S Y L L A B U S History 10a Fall 2005 Western Societies, Politics and Cultures: From Antiquity to 1650 Emerson 105 M W at 12 with weekly sections TBA Profs. Alan Cooper, James Hankins, and Eric Robinson Head TF: Elizabeth Mellyn (ewrussel@fas) Course schedule: Sept 19 Course Introduction: Modernity and the Pre-Modern West (J. Hankins) Graeco-Roman Antiquity 21 Who Were the Greeks? (E. Robinson) No section this week. Reading: KGO, ch. 1-3; The Western World, pp. 1-16 (Herodotus); Interpretations, pp. 1-24 ( The Greek Way of War ). 26 Were the Greeks Free? (E. Robinson) 28 The Glory that was Greece (E. Robinson) Reading and Discussion: Thucydides, On Justice, Power and Human Nature, pp. 1-109; Interpretations, pp. 25-92 ( How Democratic was Athenian Democracy? ). Oct 3 How Great Was Alexander? (E. Robinson) 5 Who Were the Romans? (E. Robinson) Reading and Discussion: Plato, Gorgias. 10 COLUMBUS DAY HOLIDAY 12 Republic and Empire (E. Robinson) Reading and Discussion: KGO, ch. 4-5; The Western World, pp. 17-108 (Livy, Polybius, Cicero); Interpretations, pp. 93-161 ( The Motives Behind Roman Expansion ). 17 Are Two Caesars Better Than One? (E. Robinson) 19 The Grandeur that Was Rome (E. Robinson)
Reading and Discussion: The Western World, pp. 114-138 (Sallust, Appian, Cassius Dio, Suetonius); Interpretations, pp. 162-213 ( The Fall of the Roman Republic ); Res gestae divi Augusti (online at: www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/14resgestae.html). The Middle Ages 24 The Rise of Christianity (A. Cooper) 26 The Fall of Rome (A. Cooper) Reading and Discussion: Augustine, Confessions (Books I-IX); Interpretations, pp. 214-291 ( The Conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity ). 31 MIDTERM Nov 2 The Medieval Church (A. Cooper) Reading and Discussion: KGO, ch. 6-7; The Rule of St. Benedict; The Western World, pp. 139-157 (Hildegard of Bingen, Gregory VII, and Calixtus II Henry V). Note: Western World, pp. 153-157, should be read before the Nov. 2 lecture. 7 The Carolingians (A. Cooper) 9 The Feudal Revolution (A. Cooper) Reading and Discussion: KGO, ch. 8-10; The Western World, pp. 158-191 (Einhard, Gregory of Tours, Galbert of Bruges); Interpretations, pp. 292-346 ( The Feudal Revolution ). Note: Western World readings should be read before the Oct. 7 lecture. 14 Islam and the West (A. Cooper) 16 The Crusades (A. Cooper) Reading and Discussion: The First Crusade, ed. Peters, sections I, II, III, VIII and IX; Interpretations, pp. 347-386 ( Motives of the Crusaders ). 21 The Crises of the Fourteenth Century (A. Cooper) 23 NO CLASS - THANKSGIVING DAY HOLIDAY No section this week. Readings: KGO, chapters 11-16; The Western World, pp. 192-200 (Boccaccio), the latter to be read for Nov. 21 lecture.
The Prehistory of the Modern World 28 The Italian Renaissance (J. Hankins) 30 The Military Revolution and Development of the State (J. Hankins) Reading and Discussion: Machiavelli, The Prince, pp. 39-123 (introduction recommended); Interpretations, pp. 387-442 ( The Military Revolution ). 5 Exploration and the New Seaborne Empires (J. Hankins) 7 The Revolt against the Medieval Church (J. Hankins) Reading and Discussion: Martin Luther, Three Treatises, pp. 1-112, 262-316; The Western World, pp. 201-207 (Luther); Interpretations, pp. 443-493 ( What was the Reformation? ). Dec 12 Skepticism, Science and Religion (J. Hankins) 14 The Prehistory of the Modern Economy (J. Hankins) Reading and Discussion: Galileo, Discoveries and Opinions, pp. 1-58, 145-216; Interpretations, pp. 494-553 ( Science and Religion from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance ). 19 The Emergence of Modernity (J. Hankins) 21 Winter Recess begins Jan 3 End of Winter Recess 18 Final Exam Course Requirements: (1) Attendance at lectures and informed participation in discussion sections. (10 %) (2) Completion of assigned readings (averages about 200 pages per week, not counting reading period).
(3) Mid-term Examination. Covers required readings and material presented in class (25%). You will be responsible for all lectures, sections and readings through the week of October 24. A review sheet will be distributed before the exam and posted on the course website. Students who are entitled to special accommodations should contact the head TF at least two weeks in advance. (4) Responses. Each week you will be given four or five discussion questions for the following week s section. You will be required to prepare 1-paragraph responses to two of these discussion questions (50 words each). You should thus expect to prepare a total of 22 responses, 2 for each section. No late responses will be accepted. (10%) (5) Papers. On two occasions of your own choosing during the course of the semester you should expand one of your responses into a short paper (6 page = 1800 word). At least one of these papers should be handed in before the Thanksgiving break, and the other should be handed in before the Winter Recess. In these short papers you may elaborate on the responses at greater length, or you may develop a different idea, but in any case you should focus on one or more of the primary sources assigned for the course. Consult your TF if you wish to write a paper on a topic unrelated to the responses. Papers should consist of argument or textual analysis, not summary. You may submit as many drafts as you like, but no rewrites are permitted after the paper has been graded. 1/2 grade will be deducted from the paper grade for every day it is late, unless the late paper is accompanied by a medical excuse signed by your senior tutor or by UHS. (Two six-page papers: 12.5% each). (6) Final Examination. Covers all the readings and lectures, though the emphasis will be on material covered in the latter half of the course. (30%) Students who are entitled to special accommodations should contact the head TF at least two weeks in advance. Reading list (All items available from the COOP and at Lamont) The textbook for the course is Mark Kishlansky, Patrick Geary, and Patrician O'Brien, Civilization in the West, 5 th ed. (Longman), vol. I, known as KGO. 0-321-23624-6. The custom sourcebook designed for this course is: The Western World, ed. Kishlansky, Hankins, Brown and Blackbourn (Penguin Custom Editions) The custom secondary reader designed for this course is: Interpretations of the Western World, ed. Kishlansky, Hankins and Gordon (Pearson Custom Publishing). (Several copies of these sourcebooks are available at Lamont Library.) Thucydides, On Justice, Power and Human Nature, ed. Woodruff (Hackett). 0-87220-168-6 Plato, Gorgias, tr. Hamilton (Penguin). 0140440941 Augustine, Confessions, tr. Pine-Coffin (Penguin) 0-140-44114-X
The Rule of St Benedict, ed. T. Fry (Vintage) 0-375-70017-X The First Crusade: The Chronicle of Fulcher of Chartres and Other Source Materials, ed. Edward M. Peters (U Penn) 0812216563 Machiavelli, The Prince, tr. William Connell (Bedford St Martins) 0312149786 Martin Luther, Three Treatises (Fortress). 0800616391 The Discoveries and Opinions of Galileo, tr. Stillman Drake (Anchor) 0385092393