Courses:

Course Info

• Course Number / Code:
• 21H.116J (Fall 2005) 
• Course Title:
• The Civil War and Reconstruction 
• Course Level:
• Undergraduate 
• Offered by :
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
  Massachusetts, United States  
• Department:
• History 
• Course Instructor(s):
• Prof. Merritt Roe Smith 
• Course Introduction:
•  
• 
  
  21H.116J / STS.029J The Civil War and Reconstruction
  
  
  
  

  Fall 2005

  
  
  

  
  
  

  Course Highlights

  
  
  

  This course features a detailed reading list and outlines of the course lectures.

  
  
  

  Course Description

  
  
  

  Although attention will be devoted to the causes and long-term consequences of the Civil War, this class will focus primarily on the war years (1861-1865) with special emphasis on the military and technological aspects of the conflict. Four questions, long debated by historians, will receive close scrutiny:

  1. What caused the war?
  2. Why did the North win the war?
  3. Could the South have won?
  4. To what extent is the Civil War America's "defining moment"?