HIST 3903B – Canada in the Sixties
Winter 2022
Instructor: Professor Paul Litt
Course Description
The 1960s is remembered as a decade of radical protest that rocked the establishment, countercultural experimentation that challenged traditional values, artistic innovation that spawned Pop Art, psychedelic rock and street theatre, and a new hedonism that brought sex ‘n’ drugs ‘n’ rock ‘n’ roll into the mainstream, all of it beamed into suburban living rooms through the new mass medium of television. The progressive-minded look back on ‘the Sixties’ wistfully as an opportunity missed, a last best chance to make a better world that somehow slipped away. Conservatives, in contrast, see the decade as a disaster narrowly averted, a moment when irresponsible anarchists rocked the pillars of civilization and almost succeeded in bringing the entire edifice crashing down. Others play down the drama, arguing that only a small minority challenged authority while mainstream society largely flowed on along established channels, or that capitalism successfully co-opted radicalism.
Who’s right? What really happened? Does it matter? This course will look at the 1960s – or rather, the ‘long sixties’ that lasted into the 1970s – to see what it was that made this era special. The course will focus on Canada, including how the spirit of the times intersected with Canadian and Quebec nationalism, yet provide continental and international context. The sixties’ smashing of idols may have been overdramatized at times, but it put substantial questions about modernity on the public agenda, including issues such as racism, sexism, the nuclear arms race, and decolonization. By the end of the era, women’s rights, gay rights, environmental and aboriginal rights movements would be well launched. Although economic interests would muster an effective counterattack against sixties achievements such as the welfare state, the cultural liberations of the decade would prove enduring and are still playing out in our society today.
Evaluation
Part of your mark will be based on your general knowledge, acquired through lectures and assigned readings, as measured by an exam. Class participation marks will be awarded for contributions to group discussions about weekly exercises. A substantial portion of your mark will be based on a research essay project.
Assignment Percent
- Topic and Initial Source Selection 5%
- Essay Proposal 10%
- Essay 35%
- Weekly Reflections 20%
- Class Participation 10%
- Final Exam 20%
Learning Outcomes:
- to appreciate the 1960s as a unique historical era
- to understand the decade’s legacy
- to develop historical mindedness to inform judgement and critical skills capable of recognizing and analyzing ambiguity
Class Format: Lectures with interactive exercises such as discussions of readings, primary source analysis, team analyses of issues.
Questions? Please email PaulLitt@cunet.carleton.ca