Overview

This course examines Canada's response to the unleashing of the atom's destructive power and the intense divisions between the two superpowers with the greatest control over that power. Among issues discussed are the range of official and private citizen attitudes to nuclear and conventional warfare, the Canadian armaments industry, Canada's role in the Vietnam war, and Canadian participation in NATO and NORAD.

Throughout the course, a key concern is the relationship of Canadian attitudes to nuclear and foreign-policy issues on the one hand, and Canadian views of the values informing our own society, on the other.

Outline

Evaluation

To receive credit for HIST 455, you must complete all of the assignments, achieve a minimum grade of 50 per cent on the final examination, and obtain a course composite grade of at least “D” (50 per cent). The weighting of the composite grade is as follows:

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.

Course Materials

Textbooks

Bothwell, Robert. 1998. The Big Chill: Canada and the Cold War. Toronto: Irwin.

Donaghy, Greg, ed. 1998. Canada and the Early Cold War, 1943-1957. Ottawa: Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Munton, Don, and John Kirton, eds. 1992. Canadian Foreign Policy: Selected Cases. Scarborough, ON: Prentice-Hall, 1992.

Other materials

The course materials include a study guide, a student manual and a book of readings.