Syllabus—History 446
History of Empires—500-1500 A.D.
Fall, 2006
12:00-12:50 MWF
Call #3487
Instructor: Beatrice Spade
Office: Psychology 122
Office phone: 549-2417
Office hours: Tues. 12:00-3:00, Friday 1:00-3:00 and by appointment
e-mail: beatrice.spade@colostate-pueblo.edu
Textbooks:
Chaliand, Gerard. Nomadic Empires: From Mongolia to the Danube. New Bruknswick: Transaction Press, 2004.
Forte, Angelo, Richard Oram, & Frederik Pedersen. Viking Empires: Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2005.
Ibn Khaldun. The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History. Trans. Franz Rosenthal. Ed., N.J. Dawod. Abridged ed. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967.
Ostler, Nicholas. Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World. New York: HarperCollins, 2005.
Rautman, Marcus. Daily Life in the Byzantine Empire. Westport, Ct.: Greenwood Press, 2006.
JSTOR: (Our library now has access to Jstor, a collection of on-line journal articles.)
Eisenstadt, S. N. “Religious Organizations and Political Process in Centralized Empires,” in The Journal of Asian Studies. 21.3 (May 1962), 271-294.
Goals: In regard to the readings and class discussion, there will be dual goals: on the one hand, we will all try to formulate some “theoretical” understanding of “empire”; on the other hand, we will also try to extend our understanding of individual empires during the time period. Reading comprehension, clarity of expression (both orally and in written form), and critical thinking are all elements that will be stressed in class.
Outcomes:
Individual students will serve as presenters and discussants in class
discussion for each reading assignment. Each student will also complete a
written critique of each assigned work. (Forms for the critiques are attached
to the syllabus). In addition, there will be a final analytical paper. See
section on grading for details.
Theme: This semester we will try to discover 1.) what
constitutes an “empire”, 2.) what elements help sustain an empire, and 3.) how
the authors of the assigned readings present
”empire”
Classroom Schedule:
Aug. 28 Mon. Introduction: Concepts of Empire
30 Wed. Models of Empire—Roman and Han Chinese
Sept. 01 Fri. Discussion (Daily Life in the Byzantine Empire, pp.1-61)
04 Mon. The Byzantine Empire: Traditions and Power
06 Wed. The Byzantine Empire: The Words of Empire
08 Fri. Discussion (Daily Life in the Byzantine Empire, pp.62-199)
11 Mon. The Byzantine Empire: Diplomacy and Empire
13 Wed. The Byzantine Empire: Religion and Empire
15 Fri. Discussion (Daily Life in the Byzantine Empire, pp.200-311)
18 Mon. The Islamic Empire: Founders and Empire
20 Wed. The Islamic Empire: Text and Empire
22 Fri. Discussion (The Muqaddimah ,pp. 91-122)
25 Mon. The Islamic Empire: Disputes and Empire
27 Wed. The Islamic Empire: Trade and Empire
29 Fri. Discussion (The Muqaddimah ,pp. 123-261)
Oct. 02 Mon. The Islamic Empire: Minorities and Empire
04 Wed. The Islamic Empire: Education and Empire
06 Fri. Discussion (The Muqaddimah ,pp. 263-332)
09 Mon. The Viking Empire: Water and Empire
11 Wed. The Viking Empire: Force and Empire
13 Fri. Discussion (Viking Empires, pp. 1-183)
16 Mon. Srivajaya: Ports and Empire (Southeast Asia)
18 Wed. Portugal: Factories and Empire
20 Fri. Discussion (Viking Empires, pp. 184-400)
23 Mon. The Tang Empire: Emporium and Empire
25 Wed. The Tang Empire: Clothes and Empire
27 Fri. Discussion: (“Religious Organization and Political Process in Centralized Empires”, pp. 271-294)
30 Mon. The Song Empire: Office and Empire
Nov. 01 Wed. The Mongol Empire: Nomads and Empire
03 Fri. Discussion: (Nomadic Empires pp. 1-104)
06 Mon. The Mongol Empire: Communication and Empire
08 Wed. The Mongol Empire: Culture and Empire
10 Fri. Discussion (Empires of the Word, pp. 1-173)
12 Mon. Empires: Slaves and Empire
14 Wed. Empires: technology and Empire
16 Fri. Discussion (Empires of the Word, pp. 174-322)
Vacation: Nov. 20-24
27 Mon. Presentations
29 Wed. Presentations
Dec. 01 Fri. Discussion (Empires of the Word, pp. 323-455)
04 Mon. Presentations
06 Wed. Presentation
08 Fri. Discussion (Empires of the Word, pp. 523-560)
11 Mon. Presentations (1:00-3:20; Finals Week)
Grading:
|
Percent |
Activity |
Description |
|
10% |
Discussion |
Present during discussion and prepared for discussion |
|
15% |
Presenter or Discussant |
The presenter spends about 15 minutes summarizing for the class the main points of the reading assigned that week. The discussant reviews that presentation, fills any gaps, and leads the general class discussion of the reading |
|
25% |
Written critique of assigned readings |
Fill out the form below for each of the six assigned readings. Due dates: Daily Life … Sept. 15 TheMuqaddimah Oct. 6 Viking Empires Oct. 20 “Religious Organizations…” Oct. 27 Nomadic Empires Nov. 3 Empires of the Word Nov. 17 |
|
5% |
Group exercises |
Based on classroom exercises at unannounced times. |
|
10% |
Classroom presentation of paper |
Presentation is timed. 15 minutes only. |
|
35% |
Final paper |
Body of paper should be 12 pages
double-spaced; citations follow Turabian or Chicago Manual of Style;
quality of paper should be excellent for presentation in the spring at the
Phi |
Grade Points and Letter Equivalents
60-63 D- 70-73 C- 80-83 B- 90-99 A
64-66 D 74-76 C 84-86 B
67-69 D+ 77-79 C+ 87-89 B+
Topic ideas for paper: (Use your critical reasoning skills to determine a good topic.)
What is an Empire?
Mobility: Key to Viking and Mongol Empires
Clothes and Imperial Power
Sea versus land empires
ADA Statement:
This University abides by the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the rehabilitation act of 1973, which stipulates that no student shall be denied the benefits of an education “solely by reason of a handicap.” If you have a documented disability that may impact your work in this class and for which you may require accommodations, please see the instructor during the first week of class to arrange accommodations. In order to receive accommodations, you must be registered with and provide documentation of your disability to the Disability Services Office, which is located in the Psychology Building, room 232.
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