Final Exam Overview: The final exam has two parts. The first section requires students to identify four out of seven historical figures, organizations, and events covered in lectures, discussions or outside readings. This is worth 40% of the grade. On the second section of the final, students will choose one of two essay questions that cover larger themes addressed in the course. The essay is worth 60% of the grade. You must bring a blue book to write the answers for the final.

Identifications: Your identification answers should address the questions of who, what, when, where and why the event, group, person, or place was historically significant. The identifications on the final exam will come from the following list:

Essays: Your essay should have a main thesis (or central argument) that is clearly stated in the introductory paragraph. It should include concrete examples (brief discussions of people, events, organizations, etc.) from the lectures and books that support the essay’s major points. Finally, it should address potential counterarguments and conclude with a summation of your main thesis. Two of the following essay questions will appear on the final exam, and you will answer one of the two.

1. Some of Roosevelt’s supporters claim that his New Deal programs, World War II policies, and four terms in office saved capitalism from the Depression and democracy from fascism. Some of his opponents site his tenure in office as the birth of Big Government, a communist style system run by a near dictator and fueled by political patronage. Argue for one position and against the other.

2. How did the various social and political movements of the 1960s/70s seek to bring civil rights and equality for all Americans, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality? How successful were these movements?

3. Vietnam was, in a sense, a civil war in both Southeast Asia and in the United States. Explain how these two countries became so divided as a result of the military conflict in Vietnam and the political conflict in the United States. How did Hollywood films about Vietnam evolve during and after the war, and how did this evolution reflect Americans’ attempts to come to grips with the war’s legacies?

4. You are a Republican advisor for John McCain’s presidential campaign in 2008. Explain to McCain why and how a Republican Revolution occurred between the late-1960s and the first decade of the 21st century. What are the lessons that your campaign can take from these three decades of conservative ascendancy? What policy proposals and issues should McCain emphasize in the campaign?