Ryerson University
Department of History
HST 540: History of Espionage
(Winter Session 2008)
Section 003 Mon: 11:00AM – 1:00PM (ENG LG02) & Wed: 9:00 – 10:00AM (KHE 321B)
Section 006 Mon: 1:00PM – 3:00PM (EPH 229) & Wed: 11:00 – 12:00PM (KHE 121)
Instructor: Peter Wronski
Office Hours: Weds: 10:00-11:00 & 12:00-1:00 or by appointment –
JOR 501 OR JOR A-510 (Dr. Arne Kislenko’s office)
Email : pwronsky@ryerson.ca
Phone : 979-5000 ext. 6058
Course website: www.petervronsky.com/espionage.htm OR
www.russianbooks.org/espionage.htm
COURSE DESCRIPTION / OBJECTIVE:
This course examines the evolution of intelligence services throughout the twentieth century, with particular reference to the two world wars, technological changes, and the Cold War confrontation after 1945. The focus in the first part will be on British, German, and Imperial Russian intelligence, before we turn towards the development of services in the United States and the Soviet Union. The development of services in other countries, such as Israel, China, and Canada will also be addressed. The course will survey the role that intelligence played in securing Allied victory during World War Two and in crucial Cold War events like the arms race, Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam War. Theoretical principles of intelligence gathering and assessment will be introduced and explored as will the portrayal of espionage in popular culture. The course will conclude with an examination of the challenges intelligence services face today, and the future of spying in the post Cold War world. In this regard, the events of September 11, 2001 and the current “war on terrorism” will be discussed.
The objectives of this course are: 1. To examine espionage in its contemporary setting and to establish a factual framework for its history; 2. To understand the relationship between espionage and the conduct of foreign and domestic policy; 3. To improve your ability to think critically and to analyse data by undertaking the kind of research required for an upper level university essay or a professional or academic report or publication and to write and present it clearly and effectively.
(Upper-level liberal studies elective)
TEXT: Jeffrey T. Richelson, A Century of Spies: Intelligence in the 20th Century, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995. (available at the Ryerson bookstore) and downloadable seminar readings as assigned.
METHOD OF STUDENT EVALUATION:
Essay Proposal (250 words): 10% Feb 6
Mid-Term Test: 10% Feb 13
Essay (2500 words): 30% Mar 26
Final Exam: 30% TBA
Seminars: 20% Weds: Jan 30; Feb 27; Mar 19; Apr 2. (time as signed up)
METHOD OF INSTRUCTION: Lecture & Seminar
LECTURE TOPICS AND READINGS (tentative and subject to change):
· The birth of modern espionage (chapter 1)
· Espionage in the First World War 1914-1918 (chapters 2-3)
· Espionage in the inter-war period 1918-1939 (chapters 4-6)
· Espionage in the Second World War 1939-1945 (chapters 7-12)
· Espionage in the Cold War 1946-1991 (chapters 13-18, 20-25)
· Covert Operations – Cuba and Vietnam (chapter 19)
· Espionage and Canada 1860 – 2008
· Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism 1860-2008
· The Future of Intelligence and Espionage (chapter 26)
SEMINARS: Four one-hour seminars will be scheduled during the semester on Wednesdays. The sign-up sheet for seminar times will be posted on my office door (JOR 501.) First come/first serve for seminar times. Discussion will be based on lecture and assigned reading materials. Participation is mandatory and worth 20% of the final mark based on attendance and the quality and degree of your participation. Readings will consist of academic journal articles which you can access online through the Ryerson Library internet portal. See website for instruction how to access academic journal titles online.
ASSIGNMENTS
Essay: A topic of your choice pertaining to espionage in the 20th Century. Come see me if you need help or advice in choosing your topic. Suggested topic areas are posted on the website.
Assignments not meeting any of the below specified requirements and formats will be deducted marks and/or failed entirely.
There are two parts in this assignment:
1. Prior to writing your essay, you will submit a one page outline (apx. 250 words) that clearly defines your subject and approach and a proposed annotated bibliography that describes your sources and their relevance to your essay. You will be marked on the basis of originality and specificity of your subject matter and the depth, quality, range and currency of your sources. Due date for your proposal is Feb 6. This is worth 10% of your final grade.
2. An essay of 2,500 words (not including citations). This is due on Mar 26 by end of class and is mandatory for all students. It is worth 30% of your final grade. A minimum of six acceptable (see next) sources are required for the essay. The essay should be in 12pt font, double-spaced and approximately 10-12 pages in length plus bibliography and a cover page. Clearly indicate on the cover page the title of your essay, your name and section number. Each essay page is to be numbered and the pages stapled and submitted without any additional or alternative cover, binding or cover art.
Acceptable Sources: The six minimum required sources should be scholarly monographs, trade books, journal articles, or primary sources. Institutional and archival websites are acceptable if they were approved at the proposal stage. Never acceptable as citable sources are popular websites like Wikipedia or History Place, encyclopaedias, dictionaries, atlases, general history textbooks, the course text book, serial books like Time-Life series or American Heritage. (Journal readings assigned for tutorials are acceptable.) Popular, journalistic, or editorial books can be acceptable depending upon whether they offer adequate citations and/or upon the author’s qualifications. Identify and describe such books in the annotated bibliography of your proposal.
Citations: Essays MUST contain citations in the form of Chicago style footnotes at the bottom of each essay page (or as endnotes in the worst case scenario). A source’s first citation will indicate: the author, title, city and date of publication, as well as the correct and exact page number(s). In subsequent citations of that same source, only the author and precise page number(s) are needed. The use of bibliographic indicators like ibid or op cit is discouraged. This is an example of citations as they would appear at the bottom of an essay page:
John Smith, The History of History (Toronto: Ontario Publishers, 1997), pp. 20-21.
Sally Tong, The Long March (New York: Columbia Press, 2006.) p. 105.
John Smith, p. 23.
Sally Tong, pp.107-108
A research essay of 10-12 pages in length should have approximate 25-35 sequentially Arabic numbered citations at minimum. As a general rule, references should be given for direct quotations, summaries or paraphrases of other people’s work, ideas or points of view, and for material that is controversial or obscure. WHEN IN DOUBT, IT IS BETTER TO PROVIDE A REFERENCE. Incomplete citations will result in lost marks. Citations without precise page references will result in failure of the assignment with no opportunity to resubmit.
How to Track and Insert Citations: In MS Word 2007 choose menu bar item “References” and [insert footnote]. In MS Word 2000, choose menu bar item “Insert” and then [footnote].
For more information on Chicago Style footnoting see:
http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/chicago.html
http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/p04_c10_s1.html
http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html
Bibliographies
: Essays MUST provide bibliographies in alphabetical order by the authors’ surnames of all works consulted, whether or not they have been quoted directly. Dictionaries, atlases, text books and/or encyclopaedias, popular websites, DO NOT count towards the minimum number of sources, and their inclusion should NOT be considered as constituting research. You may of course use them for general guidance but they are not citable sources under normal circumstances. The bibliography should look like this:
Smith, John. The History of History (Toronto: Ontario Publishers, 1997.)
Tong, Sally. The Long March (New York: Columbia Press, 2006.)
Submission of Essays: Essays must be typed. Students should hand-in essays directly to me in lecture on the due date. Only those essays submitted on the due date in hard copy in class will be guaranteed return by the day of the exam. Late essays may be placed in the essay box on the fifth floor of Jorgenson Hall with my name clearly on them. Never slide essays under my office door. Students are responsible for ensuring that their essays have been received. Please keep copies of your work. Worse case scenario, you may e-mail an attached MS Word doc. file of your essay to me at pwronsky@ryerson.ca to secure a submission date and then submit a hard copy at the first opportunity. Note on the hard copy the date of the e-mailed submission. (The hard copy essay is to be identical to the e-mailed version obviously.)
Deadlines and Penalties: Late work will be penalized by the deduction of 2% per day, including weekends. Extensions may be granted on medical or compassionate grounds. Students requesting an extension should submit a written request to me before the deadline. If this is not possible, students should be prepared to provide appropriate documentation relating to the extension request (i.e. doctor’s note). No late work will be accepted after the last day of lectures in the term.
Deduction of Marks: The evaluation of your research, content, and argumentation is of primary concern in marking. The range of your sources as indicated by your citations in presenting evidence for your argument will be assessed and critical analysis of your sources is encouraged and rewarded. Equally important is the syntax or structure of your work. Marks will be deducted from work containing excessive grammar/spelling mistakes, from essays excessively long or inadequately short, or improperly formatted. Be sure to edit and check your work carefully. Do not simply rely on your computer’s spelling or grammar check.
Grounds for Failure: Essays which do not supply proper and adequate citations indicating precise page references and bibliographies will be failed. Essays will not be accepted after the last day of lecture without prior arrangement. Any written work that quotes directly from other material without attribution, or which paraphrases extensive tracts from the works of others, is plagiarised. It will receive no marks and there will be no chance to resubmit. Please consult the Ryerson academic calendar for further information on plagiarism. If you have any questions or doubts about how to cite material, please feel free to contact me.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is a form of intellectual dishonesty in which someone attempts to claim the work of others as their own. Work which has been researched and/or written by others, such as an essay-writing agency, internet service, friend, or family member is NOT acceptable. The submission of such work is one form of plagiarism, and it will be dealt with accordingly as academic misconduct. Quoting directly or indirectly from research sources without proper attribution is also plagiarism, and it will also constitute an academic misconduct. The Faculty of Arts policy on plagiarism will be strictly enforced in this course; resulting in a grade of zero for the assignment, a report to the Registrar and the programme department of the student, and possibly other academic penalties. A second violation of the Code of Academic Conduct on a student’s record will result in a recommendation of suspension or expulsion.
Academic Integrity
For additional help, Ryerson now offers the Academic Integrity Website at www.ryerson.ca/academicintegrity. This offers students a variety of resources to assist in their research, writing, and presentation of all kinds of assignments. It also details all dimensions of Academic Misconduct and how to avoid it. It was put together by a team representing the Vice President Academic, faculty, the library, Digital Media Projects, and Student Services.
The policy is available in its entirety at www.ryerson.ca/acadcouncil and at www.ryerson.ca/rr and in the Student Guide.
Ryerson University is committed to promoting academic success and to ensuring that students’ academic records ultimately reflect their academic abilities and accomplishments. The University expects that academic judgments by its faculty will be fair, consistent and objective, and recognizes the need to grant academic consideration, where appropriate, in order to support students who face personal difficulties or events. It is also expected that students will deal with issues which may affect academic performance as soon as they arise. It should be understood that students can only receive grades which reflect their knowledge of the course material.
Students should refer to the Student Guide and to the Academic Council and Records and Registration web sites for detailed information on the various types of academic consideration that may be requested; necessary documents such as appeal forms, medical certificates and forms for religious accommodation; and procedural instructions. Information is also available from the Departments and Schools, Dean’s Offices and the Secretary of Academic Council.
Students are responsible for reviewing all pertinent information prior to the submission of a formal academic appeal. Incomplete appeals will not be accepted. Students are responsible for ensuring that a formal appeal is submitted by the deadline dates published in the calendar, and must adhere to the timelines established in the policy.
Course Evaluation:
This coming year the Faculty Course Survey will be administered on line. Students will be able to access the surveys through their my.ryerson.ca (Blackboard) portal during the 11th and 12th weeks of the semester, which is after the last date to drop the course.