HIST 1B Syllabus - UCLA Summer Sessions Online Courses

HISTORY 1B – Introduction to Western Civilization Circa A.D. 843 to Circa 1715 (5 units)
Professor Teofilo Ruiz
UCLA Department of History
THIS SYLLABUS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
Class Website: http://courses.online.ucla.edu
“There is no document of civilization which is not at the same time a document of
barbarism” Walter Benjamin
Teo Ruiz
Office : 6258 Bunche Hall
Phone: 310 825-4601
Home phone. 310 470-7479
Office Hours:
Please check with the History web site for my scheduled office hours. Also by appointment. I should be
on campus by mid to late July. Available on e-mail and SKYPE before that.
E-mail: tfruiz@history.ucla.edu
Introduction to History 1B
The purposes of this course are two-fold. First, I hope History 1B will assist students in
developing their abilities in critical reading, thinking, speaking, and writing. These are important
skills, essential for your success at UCLA, and later on in life. Please pay attention to how and
what you write. If you find that you are having difficulties with the material or with your writing,
contact me or your TA as soon as possible.
Second, the course serves as an introduction to the development of western society from around
the year 1000 AD or CE (Common Era) to the early stages of the Enlightenment and the death of
Louis XIV (France) in 1715. It is impossible to cover all the themes present in such a vast
chronological period. Emphasis will be place in some specific historical topics and discrete
events.
1) The Social, Economic, Cultural, and Political Structures of Medieval Society
2) The Cultural and Mental Changes Which Took Place in Western Europe during the
Renaissance and Reformation
3) The Establishment of New Cultural (mostly Scientific) Paradigms in Early Modern Europe
4) The Encounter Between the Old World and the New
1

PLEASE NOTE: I am interested in change over time, and your readings, online discussion, and
writing should be placed within the context of specific issues:
1) Cultural Borrowing and Cultural Transmissions
2) The Relationship Between “High” and “Popular” Culture
3) The Individual, the Community, and the State
4) The Place and Role of Women in Western Society
5) Religion, the Individual, and the World to Come
6) Concepts and Articulations of Power
Responsibilities and Assignments
IN ORDER TO DO WELL IN THIS CLASS, YOU MUST FOLLOW THE
INSTRUCTIONS OF YOUR TA, POST COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS AS
INDICATED, AND BE IN TOUCH WITH YOUR TA OR WITH ME. YOU WILL NOT
DO WELL IN THE CLASS IF YOU LIMIT YOURSELF TO THE ESSAYS AND FINAL
PAPER. WEEKLY POSTINGS, ON-LINE DISCUSSIONS, AND ENGAGEMENT WITH
THE CLASS ARE IMPORTANT WAYS IN WHICH WE ASSESS YOUR WORK. WE
WISH YOU TO DO WELL AND WILL HELP YOU TO DO SO.
1) Please follow the online lectures and be an active participant in your online discussion
session. The lectures will provide background to the period under study and to the assigned
readings. What I cover in the lectures will be different from the textbook coverage. The heart of
the course will be in discussions of specific readings and interpretative issues.
2) Reading assignments correspond to the discussion topics (see below). Students should
complete the reading prior to watching the lectures. The course places particular emphasis on the
assigned primary sources. Read them carefully and be prepared to discuss them intelligently on
the discussion board. Books are available at the UCLA Bookstore—either on campus or online.
They are also available at other stores and from online booksellers such as Amazon.com.
Copies of the main readings are also available at the Undergraduate Library Reserve Room.
3.) To make sure that you are not faced with a large amount of work at any moment during the
quarter, we have divided the assignments into three different papers/take home essays. These
assignments will allow you to keep up with the material and will allow us to review and help you
improve your work throughout the term. Students will write a short paper (see below for paper
requirements) at the end of the second week. The final will be a take home exam and questions
will be discussed in detail.
4.) The final exam will consist of essay questions. They will ask you to provide lengthier explication of
a passage taken from one of the primary sources, as well as discuss some of the salient issues in the
class. Please note that I have placed documents on the web site which will be material to be discussed in
section and in the exams. I will be in touch with you via e-mail before the beginning of term.
2

Essay/Paper Requirement
THE FIRST ESSAY IS DUE AT THE END OF THE SECOND WEEK OF OUR TERM. IT
SHOULD NOT EXCEED MORE THAN FOUR TYPED PAGES. IT SHOULD BE DOUBLE-
SPACED WITH REASONABLE MARGINS. USE PAGE NUMBERS.
TO FULFILL YOUR ESSAY/PAPER REQUIREMENT:
I. You are expected to write two short essays/papers in this course. Writing is an important and
necessary aspect of your general education. We are here to help you write a paper. Please begin thinking
and planning what you are going to write. If you have a draft early in the term, we (I) will go over it
with you and give you suggestions for changes. Your grade will improve as a result, as will your
writing. YOU MUST RUN ASSIGNMENTS AND THE FINAL EXAM THROUGH TURN IT IN.
ESSAY 1: ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
You are a historian and the only extant source for the twelfth century is Gottfried von Strasburg, Tristan.
What does this book tell you about the past? How can you reconstruct from this source (and from this
source alone) aspects of medieval values and education, the role of women, the nature of honor,
chivalry, etc.? What does this book tell you about the ideals and values of some segment of society? Be
creative. Refer to the text.
Your paper will be a critical reading and commentary on a primary source. Proper footnoting
(University of Chicago Manual of Style), inclusion of a bibliography, and all other requirements for a
formal paper are expected. If you do not know them, please see me or one of your TAs. This is
important.
COME TO HAVE FUN
World Wide Web Use
The course will be conducted on a password protected WWW site which contains lecture
outlines, images, graphics, maps, terms, and timelines necessary for writing essays/papers and
preparing for discussions, lectures, and exams. This Web site is intended only for the students in
this course and is not available to the public.
Grading
The following percentages will determine your grade:
Participation in your online discussion sections 30%
Essay 1 20%
Essay 2 20%
Final Paper 30%
3

Readings
Required Textbook:
-Hunt, Martin, Rosenwein, Po-Chia Hsia, and Smith, The Making of the West, vol. I (To
1750), 4 th ed. Bedford-St. Martin’s. ISBN 978-0-312-67269-0. Please note that this book
may also be purchased electronically for your Kindle or other e-reader.
Primary Sources:
- K. J. Lualdi, Sources of The Making of the West to 1715, vol. I Bedford.
*Please note this book is free when purchased together with the text above (Hunt
et al). In addition, there will be other primary sources available online.
Other Texts:
- G. von Strassburg, Tristan, (Penguin)
- William Shakespeare, The Tempest (Penguin)
4

Schedule of Talks and Readings
WEEK 1
Lecture 1: Introduction to the Course
A) What is Culture?
B) How to read culture?
C) Why History? Setting up the agenda
D) Problems in European Culture. In the Shadow of Plato
E) Geography, Language, Sources. The Concept of Time
F) Against Whiggish History
G) History is Bunk
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 8: The Heirs of Rome, “Western Europe: A Medley
of Kingdoms,” pp. 257-271.
Excerpts from Benjamin and Geertz.
Begin reading Tristan by G. von Strassburg
Lecture 2: The Forging of Feudal Relations
A) The World in the Year 1000
B) Western Europe in the Year 1000. Towards a new Millennium. Fear and Hope
C) The Ruins of the Carolingian Empire
D) Magyars, Saracens, and Vikings
E) The Feudal Revolution
F) Inventing the Tripartite Society: Those who fight, those who work, those who pray
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 9: From Centralization to Fragmentation, “The
Carolingian Empire,” pp. 287-297.
Continue reading Tristan by G. von Strassburg
Suggested Reading:
Lualdi, ch. 9: From Centralization to Fragmentation, sel. 1: The
Rule of Charlemagne, pp. 175-179.
Lecture 3: The Structures of Everyday Life
A) Lords and Peasants
B) Serfdom
C) Agrarian Life
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 9: From Centralization to Fragmentation, “After the
Carolingians,” pp. 297-307.
Lualdi, ch. 9: From Centralization to Fragmentation, sel. 6: The
Faithful Vassal, pp. 190-192.
Finish Tristan by G. von Strassburg
5

WEEK 2
Lecture 4: A Changing Landscape, A Changing Church
A) Townsmen: The Rise of Cities (Stadt Lufte Macht Frei)
B) Trade and bankers
C) God’s Time and Merchants’ Time
D) The Church in a Changing Time
E) Monastic, Lay, and Papal Reform
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 10: Commercial Quickening and Religious Reform,
“The Commercial Revolution,” pp. 311-319 and “Church Reform,”
pp. 319-329.
Lualdi, ch. 10: Commercial Quickening and Religious Reform, sel.
1, Medieval Business, pp. 193-196.
Le Goff article
Lecture 5: The Civilization of the High Middle Ages
A) Monastic, Lay, and Papal Reform (continued)
B) Spiritual and Temporal in Western Christendom: Lay Investiture
C) The libertas of the Church
D) Preaching Crusades. The West Expands
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 10: Commercial Quickening and Religious Reform,
“The Crusades,” pp. 329-335 and “The Revival of Monarchies,”
pp. 335-341.
Lecture 6: The Twelfth-Century Renaissance
A) The Crusades Continued
B) Poetry: Goliardic, Christian, Epic, Troubadour
C) The Recovery of the Past. A Latin Renaissance
D) Translations
E) Courtly Love. Women in Western Society
Lualdi, ch. 10: Commercial Quickening and Religious Reform,
sel. 2: Sources of the Investiture Conflict, pp. 197-199; sel. 3:
Calling the First Crusade, pp. 199-201; sel. 4, Arab Response to
the First Crusade, pp. 201-206.
Required Reading: Hunt et al, ch. 11: The Flowering of the Middle Ages, pp. 345-377
(entire chapter).
Lualdi, ch. 11: The Flowering of the Middle Ages, sel. 2, Scholarly
Pursuits and Youthful Frolics, 215-220; sel. 3, Courtly Love,
pp. 220-226.
6

Assignment due: Short essay/paper by end of week
WEEK 3
Lecture 7: Culture and Society in the High Middle Ages
A) Universities and the New Philosophy
B) The Rebirth of Philosophy: Abelard and Heloise
C) The Reception of Aristotle: Albert Magnus and Thomas Aquinas
D) Radical Views (Averroism)
Required Reading: Hunt et al, ch. 12: The Medieval Synthesis, “The Church’s Mission,”
pp. 381-388 and “Reconciling This World and the Next,” pp. 388-
396.
Lualdi, ch. 11: The Flowering of the Middle Ages, sel. 1, New
Learning, pp. 211-15.
Lualdi, ch. 12: The Medieval Synthesis, sel. 1 Reconciling Faith and
Reason, pp. 235-240.
Lecture 8: Heresy and its Repercussions
A) Romanesque and Gothic
B) Heretics and Mystics
C) Waldensians and Cathars
E) Creating “Otherness”: The Birth of the Inquisition
E) New Religiosity
Required Reading: Lualdi, ch. 12: The Medieval Synthesis, sel. 2, A Female Mystic,
pp. 240-243; sel. 3, Defining Outsiders, pp. 243-246.
Lecture 9: An Urban Spirituality and the Emergence of Centralized Kingdoms
A) St. Francis and St. Dominic: The Mendicants and The Transformation of Values
(mentalité)
B) The Fourth Lateran Council: The Closing of Frontiers
C) Problems in State Building
D) The Growth of Bureaucracies
E) The King as Healer
F) The King’s Two Bodies
G) Pro Patria Mori
H) Anagni
I) Unsacred Kingship: Castile
G) From Suzerainty to Sovereignty, from Feudal to the Nation
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 12: The Medieval Synthesis, “The Politics of
Control,” pp. 396-406.
7

Lualdi, ch. 11: The Flowering of the Middle Ages, sel. 4,
Franciscan Piety, pp. 226-230.
Lualdi, ch. 12: The Medieval Synthesis, sel. 5, The New Power,
pp. 250-253.
WEEK 4
Lecture 10: Part 1: The Late Medieval Crisis: 1285 – 1400
A) The Crisis of the Fourteenth Century: Malthusian Pressure or Structural Weaknesses?
B) Famine
C) War: The Social Impact of the Hundred Years War
Lecture 10: Part 2: The Late Medieval Crisis (continued)
A) The Hundred Years’ War (continued)
B) Plague
C) New Forms of Spirituality
D) The Waning of the Middle Ages: Violence, Death, and the World to Come
E) The Birth of New Aesthetics
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 13: Crisis and Renaissance, “Crisis: Disease, War,
and Schism,” pp. 411-427.
Lualdi, ch. 13: Crisis and Renaissance, sel. 1, Demographic
Catastrophe, pp. 254-259; sel. 3, Satirizing the Church, pp. 262-
266.
Lecture 11: Peasant Risings, Royal Consolidation of Power, and Dante
A) Revolution
B) The Place of Italy
C) The State as a Work of Art
E) The Catholic Monarchs
F) Dante: The Divine Comedy
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 13: Crisis and Renaissance, “Consolidating Power,”
pp. 436-446.
Lualdi, ch. 12: The Medieval Synthesis, sel. 4, Imagining Hell,
pp. 246-250.
Lualdi, ch. 13: Crisis and Renaissance, sel. 2, Crisis and Change,
pp. 259-262; sel. 4, Preaching Reform, pp. 266-271.
The Tempest by William Shakespeare
8

Lecture 12: The Renaissance
A) Painting and Humanism
B) The Early Renaissance: Petrarch
C) Humanism and Aesthetics
D) The Secularization of Everyday Life
1) Politics: Machiavelli
2) Art: Botticelli
3) Economics: proto-Capitalism
Required Reading: Hunt et al, ch. 13: Crisis and Renaissance, “The Renaissance,” pp. 427-
436.
Assignment due: Short essay/paper by end of week
Lualdi, ch. 13: Crisis and Renaissance, sel. 5, Extolling
Humanism, pp. 271-274; sel. 6, Women’s Place in Renaissance
Italy, pp. 275-277.
WEEK 5
Lecture 13: The Encounter of Two Worlds and European Expansion
A) The Expansion of the West
B) Spices, religion, and Power
C) Iberia at the Dawn of Modernity: Portugal and Africa
D) Technology and Seafaring
E) 1492: The Expulsion of the Jews, Inquisition, and Columbus
F) Spain in America
G) The First Encounter in the Caribbean
H) The Valley of Mexico
I) Slavery
J) Economics of Scale: American Silver and Inflation
K) Capitalism
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 14, Global Encounters and the Shock of the
Reformation, “The Discovery of New Worlds,” pp. 451-458.
Lualdi, ch. 14: Global Encounters and the Shock of the
Reformation, sel. 1, Worlds Collide, pp. 278-283; sel. 2,
Illustrating a Native Perspective, pp. 283-284; sel. 3: Defending
Native Humanity, pp. 284-287.
9

Lecture 14: The Protestant Reformation and Religious Wars
A) Luther and Calvin: The Protestant Reformation
B) War and Religion
C) The Catholic Reform: Trent
D) A Divided Europe
E) The Politics of Religious Warfare
F) The Power of Kings. Towards a New Concept of the “State.”
G) The Shock of the New. The New World. The New Christian Self
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 14, Global Encounters and the Shock of the
Reformation, “The Protestant Reformation,” pp. 458-466 and
“Reshaping Society through Religion,” pp. 466-472 and “Striving
for Mastery,” pp. 472-479.
Hunt et al, ch. 15, Wars of Religion and the Clash of Worldviews,
“Religious Conflicts Threaten State Power,” pp. 483-491 and “The
Thirty Years’ War,” pp. 492-496.
Lualdi, ch. 14: Global Encounters and the Shock of the
Reformation, sel. 4, Scripture and Salvation, pp. 287-289; sel. 5:
Reforming Christianity, pp. 289-291; sel. 6, Responding to
Reformation, pp. 291-295.
Lualdi, ch. 15: Wars of Religion and Clash of Worldviews, sel. 3,
Defending Religious Liberty, pp. 302-306.
Lecture 15: The Other Revolution: Science, The New Religion
A) The Scientific Revolution
B) The Secularization of the European Mind
C) Copernicus and the Copernican World View
D) The Copernican Revolution: Towards the Enlightenment
E) Induction and Deduction
F) New Paradigms. Europe Remakes Itself
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 15, Wars of Religion and the Clash of Worldviews,
“Economic Crisis and Realignment,” pp. 496-502 and “The Rise of
Science and a Scientific Worldview,” pp. 502-511.
Lualdi, ch. 15: Wars of Religion and Clash of Worldviews, sel. 4,
The Scientific Challenge, pp. 306-310.
10

WEEK 6
Lecture 16: The Crisis of Modernity: Culture and Political Resistance
A) Pagan Revivals of the Renaissance: Magic, Hermetism, Astrology, Alchemy
B) The Witch-Craze in Europe
C) The New Millennium
D) The Cultural Underbelly of the Scientific Revolution.
E) Religion and the Decline of Magic
F) The End of the Witch-Craze
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 16: Absolutism, Constitutionalism, and the Search
for Order, pp. 515-547 (entire chapter).
Lualdi, ch. 15: Wars of Religion and Clash of Worldviews, sel. 5,
The Persecution of Witches, pp. 310-316.
Lualdi, ch. 16: Absolutism, Constitutionalism, and the Search for
Order, sel. 2, Regime Change, pp. 321-325; sel. 3, Civil War and
Social Contract, pp. 326-331; sel. 4, The Consent of the Governed,
pp. 331-334.
Lecture 17: The Making of the Rational State
A) The Culture of the Baroque
B) Art, Religion, and Literature
C) The Rise of the Christian Self
D) The Law, Lawyers and the Idea of Sovereignty
E) Authority and Resistance in Early Modern Europe
F) The Search for Stability
G) Crime, Violence, and Pícaros
H) The Civilizing Process: Court Culture, Manners, Printing
I Towards New Ways of Reading
J) The World Turned Upside Down
K) The Puritan Revolution and the English Civil War
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 17: The Atlantic System and its Consequences, “The
Atlantic System and the World Economy,” pp. 551-561 and “New
Social and Cultural Patterns,” pp. 561-567.
Lualdi, ch. 17: The Atlantic System and its Consequences, sel. 1,
Captivity and Enslavement, pp. 338-341; sel. 2, A Sober and
Wholesome Drink, pp. 341-345; sel. 3, Westernizing Russian
Culture, pp. 345-348.
11

Lecture 18: Conclusion
A) Dutch Republics
B) Henry IV of France
B) Louis XIV and Versailles
C) The World in 1715
D) Summation
Required Reading:
Hunt et al, ch. 17: The Atlantic System and its Consequences,
“Consolidation of the European State System,” pp. 567-576 and
“The Birth of the Enlightenment,” pp. 576-582.
Lualdi, ch. 17: The Atlantic System and its Consequences, sel. 4,
Early Enlightenment, pp. 348-352; sel. 5, Questioning Women’s
Submission, pp. 352-357.
Assignments:
Final Due Last Day of Term
ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR SUMMER
DO NOT POSTPONE JOY!
12