Kevin Roddy
Lecturer
350 Voorhies (752-4541)
email: kproddy@ucdavis.edu
Office Hours: M 2:00-3:00, 4:00-5:00; Tu 11:00-12:00, 1:00-2:00
Zeida Botello, Darin Conner, Peter Ewing, Beth Kaneko, Paul Yun, Readers
Course Description
``To the world when it was half a thousand years younger, the outlines of all things seemed more clearly marked than to us. The contrast between suffering and joy, between adversity and happiness, appeared more striking. All experience had not yet to the minds of men the directness and absoluteness of the pleasure and pain of child-life. Every event, every action, was still embodied in expressive and solemn forms, which raised them to the dignity of a ritual. For it was not merely the great facts of birth, marriage and death which, by the sacredness of the sacrament, were raised to the rank of mysteries; incidents of less importance, like a journey, a task, a visit, were equally attended by a thousand formalities: benedictions, ceremonies, formulae.
Calamities and indigence were more afflicting than at present; it was more difficult to guard against them, and to find solace. Illness and health presented a more striking contrast; the cold and darkness of winter were more real evils. Honours and riches were relished with greater avidity and contrasted more vividly with surrounding misery. We, at the present day, can hardly understand the keenness with which a fur coat, a good fire on the hearth, a soft bed, a glass of wine, were formerly enjoyed.'
--Johann Huizinga, ``The Violent Tenor of Life.'' in The
Waning of the Middle Ages
Texts
Readings in Medieval History. Edited by Patrick J. Geary (Broadview).
Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte D'Arthur, 2 vols. (Penguin).
Medieval Studies Main Page. http://medieval.ucdavis.edu/
Schedule
January 4 Introduction: The Order of the Course
7 Historical Background
Readings in Medieval History. Charles IV: Autobiography. pp. 617-632.
Medieval Studies Course Page. Table of Historical Events
9 The Logic of Position Papers
Medieval Studies Course Page. Sample Position Paper.
11 Constitutional Government
Readings in Medieval History. Consequences of Poitiers: The Three
Estates; The Free Companies. pp. 696-698. The Golden Bull. pp. 633-653.
14 The Hundred Years' War
Readings in Medieval History. Jean Froissart: Chronicles.
pp. 683-696. The Trial of Joan of Arc. pp. 707-721.
16 The Peasants' Revolts
Readings in Medieval History. Jean Froissart: Chronicles.
The Jacquerie. pp. 698-706.
Medieval Studies Course Page. Peasants' Revolts in the Tyrol.
18 Popular Spirituality (1): Heresy and Popular Religion
Readings in Medieval History. Jacques Fornier. Inquisition Records.
pp. 500-519.
21 Martin Luther King Holiday
23 Popular Spirituality (2): Mysticism and Vision Literature
Readings in Medieval History. The Book of Margery Kempe. pp. 541-571.
25 Popular Spirituality (3): Hagiography
Readings in Medieval History. Dialogues of Catherine of Siena. pp. 766-774.
Medieval Studies Course Page. Donatus. Margaret.
28 The Great Schism and the Councils
Readings in Medieval History. Marsilius of Padua. Discourses.
pp. 520-540.
Medieval Studies Course Page. Catherine of Siena.
30 Trade and Commerce
Readings in Medieval History. Giovanni Scriba. Notary Book. pp. 764-765.
Medieval Studies Course Page. In Praise of Merchants. Cathay.
February 1 Late Medieval Cities
Readings in Medieval History. Gregorio Dati. Diary. pp. 787-801.
4 The City of Florence
Readings in Medieval History. Florence: Catasto of 1427. pp. 775-786.
6 Late Medieval Medicine
Medieval Studies Course Page. Surgery.
8 St. Anthony's Fire
Medieval Studies Course Page. Modern Ergotism.
11 The Black Plague
Medieval Studies Course Page. Boccaccio.
13 Late Medieval Technology
Medieval Studies Course Page. Weapons. Armor. Mills.
15 Northern Architecture
Medieval Studies Course Page. Architecture.
18 Presidents' Day Holiday
20 Italian Architecture
Medieval Studies Course Page. Italian Culture, I.
22 French, Flemish and German Art
Medieval Studies Course Page. Jean Pucelle and Duccio.
25 A-L: Manuscripts and the Origin of Printing (Special Collections, Shields Library)
(Note: This group will meet in the Special Collections Reading Room, first floor, Main Library)
Medieval Studies Course Page. Printing.
25 M-Z: Italian Art
Medieval Studies Course Page. Italian Culture, II.
27 A-L: Italian Art
Medieval Studies Course Page. Italian Culture, II.
27 M-Z: Manuscripts and the Origin of Printing (Special Collections, Shields Library)
(Note: This group will meet in the Special Collections Reading Room, first floor, Main Library)
Medieval Studies Course Page. Printing.
March 1 Late Medieval Music
4 Literary Forces: Love
Medieval Studies Course Page. Petrarch.
6 Literary Forces: Death
Medieval Studies Course Page. Villon.
8 Fifteenth-Century Drama
Medieval Studies Course Page. The Cornish Ordinalia.
11 Chaucer
Medieval Studies Course Page. Chaucer.
13 Late Medieval Law
Readings in Medieval History. Royal Courts of England: The Huntingtonshire
Eyre of 1286, pp. 757-763.
15 Conclusion
March 22 Final, 1:30-3:30
Position Papers
The major written work in the course will center on short position papers, which will take the form of public letters, explaining a specific perspective, and written under particular circumstances. These will be described in the third class, with a representative handout. Basically, these position papers are meant to describe the writer's plausible thoughts and emotions, given the culture at that time. A sample position paper has been provided on the Medieval Studies Course Page; the correct bibliographical form is also to be found there.
Research is obligatory, and useful books have been placed on two-hour reserve at the Reserve Desk, first floor, Main Library. The Dictionary of the Middle Ages and the Cambridge Medieval History both can serve as excellent starting-points (Humanities/Social Sciences Reference, Main Library). Some of the material on the World Wide Web is quite good (see the Medieval Studies Home Page); the best sites are identified as ``.edu'' for educational institutions. It is recommended that you bring rough drafts to office hours for comments and suggestions, or email them as plain text. Please attach the corrected rough drafts to your submitted copy.
Any factual material must be supported by a reference, even if it arises from lectures, office hours, or the texts. Papers without notes and bibliographies will be returned, with some penalty. Late submissions are accepted, though again with a penalty attached.
The three topics and their due dates will be
February 1 In an Open Letter to the French King, Duke Philip the Good
of Burgundy Defends His Role in the Death of Joan of Arc (1431)
Readings in Medieval History, pp. 707-721.
February 22 Charles V of France Supports the Election of Pope Clement VII
(1378)
Medieval Studies Course Page. Charles V
March 13 Fillipo Brunelleschi Describes his Plans for the Reconstruction
of San \&Spirito, Florence (1428)
Medieval Studies Course Page. Fillipo Brunelleschi.
Broadly speaking, students in the Late Middle Ages sought to prove a point through appeals to passion, as well as through argument by metaphor. The Bible can be used as an authority (especially in the Bishop Cauchon paper), and sentimentality and emotion should dominate. Electronic copies of the Bible are also available through the Web, for which see the Medieval Studies Home Page.
Participation
The degree of participation depends, most importantly, on completing the reading assignments, which are extensive (often thirty pages per class) and occasionally difficult. Students are encouraged to ask questions, or, if they choose, to make appointments during office hours. Participation is not a matter of dominating class or section discussion, but rather contributing an insight, or, if you're confused, articulating the nature of the confusion. I do take roll, because your presence is important to your learning; that presence in and of itself does not constitute participation, however. Missed discussions, for whatever reason, must be made up in office hours, or by appointment.
Final Exam
In the final, students will be provided with a source quotation from the Late Middle Ages, and will discuss both its relation to the broad culture to which they have been exposed, and its function in the document. A sample final can be found in the Medieval Studies 20C Course Page.
Grading
A considerable portion of the grade in this class depends on
participation; aside from the final,
no exams as such are scheduled, though this
might change. As an indication of the various weights distributed
for performance, the following percentages are offered as a guide:
Discussion Schedule
January 7 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books I-II: pp. 3-91
January 14 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books III-V: pp. 92-193
January 21 Holiday
January 28 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books VI-VIII: pp. 194-380
February 4 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books IX-X, chapters 1-39: pp. 381-468; Vol. II, pp. 1-78
February 11 Le Morte D'Arthur, Book X, chapters 40-88: pp. 79-187
February 18 Holiday
February 25 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books XI-XVII: pp. 188-372
March 4 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books XVIII-XIX: pp. 373-455
March 11 Le Morte D'Arthur, Books XX-XXI: pp. 456-581