The Skeptical Inquirer

LSF 100, Section 18
Professor Eric Pallant
Office Chem 203
Office Hours: MWR 1:30 - 3:30
 
 
 
 

Course Description

Some stories are obviously for morons.  Maybe a martian didn't really have Elvis's baby.  When people believe what they read or see on TV, however, the results can be dangerous.  American militias are taking up arms against Jews and the UN because they believe lies about a New World Order.  Some lies are told by omission.  Did they teach you in school about black cowboys of the Old West?  Or U.S. internment camps for innocent Japanese-Americans?  And still other stories are just plain confusing.  Does capital punishment help?  Should erotica be regulated?  We will read Lies My Teacher Told Me to learn how history texts used by most high schools tell only parts of stories.  The parts they tell, too, construct much of America's mythology.  After we examine some cases of historical myth making, we will focus on contemporary American myths.  Specifically we will study the effect that TV and advertising have on rampant materialism and how a more environmentally conscientious society might combat the American practice of shopping as recreation.  We'll read.  We'll surf the Web.  We'll argue and write.  We'll learn critical thinking skills.  If you work hard, you should be a better thinker at the end of this class.
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Course Requirements

You will need to buy the books.  More importantly, you'll need to read them.  More important still, you'll need to analyze and think about what you are reading.  Coming to class will help a great deal.  Allegheny College requires that every faculty member publish her or his policy on attendance.  My policy is that you can do what you want.  You are coming to college voluntarily.  At least you should be.  You should come to class for the same reason.  That is, I expect you to come to class because you want to learn something and you think that coming to class and participating in discussions are the best place to do your learning.  You will need to purchase two terrific paperbacks for this class.  Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong, by James W. Loewen (1995), Touchstone Book, Published by Simon and Schuster, New York, NY and Material World:  A Global Family Portrait, by Peter Menzel (1994), Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, CA.
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Grades

Your grades in this class will depend on the papers you write (50%), your lab reports and presentations (25%), and class participation (25%).  Hint:  If you check out the attendance policy, you will notice that attendance is up to you.  If you choose not to come to class, you should probably expect really crummy grades in the categories of class participation and presentations at the very least.
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Course Outline,

subject to modification as the semester progresses
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I.  Introduction to Allegheny

Date

Class

Assignment
September 3 Introduction to Class, Introduction to Each Other Hang out
8 Introduction to Computing Learn NeXT, Windows,WP, e-mail
10 Return of Introduction to Computing e-mail, WWW, Find the syllabus, Write 500 words of fiction describing your reaction to death of your family and everyone in your neighborhood
15 Honor committee visit Lost Family essay due
 
 

II.  Missing and Mything History (Mythtory?)

Date

Class

Assignment
September 17 Martha Stewart's Thanksgiving Class Model Read Lies, Chapter 3
22 Native American History Read Lies, Chapter 4
24 Discussion - How do you know what to believe when you read? Select topic for term paper
29 Pocahontas (or something similar) - The Video Here are Native American opinions of the movie
1 Pocahontas - The Video Here is the view of the Powahtan, Pocohontas tribe
6 Library Visit to look for sources for Term Paper Begin 500 Word Essay called "What really happened at Thanksgiving"  This essay must include four references, from library and Web and include a Native American perspective.  The audience for this essay, besides me, is your parents. Julia White's Version of History, Caleb Johnson's version of Squanto's History
8 Discussion on being excluded from History Here is the Mashantucket Peqout Museum Home page
13 Critique of Pocahontas, The Disney Version
15 True Thanksgiving Essay Due - Draft 1 Before you watch the Redskins play Thanksgiving football, check out this page on Indian Mascots
20 OCTOBER BREAK
 
 

III.  Modern Myths

Date

Class

Assignment
October 22 Progress Read Lies, Ch. 10
27 Life Cycle Analysis - discussion Prepare Life Cycle Analysis of Big Mac, See Adbusters and take the time to view their QuickTime ads
29 Affluenza
November 3 Life Cycle Analysis - Posters Due Read Material World
5 Design Material World Lab - True Thanksgiving Draft 2 Due Read Material World, See TV Free America
10 Design Material World Lab Design Material World Lab for Thanksgiving, Read Physicians on TV
12 Cultural Imperialism:  Past and Present, Term Paper Draft 1 Due
17 Voluntary Simplicity See Center for New American Dream
19 Voluntary Simplicity, Buy Nothing Day
24 The Ad and the Ego 
26 THANKSGIVING (Bring your parents your essay)
December 1 Mall Field Trip Record most blatant advertising converting want to need, most useless product
3 Thanksgiving analysis Material World Lab Due
8 Thanksgiving analysis Material World Lab Due
10 Melissa Barnes and Careers that are part of the solution, not the problem
15 Last Class Term Paper, Draft 2 due
 

Term Paper Topics

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The following list of topics is by no means exhaustive.  It is a brief list of topics that I think should receive a lot more attention in history texts.  Here is your chance to teach yourself more history.

What did Black Cowboys of the Old West do for a living?
Why were there Japanese Internment camps during W.W.II?
Do Pesticides cause sterility in animals, including humans?
Are lawns bad for the environment?
How have cars changed our landscape and our culture?
What was the role of the Swiss banks in supporting the Nazis?
How has Disney shaped our view of nature and history?
Why do Americans work so hard, often at the expense of family and leisure?
How did women help settle the West?
Was Christopher Columbus a good guy or a bad guy?
Why and how often has the U.S. used military intervention in  Nicaragua, Guatemala, Dominican Republic?
Why was the US fighting in Vietnam?

 

Useful Web Links

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The Allegheny Honor Code - The Honor Committee has set up a terrific Web site to explain all their requirements and expectations.  Just so you don't get thrown out of school for being ignorant of the college guidelines, and the law of the nation, I recommend you check it out.

Lest We Forget - A wonderfully rich page full of overlooked history of African Americans. The site is upbeat and loaded with links to other sites.

Wampanoag History - Here is the story of the discovering the Pilgrims and how things went once they arrived.

Index of Native American History on the Web - This is a well organized set of links to other sites covering Native Americans from North America and their cultures.

Thanksgiving Resources There are several sites out there covering Thanksgiving.  Most have links and descriptions of ways to make the perfect pumpkin pie and create the cutest table spread.  This site, prepared for the Bellingham Public Schools, is one of the most informative out there.  It covers the history of Thanksgiving from a number of perspectives.

The Skeptical Inquirer calls itself the magazine for science and reason.  It's a great one for debunking current mythology.  Another page dedicated to debunking UFOs, aliens, the paranormal, etc. is T-Files.

There are several on-line publications that cover the news that doesn't get covered by the news.  Naturally there are some on the political right and others on the political left.  Here are a few worth keeping an eye on if you are interested in the kinds of stories that Lies My Teacher Told Me thinks ought to get more air time.  Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting covers media bias.  On a daily basis Pacifica Radio in San Francisco, and WBAI radio in New York City keep you up to date on stories nobody else covers.  The Progressive Magazine also stays on top of other media outlets and stories others seem unwilling to print.

 

Three Student Essays on the Real Thanksgiving

All the Freshmen in this class wrote two drafts of a letter to their parents describing what they believed really happened at the first Thanksgiving, and also what it meant to them to learn that history was more compex and nuanced then they had originally thought. Three essays are presented here because of their unique perspectives.
Korey Henson Ryan Zayac Erica Erwin


Eric Pallant, Department of Environmental Science, Allegheny College/updated 6 January 1999