Course Requirements
REQUIRED BOOKS (available for sale in the UNCG bookstore):
1. C. Warren Hollister, Medieval Europe: A Short History, 8th
edition (McGraw-Hill, 1997)
2. Patrick J. Geary, ed., Readings in Medieval History, 2nd
edition (Broadview Press, 1997)
3. Beowulf and Other Old English Poems, trans. C.B. Hieatt,
2nd edition (Bantam Classics, 1983)
4. Chrétien de Troyes, Erec and Enide, trans. Dorothy
Gilbert (University of California Press, 1992)
5. The Letters of Abelard and Heloise, ed. Betty Radice (Penguin,
1974)
6. The occasional handout
Note: for certain weeks I have assigned texts that are found on the Internet. I indicate these texts on the syllabus and provide a URL where they can be accessed. If you have trouble using the internet, please see me for assistance.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1. Attendance, Discussion and Homework (10% of your grade)
As befits an Honors course I can and will expect regular attendance
and participation in discussion. My goal is for the course to be
almost entirely discussion oriented. I will have assigned some primary
sources for a given day and will take the first 5-15 minutes to introduce
the subject. For the rest of each class meeting we will explore the texts
together. So it's essential that you do the reading before attending class!
2. Film Review (5 % of your grade)
I will schedule a series of movies on medieval topics to be shown in
the McNutt Building periodically over the course of the semester.
By the end of the course you must turn in a typed, two-page, analytical
review of one (1) of the movies. This needn't be overly scholarly
(let those Siskel and Ebert juices flow), but should analyze the film from
a historian's perspective. That is, I don't want to hear about Charlton
Heston's woodenness in the Warlord, or the plot-holes in the 13th Warrior;
what I do want to hear about is how well a particular film hits its target
historically. Here is the tentative schedule (provided that I can obtain
them ....):
1. The Thirteenth Warrior: week of September
11-15
2. The Warlord: week of October 16-20
3. Stealing Heaven: week of November
6-10
4. The Name of the Rose: week of November
13-17
5. Monty Python and the Holy Grail:
week of November 27-December 1
3. First Paper: due September 14 (10% of your grade)
You will write a short (3 page) essay on an aspect of the world of
the Franks. I will distribute a paper assignment during the first
week of class. Papers must be typed, double-spaced, with standard
one-inch margins, and should be written in good, formal English. Be sure
to proofread! Consult my "Tips to Writing History Essays" (click
here).
4. Mid-Term Examination: Tuesday October 3 (15% of your grade)
This exam will include one or two short questions about primary sources
as well as a longer essay. The goal of the essay will be to have
you evaluate and synthesize (that is, pull together) material from the
readings and discussions. The essay questions will thus almost always
require you to form an argument and defend it by using the sources assigned
for the class.
5. Second Paper: due Thursday November 16 (15% of your grade)
You will write a slightly longer paper (4-5 pages) on Chretien de Troyes'
classic work of chivalric literature, Erec and Enide. Specific questions
and further information will be distributed in class. Consult my
"Tips to Writing History Essays" (click here).
6. Project: to be completed and presented in the last weeks of the
semester (December 5-7) (20%)
This assignment distinguishes the Honors version of History 221 from
the regular one. Its parameters are quite open-ended. Early in the
semester, and with the help of the instructor, you will choose a project
on any aspect of the Middle Ages. Over the course of the semester you will
develop the project and prepare a short presentation for the last week
of classes. You may explore any aspect of medieval culture (ie.,
literature, music, cooking, drama, art, etc., as well as "history") in
whatever way you see fit (with my approval). Hence, a presentation
on medieval food/cooking would be appropriate, as would a slide show on
gothic architecture, or a brief dramatic performance of part of a mystery
play, or a performance or demonstration of medieval chant or polyphonic
music, or the creation of a web-site on any number of topics, or a discussion
of a particular event/cultural practice. Let your interests guide
you! I will also be open to the possibility of group projects ...
Deadlines: October 17: a one-page description of
your project, with at least 2 bibliographic items
November 28-December 7: presentations of projects to the class (10 minutes
each)
December 11: Five page account of project due to me in my office by noon.
7. Final Exam: Thursday December 14, 12 Noon to 3 PM (25% of your
grade)
The format of this exam will be similar to that of the midterm.
I will ask you several short identifications and then ask you to write
two longer essays.
GRADE BREAKDOWN:
Attendance, Discussion, Homework:
10%
Film Review
5%
First Paper (on the Franks):
10%
Midterm Examination:
15%
Second Paper (on Erec and Enide):
15%
Semester Project
20%
Final Exam:
30%
RESPONSIBILITY CLAUSE: You cannot pass the class if you do not fulfill all of the requirements listed above. Assignments are due on the date and at the time listed on the syllabus; if a crisis (such as illness) arises, it is your responsibility to contact me. If you do not contact me, I will be unable to accept late work. Contact may be made by phone, email, or a note left in my mailbox in the History Department (219 McIver). Note that while I provide my home phone number above, I will be annoyed if you call me at home after 9 PM.
THE PLAGIARISM DISCLAIMER
This is a notoriously thorny area for students. Many students
unintentionally commit plagiarism by ‘borrowing' ideas, interpretations,
and/or actual words from other authors. Make sure that your words
are your own, and that your interpretations are also your own. If
you find yourself using someone else's words or ideas, make sure you have
given him/her credit by using a footnote, endnote, or parenthetical citation.
When writing exams or papers, keep in mind the following points:
1. DO discuss sources, interpretations, and anything else with
your peers and friends.
2. DO feel free to make use of interpretations presented
in class.
3. DO NOT slavishly copy, quote, or otherwise present the textbook's
rather meager interpretation as your own. Hollister presents a rather
straightforward narration of facts. In no case will you find that
he offers sufficient interpretation to answer an exam question or a paper
topic. You should READ Hollister for background, and to gain a sense
of the chronology of events, but when writing you should present your own
interpretations based on your reading of the primary sources and our discussions
in class.
4. DO NOT pass off someone else's words or ideas as your own.
To do so is to commit the academic crime of plagiarism, a serious offense
that can lead to a variety of punishments including failing the course.
If you copy the exact words of another author into your paper, they must
appear within quotation marks and you must provide a citation to the source
from which you took the quotation. Likewise, if you simply rearrange
the words but keep the main point and/or interpretation from another text,
you also must provide a citation indicating the source of the point/interpretation.
Note: my comments in class do not need to be cited.
ADVICE FROM THE PROF: or, how to succeed
in History 221 ....
1. Attend class. My experience tells me that it is hard to do well
if you don't attend
2. Keep up with the reading.
3. Really, I mean it .... Keep Up With The Reading!
4. Do the reading before you come to class.
5. Make use of the syllabus. If you lose it, ask me for another
copy.
6. Make use of the professor. I have office hours for a reason
- to talk to students! Don't make me sad by staying away ....
7. Try to discern the common theme in the readings for each day.
There is a reason that I assigned the readings that I did. What is it?
What is it that I'm trying to have you understand? Almost never will the
answer to this last question be "to learn some facts about (person X)".
Almost always the answer will have something to do with a larger theme:
the nature of kingly authority, the particular character of Christianity,
the role of women, etc.