No Fail-Safe: America, the Atomic Bomb, and the Cold War

3 units

In this discussion-based course, we will examine a vivid array of source material to explore how Americans experienced the Cold War, taking as a point of entry perhaps the most worrisome obsession of the period: the atomic bomb. We will revisit developments on the local level in St. Louis that fundamentally shaped national events, as well as those on an international stage even further removed. From the earliest representations of nuclear weapons in fiction, to their actual use and proliferation, we will consider the public imaginary of aspiration and fear surrounding the atom. We will analyze science, policy, politics, and culture to grapple with one of the most powerful influences in American life at mid-century, reaching a deeper understanding of what it meant to witness these difficult, dangerous, and truly formative years.