History 450 - JYW Seminar in History

This seminar trains students in historical research techniques and the writing of history, and fulfills the University's Junior Writing requirement. See the History Department course description guide for various sectional sub-titles and descriptions.

Open to Seniors and Juniors in History, Middle East and Judaic majors only. Truth, Dissent, and the Life of Daniel Ellsberg

This junior writing seminar explores the life and times of Daniel Ellsberg by researching his enormous collection of papers recently acquired by the UMass archives. Ellsberg?s remarkable conversion from war planner to peace activist led him in 1971 to turn over 7000 pages of top-secret documents about the history of the Vietnam War to the press and public?the Pentagon Papers. Students will write research papers on various topics that engaged Ellsberg, including nuclear war planning, antinuclear activism, the Vietnam War, the Pentagon Papers, Watergate, and the legacy of whistleblowing.