Cold War to War on Terror

Catalog description

The articulation of the Truman Doctrine in 1947 that pledged support to nations threatened by the expansionist Soviet Union, and the horrific terrorist attacks in the US on September 11, 2001, are hinge moments in world history. Whereas the former launched the Cold War the latter started the on-going War on Terror. How did the two events shape the world, vis-à-vis America, in the second half of the 20th century, and thus far the two decades of the 21st century, raising concerns about their impact on civil liberties, the cost of the additional security focused changes, the implications of proxy wars and the invasions and wars from Korea to Vietnam to Iraq and Afghanistan, and much more? The course examines the two events and the relationship between them. Reading Stephen Kinzer’s The Brothers (2014) and Steve Coll’s Ghost War (2004) before the class begins will serve you well, and prepare you for the discussion-oriented course.