American presidential-election campaigns are not notable for their high-mindedness. It seems that every four years there are fresh expressions of dismay about campaigners' attention to trivialities and their ad hominem attacks. A lecture on the matter may be valuable not only for students of history but also for voting citizens of the Republic. Take, say, three elections: 1840, 1888, and the most recent election. Compare their major issues, campaigning techniques, and campaign rhetoric. Conclude with a discussion of why they appear to be so shallow. Or perhaps invite student discussion of that question and conclude with a summary statement. Consult Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., editor, History of American Presidential Elections, 1798-1968 (four volumes; 1971), and a supplemental volume, 1972-1984 (1985), and also by Schlesinger, Running for President: The Candidates and Their Images (two volumes; 1992). See also suggestions for further reading at the end of appropriate chapters in the text.

The plight of the farmer and the efforts of the Grangers to alleviate it constitute one chapter in an ongoing story. An account of the Grange, state legislation, the decisions of the Supreme Court, and ultimately the weakness of the Interstate Commerce Commission explain an important moment and can be the subject of a full lecture or an introduction to a lecture on the Populists. See especially Solon J. Buck, The Granger Movement (1913).

Racial and ethnic hostility are elements in the fabric of American society as in many other societies. White Populists, even while striving for economic justice as they saw it, could not make common cause for a sustained period with their black counterparts. Some would not do so at all. Students will have a better understanding of the farmers' movement and of American racism after a lecture dealing with these matters. A useful approach is to center the lecture on the career of Tom Watson, who tried and failed to work with both races and ultimately joined the ranks of the racists. See C. Vann Woodward, Tom Watson: Agrarian Rebel (1938); Gerald H. Gaither, Blacks and the Populist Revolt: Ballots and Bigotry in the "New South" (1977); Michael Kazin, The Populist Persuasion: An American History (1995); Barton C. Shaw, The Wool-Hat Boys (1984); and Gene Clanton, Populism: The Humane Preference in America, 1890-1900 (1991).

Imperialism without colonies may present for some students an apparent contradiction in terms. They will be helped by a lecture that defines imperialism in a way that explains the importance of "informal empire." The lecture should include the Platt Amendment and American domination in Cuba, the "Open Door" notes and the East, and also American commercial domination in Central America. See Brian P. Damiani, Advocates of Empire: William McKinley, the Senate, and American Expansion, 1898-1899 (1987); Louis A. Pérez, Jr., The War of 1898: The United States and Cuba in History and Historiography (1998); and titles listed in the bibliography at the end of Chapter 21..

A descriptive and illustrated lecture on the building of the Panama Canal can be very revealing as well as exciting. The state of medical knowledge and technological capacity needs explanation. The importation of black laborers and their treatment will touch on cultural diversity and racism. The sheer drama of the undertaking will captivate the audience. Chapter 21's bibliography contains excellent suggestions under "The Panama Canal." See also Michael Conniff, Black Labor on a White Canal (1985), and John Major, Prize Possession: The United States and the Panama Canal, 1903-1979 (1993). Film and video suggestions are made below in "Print and Nonprint Resources."