[University of Mississippi] [Department of History] [Jeffrey Watt] [hswatt@olemiss.edu]
Department of History
Spring Semester 2008
History 101: History of Europe to 1648
Dr. Watt
Bishop 332 (915-5805)
Office hours: 2:00-3:15 MWF (and by appointment)
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Textbook: Chambers, Hanawalt, et al., The Western Experience to the Eighteenth Century, 9th edition (McGraw-Hill)
Chrétien de Troyes, Arthurian Romances
(Penguin)
Plautus, The Pot of Gold and Other Plays (Penguin)
Thomas More, Utopia (Penguin)
This survey course will cover the history of Western Civilization from ancient history down to 1648 in the modern era. We will be treating—necessarily in a very general manner—the political, social, economic, cultural, and intellectual developments that together defined Western Civilization. Students are expected to do the required readings before they are covered in class. Students will write two mid-term examinations and a final exam and will take three quizzes on the readings. Final grades will be determined roughly as follows:
class participation and quizzes 15%
three essay exams (equally weighted) 85%
To be eligible to take the exams, all students must submit four large bluebooks by February 4. These books will be redistributed at the time of the exams. STUDENTS WILL TAKE THE EXAMINATIONS AT THE SCHEDULED TIMES. Only under circumstances beyond the student’s control that are well documented will a student be allowed to take a make-up exam. All those who receive permission will take the make-up exam at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, May 2. There will be no make-ups for quizzes. No grade lower than C may be counted toward the 33-hour requirement for the history major. This requirement applies to history majors only.
Attendance at lectures is required. Poor attendance will result in a reduction in grade by an amount by the professor. While in class, appropriate behavior is also required: i.e., students will not chat, pass notes, read The Mississippian, do Sudoku puzzles, or in any way try to relive their high school experiences. CELL PHONES MUST BE TURNED OFF AND REMAIN STORED, OUT OF SIGHT, AT ALL TIMES DURING CLASS.
SCHEDULE OF LECTURES
I. The Ancient World
Week 1 (January 16-18)
Introduction, the Mesopotamians
The Egyptians
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 1)
Week 2 (January 23-25)
The Israelites and Persians
Minoans and Classical Greece
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 2)
Week 3 (January 28-February 1)
Classical Greece (continued)
The Hellenistic Period
The Roman Republic
(Reading assignment--text, chapters 3 and 4)
Week 4 (February 4-8)
The Roman Empire
QUIZ: Plautus, February 6
The Origins of Christianity
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 5; Plautus--all the plays)
Week 5 (February 11-15)
The Early Church
The Fall of Rome
Review for test 1
Week 6 (February 18-22)
FIRST EXAM: February 18
II. Medieval Europe
The Survival of the Empire in the East; The Appearance of Islam
The Growth of Christian Monasticism
(Reading assignment--text, chapters 6 and 7)
Week 7 (February 25-29)
The Carolingian Empire and the Viking Invasions
Feudalism and Manorialism
The Growth of the Papacy
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 8)
Week 8 (March 3-7)
The Crusades
Educational and Artistic Currents of the Central Middle Ages
QUIZ: Chrétien de Troyes, March 5
(Reading assignment--text,
chapter 9; Chrétien de Troyes: Lancelot:
The Knight
of the Cart and Perceval: The Story of the Grail)
Week 9 (March 17-19)
Economic and Social Changes of the Central Middle Ages
Political Changes of the Central Middle Ages
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 10)
Week 10 (March 24-28)
Social and Economic Crises
Review for test 2
SECOND EXAM: March 28
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 11)
III. Early Modern Europe
Week 11 (March 31-April 4)
Renaissance Humanism
Renaissance Art
The Protestant Reformation
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 12 and 13)
Week 12 (April 7-11)
The English Reformation
The Catholic Reformation
QUIZ: Utopia, April 11
(Reading assignment--More, Utopia)
Week 13 (April 14-18)
The Growth of the State
Overseas Expansion
Witchcraft
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 14)
Week 14 (April 21-25)
The Scientific Revolution
The History of the Family
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 15)
Week 15 (April 28-May 2)
War and Crisis in the Seventeenth Century
The English Civil War
Review for test 3
(Reading assignment--text, chapter 16)
FINAL EXAMINATION--Friday, May 9, 8 a.m.