| Response sheet 11, for class, Tuesday | |
|
This week I am once again adjusting the course syllabus, hence we will be investigating the history of the United States with respect to Russia, since Russia is daily in the news. 1. After years of roiling political tension, 1859 brought the United States closer to the unexpected — an outbreak of civil war. What did the Southern Literary Messenger fantasize about the future? What kind of world was envisioned? How did Russia figure in? 2. In 1867, the American Civil War had given way to the arduous aftermath of any war, inviting new visions of the future, as in these two companion essays in The Round Table. In what ways was the world imagined to be changing, creating opportunities for Russia to become a “great power”? 3. And in what ways was the world imagined to be changing, creating opportunities for the United States to become a “great power” parallel to Russia? |