Economics 1740

American Economic History

Final Exam Study Sheet

Spring 2007

 

Instructions: (Also posted on the class website)

 

  1. You have a choice between an in-class final exam, Wednesday, 2, 2007 or a take home exam.  The take-home question(s) will be announced on my website on Friday, April 27 and will be due on Monday, April 30 by 3 pm.  The take home should be delivered to BUC 308.
  2. There are four study questions dealing with
    1. The economic history of Saints and Sinners
    2. The Rise of the modern corporation and the rise of government as organizers of material life
    3. The Great Depression
    4. Immigration

(See below).

  1. Take home exam instructions
    1. Select 3 of the 4 questions.  Eliminate one question.
    2. For 2 of the 3 questions that you have selected, write a sentence outline of the answer to these two questions.

                                                               i.      The sentence outline should be no more than 8 sentences and no less than 5 sentences.

                                                             ii.      No one sentence should be more than 30 words

                                                            iii.      The sentences should be complete sentences with subjects and verbs.

                                                           iv.      These instructions are presented as a sentence outline although some of the sentences are not complete (e.g. 2c and 2d also 3)

    1. For the remaining question that you have chosen (the last of the 3 you have selected) write a complete essay.

                                                               i.      The essay must be typed.

                                                             ii.      It can be no longer than 800 words

                                                            iii.      Use the word count tool in your word processor to count your words.

1.      In Microsoft Word, this utility is found under the “tools” button.

                                                           iv.      Include an introductory and concluding paragraph (write in paragraphs).

                                                             v.      Make sure the beginning sentence in each of the paragraphs other than your first and last paragraphs is the topic sentence of that paragraph.

1.      A topic sentence in an expository essay such as this final exam essay is a declarative sentence that makes an argument which the remaining sentences in the paragraph support.

    1. While you have from Friday to Monday to do this take-home, limit yourself to 10 hours or less of overall work.
    2. Relax.  Do not stress out.  I am an easy grader (in this class this semester).  If you make an effort and hand in an essay, you will pass this course.  If you take it up a notch from there, you will get a good grade.  Remember, my purpose in this course is to get you to like history and economic history.  Stressing out will not achieve that goal.  Have fun with the essays.  Explore ideas. Take chances.  And put it behind you.
  1. In-class instructions.
    1. Two of the four essay questions below will be selected by the professor.
    2.  You will then select one of those two to write on.
    3. You must bring a blue book to class with you.
    4. The blue book is the smaller of the two types typically available

                                                               i.      The smaller blue book is approximately 7 by 9 inches

    1. You will be limited to five blue book pages, one side, normal margins, normal hand-writing size.
    2. Write in paragraphs, including an introductory and concluding paragraph.

                                                               i.      Make sure the beginning sentence in each of the paragraphs other than your first and last paragraphs is the topic sentence of that paragraph.

1.      A topic sentence in an expository essay such as this final exam essay is a declarative sentence that makes an argument which the remaining sentences in the paragraph support.

    1. Relax.  Do not stress out.  I am an easy grader (in this class this semester).  If you make an effort and hand in an essay, you will pass this course.  If you take it up a notch from there, you will get a good grade.  Remember, my purpose in this course is to get you to like history and economic history.  Stressing out will not achieve that goal.  Have fun with the essays.  Explore ideas. Take chances.  And put it behind you.
  1. Overall instructions:
    1. Put you name on your essay!

                                                               i.      If you are doing the in-class essay, print your name clearly in block letters.

    1. Hand your work in on time.  This is a time period where late work does not fit into my schedule (or yours).
    2. Note: these instructions are designed so that regardless of whether you do the take-home or in-class exam, you will have to consider the answer to three of the four questions below.  One question (of your choice), you can ignore.  But, if you take the in-class test and one of the two questions selected is the one you have chosen to ignore, you will be forced to write on the second question.  If you prepare all four questions, you will then be able to chose your preferred question among the two selected by the instructor.
    3. Note:  the intellectual standard in grading the in-class essay will be a little more relaxed than on the take-home essay.

 

 

Exam Questions:

 

  1. Saints and Sinners:  Compare the rise of San Francisco and Salt Lake City after the Mexican American War (1846-1848).  How did religious communal organization (i.e. the LDS Church) compare to gold-rush based market forces in organizing material life and stimulating economic growth?  How did the completion of the transcontinental railroad affect the development of these two societies?  How did the two societies differ in their responses to the Great Depression of the 1870s (also known as the Panic of 1873).  In the long run, has Salt Lake become more like San Francisco or San Francisco more like Salt Lake in the organization of material life?  Why?
  2. The Rise of the Modern Corporation and Big Government:  Beginning with the Robber Baron period after the Civil War, describe the rise of the modern corporation including horizontal and vertical integration, and beginning with the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890, describe the rise of government involvement in the economy.  The rise of government can be divided into the Progressive Era (around 1890 to World War I), the New Deal (1933 to 1940); the World War Two period (1941 to 1945) and the post-war period—1945 to now.  To what extent was the rise of governmental involvement in the economy a response to the rise of big business?  To what extent was it a response to the crises of the Great Depression?  To what extent was it a response to World War Two and the Cold War?  Compare the bureaucracy of big business, the government and other institutions to the market as ways of organizing material life.
  3. The Great Depression:  Drawing from Heilbroner, Studs Terkel, your own term paper and class lectures, describe how the Great Depression affected individuals and society.  What social legislation was passed during the Great Depression as a response to these societal issues/crises? 
  4. Immigration:  Describe the history of immigration to the U.S. from colonial times to today.  How close is your family to the time when they were living in another country?  How have you benefited from immigration?  To what extent does continued immigration threaten you or your family economically due to competition with new immigrants?  At he moment there are about 300 million people in the United States, 35 million of whom are immigrants and about 15 million of those undocumented (or illegal) immigrants.  What should U.S. immigration policy be?  Why?