A Beautiful Card from 1942

Men of the 20th Century

I have come to believe that the 20th Century was defined (in human terms) by these two men. Imperfect men, with sometimes flawed judgment, they nevertheless led the effort that saved the world from the evil forces that brought about World War II.  I am pleased to note that the students in the Era of the World Wars course became captivated by both of these men, especially by Churchill. Whatever your politics, you have to see FDR as a great wartime President. Together, these two waged war against a common enemy, forged an uncomfortable but necessary peace with another enemy ("Uncle Joe") and unwittingly laid the groundwork for a dramtically different world order.

This 1941 picture was taken well before FDR's dramatic decline in health  in 1944, and they seem to be as two old seadogs  recollecting grander days.  The Lord watches over this earth and places men in their own peculiar destinies for the good of us all.

Repatriating

History has long been a field dominated by those with a liberal agenda. In my years in graduate school, Marxist historians, women's history and "social history" began to replace traditional approaches. But it wasn't enough to ignore George Washington and the great battles that secured our independence and later our freedom. Historians have taken their desire to prove how liberal they are to a new low.  In today's typical college history textbook, America is chastised for her greatness, and authors are apologetic for her successes.  Recently, as I read through a section regarding American expansion in the years preceding the Civil War, I was appalled to note how the author of this text "trashed" John L. O'Sullivan's phrase, "Manifest Destiny." He labeled this belief that God had given us the land as "arrogance" that troubled American diplomatic policies from that point forward. Oh my! Needless to say, we do not use this text in our classes. 

I shared with my husband that I feel as obsolete as a card catalog in a library today. (I love the old card catalog and shelf list system, by the way). I sometimes feel my values are not traditional, but arcane compared to the current social mileu of our nation and to the mood of academics.  But I refuse to change! Instead, I will teach my students the greatness as well as the flaws within our country's past and present.  I will challenge them to repatriate--to once again be proud to be proud of our nation!  The United States has enjoyed some of God's greatest blessings, and it is time we return to Him in thankfulness.

Thoughts About the Summer Reading Courses

For the past two summers, I have been given the privilege of developing History "readings" courses. In these courses, students are required to read an ambitious number of books and complete writing assignments unique to each one.  In many ways, this approach provides an early introduction to the Graduate seminar method. They are also taught much like an honors class would be taught, and the requirements are demanding.   I have tried to offer classes which continue a theme from the previous year or introduce the coming fall semester's offerings in some way.  In the Fall 2011 term, the Medieval course will roll around again.  With this in mind, my goal is to develop a course in the history within the mythology of King Arthur. I don't want this to be only a history of the myth, but a look at the HISTORY of Arthur. Who was he (and when was he) underneath all of the Malory glamour? I have several books in mind that we might use, and there seems to already be some positive interest in the course. We'll see . . .

Giving Thanks for Those Who Went Before Us

The Tea Party

"Oyez, Oyez, Oyez . . ."

This is my "Supreme Court and Other Favorites" shelf.  Here, I have some of Dr. Hall's works, some bios of Geroge HW Bush and Clarence Thomas and a two-volume set on John Marshall. The ornament you see on the far left is actually a small piece of one of the "retired" drapes from the Court's chambers encased in the lovely frame. In the middle is a little model of the Supreme Court building, and watching over all of these treasures in Will Taft. He would be most pleased that I placed him here rather than on the President's shelf!
Thanks for visiting!