[Note: This is a preliminary syllabus. Owing to the issuance of a new edition of one of the books for this course, some essay assignments will may have to be adjusted, along with related source readings, as well as the whole section about papers because Clio is retiring and we are going online. Assignments and descriptions for the first four weeks are complete and correct. Before the end of September, I will provide you with an updated syllabus to replace this one.]

VERY IMPORTANT: Please read through this syllabus completely, so that you will understand your responsibilities, as well as my expectations, in this course. "The Rise of the West" is not an appropriate course for academic assistance students.

Catalogue Description: Beginning with the origins of civilization in the ancient Near East, this course examines the development of Western culture and society from its beginning through the religious wars of the seventeenth century with emphasis on the nature and values of three successive polities: the classical world of Greece and Rome, the European Middle Ages, and the origins of the modern world during the Renaissance/Reformation. Exploration of these three areas is undertaken through readings of primary and secondary materials, lectures, and classroom discussions.

Course Objective:

To familiarize students with the general historical outline of Western civilization, both topically and in its chronological framework.

To describe the various cultures comprising Western civilization in relation to one another both in terms of their unique character and as sources for modern culture.

To introduce students to the documentary, artistic, and literary monuments of Western civilization through appropriate readings in primary sources and visual representation.

To acquaint students with elementary research techniques, including the collection of historical data, the varieties of historical material and its evaluation, ascertaining the relative merits of primary and secondary sources, resolving conflicting interpretations of historical questions, and organizing and presenting the results of research.

To encourage the development of discrimination and appreciation when dealing with the sources of the collective past.

Topical Course Outline:

The Origins of Civilization.

• Pre-history.
• The Ancient Near East.
• Crete and Mycenae.

The World of Ancient Greece.

• The Homeric World.
• The Persian Wars and the Development of the polis.
• The "Golden Age."
• War and Transfiguration.

The Roman World.

• The Republic.
• The Empire.
• Judaism and Christianity.

The Early Middle Ages.

• The Decline of Rome.
• Feudal Europe.
• Byzantium
• Muhammad and the Rise of Islam.

Medieval Civilization in the West.

• Society and Economy.
• Kingship.
• The Church Triumphant.
• Literature and the Arts.

Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages.

• The Crusades.
• The Decline of the Byzantine World.
• The Turks.
• Russia to ca. 1600.

The Decline and Transformation of Medieval Civilization.

• The Origins of the Commercial Revolution.

The Renaissance.

Europe and the Outside World.

• East to Asia.
• West to America.

Religious Conflict in the Sixteenth Century.

• The Protestant and Catholic Reformations.
• Protestants and Progress.

War and Empire in the Sixteenth Century.

• War as an instrument of Foreign Policy.
• Catholic Spain and France.
• Protestant England and Holland.
• The Thirty Years' War.
• Science and Religion.

Method of Presentation: The primary method of presentation is through discussion of the readings assigned, in particular of selections from primary source materials. The textbook carries the burden of providing the essential narrative, permitting concentration on the discussion of primary materials and interpretive essays. There is therefore no effort to "cover the textbook" in class time.

Courtesy Code: Please note that eating, drinking, smoking, and baseball hats are not permitted in this class. Additionally, all students are expected to arrive on time for each meeting of the class. Finally, I will not waste any class time filling out or signing withdrawal forms before or after class. If for any reason, you decide to withdraw from this course, you can do so by simply filling out the appropriate form, and print my name on the line where my signature is supposed to appear. If anyone in the Registrar's office questions your actions, show them what I have written here, i.e. that I do not require my students to notify me that they wish to withdraw from the course.

Writing: All students will write short (not more than sixty lines, single spaced) "reactions" every week based upon the exposition of primary source material encountered in the reader, Roots of Western Civilization or to answer questions about these materials. To prepare these short papers, and to prepare for class discussion of the readings, all students are expected to purchase three computer 3.5" high density disks and to write not more than one single-spaced plain ASCII page (60 lines of writing) for each of the weekly essay and document assignments, i.e., the ones encountered in Roots of Western Civilization - not The Western Heritage. Reaction papers are just that: your own reaction to what you have read. They are not "research" papers, and you will need nothing more than the materials listed in the bibliography for this course to prepare them. The papers should tell the reader what you think (repeat: think!!). A reaction paper is not a summary or synopsis of what you have read (on this point, see pp. vii - xi of Roots of Western Civilization). The purpose of the papers is to insure that students do the required reading prior to classroom discussion of it. Since another function of these papers is to provide students an opportunity to improve their English composition, all students are expected to use the assistance like that which is available on the network of computers in the computer lab, i.e., the Wordperfect spelling checker and the grammar checker known as Grammatik V. In class, students will tell what they liked, disliked, understood, or did not understand of the assigned source material. To pass this course, all assignments must be completed. These papers will conform to accepted stylistic formats, and must be written with due regard to the rules of modern English usage.

Writing Format: In lieu of traditional "on paper" writing requirements, in this class we are going to do something rather different. Instead of the two formal papers formerly required in this syllabus, we (all of us, you and I) will be using the Internet and its World Wide Web (WWW) and a site known as "Nicenet" (located at http://www.nicenet.org/) to post your weekly reaction papers online in the form of electronic mail ("email"). All of these posts will be in the form of public messages, addressed to ALL, readable by everyone in this class. I have set up special "virtual classrooms" which are "key protected" (which means password protected) which I will explain in class and for which I will also provide written instructions. Everyone in this class will be required to post a weekly response to the sources, or to questions I may provide to you, and to read and comment on what everyone else has to say. In addition, I will post responses (and further questions) agreeing or disagreeing with what others write. All students will have this ability, i.e., to post responses - and are expected to do so. In other words, we will be reading and writing together, and you will be taking part in your own education which is (after all) what this is all about. To facilitate this exercise, you will need the QC computer center's network, or the computers in the library (a nicer place to work). If you have your own computer with Net access you can of course use that. You will also need your own disks, as mentioned above. This is a history course, but we live in revolutionary times because of what has been called the "communications revolution" and there is a great deal of history on the Internet. We will use it. I will have instructions for you (lots of instructions) to pass out to you, and your textbook is accompanied by a good (and free) introductory guidebook.

Getting Started: I have done a lot of research and work to put together a collection of public domain (i.e., free) software packages and utilities to give to all of you. For now, what you will need to get started is to acquaint yourselves with it. Here is how to proceed:

1. Buy three new formatted 3.5" high density 1.44 megabyte disks at the bookstore. The disks must be this size and density: other sizes or densities will not work here. One will be for your essays. The second is for your "home page." The third disk is so that you will be able to back up your work.

2. Label the disks something like "Essays" and "Home Page" and "History Backup" to distinguish them from other disks you may be using. These disks will be solely for use in this class and should be new.

3. I fully expect that there will a whole variety of computer skills among the students in my classes ranging from none at all to veterans surfers, programmers, and writers. For the total beginners I will provide all the help I can, including free (and simple) editors for you to use to write. You will also be able to write online, of course. For that, the little "History on the Internet" will give you adequate instructions. For the software (a simple editor and a study guide from the publishers of your textbook), I will leave a disk for you to copy in the computer center. Bring your new diskettes with you. What you are going to need is a copy of the software I assemble for you. Either I, or you, or one of the center staff will make the copy for you. It is not difficult. If by chance you have access to a terminal with the DOS or Windows command to copy disks, and you know someone who has already gotten the course software, a disk can be copied on that machine and save you a trip. If the computer center staff seem puzzled by your request, just tell them you need a copies of the History software diskette which will be right in the front desk there. After the first week of classes, the computer center will be open and I will make copies of the software available there for you to copy on your own, but before it's open, you'll have to come over to FOB 9 during my office hours.

4. Once you have gotten the disk you need to copy, sit down at a computer and turn it on. The power switch is usually located on the front panel of the machine.

5. The machine will power up, and eventually you will see the C:> prompt on the screen in front of you if you are using DOS. If you are using Windows, run the File Manager. At this point, insert one of your "source" disks into the 3.5" disk drive. The "source" disks are the ones you need to copy; the "target" disks are the blank ones you bought.

6. The process is simple. You are going to use the DOS command called "diskcopy" or the Windows File Manager. Once you have put one of the "source" disks into the machine, you type the command exactly as follows: "diskcopy a: a:" and then tap the <Enter> key. The process will begin, and you will be prompted when to put in your "target" disk. Depending on what machine you are using, it might take several minutes and a bit of disk inserting and removing, but it is not a difficult task. Please understand that these routines WILL FORMAT AND OVERWRITE ANY DATA which might be on your disks, which is why the disks should be new, and dedicated to this course only. You will see the progress of the transfer on the screen in front of you. When you are done, you will have, first, a disk with all of the utilities you will need for your email (including two small editors called EZquote and GEDIT as well as the Study Manager. The "study manager" is a copy of practice quiz questions from Prentice-Hall, the publishers of your main textbook in this class: from an A:\> prompt, you type "sm" (without the quotation marks) and hit the <Enter> key to start the program. You will have the opportunity to see what you recall, and what you do not recall, from your chapters by being presented with multiple choice and true/false questions just like (but not identical to) the ones you will face in class every week.

7. I will provide you with a great deal of material on how to use these programs, not with any intention of intimidating you, but rather because my experience has taught me to try to anticipate all of the questions which tend to arise and try to answer them in writing beforehand. This is of course a history course, not a course on telecommunications, so there will not be enough class time to explain every thing to you: that's why I will give you a great deal of written instructions. But in some cases we learn by doing, not by reading. You would never have learned how to ride a bicycle by reading a book on how to do so, and the same is true of some computer applications. You may not find it easy but you will learn, and once you do you will not forget. Key to the process is starting early and starting often. You'll make lots of mistakes, encounter many puzzles, but you cannot break anything so keep trying. The only real damage you can do is to your own disks which is why you should always keep backup copies of anything you write.

8. As for your own equipment, none is required. We have the terminals and modem connections in the computer center. Having said that, though, I will add that students who have their own computers will find things a lot easier and more convenient. And if you have a computer but do not have a modem, you are in a situation like having a car without tires. Modems have come down a great deal in price, and I know enough about them that I could help with recommendations and installation. We might even be able to get the QC bookstore to stock them if there is sufficient demand. We shall see.

9. Because we will be using the Internet and a good deal of email, and because I have a lot of students, there will have to be some email address uniformity in order for me to prepare mailing lists, which I will do from class rosters. This is what they look like:

02-13-97 CLASS ROSTER 97/SP*HS*112*B

In order for me to make email addresses without endless typing, I want all of my students to get an email address with "HoTMaiL" which is a free and very good email provider located at URL http://www.hotmail.com/ on the Internet. All you have to do is visit their site and register with them. It takes about ten minutes to answer their questions, and you will have an address which you can use for email from any machine which can get on the Net either here at QC or anywhere else. Students who have only a "quinnipiac.edu" address cannot do that, and they can get their email from only a very few terminals at which they must be standing up to read their mail. We will do an end run around that nonsense. When you register with them, use your student ID number (all seven digits) as your user ID, then choose a password you can remember, and finally use your first name, middle initial (if any), and last name exactly as shown on the roster, but in the proper order. Do not use any periods. In this example, the first name listed would wind up with an email address as follows: Brian S Student <0131742@hotmail.com>. That is the way I will be making up my address lists, so please follow the instructions carefully because I will use these addresses to provide you with Internet links, instructions, and a great deal more. Without a HoTMaiL address you will miss out on a great deal because the QC Network is very badly flawed and cannot handle a great deal of that. So free yourself of those problems with HoTMaiL. Once you have that address, proceed to Nicenet (located at http://www.nicenet.org/) and register there using the same name and email address. That is where the questions and other assignments will be posted. I will provide you with the "key" (password) to your virtual classroom once you are registered there. Also, I will leave a fully interactive copy of this, and others, syllabus at a little "home page" I set up for that purpose and located at https://members.tripod.com/~Patmos/qc.html.

Grading and Evaluation: Each Tuesday throughout the semester, beginning in the third week of the course before any discussion takes place, there will be a brief "readiness quiz" on the assignment for that particular week. The quizzes will be graded at three week intervals, after a total of fifty questions have been answered. Students who come to class without having read the assignment will of course not be able to pass these quizzes. Students who miss the Tuesday quizzes will not have the opportunity to make up any quizzes. At the end of the semester, you will have answered 250 computer-generated quiz questions. A perfect score on these quizzes will consist of answering 200 of the 250 questions correctly. There will be no mid-term or final examination in History 111. [Important note: Because these quizzes will be graded electronically, your answer sheets must be marked only with a no. 2 pencil in order for the computer to record your choice. It is your responsibility to come to class armed with such a pencil. They will not (repeat - will not) be supplied by the instructor.]

The writing will together count for 30% of the term grade. The total in-class quizzes will count for 50%, and, finally, a full 20% will be based upon the quantity and quality of a student's contributions to classroom discussion. In other words, a student who achieves perfect scores on all quizzes and on all written work, but who is unprepared or unwilling to participate in classroom discussion will receive a grade of B-/C+. Because classroom participation is so important, attendance in Hs 111 is required; no more than two unexcused absences will be permitted without a consequent reduction in the final grade assigned or a request to the Registrar that chronically absent students be removed from the course. Absence from this class to attend or participate in athletic activities is not tolerated, and will not count as an "excused absence" regardless of notes from coaches or other athletic personnel: we are not here to play games.

Student Evaluation of Course: Students will be afforded the opportunity to convey their evaluation of the course to the department through the completion of the appropriate form which will be distributed at the end of the semester.

ASSIGNMENTS

Bibliography: All books are required reading. In addition to these books, you will also need three 3.5" 1.44MB high density disks for this course.

Camp, Wesley D. Roots of Western Civilization. Vol. 1. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1983.

Hammond Historical Atlas of the World. Revised and expanded. Maplewood, New Jersey: Hammond, Inc., 1993.

Golden, Richard M., ed. Social History of Western Civilization. Third edition. Vol. 1. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1995.

Kagan, Donald (with Steven Ozment and Frank M. Turner). The Western Heritage. Fifth edition. Vol. 1. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1995.

Strunk Jr., William and E.B. White. The Elements of Style. Third edition. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1979.

In the assignments which follow, The Western Heritage is referred to as "text" and Roots of Western Tradition is referred to as "sources." Social History of Western Civilization is referred to as "essays." All students are expected to complete the assigned readings before coming to the class meetings at which they will be discussed. Important: Bring all of the required books to all classes.

8/26 - Text: Preface, Introduction, and Chapter 1.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• Vern L. Bullough et. al., Formation of Western Attitudes Toward Women.
• Isaac Mendelsohn, Slavery in the Ancient Near East.
• Bernard Lang, Afterlife: Ancient Israel's Changing Vision of the World Beyond.
• John Baines, Religious and Social Order in Ancient Egypt.

Sources: Chapter 1.

autonum 9/02 - Text: Chapter 2.

Essays: One of the following (no choice):

• William J. Baker, Organized Greek Games.

Sources: Chapter 2.

9/09 - Text: Chapter 3.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• W.K. Lacey, Marriage and the Family in Athens.
• K.J. Dover, Classical Greek Attitudes to Sexual Behavior.

Sources: Chapter 2 (review).

9/16 - Text: Chapter 4.

Essays: One of the following (no choice):

• P. A. Brunt, The Roman Mob.

Sources: Chapter 3.

Quiz on assignments 1-4 on Thursday, 9/18 (50 M/C questions). All remaining quizzes will be given at the opening of classes on Tuesdays, on the assignment for the week: bring #2 pencils.

9/23 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 5.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• Suzanne Dixon, Roman Marriage.
• Mary R. Lefkowitz, The Motivation for St. Perpetua's Martyrdom

Sources: Chapter 4.

9/30 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 6.

Essays: One of the following (no choice):

• Georges Duby, Rural Economy and Country Life in the Medieval West.

Sources: Chapter 6 (through p. 86).

10/07 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 7.

Essays: No essays.

Sources: Chapter 5.

10/14 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 8.

Essays: One of the following (no choice):

• David Herlihy, Medieval Children.

Sources: Chapters 7 and 8.

10/21 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 9.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• David Nicholas, Vendetta and Civil Disorder in Late Medieval Ghent.
• M. E. Combs-Schilling, The Effects of the Black Death on North Africa and Europe.

Sources: Chapter 9.

10/28 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 10.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• J. Russell Major, "Bastard Feudalism" and the Kiss: Changing Social Mores in Late Medieval and Early Modern France.
• David Herlihy, The Family in Renaissance Italy.
• Norman Roth, The Jews of Spain and the Expulsion of 1492.
• Alfred W. Crosby, Jr., The Early History of Syphilis: A Reappraisal.

Sources: Chapter 6, pp. 86 - 90.

11/04 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 11.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• Mary Elizabeth Perry, `Lost Women' in Early Modern Seville: The Politics of Prostitution.
• Merry Wiesner, Nuns, Wives, and Mothers: Women and the Reformation in Germany.

.11/11 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 12.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• Georges Vigarello, Concepts of Cleanliness: The Water That Infiltrated.
• Natalie Z. Davis, The Rites of Violence: Religious Riot in Sixteenth Century France.

Sources: Chapter 10.

11/18 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 13.

Essays: One of the following (your choice):

• Wendy Gibson, Birth and Childhood in Seventeenth-Century France.
• Michael MacDonald, Insanity in Early Modern England.

Sources: Chapter 12.

12/02 - Text material for readiness quiz: Chapter 14.

Essays: One of the following (no choice):

• Joseph Klaits, Sexual Politics and Religious Reform in the Witch Hunts.

Sources: Chapter 11.

Course grades will be posted on my office door (FOB 9) on or before the last day of classes. Students who leave the campus prior to that date who wish to know their final grades before receiving official notice from the registrar should provide me with a stamped self-addressed postcard.

First Day Information: Please provide me with the following information on your index card in the places indicated. The course number and semester are at the top of the syllabus. Your address (or box number) and phone number (including office phone, if applicable) should be the ones at which you can be reached most readily if I should have to contact you. On the reverse of the index card, I would like to know why you have enrolled in this course, and what you expect that it (the course) will cover.