Section:            MW 1:00-2:25; SOCS 207; Section 2384

Office:              202G Social Sciences

e-mail:              cgold@elcamino.edu

Phone:              310-660-3751

Office Hours:    Mon. 9:30-10:30; 12-1:00; 2:30-3:00

                        Tues. 3:30-4:00
                        Wed. 9:30-10:30; 12-1:00

Syllabus for Spring 2008:

Course Description

This course surveys the political, social and economic history of Los Angeles from its earliest settlement by Native Californians to the present.  Topics include the environment, urban development, race and ethnicity, the entertainment industry and the media’s portrayal of Los Angeles.  Special emphasis is given to the expanding role of Los Angeles as a global city that serves as a destination for diverse immigrant populations and a center of international commerce.

Grade Distribution

2 Midterms                   40%

Final Exam                   20%

5 Reading Reviews       25%

Participation                 15%

Assigned Readings

Arthur Verge.  Paradise Transformed:  Los Angeles During the Second World War.  Kendall Hall Pub. Co., 2001.

Course Reader.  Available for sale in the ECC book store.

Midterms and Final Exam

The midterms and final exam will include identifications, a primary document analysis, and an essay question.  You will be given study questions to help you prepare, and you must use a blue book on the day of the test.  Blue books may be purchased in the student store.

Lectures

Students are responsible for all the information conveyed in the lectures.  Students should take notes during lecture and should borrow someone’s notes for days that they are absent.  The lecture outlines are in the course reader, which should be brought to class every day.

Reading Assignments

Students should complete the assigned reading before coming to class.  Do not fall behind in the reading, as it will be difficult to catch up.  Try to make it a habit to do your class reading in the evening or day before we meet. 

Reading Reviews

Students will write five 2-3 page reviews of the course reading.  The questions and instructions are in the course reader.

Participation

Active participation in class discussion is important to success in the course.  Assigned readings must be completed in order to effectively participate. Your final participation grade is based on your attendance, group projects, and class participation.

Group Discussion

Every week students will divide into small groups to discuss primary document materials.  Group answers will be graded and will form part of the participation grade.  In the event of absence, students are permitted to make-up two group discussions.

Attendance

Attendance will be taken at the beginning of every class.  More than four absences in the semester will adversely impact your grade.  One percentage point will be deducted per absence over three unless written notification of a medical or other extraordinary reason is provided.

Classroom Etiquette, Cheating, and Late Policy

Students are expected to treat each other and the Professor respectfully.  Disruptive behavior interrupts learning and creates a tense classroom environment.  Please contribute to a positive learning experience for yourself and the other students. Arrive on time, prepared to participate in class.  If you need to leave early, please notify the Professor before class.  Out of respect for all the students’ hard work, cheating and plagiarism will absolutely not be tolerated.  Plagiarism occurs when you take credit for the original ideas and/or words of another person.  Plagiarism or cheating on any assignment or exam will incur a 0 for the grade.  For late assignments, the grade will be reduced by one full grade for each class meeting it is late. 

WEEKLY TOPICS, READINGS AND ASSIGNMENTS

Week One

Feb. 11            Introduction

Feb. 13            L.A. Geography, Environment and Natural Disaster

                        Reading Assignment:  Mike Davis, Ecology of Fear, pp. 5-55

Week Two

Feb. 18            Holiday – President’s Day

Feb. 20            Native Americans

                        Reading Assignment:     Douglas Monroy, Thrown Among Strangers,
                                                            pp. 3-18.

                        Group Discussion:         Native American Stories and the Environment

Week Three

Feb. 25            Spanish Exploration and Settlement, 1781-1821

                        Reading Review #1 Due

Reading Assignment:     Douglas Monroy, Thrown Among Strangers,
                                                pp. 18-39.

                        Group Discussion:         The Pueblo’s Original Settlers

Feb. 27            The Spanish Mission System - San Gabriel Mission

                        Reading Assignment:     Douglas Monroy, Thrown Among Strangers,
                                                            pp. 39-50.

Week Four

March 3          The Mexican Era, 1821-1848

Reading Assignment:     Gloria Miranda, “Racial and Cultural Dimensions of Gente de Razon in Spanish and Mexican California,” pp. 265-78

                        Group Discussion:         Romanticization of the Spanish and Mexican Eras

March 5          U.S. Exploration and Settlement

                        Reading Assignment:     Bill Deverell, Whitewashed Adobe, pp. 11-25

                        Group Discussion:         Chinatown Massacre

Week Five

March 10        Urban Growth and Boosterism:  1870s-1910s

                        Reading Review #2 Due

Reading Assignment:  Carey McWilliams, Southern California:  An Island on the Land, pp. 113-134.

March 12        Urban Growth and Boosterism:  1870s-1910s

                        Group Discussion:  Residential Architecture

Week Six

March 17        Midterm #1

March 19        Urban Problems and Reform, 1890-1930

                        Reading Assignment:     Mark Wild, Street Meeting, pp. 121-147

                        Group Discussion:  Community Planning and Leimert Park

Week Seven

March 24        Radicalism and Unions in the Early Twentieth Century

March 26        The 1920s:  More Boosterism and Growth

                        Reading Assignment:     Becky Nicolaides, My Blue Heaven, pp. 9-38.

                        Group Discussion:         Boosterism and Selling Los Angeles

Week Eight

March 31        The 1920s:  More Boosterism and Growth

                        Mexican Immigration in the Early Twentieth Century

Reading Assignment:  George Sanchez, Becoming Mexican American,   pp. 171-187.

April 2            Mexican Immigration in the Early Twentieth Century

                        Reading Review #3 Due

                        Group Discussion:         The Mexican Immigrant Experience

Spring Break – April 7 — 11

Week Nine

April 14           Hollywood and the Film Industry

                        Reading Assignment:     Kevin Starr, Inventing the Dream,

                                                            pp. 283-339.

April 16           Hollywood and the Film Industry

Week Ten

April 21           Film:  One Week, Buster Keaton.

                        Group Discussion:        One Week

April 23           Midterm #2

Week Eleven

April 28           The Great Depression

                        Reading Assignment:     Ralph Eastman, “’Pitchin’ up a Boogie,’”
                                                            pp. 79-97.

                        Group Discussion:         Upton Sinclair’s EPIC Program

April 30           Film Noir:  Double Indemnity, 1944.

Week Twelve

May 5             Film Noir:  Double Indemnity, 1944.

                        Group Discussion:  Double Indemnity.

May 7             World War II

                        Reading Review #4 Due

                        Reading Assignment:     Arthur Verge, Paradise Transformed, entire.

Group Discussion:         Paradise Transformed (bring the book with you to class).

Week Thirteen

May 12           Post War Los Angeles

                        Reading Assignment:  D.J. Waldie, Holy Land, pp. 4-16; 33-46

May 14           Post War Los Angeles

Reading Assignment:     Eric Avila, Popular Culture in the Age of White Flight, pp. 120-144.

                        Group Project:              Disneyland

Week Fourteen

May 19           The 1960s

Reading Assignment:     Josh Sides, L.A. City Limits, pp. 131-168.

            Group Discussion:         Rock Music

May 21           The 1970s and 1980s

                        Reading Review #5 Due

Reading Assignment:     Nadine and Donald Hata, “Introduction to the Mainstream,” pp. 87-108          

Week Fifteen

May 26           Holiday – Memorial Day

May 28           The 1990s

Reading Assignment:     Mike Davis, City of Quartz,” pp. 223-236

Group Discussion:Rap Music

Week Sixteen

June 2             Final Exam

June 4             Pick-up final exam and course grade consultation

Online Resources: 

Los Angeles Public Library

Los Angeles and the Problem of Urban Historical Knowledge

LA as Subject