Course Description

This course is designed as an in-depth study of a very exciting period of European history, the period from the late fifteenth century through the eighteenth century. Through a combination of lecture and interactive seminar, students will have the opportunity to learn about many aspects of the past - intellectual, cultural, social, political, and religious aspects - with a special focus on social and cultural history. As a course designed primarily for history majors and minors, this course will emphasize understanding of the historical process, and use of the skills of the historian with both secondary and primary source material, as background for acquiring knowledge of this particular region and time period.

Student Objectives

1. Students will develop a sound knowledge base about European history from the late 1400s to the late 1700s, including specialized knowledge about certain topics.

2. Students will engage in the process of history through contact with primary sources, and application of skills in synthesis and analysis, making connections and seeing relationships between events.

3. Students will build on skills of reading and thinking critically about the past, and increase their ability to synthesize, analyze, and make connections.

4. Students will build on skills for formulating and sharing ideas orally and in writing.

5. Students will demonstrate skills and knowledge as they engage in independent research into a topic of their choosing, within provided parameters, and present the results in a formal paper.

Texts and Readings

1. Lynn Hunt et al., The Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures, vol. B, 1320-1830. (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001). This is your required basic text.

2. Merry Wiesner et al., Discovering the Western Past: A Look at the Evidence, vol. II, 5th ed. (Houghton Mifflin, 2004). This is a collection of primary sources and related exercises, and specific chapters will be assigned, along with written work.

3. Richard Wunderli, Peasant Fires: The Drummer of Niklashausen (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1992). This is a required supplemental reading, with assigned written work.

4. Sue Peabody, There Are No Slaves in France: The Political Culture of Race and Slavery in the Ancien Régime (New York: Oxford University Press, 1996). This is a required supplemental reading, with assigned written work.

6. Additional readings, available as handouts or reserve materials, will be announced in class.

Note: All reading assignments are to be completed by the date listed on the syllabus, because class discussions will revolve around them. Be prepared for class!! Changes or further information about readings and written assignments will be presented in class, usually one week in advance of due dates.

Daily Schedule of Topics and Assignments

Unit I: INTRODUCTION

Aug. 26 Introduction to Course

Aug. 28 Historiographical Issues and Background

Read: Hunt, Ch. 13 (get instructions)

Write: letter of introduction

Sept. 2 Background (cont.)

Read: Hunt, Ch. 14 (get instructions)

Unit II LATE FOURTEENTH-CENTURY CONTEXTS

Sept. 4 Economic Contexts: Europe and the World Economy

Read: Hunt, pp. 514-523

reserve reading, Discovering, Vol. I, Ch. 11: "Pagans, Muslims, and Christians in the Mental World of Columbus"

Write: worksheets, as assigned

Sept. 9 Europeans Around the World

Write topic description paragraph and checklist

Sept. 11 Cultural, Social, and Religious Contexts

Read: start Wunderli, Peasant Fires

pp. xi-xii and 1-14, 138-150, 14-27

Write: start and bring Wunderli worksheets for discussion

Sept. 16 Contexts (cont.)

Read: Wunderli, pp. 27-150

Write: finish Wunderli worksheets; turn in final version by 4 pm on Friday

Unit III RELIGIOUS, ECONOMIC, & SOCIAL DEVELOPMENTS

up to about 1650

Sept. 18 Religious Reformations

Read: Hunt, Ch. 15

Sept. 23 Reformations and Society

Read: on reserve, Discovering, Vol. I, Ch. 12: "The Impact of the Reformations: Confessionalization and Social Discipline"

Write: worksheets as assigned

Sept. 25 Rural Life in Sixteenth-Century France

film: The Return of Martin Guerre

Sept. 30 Rural Life (cont.)

Write: preliminary bibliography and checklist (see handout) with topic description

Unit IV POLITICS and CONFLICT

Oct. 2 Religious Conflict and the Politics of War

Read: Hunt, Ch. 16 to p. 589

Oct. 7 Conflict (cont.)

Read: as assigned

Write: worksheets as assigned

Oct. 9 Conflict (cont.)

Read: Discovering, Ch. 1

Write: worksheets as assigned

come see me by this date with your current bibliography, and hand in bib checklist

Oct. 14 Absolutism and Alternatives

Read: Hunt, Ch. 17

Oct. 16 MIDTERM EXAM

Oct. 21 Absolutism (cont.)

Read: Discovering, Ch. 2

Write: worksheets, as assigned

Oct. 23 Urban and Rural Challenges to Political Authority

Read: Discovering, Ch. 1

Write: begin the Beik worksheets, and bring to class

UNIT V CULTURAL CHANGES and CONFLICTS to 1800

Oct. 28 Developing a Scientific World View

Read: Hunt, 589-601

Oct. 30 Science and Witch-Hunting

Read: on reserve, as assigned

Write: worksheets, as assigned

Nov. 4 Intellectual Developments of the 18th Century

Read: Hunt, Ch. 19

Nov. 6 Intellectual Developments (cont.)

Read: Discovering, Ch. 3

Write: worksheets, as assigned

Nov. 11 Peasants' Perspectives

Read: "Peasants Tell Tales"

Write: worksheets as assigned

Write: paper draft and checklist due

Unit VI ECONOMY AND SOCIETY in the EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

Nov. 13 Economic and Social Change

Read: Hunt, Ch. 18

Nov. 18 Economic and Social Change (cont.)

Read: Discovering, Ch. 4

Write: worksheets, as assigned

Nov. 20 Slaves?

Read: begin reading Peabody, from the outside in

Write: begin worksheets and bring to class with you

NOVEMBER 24-30 THANKSGIVING BREAK

Dec. 2 Slaves? (cont.)

Read: finish reading Peabody

Write: complete worksheets for discussion

Dec. 4 Course Conclusions

Write: final paper and checklist due by 5 pm

Write: final version of Peabody worksheets due by 5 pm

Dec. 11 FINAL EXAM, 10:30 am

Additional Important Information

1) Your grade in this course will be based on the following:

10 % midterm exam

20 % critical reading/worksheets on Wunderli, Peabody,

reserve readings (weighted average)

10 % course journal

20 % research paper

20 % 4 assignments on primary sources (weighted average)

10 % discussion responsibilities, including preparing,

attending, and contributing in a seminar format

10 % final exam

100 %

All assignments are required. You may be dropped by the instructor for failing to complete an assignment, or for not attending class.

2) Attendance is IMPORTANT and EXPECTED. You are expected to come on time and prepared to contribute to intelligent and thoughtful discussions. You are responsible (in discussions, exercises, exams, and other oral and written work) for all material presented or discussed in class and covered in the syllabus. If circumstances prevent your attendance, or you miss an assignment or a change in the syllabus, it is your responsibility to see me about it.

3) Course Journal: You will be required to keep a course journal as part of this course. I will explain the assignment in class, and provide a handout that describes it early in the semester.

4) The research paper, which counts for 30 % of your course grade, will be discussed, with handouts, during the first week of class. Be sure you understand the assignment and the stages required for its completion.

5) Reminder: For this (and any) university-level course, the average student can expect to work about 2 hours out of class for every hour in class, or about 6 hours per week. If you find that the class is averaging more of your time than that, please come see me to talk about it.

6) Plagiarism is the act of using someone else's exact words, or extensively paraphrasing someone else's ideas, as if they were yours (that is, without quotation marks, and without giving credit to the author, book, or person you are "stealing" from). It is a bad thing because it is an act of intellectual theft, and because it is done IN PLACE OF learning. Plagiarism is not allowed. It results in an F on an essay assignment, and it may result in an F in the course. Your essays should reflect your understanding of the material, and should be written from your own head, after consulting with your notes and texts for content (i.e., write with the book closed). I strongly encourage you to check out the following very useful web site for further information and examples of plagiarism: www.hamilton.edu/academic/Resource/WC/AvoidingPlagiarism.html

7) If you need assistance in understanding anything on this syllabus, or in fulfilling any of the requirements for the course, please see me. If you experience difficulties with the material, or other difficulties which interfere with your work, please be sure to keep in touch with me. Any student eligible for and needing academic adjustments or accommodations because of a specific physical, psychiatric, or learning disability is requested to speak with me no later than the end of the second week of classes.

I hope to see each of you regularly in my office as we explore European history together.

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Official CSU-Pueblo 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 as soon as possible 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.