 |
Michael
Trotti |
|
Michael
Trotti |
Venture I
 |
A Nation Turns from Peace to World War |
On June 27, 1914, the nations of Europe were at peace, Austro-Hungarian Archduke Francis Ferdinand was alive, and the conflagration of the next four years was not yet imagined. The same could not be said the next day. Find what the New York Times was writing about on the following three dates as the western world spiraled into heck. I want you to find this yourselves, though I will give you this guidance. The New York Times is available on microfilm in the library. It is also available via an amazingly useful Proquest Hisotrical New York Times database accessible through the library's website. One central point of this venture is to get you used to accessing this terrific resource, because it will be of interest to most all of you in your research projects later.
1. Get a sense of the transitions Americans had to make to these momentous events by skimming the NYT coverage of the following dates:
June 27, 1914 -- what were the concerns of the paper before the war broke out. Give a quick perusal
June 29, 1914 -- how did the NYT report the assassination? What was their stance? Again, briefly get a feel for the change
August 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 or 6, 1914 -- the last of the major powers to mobilize for war, Germany was also the first to declare it on the 1st, and by August 5, most of the major combatants were at war. How did the NYT cover the first blush of world war?
2. Write a brief, informal response (no more than a 1 or 1-1/2 pages, double spaced) characterizing the U.S. view of the transition into World War. This can be an overall characterization, or you can focus on a particular element that you feel was telling. Whichever way you tend, be sure to make specific references to the documents you found most telling.
Turn in that brief response when syllabus says it is due.
|
|
This website is occasionally maintained by Michael
Trotti. |