FYS 1036 AMERICAN WEST NEW PERSPECTIVES

The American West has long been a defining region in the history of the United States, the region that distinguished the United States from Europe and invented the democratic system.  But how much of what Americans know about the West, how much of what they see in film or read about in textbooks is true?  How much is instead the stuff of the myths that undergird white privilege, environmental degradation, and militarization?  Using diaries, photography, film, maps, and literature, students will revisit and bring new perspectives to the classic stories and characters of the West, including the Lewis and Clark expedition, the California Gold Rush, and the homesteading experience.  They will ask new questions about the role and experiences of Native people of the West, women, laborers, and immigrants, among others. They will bring these questions into the present day with deep dives into contemporary problems in the Western environment, political landscape, and race relations.