The Transformation of America: A Social and Economic History of the United States

Sponsored by the Roger Boas Chair in Global History and World Affairs

As the nation once again faces profound social and economic challenges, Professor O’Sullivan will lead us on a spirited journey through American history to explore how social change has driven economic transformation, and how economic change has influenced social progress. Starting with the early republic and continuing to contemporary times, this course will explore controversies over slavery, economic development, abolitionism, civil rights, race relations, as well as examining American political leaders, the economic and social paths they pursued, and the consequences of their actions. Many of us may be familiar with the economic and social policies of major historical figures such as Alexander Hamilton, Abraham Lincoln, or Franklin Roosevelt, all of whom will be discussed, but what about the equally important, if lesser known, contributions of figures such as Henry Clay, Frederick Douglass, Frances Perkins, and Walter Reuther, among others?