Write on both questions.

Question 1: Was the Vietnam War justifiable and fought in an honorable manner?  Give evidence to support your opinion. What was the intent behind the American involvement (from Eisenhower through Johnson)?  What were the public arguments for and against the war? Did the United States achieve its goals set in the “peace with honor” policy of the Nixon Administration?  

Question 2: Describe the general conditions of African-Americans from the 40s though the sixties.  How did they view their predicament (see the Zinn docs, especially) and what did they do about it?

Each essay should be at least 750 words.  It must be double spaced and typed in 12 point Times New Roman font.  (These are short essays, so you don’t have time to puff them up.  Get right to the point and support each claim with evidence. Do not use overly long quotes.  If a quote is more than a sentence or two, briefly summarize it, but still cite it.

 • Unless you have a truly coherent thematic structure in mind, make the elements of the outline chronological.  Remember, this is History class, not a Sociology class.  In History, we look for coherence and causal relationships within chronological frames.  This allows us to see context and not just random events. 

• Begin with a strong thesis statement followed by relevant evidence from the readings and lectures.  Cite Foner as (Foner pg.#); cite the Zinn documents by the author of the document of title if the author is anonymous, for example (Ginsburg 454);  and cite the presentations/lectures as Colling + lecture/slide #, e.g. (Colling 5/42).   

• In addition to the Foner text and lectures, you must use at least three primary documents for evidence.  These can be found in Zinn.  They are your choice, but you must use the primary documents as significant sources to make your case.  

• The essays must include references to all of the assigned readings and only assigned readings.  Again, use Foner, Zinn, and lectures only.  (I will not read the essay if it employs outside sources.  The purpose of the essays is to determine whether you’ve read the assigned readings, viewed lectures, and understood the material as presented.)

• Do not plagiarize.  If you use any sources other than Foner, Zinn, or the presentations, you will fail the exam (0 points).