PS 487 American Political Culture: 1820 to the Present

The development from 1820 to the present of American political thought about government and its proper relation to life, liberty, property and the pursuit of happiness. Topics considered include democratization and the Jacksonian period, slavery, and the nature of the Union, Social Darwinism and industrialization, the progressive period, the coming of the welfare state, and contemporary concerns. Attention given to bringing to the surface the fundamental, often inarticulate, patterns, and presuppositions of American thought about political things.