Sample Final: Spring 98

Stanley K. Schultz, Professor of History
William P. Tishler, Producer
Shane Hamilton, Web Editor

Final Exam Review Materials

The following is a sample final exam given during the Spring 1998 semester.

Cumulative

1. Some historians have argued that the great increase in size and power of the federal government since the Civil War is one of the dominant themes of American history. Trace the growth of the federal government since 1865, paying particular attention to its evolving involvement in world affairs and the domestic economy. Be sure to support your argument with relevant historical details.

2. Some historians have referred to the modern Civil Rights Movement as the "Second Reconstruction." Do you think the comparison between the first era of reconstruction (post-Civil War years to the early twentieth century) and the so-called second era of reconstruction (1950s to the 1970s) is accurate? Compare and contrast the attempts to create and safeguard African American civil rights in these two periods. Your answer should consider government policies, African American strategies, and white responses.

3. "The United States has never entered a war for purely idealistic reasons. Its primary goal has always been the defense of vital national interests." Assess the accuracy of this statement with reference to any three (3) of the following: the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, the Cold War or Vietnam. Be sure to explain what you mean by "idealistic reasons" and "national interests." Remember to support your argument with relevant historical details.

Post-Midterm

1. Since the Great Depression, the United States has experienced two reform programs: Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal of the 1930s and Lyndon Johnson's Great Society of the 1960s. Compare and contrast the goals and results of these programs, being sure you include specific reform measures enacted under them. Explain how and why the federal government took an increasingly active role in the economy and social structure of the United States in these two decades.

2. Since the end of WWII, the Cold War has shaped the history of the U.S. and the world. What was the Cold War? Why and when did it start? How did it affect U.S. foreign relations from the end of the Second World War to dŽtente? How did it impact the American domestic scene?

3. Historians and contemporaries often have described the 1920s and 1950s as the golden years of "affluence" and "prosperity" in the United States. Compare and discuss the nature of the two "prosperous eras." What gave rise to the economy of the two decades, and how did the booming economy shape the social and cultural dynamics of the times? What were the features and phenomena that distinguished the '50s from the '20s? In your essay, be sure to discuss the economy, mass culture, and the politics of the two decades.

ID List For Final Exam

NOTE: On the final exam, you are responsible for answering five short-answer Ids. The exam will offer you a choice of terms, but make sure you cover the entire list!

Marshall Plan
Domino Theory
Brown v. Board of Education
Keynesian Economics
Court Packing Plan
"War On Poverty" - Economic Opportunity Act (1964)
Containment
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
Taft-Hartley
Black Power Movement
National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) (1933)
Watergate
Scopes Monkey Trial
Sputnik
Malcolm Little
McCarthyism
George Babbitt
G.I. Bill
Rosie the Riveter
John L. Lewis
Thurgood Marshall
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
Manhattan Project
Cuban Missile Crisis
Sacco and Vanzetti
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Tet Offensive
Non-violent Direct Action
Levittown
National Organization of Women (NOW)
Little Rock Central High School
Teapot Dome
NSC-68
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Neutrality Acts (1935, '36, '37)
Interstate Highway Act
Elijah Muhammed
Japanese Internment
Environmental Protection Act (1970)
Huey P. Long
Brains Trust
The Great Society
Detente
John Dos Passos
Jurgis Rudkis
The Beats

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