Hay”

22 Feb 14. Endurance

Read: UF Chaps. 19-21; Benjamin Cameron Schaffer, “Enduring for the Patients’ Sake: The Emotional Experiences and Endurance of American Ambulance Drivers in World War I,” U.S. Army Medical Department Journal (Jan.-Jun. 2017): 115-23; PS: Thomas K. Moylan, “A Dubliner's Diary, 1914-1918,” 8 Oct. 1914 entry, MS 9,620, National Library (Dublin), Ireland.

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Listen—Themes of Perseverance: Peter, Bjorn, & John, “Breaking Point”; Gloria Gainor, “I Will Survive”; Ingrid Michaelson, “Soldier”; Animals, “We Gotta Get Out of this Place”

27 Feb 15. Homefronts

Read: UF Chaps. 22-24; CWW intro, 1 Listen—Themes of Intimacy, Unfaithfulness & Faith: Perry Como, “Killing Me Softly”; “Peggy O”; Neil Diamond, “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon.”; Nina Simone, “Wild is the Wind”; Etta James, “This is a Man’s World”; Kanye West, “Jesus Walks”; Nina Simone, “I Put a Spell on You”; Cars, “Best Friend’s Girlfriend”; Hank Williams, “My Son Calls another Man ‘Daddy’”

1 Mar. 16. Class Discussion with Professor Tammy Proctor (TBD)

DUE: Book Review of UF

Read: CWW 3 chaps.

6-8 Mar. NO CLASS [Spring Break]

13 Mar 17. Shirkers, Scapegoats, & Demagogues

Read: Branden Little, “Wilsonianism: Warts and All,” Review of Lloyd Ambrosius, Woodrow Wilson and American Internationalism (Cambridge University Press, 2017); in H-FEDHIST), H-NET Reviews (Dec. 2017).

15 Mar. 18. Atrocity

Read: “The Burning of Louvain” chapter in Alan Kramer, Dynamic of Destruction: Culture and Mass Killing in the First World War (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007), 6-30; PS: Louise Vickery to Australian Government, 8 May 1915, File: Alleged German Atrocities, European War, 1914, AWM25/317/1, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, Australia (3 pps.). Listen—Themes of Incoherence: Cranberries, “Zombie”; Misfits, “Skulls”; Laverne Baker, “Evil Bumblebee”; Killers, “All These Things I’ve Done”

20 Mar 19. Humanitarians I: Soldiers’ Relief

Read: Branden Little, “State, Civil Society, and Relief Organizations for War,” 1914-1918-Online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War (Oct. 2014); Melanie Oppenheimer and Margrette Kleinig, “ ‘There is no trace of him’: the Australian Red Cross, its Wounded and Missing Bureaux and the 1915 Gallipoli Campaign,” FWWS, 6.1 (Nov. 2015): 277-92.

22 Mar 20. Humanitarians II: Civilian Relief

Read: Branden Little, “A Child’s Army of Millions: the American Junior Red Cross,” in Children's Literature and Culture of the First World War. Lissa Paul, Rosemary Ross Johnson, Emma Short, eds. (New York: Routledge, 2016), 283-300; Melanie

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Tanielian, “Politics of Wartime Relief in Ottoman Beirut (1914-1918),” FWWS, 5.1 (Mar. 2014): 69-82.

CONSEQUENCES & LEGACIES

27 Mar 21. New Maps & New Men

Read: Leonard V. Smith, “Drawing Borders in the Middle East after the Great War: Political Geography and ‘Subject Peoples’’, FWWS, 7.1 (Mar. 2016): 5-22. Listen—Themes of Strained Relationships: Roger Robinson, “New Maps”; Love & Rockets, “Ball of Confusion”; Jefferson Airplane, “Eat Starch, Mom”; Bruce Springsteen, “Born in the USA”

29 Mar NO CLASS [Professor accompanying ROTC staff ride]

3 Apr 22. Innocence Lost (?)

Read: Tim Dayton, “Alan Seeger: Medievalism as an alternative ideology,” FWWS, 3.2 (Oct. 2012): 125-44; PS: Wilfred Owen, “Futility” (1918).

5 Apr 23. Apprenticeship for Apocalypse

Read: Brendan Simms, “Against a ‘world of enemies’: the impact of the First World War on the development of Hitler’s ideology,” International Affairs, 90.2 (2014): 317-36. Listen—Themes of Mythmaking & Authority: Cab Calloway, “Doing the Reactionary”; Lana Del Rey, “Born to Die”; Nirvana, “The Man Who Sold The World”; Rolling Stones, “Sympathy for the Devil”; Led Zeppelin, “Battle of Evermore”

10 Apr 24. The Centenary: Liturgy or “Goodbye to All That”?

Read: Chris Haslam, “Does the WWI tourist trade exploit the memory of the fallen?” BBC News Magazine, Nov. 8, 2014; Church of England, “Readings and Prayers to Commemorate the Battle of the Somme, 1st July 1916” (2014?); Church of England, “An Outline for a Service Around a First World War Memorial” (2014?); Alpha Ceesay, “Reclaiming Remembrance: ‘I thought it was a white event,’” BBC News, Nov. 12, 2017. Listen—Themes of Loss: Black Keys, “Unknown Brother”; Violent Femmes, “Memory”; Billy Murray, “Over Here, Over There”

12 Apr 25. Rotational Class (TBA)

Read: TBA

17 Apr 26. Symposium

Do: Participate in Symposium, 12-5pm, at Hetzel-Hoellein Room, Library 321

19 Apr 27. Hotwash / Last Class Meeting

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Read: Margaret Macmillan, “World War I: The War That Changed Everything,” Wall Street Journal, June 20, 2014.

Last Thing to Do

Online Class Evaluations

Text Abbreviations: Strachan, The First World War [FWW] /Powell, Utah and the Great War [UGW] / Proctor, Civilians in a World at War [CWW] / Barbusse, Under Fire [UF]