HIST 1320 Midterm Exam
(Due before 11:59 pm CST on March 12, 2021)
Please complete this exam using Microsoft Word. You do not need a separate Word document for
each part of the exam. It can all be in one Word document. Please make sure that you distinguish
between the two sections.
You may not use any outside sources to complete this exam. The use of outside material will
result in a significant point deduction or possibly a zero. You may only use the lecture and other
source material from the course (primary source documents, supplemental readings, and
podcasts) to complete this exam.
Part 1 of the exam is two short answer questions (worth 25 points each for a total of 50 points).
Answer the questions using thoughtful detail and analysis. Your answers should be written in
complete sentences and should come out to one substantial paragraph (8-10 sentences) in length.
You do not need to use footnote citations for part 1 of your exam. This part of the exam will
likely come out to 1-1.5 pages double spaced.
Part 2 of the exam is a long essay (worth 150 points). Choose one (1) of the essay prompts
below and write an essay that thoroughly answers the questions posed. Make sure your essay has
an overall argument and uses specific and thoughtful details (key terms) from the lectures. Your
essay must also include a discussion of one of the primary source documents assigned so far in
the course. You can use any document assigned so far. It does not need to be the document you
used for the Primary Source Analysis. If you do use the document you used for the Primary
Source Analysis, you may not copy and paste your answers from that assignment into this essay.
It needs to all be original.
– Part 2 of your exam (your long essay) should be 3-4 pages double spaced, Times New
Roman or Calibri, 12pt font, with 1-inch margins. Please do not exceed 5 pages. You do
not need a title page.
– This essay must be written in your own words. The only sources you are allowed to use
are the ones provided for you in the course (lecture, primary source documents,
supplemental readings, and podcasts). You must also use Chicago style footnote
citations.
– Please include Chicago style footnote citations to cite your essays. You do not need a
works cited page or bibliography.
• For lecture material use the following footnote format:
Allison Robinson, “Title of lecture” (lecture, Texas State University, full date when the
lecture was given).
• For primary source documents use the following footnote format:
First and last name of author, “Title of the document,” date or year written if available.
• For supplemental readings use the following footnote format:
First name Last name of author, “Title of Web Page,” Name of Website, Publishing
Organization, publication or revision date if available, URL.
• For podcasts use the following footnote format:
Name of hosts, hosts, “Title of podcast episode” Name of podcast, date, accessed date,
URL.
– Please note, Canvas automatically runs your essay through a plagiarism checker and will
catch any and all plagiarism. Do not plagiarize any of your work. If any part of your
exam is plagiarized, you will receive a zero on your exam, and I will submit an Honor
Code Review Form to the Honor Code Council. If you’re unclear about what plagiarism
is, please reference back to the information I provided about plagiarism for the plagiarism
quiz. When using any of the material provided in class (lecture, primary source
documents, supplemental readings, and podcasts) you need to use your own words and
cite the material accordingly. Do not run your exam through one of the free plagiarism
checkers online.
– Remember that accidental or unintentional plagiarism is still plagiarism and the
same consequences will apply.
– You may use one or two short quotes in your essay from the primary source documents
you choose to include. These quotes should not exceed a line and a half in length in your
Word document. The use of too many quotes will result in a grade reduction. You may
not use block quotes.
– To upload your exam, go to “Assignments” on our Canvas course site, and upload your
exam where it says, “Midterm Exam.” Please name your file using the following format:
Full last name followed by first letter of first name – Midterm Exam
Example using my name: Robinson A – Midterm Exam
Part 1 – Short Answer (Answer both questions) (1-2 pages, not to exceed 3 full pages,
double spaced). You do not need citations for Part 1 of this exam
1) Briefly identify and discuss an example of American imperialism (expansionism) in the
late 19th and/or early 20th century. What motivated this expansion? What were the
consequences?
2) What New Deal programs did Congress and FDR pass to alleviate unemployment in the
United States? Did these programs achieve their goal?
Part 2 – Essay (Choose one essay prompt) (3-4 pages, not to exceed 5 full pages, double
spaced). You need to include Chicago style footnote citations for Part 2 of the exam.
In the last half of the 19th century, the United States saw a period of rapid industrialization and
urbanization known as the Gilded Age. In this essay, discuss the problems of the Gilded Age and
the ways in which progressives tried to correct these problems through reform and regulation.
Your argument must answer the following question: Were progressives successful in reforming
these issues? Why or why not? You must include the following key terms in your essay: (1)
Gilded Age / Progressivism (2) Square Deal (3) Upton Sinclair / The Jungle / Pure Food and
Drug Act (4) Settlement Houses (5) National American Women’s Suffrage Organization / Equal
Suffrage League / 19th Amendment
Write an essay that evaluates US support for World War I before and after the United States
entered the war. How did Americans and Woodrow Wilson feel about the war between
1914-1917? How did this change after the US declared war? In what ways did Wilson try to
mobilize the US to win the war? Your argument must answer the following question: In what
ways did the government restrict civil liberties during the war, and was it justified? You
must include the following key terms in your essay: (1) Woodrow Wilson / Moral Diplomacy (2)
Lusitania / Zimmerman Telegram (3) Selective Service Act / Emma Goldman (4) Committee on
Public Information (5) Espionage and Sedition Acts
The late 19th and early 20th century represents a time of rapid change for African Americans in
the United States. Write an essay that evaluates this change. How were African Americans denied
a seat at the table of democracy? In what ways did African American women engage in activism?
Your argument must answer the following question: How did African American men and
women challenge and/or overcome the obstacles facing them? You must include the
following key terms in your essay: (1) Plessy v. Ferguson / Jim Crow (2) W.E.B. Du Bois vs.
Booker T. Washington (3) New Negro / Harlem Renaissance (4) Madam CJ Walker (5) National
Association of Colored Women’s Clubs / Mary McLeod Bethune (6) Sarah J.S. Garnet / Equal
Suffrage League