John S. Ott
Department of History
Portland State University
Winter 2012
All material on this page (c) John S. Ott

HST 355U: Late Medieval Europe, 1100-1450
(T,TH - 10:00-11:50, ASRC 220)

Course overview and objectives

This course surveys the cultural, political, social, intellectual, and religious development of continental Europe between 1100 and approximately 1450, a period that encompasses the high and late Middle Ages.  We will survey the expansion and transformation of Europe, with special analysis given to the medieval Church and Christian religiosity on one hand, and, on the other, the impact on Europe as its physical and intellectual boundaries were expanded and reconfigured by the rediscovery of classical tradition and through encounters with the peoples and cultures beyond its borders.  We will also consider the transformation of government and the emergence of the state, the changing status and place of women and the lower social orders of Europe, the impact of ecological disaster on mentalities, and other topics.  This course is not a simple political/military history of the Middle Ages, and gives only minimal attention to the Italian Renaissance, as that subject is covered in HST 356U: Renaissance and Reformation Europe, 1400-1600 (offered Spring 2012).

Our objectives this term, of equal priority, will be:

• to develop a contextual understanding of the history and events of the period;
• to develop and build the skills necessary to read and analyze primary source documents, with some attention given to secondary source materials;
• to learn to think historically, rather than anachronistically, about medieval texts and culture;
• to develop writing skills and the ability to express our thoughts clearly in writing, with particular emphasis on learning how to formulate theses for critical argumentation in both written essays and an essay exam.

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Evaluation

Classes will be structured around discussion, occasional group work, written assignments, lectures, and media presentations.  As the structure and success of the class depend on individual preparation and participation in discussion and group activity, each individual’s contribution to the class dynamic will be weighted heavily in the assessment of grades.  Guidelines for all assignments will be posted on-line in advance of deadlines.  Student performance will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Participation and attendance - 200 points.  I consider active participation a critical component to every class I teach.  Students should come to class prepared to discuss the assigned readings.  Attendance is taken daily and weighted 3 points/class. Excellent attendance without oral participation will usually be assessed a grade of “C.”  Sporadic attendance with little or no participation will be assessed a grade of “C-” or lower.
• Map quiz - 80 points. Held in class Tuesday, Jan. 17. No make-ups will be given. | Guidelines |
• Pop quizzes - 70 points. Given at random during the term, with no makeups, on daily assigned readings.
  
• Short analytical essay (5 pp.) - 250 points.  Due in class Tuesday, February 14 | Guidelines |
• Final essay exam - 400 points. Tuesday, March 20, 10:15-12:05.  | Guidelines |
  

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Plagiarism policy

Plagiarism, intentional or unintentional, is an intolerable infraction in any setting where ideas are exchanged and discussed.  I routinely uncover plagiarized papers each year.  Detecting plagiarism is extremely easy.  Papers that can be shown to have been plagiarized will automatically receive an “F” grade.  Students will be required to resubmit their papers, and will be deducted in their grade an amount appropriate to the late paper policy given in the assignment guidelines.  Repeated or particularly egregious offenses may be the cause for additional action.  Remember, ignorance of what constitutes plagiarism is no excuse for doing it.  If you are unsure what constitutes plagiarism, you may test yourself at this web site maintained by Indiana University: http://www.indiana.edu/~istd/plagiarism_test.html.

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Students with disabilities

Students with disabilities who need additional consideration for the timely completion of any of the course requirements should speak to the instructor at the beginning of the term, and must be registered with PSU’s Disability Resource Center (drc@pdx.edu).

Use of E-mail with instructor

E-mail can be a superb tool by which students communicate with the course instructor with questions about the course material, the content, and the assignments.  It is especially useful for providing feedback to student ideas and for commenting on student theses or paper topics.  But please bear in mind the following:

• I consider 48-72 hours to be a reasonable period in which to respond to inquiries.  I am usually much faster than this, but not always.
• I will not, in general, respond to student e-mails received after 5:00 p.m. until the following day(s), nor will I generally respond to student e-mail sent after 5:00 on Friday until Monday morning.  Please plan accordingly.
• Please remember to identify yourself and state your query as clearly as possible.
• I will not fill in students who miss class on the details of a particular lecture or discussion.  Please seek that information from your fellow students.

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Texts and materials

The following texts are required unless otherwise noted and are available for purchase at the PSU Bookstore:

• Guibert of Nogent, A Monk's Confession. The Memoirs of Guibert of Nogent, trans. P. Archambault (Penn State Univ. Press, 1996) [NB: An older translation of this same text by C. C. Swinton Bland may found on-line at http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/guibert-vita.html, but please note: it is written in fairly archaic English and the prose may be hard to follow in places; this translation was later revised before it was published by John F. Benton, ed., as Self and Society in Medieval France. The Memoirs of Abbot Guibert of Nogent (Harper Torchbooks/Toronto University Press). The Benton/Swinton Bland translation is widely available in used copies at Powell's and elsewhere, and is acceptable, although some passages have been erroneously translated.
• William C. Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages (Penguin, 2003)

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Syllabus

Note that a number of readings are on E-Reserve or found at J-Stor (accessible via the Library's database list).

Tues., Jan. 10.  Introduction to course themes.

Lecture: Medieval Europe ca. 1100: Postcards from the Great Divide

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I.  Pushing Boundaries: The twelfth-century renaissance, the rise of the “individual,” crusade, and religiosity

Thurs., Jan. 12.  Self and society in medieval France  | Study Guidelines for Guibert of Nogent, A Monk's Confession |

Reading:

• Guibert of Nogent, A Monk’s Confession, Book I, chs. 1-7, 12-21 (pp. 3-24, 34-76);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 5-99 (chaps. 1-6) [this selection is optional background reading, especially useful for students who did not take HST 354U, Early Medieval Europe, 300-1100]

Lecture: Ways of thinking and learning in the twelfth century

Tues., Jan. 17.  History and authority

Reading:

• Guibert of Nogent, A Monk’s Confession, Book I, chs. 8-11 (pp. 24-34); Book II, chs. 1-4 (pp. 93-110); Book III, chs. 1-6 (pp. 121-144);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 113-128 (chap. 8)

Lecture: Present and the past in the twelfth century

MAP QUIZ, IN CLASS

Thurs., Jan. 19.  The advent of the modern self?

Readings:

• Colin Morris, The Discovery of the Individual, 1050-1200 (London, 1972), chap. 4, "The Search for the Self" (pp. 64-95) (E-reserve);
• Caroline Walker Bynum, “Did the Twelfth Century Discover the Individual?” in Jesus as Mother (Berkeley, 1982), pp. 82-109(E-Reserve)

Tues., Jan. 24.  The First Crusade (1095-1101) and its aftermath  | Study Guidelines for Guibert of Nogent, Deeds of God through the Franks, and Suger of Saint-Denis |

Readings:

• Guibert of Nogent, Gesta Dei per Francos (Deeds of God through the Franks), trans. Robert Levine (Boydell Press, 1997), pp. 23-56, 90-112 (E-reserve);
• Anna Comnena, The Alexiad, trans. E. R. A. Sewter (Penguin, 1969), pp. 326-331;
• Usamah Ibn Munqidh, “Excerpts on the Franks”;
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 100-112 (chap. 7)

Lecture: The First Crusade and the ideals of crusading

Thurs., Jan. 26.  Aesthetics and power

Readings:

• Suger of Saint-Denis, On What Was Done in His Administration;
• “Twelfth-Century Critics of the New Architecture,” in Gothic Art, 1140-c. 1450. Sources and Documents (Toronto: Medieval Academy of America, 1987), pp. 30-33 (E-reserve);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 129-142, 259-263 (chaps. 9 and 17)

Lecture: From Romanesque to Gothic
Virtual Tour:  Take a virtual tour of Amiens cathedral.

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II.  High Medieval Revolutions

(a).  The quickening of medieval Europe: the rise of the towns and the advent of the friars

Tues., Jan. 31.  The economic take-off and the late medieval town

Readings:

• Guibert of Nogent, A Monk’s Confession, Book III, chs. 7-14 (pp. 144-190);
• Bartolus of Sassoferrato, On the Tyrant, "The Treatise on City Government (c. 1330)" ;
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 181-193 (chap. 12)

Lecture: The rise of the profit economy and urban life

Thurs., Feb. 2.  The friars and their antecedents

Readings:

• Thomas of Celano, “The Faith of St. Francis of Assisi,” in John Shinners, ed., Medieval Popular Religion, 1000-1500, pp. 40-55 (E-reserve);
• The Rule of the Franciscan Order;
• Francis of Assisi, “Testament”
  

Lecture: Preaching and the laity

(b). Persecution: orthodoxy and heresy

Tues., Feb. 7. Inquisition and pursuit of heretics  | Study Guidelines for Readings on Heresy and Antijudaism/semitism |

Readings:

• Guibert of Nogent, A Monk’s Confession, Book III, chs. 16-17 (pp. 193-198);
• Bernard Gui, Manual of the Inquisitor;
• Thomas Aquinas, On Politics and Ethics, trans. P. E. Sigmund (NY: W.W. Norton and Company, 1988), pp. 61-63 (excerpts concerning heresy and unbelief) (E-reserve)

Lecture: The formation of a persecuting society? Religious intolerance considered

Thurs., Feb. 9.  Thurs., Feb. 14.  Antijudaism and antisemitism

Reading:

• Thomas of Monmouth, Life of St. William of Norwich (E-reserve);
• Guibert of Nogent, A Monk’s Confession, Book I, ch. 26 (pp. 89-91);
• The Expulsion of the Jews from France (1182), excerpted from Rigord, The Deeds of Philip Augustus;
• “The Host and Libels against the Jews (1303),” in Medieval Popular Religion, 1000-1500, ed. J. Shinners, pp. 105-108 (E-reserve)

Lecture: The origins of medieval antisemitism

Tues., Feb. 14.  A modern perspective on the Middle Ages

Readings:  No assigned readings today.  Attendance will be taken.
Film: The Name of the Rose (1986; Jean-Jacques Arnaud, director; Sean Connery, Christian Slater, F. Murray Abraham)

COMPARATIVE ESSAY DUE, IN CLASS

(c).  The Development and Apparatus of Governance: Papal Monarchy and Nation

Thurs., Feb. 16.  Late medieval kingship

Reading:

• Jean de Joinville, The Life of Saint Louis (Part I and Part IV). (NOTE: We are reading Parts I (chapters 9-22) and IV (chapters 347-387) of the public domain translation of Ethel Wedgwood, which is housed at the University of Virginia);
• C. Warren Hollister and John W. Baldwin, “The Rise of Administrative Kingship,” American Historical Review 83:4 (Oct. 1978): 867-68, 891-905 (J-Stor);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 143-160, 226-242 (chaps. 10 and 15)
  

Lecture: The changing role of monarchy in the later Middle Ages

Tues., Feb. 21.  The papal monarchy and the ‘plenitude of power’

Readings:

• “The Fourth Lateran Council (1215): Select Canons”;
• Collected letters on marriage and women of Pope Innocent III (from 1203-1204);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 194-212 (chap. 13)

Lecture: The Papal Monarchy

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III.  The Dissolution of the Medieval Outlook

Thurs., Feb. 23.  Decaying institutions: the limits of papal authority

Reading:

• William of Ockham, A Short Discourse on the Tyrannical Government, ed. A. S. McGrade (Cambridge, 1992), pp. 3-16 (E-reserve);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 213-225 (chap. 13)

Lecture: The late medieval church and the rise of conciliarism

Tues., Feb. 28.  The “Black Death” and contemporary responses to plague

Readings:

• Giovanni Boccaccio, Decameron, Book 1, sections 002-048. [Go to drop down menu in upper right-hand corner and select 'First Day'. Click past section 001 to 002] (This is on-line at the Decameron Web);
  
• Gilles le Muisit, “Pious Responses to the Black Death in Tournai,” in John Shinners, ed., Medieval Popular Religion, 1000-1500, pp. 418-437 (E-reserve);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, 289-301 (chap. 19)

Lecture: Biological disaster and the medieval preoccupation with death and dying

Thurs., March 1.  Late medieval spirituality and women’s emerging voice |Study Guidelines for readings on women's religiosity and literary achievements|

Readings:

• The Book of Margery Kempe, trans. B. A. Windeatt (Penguin, 1985), pp. 33-76, 83-84, 122-127 (E-reserve);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 314-325 (chap. 21)

Lecture: The spiritual temper of the late Middle Ages

Tues., March 6.  An Age of War and Revolt: the Fourteenth-Century Rebellions

Readings:

• Jean Froissart, The Chronicles: “The Battles of Crecy (1346)” and “The Jacquerie”;
  
• Christine de Pizan, "The Lamentation on the Evils that Have Befallen France," and "The Letter on the Prison of Human Life," both in The Selected Writings of Christine de Pizan, trans. R. Blumenfeld-Kosinski and K. Brownlee (NY: W. W. Norton, 1997), pp. 224-29, 248-252 (E-reserve);
• Jordan, Europe in the High Middle Ages, pp. 302-313 (chap. 20)

Lecture: The effects of total war on later medieval society

Thurs., March 8.  The peasantry

Readings:

• Account of Alwalton Manor, from the Hundred Rolls of 1279 (Huntingdonshire, England);
• Paul Freedman, Images of the Medieval Peasant (Stanford University Press, 1999), pp. 15-39 (chap. 1) (E-reserve)

Lecture: The peasantry in the later Middle Ages

Tues., March 13. The End of the Middle Ages?

Readings: Choose one and prepare for class.  Both are on E-reserve.

• Johan Huizinga, The Autumn of the Middle Ages, trans. R. J. Paytone and U. Mammitzsch (Chicago, 1996), pp. 1-29 (chap. 1), "The Passionate Intensity of Life"
• Laura A. Smoller, "Of Earthquakes, Hail, Frogs, and Geography: Plague and the Investigation of the Apocalypse in the Later Middle Ages," in Caroline Walker Bynum and Paul Freedman, eds., Last Things: Death and the Apocalypse in the Middle Ages (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2000), pp. 156-187

Thurs., March 15. Conclusions and preparations

Readings: No assigned readings today. Closing discussion of sources and/or lecture, as needed; discussion of final exam.
NOTE: Attendance will be taken.

Tues, March 20 - FINAL EXAM (10:15-12:05, ASRC 220)