Class sections will be divided between lectures and seminar discussions. The seminar discussion sessions will serve as a forum for the analysis and discussion of scholarly literature and as a testing ground for student hypotheses. The instructor will encourage students to elaborate, refine and revise ideas. Discussion sessions will also include tutorials in conducting historical research, the exploration of primary source documents, and practice in oral presentations. Participation in both lectures and seminar discussions is required for the successful completion of the course.
A sample course outline would include the following topics.
Note: Content may vary according to the instructor’s selection of topics.
- An overview of Latin Christendom in 1100:
- Geography, political and social structure, conditions of life
- The three orders of Society:
- the nobility and the feudal system; the Church, the peasants
- The Crusades
- Cities and Guilds
- Kingdoms and the Empire:
- France, England, Holy Roman Empire
- The Papacy:
- Papal outlook and power; conflict with emperors; Innocent III and the Fourth Lateran Council; Boniface VIII and Philip the Fair
- Popular Religion:
- Apostolic poverty
- Cistercians, Dominicans, Franciscans
- heresies
- Chivalry and courtly love
- Intellectual life:
- growth of universities
- scholasticism: Abelard to Aquinas
- The Family:
- social and economic ties
- Church attitudes
- women, children, sexuality
- Jews
- Changes in warfare:
- mercenary armies; the end of private feudal warfare; condottieri
- the Hundred Years’ War
- The Black Death
- Revolts and rebellions:
- The Jacquerie; urban revolts (Ciompi, Netherlands); Peasant’s Revolt
- Late medieval governance:
- Emergence of parliaments and estates
- The late medieval Church:
- Avignon; the Schism; Conciliarsim
- Lay piety; devotio moderna
- Hussites
- Defining the end of the Middle Ages:
- Historical interpretations
At the conclusion of this course the successful student will have:
- Acquired an understanding of the main themes and characteristics of European civilization in the high and later Middle Ages.
- Acquired experience in approaching and explicating primary medieval sources (reading history).
- Created and communicated personal interpretations of historical problems (writing history). Forms for communication of personal interpretations include annotated bibliographies, essays, comparative book reviews, and final examinations.
- Analyzed the ideas of other students and the instructor in class in both tutorials and seminars (discussing history).
Assessment will be in accord with the ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ student evaluation policy. Specific components of evaluation will include some of the following: mid-term and final exams consisting of short answer questions and essay questions; in-class written work, quizzes, research paper; seminar presentations; short debate/position papers; participation in class discussions.
Specific evaluation criteria will be provided by the instructor at the beginning of the semester and will vary according to the instructor’s assessment of appropriate evaluation methods.
An example of one evaluation scheme:
Any combination of the following totalling 100%:
| Final exam | 30% |
| Midterm | 20% |
| Research essay | 30% |
| Analytic study | 10% |
| Class participation | 10% |
Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students
Textbooks will be chosen from the following list, to be revised as new editions are published.
Frankforter, A. Daniel. The Medieval Millennium: An Introduction. 2nd ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2002.
Peters, Edward. Europe and the Middle Ages. 4th ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 2003.
Rosenwein, Barbara H. A Short History of the Middle Ages. 3rd ed. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, Higher Education, 2009.
Primary sources available online through the Internet Medieval History Sourcebook, at http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook2.html.
ONE 1000-LEVEL HISTORY COURSE