Overview
PAPER 2
4-5 pp., double-spaced (upload on Canvas)
Due Friday, March 6, 2026 (11:59 pm)
Cold War Artifacts
Analyze an artifact of the Cold War era. An artifact could be a physical object, whether singular or mass produced. It could be an institution or organization. It could be a media property, such as Reader's Digest in Christina Klein's discussion. It could be a technology. Finally, it could be a practice, such as U.S. overseas travel in Klein. Or perhaps something else.
Much of the existing literature on "Cold War artifacts" has focused on such artifacts in the U.S. and U.S.S.R between 1945 and 1989/1992. But of course the Cold War was experienced in other countries as well, in different ways and possibly with different temporal boundaries. You may choose any relevant setting and artifact; you are not limited to the U.S. and the Koreas.
Your analysis should attempt to connect the artifact you choose with broader formations of Cold War culture and politics - Klein is not a bad model here. As with the first paper, you probably will want to do some outside research, and you should cite any sources you use (whether scholarly or not). And as with the first paper, creativity is encouraged.
ABSOLUTELY NO AI/CHATGPT I WILL GET AN FAIL
I have inserted the first paper I wrote so you can look at the writing style!