Master of American History and Government

Ashland University

AHG 607:

America during the Cold War

Instructors: John Moser and David Krugler

Sunday July 8 Friday July 13, 2007

Course Focus:

The simmering conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union from 1945 to 1989 was the defining phenomenon of the age, affecting not only the country’s foreign policy but its politics, society, economy, and culture as well. In this course, students will examine the most important events, ideas, and personalities of the 45 years from the end of World War II to the early years of the first Bush administration. We will address key historical debates on topics including the origins of the Cold War; the development of atomic and nuclear weapons; McCarthyism; the expansion of the Cold War beyond Europe; race relations; the growth of the "imperial presidency," human rights, neoconservatism, and the end of the Cold War. The course will also give detailed attention to Cold War crises—including the Korean War, the Taiwan Strait, Berlin, Cuba, and Vietnam—and their impact on American domestic society. Lectures and discussions will focus on a mix of primary documents and influential interpretative texts.

Learning Objectives:

1. Students will understand how the groundwork for the Cold War was laid during World War II.
2. Students will understand how and why the policy of containment was adapted and applied by various administrations over the course of the Cold War.
3. Students will understand how and why the Cold War spread from Europe to other parts of the world, particularly to East Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
4. Students will understand the effects of the Cold War on American politics, society, and culture.
5. Students will understand the role that nuclear weapons played international affairs.
6. Students will understand the reasons why the Cold War came to an end.

Course Requirements:

1. One lesson plan, in proper format, designed to convey a subject covered in the seminar to classes of high school or middle school students.
2. A final essay examination.

Students auditing the course as a part of a Teaching American History Grant program must complete the readings and fully participate in the seminars during the week.

Required Texts:

1. Jussi M. Hanhimaki and Odd Arne Westad, The Cold War: A History in Documents and Eyewitness Accounts. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN: 0199272808
2. Course Pack (CP)



Schedule:

Sunday, July 8

4:30 6:00 pm: Session 1: Professor Krugler

Topic: World War II and the Origins of the Cold War

Focus: Why did the Polish Government in Exile express concerns about the Atlantic Charter? How successfully did Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill fulfill the goals of the Atlantic Charter once Germany was defeated? What motives drove Soviet policies in Eastern Europe, and how well did the leaders of the United States and Great Britain understand them? What were the major disagreements between the Soviet Union, the United States, and Great Britain over postwar Europe, especially concerning Germany and Poland? Is it historically accurate to state that the Cold War began during World War II? If so, how could it have been avoided?

Readings:

• The Cold War, Documents 1.8 through 1.12, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 (pp. 20-47)
• The Atlantic Charter, 1941 (CP 5)
• President Roosevelt’s Message to Congress on the Atlantic Charter, 1941 (CP 7)
• The Ambassador to the Polish Government in Exile (Biddle) to the Secretary of State, 1941 (CP 9)
• The Polish Embassy to the Department of State, 1941 (CP 15)
• Proceedings of the Yalta (Crimea) Conference, 1945, Parts I-VII (CP 17)

7:00 8:30 pm Institute Lecture

Monday, July 9

9:00 — 10:30 am: Session 2: Professor Moser

Topic: Containment in Theory and Practice, 1946-1950

Focus: What was "containment," and why was it such an appealing and enduring strategy? What did it set out to accomplish, both in the short and long terms? How was it applied to deal with the European challenges of the late 1940s? What were the main objections to the containment policy, both from the Left and from the Right?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 4.1-4.4, 4.6, 4.8-4.9, 4.11
• "Achieving an Atmosphere of Mutual Trust and Confidence": Henry A. Wallace Offers an Alternative to Cold War Containment (CP 29)
• Henry A. Wallace, Speech on the Truman Doctrine, March 27, 1947 (CP 37)
• Charles W. Vursell, Speech on the Marshall Plan, December 4, 1947 (CP 39)
• Robert A. Taft, Speech on the North Atlantic Treaty, July 26, 1949 (CP 41)
• Dean G. Acheson’s Speech in Washington, April 22, 1950 (CP 43
• Acheson’s Speech at Berkeley, California, March 16, 1950 (CP 45)

10:50 am — 12:20 pm: Session 3: Professor Moser

Topic: The Cold War in Asia, 1945-1953

Focus: Why was containment so much less successful in Asia than in Europe? How did the Cold War alter U.S. plans for postwar Japan? Did the U.S. State Department "lose" China? Why did war break out in Korea? Why did the United States intervene? Why did the war become so unpopular?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 5.3, 5.6-5.9, 6.1-6.4, 6.6, 6.9, 6.11
• John Paton Davies’s Observations on the Struggle for Power in China, 1943-44 (CP 51)
• Nathaniel Peffer’s Argument Against Involvement in the Chinese Civil War, July 1947 (CP 53)
• Vandenberg’s Observations on China, 1948-1950 (CP 57)
• Acheson’s Speech on the Far East, January 12, 1950 (CP 61)
• Harry S. Truman, Speech Explaining the Firing of MacArthur, April 13, 1951 (CP 65)
• Alexander Wiley, Speech on the Firing of MacArthur, April 17, 1951 (CP 67)
• Douglas MacArthur Defends his Conduct in the War in Korea, April 19, 1951 (CP 69)

4:30 — 6:00 pm: Session 4: Professor Moser

Topic: "Red Scare" or "Red Menace"?

Focus: To what extent could communism be viewed as a domestic as well as a foreign threat? How did the post-World War II "red scare" compare with that of 1919-1920? Was there any truth to the accusations of McCarthy and other anticommunists? Why did anticommunism lose its political potency by the late 1950s?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 1.1-1.2, 6.10
• "We Must Keep the Labor Unions Clean": "Friendly" HUAC Witnesses Ronald Reagan and Walt Disney Blame Hollywood Labor Conflicts on Communist Infiltration (CP 75)
• "They Want to Muzzle Public Opinion": John Howard Lawson’s Warning to the American Public (CP 87)
• Speech on Truman’s Loyalty Program, June 27, 1947 (CP 97)
• Statement by the President on the Government’s Employee Loyalty Program, November 14, 1947 (CP 101)
• "Enemies from Within": Senator Joseph R. McCarthy’s Accusations of Disloyalty (CP 103)
• President Harry S. Truman Responds to Senator Joseph R. McCarthy’s Accusations of Disloyalty (CP 107)
• Speech Explaining the Communist Threat, June 2, 1950 (CP 113)
• Speech on the Veto of the McCarran Internal Security Act, September 22, 1950 (CP 115)
• "Have You No Sense of Decency": The Army-McCarthy Hearings (CP 117)

Tuesday, July 10

9:00 — 10:30 am: Session 5: Professor Krugler

Topic: Propaganda and Culture

Focus: In what ways were American and Soviet propaganda efforts similar? How did they differ? In what ways did Soviet propaganda efforts support espionage and counter-espionage? Why was the United States often seen as the enemy of political, cultural, and intellectual freedom? What were the purposes and content of U.S. broadcasting to communist nations? What impact did U.S. broadcasts have in Eastern Europe?

Readings:

• The Cold War, Documents 13.2, 13.3
• The KGB’s 1967 Annual Report (CP 131)
• CIA untitled overview of Radio Free Europe, December 1949 (CP 137)
• Voice of America script, September 8, 1950 (CP 145)
• Cold War Broadcasting Impact, Report on a Conference organized by the Hoover Institution and the Cold War International History Project of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, at Stanford University, October 13-16, 2004 (read Sessions 1-5, pp. 1-30) (CP 149)

10:50 am — 12:20 pm: Session 6: Professor Moser

Topic: Eisenhower and the New Look

Focus: What was the Eisenhower—Dulles critique of containment? Did the New Look represent a repudiation of containment, or merely a modification of the policy? What role did nuclear weapons play in Eisenhower’s strategy? Was Eisenhower’s approach to world affairs effective, or did it simply represent a failure to deal with international problems that would haunt succeeding administrations?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 7.2, 9.3, 9.7, 12.3-12.4
• John Foster Dulles and the New Policy of Boldness, May 1952 (CP 207)
• Dulles’s Statement on Liberation Policy, January 15, 1953 (CP 211)
• Hans J. Morgenthau’s Observations on Massive Retaliation, March 1954 (CP 213)
• Special Message to the Congress on the situation in the Middle East, January 5, 1957 (CP 217)
• Report to the American People Regarding the Situation in the Formosa Straits, September 11, 1958 (CP 225)
• The U-2 Incident, 1960 (CP 231)

4:30 — 6:00 pm: Session 7: Professor Krugler

Topic: Espionage and Covert Operations

Focus: Why were both the United States and Soviet Union enamored of espionage and covert operations? Why did propaganda and psychological warfare have such a large part in both nations’ covert operations? How did the U.S. actions in Guatemala and Iran demonstrate the advantages and disadvantages of covert operations? Was Guatemala experiencing a Soviet-style communist revolution in the 1950s?

Readings:

• The Cold War, Documents 14.1-4.5, 14.7
• CIA memorandum, "Communist Penetration of Guatemala," February 16, 1954 (CP 243)
• Nicholas Cullather, "Operation PBSUCCESS: The United States and Guatemala 1952-1954," 1994 (CP 251)
• Gerald K. Haines, "CIA and Guatemala Assassination Proposals 1952-1954," June 1995.(CP 275)

Wednesday, July 11

9:00 — 10:30 am: Session 8: Professor Krugler

Topic: Domestic Effects of the Cold War

Focus: Albert Einstein and Bertrand Russell warned that nuclear war could well exterminate the human race: why, then, did the Federal Civil Defense Administration (FCDA) work so hard to convince Americans they could survive a nuclear war? What tactics did the FCDA use to promote this belief? Who seemed to be the primary audience for civil defense volunteerism and activity? Why were Americans so focused on—and worried about—family and marriage during the 1950s? How did Dr. Strangelove satirize the Cold War?

Readings:

• The Cold War, Documents 9.5, 9.12, 13.15
• Federal Civil Defense Administration, "Warning Red," 1956 short film. (To be viewed during session)
• Federal Civil Defense Administration, Warden’s Handbook, December 1951 (CP 289)
• Federal Civil Defense Administration, "Atomic Blast Creates Fire; Are You Prepared?," 1951 (CP 295)
• Federal Civil Defense Administration, "Bert the Turtle Says Duck and Cover," n.d. (CP 297)
• David Bromwich, "Kubrick’s Nuclear Lantern,"New Leader Vol. 77, Issue 10 (October 10, 1994) (CP 307)
• "’Men Without Women’: Look Magazine Offers a Guide to the Unmarried Man" (1960) (CP 311)
• "’Bring Sex Out of the Closet of Fear’: A Psychologist Argues that Sex Education Can Save the American Family" (1954) (CP 317)
• Steven Mintz, "The Modern Family" (CP 325)

10:50 am — 12:20 pm: Session 9: Professor Moser

Topic: The Problem of Cuba

Focus: What made Cuba so different from Guatemala? In other words, why did U.S. efforts to keep communism out of the western hemisphere fail? Why did Kennedy attempt the Bay of Pigs invasion, despite warnings that it wouldn’t work? Why did the Soviets place missiles in Cuba? Why was this viewed as such a threatening development in the United States? Does the Cuban Missile Crisis deserve to be viewed as an American victory?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 12.5, 15.1
• Internal Memorandum within the CIA about Cuba, 4 January 1961 (CP 331)
• Memorandum Prepared by the CIA, 19 January 1961 (CP 337)
• Memorandum of Conference with President Kennedy, 25 January 1961 (CP 343)
• Memorandum for the Secretary of State, 15 February 1961 (CP 345)
• Memorandum for the Secretary of State, 31 March 1961 (CP 349)
• Memorandum for President Kennedy, 18 April 1961 (CP 353)
• Statement by President John F. Kennedy on Cuba, September 4, 1962 (CP 355)
• Off-the-Record Meeting on Cuba, October 16, 1962 (CP 357)

4:30 — 6:00 pm: Session 10: Professor Krugler

Topic: The Arms Race

Focus: What were the effects of the arms race, not just for the Soviet Union and the United States, but the rest of the world as well? What, exactly, was the "military-industrial complex"? What were the results of arms reduction talks and treaties between the Soviet Union and the United States? Based upon the sources in The Cold War, what do you think would have been the results of a nuclear war in 1954? In 1961? In 1979?

Readings:

• The Cold War, Documents 9.1-9.4, 9.6-9.11, 9.13-9.16
• National Resources Defense Council, "Table of Global Nuclear Weapons Stockpiles, 1945-2002" (CP 413)

Thursday, July 12

9:00 — 10:30 am: Session 11: Professor Krugler

Topic: Vietnam and Southeast Asia

Focus: What attracted Vietnamese in the south to the Viet Cong? How well did American policymakers understand Vietnamese communism and nationalism? What was the war like for combatants of both sides? Why did the United States expand the war into Cambodia and Laos? Why did it take the United States and North Vietnam so long to reach a truce? Why didn’t the United States achieve its goal of keeping at least part of Vietnam out of communist control?

Readings:

• The Cold War, Documents 7.1-7.14
• "Department of Defense Report on Selected Air and Ground Operations in Cambodia and Laos," September 10, 1973, pp. 1—18 (CP 419)
• Frank Denton, "Volunteers for the Viet Cong," September 1968, pp. iii—xii of the preface (CP 453)

10:50 am — 12:20 pm: Session 12: Professor Moser

Topic: Dtente and its Discontents

Focus: How had the international landscape changed by the late 1960s? Why did the Nixon administration seek dtente? What were the policy’s notable successes and failures? Who were the chief critics of dtente, and why? Why did dtente fall apart in the late 1970s?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 15.4-15.10, 16.1-16.3, 16.5-16.13
• Congressman John M. Ashbrook on dtente (CP 487)

4:30 — 6:00 pm: Session 13: Professor Krugler

Topic: Reagan and the Cold War

Focus: Why was the Soviet Union in such dire straits in the 1980s? In what ways did the Iran-Contra affair resemble previous covert operations, such as those carried out in Iran and Guatemala? How was it different? Ronald Reagan was highly critical of detente, yet as President he reached out to the Soviet Union—why? Why did Reagan believe it was imperative for the United States to fund the Contras and SDI?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 16.4, 17.1, 17.10-17.13, 17.15
• National Security Archive, "The Iran-Contra Affair 20 Years On," National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 210, November 24, 2006. Read Introduction; Documents 1, 3, 4, 14, 16 (CP 491)
• National Security Decision Directive 192 (regarding SDI), October 11, 1985 (CP 513)

Friday, July 13

9:00 — 10:30 am: Session 14: Professor Moser

Topic: The End of the Cold War

Focus: Why did the Cold War end? Do we miss it? Should we?

Readings:

• The Cold War, documents 17.3, 17.5, 18.2-18.3, 18.8, 18.10, 18.12-18.14, 19.3, 19.7, 19.10
• John J. Mearsheimer, "Why We Will Soon Miss the Cold War," August 1990(CP 517)

10:50 am 12:20 pm: Session 16: Professors Krugler and Moser

Session Review and Questions

1:30 pm 3:00 pm: Session 17

Final Comprehensive Examination