In August of 1945, World War II ended and America looked forward to a future of peace. Five years later, not only was the country engaged in another war (albeit a "limited" one in Korea), but it had also constructed the institutions and ideologies of a national security state for what had come to be called a "cold war." The rapidity with which this happened and the global reach of American security interests is breathtaking: in this writing-intensive seminar, we will slow down the historical clock to investigate in-depth what happened in those five years, covering such subjects as the policy of containment, the development of nuclear arms, domestic anti-communism, the division of Berlin, and our increasing military commitments in Asia. Format: seminar. Requirements: class participation, weekly response papers, peer editing, and book reviews. No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected: 19). This course is writing intensive. Group A