HIS 215 Early Modern Europe Syllabus Course Outline European History I

HIS 215: MODERN EUROPE I

North Island College Fall 2022

Delivery Format: Digital Learning Unscheduled (We will not meet regularly as a group via videoconferencing, though there will some recommended and optional BlueJeans group sessions).

Dates: September 6 - December 5

Instructor: Dan Hinman-Smith

Office Hours: There will be regular opportunities to schedule one-on-one video meetings.

Office Phone: 250-334-5000, Extension 4024

Web-Site: http://www.misterdann.com/

E-Mail: dan.hinmansmith@nic.bc.ca

North Island College is honoured to acknowledge the traditional territories of the combined 35 First Nations of the Nuu-chah-nulth, Kwakwaka'wakw and Coast Salish traditions, on whose traditional and unceded territories the college's campuses are situated. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's final report calls for 94 actions toward restoring a balanced relationship between indigenous peoples and settler communities in this country.

Required Book

Ian Goldin and Chris Kutarna, Age of Discovery: Navigating The Storms Of Our Second Renaissance (New York: Bloomsbury, 2017).

***It is important that you acquire the Goldin and Kutarna text. Age of Discovery is available for purchase ($24) through the NIC Bookstore. A number of copies are on reserve at the Comox Valley branch of the NIC Library. I also have included an e-text link above.

Recommended Book

Neil MacGregor, Germany: Memories Of A Nation (New York: Penguin, 2016).

***The MacGregor text is superb, though I am classifying it as an recommended rather than as a required purchase. It represents a very innovative approach to history, and there will be the opportunity to fold this book into our major course assignment. Germany: Memories Of A Nation is available for purchase ($22) through the NIC Bookstore. Five copies are on reserve at the Comox Valley branch of the NIC Library. I also have included an e-text link above.

Course Description

History 215 is offered as an introduction to the most significant trends in European history from the late Medieval era to the French Revolution. It is not meant to be a comprehensive survey in which you are taught "all you need to know" but is designed to highlight several important issues loosely organized within a chronological framework. We will be dealing with broad themes: the growth of commercial capitalism; the rise of the nation state; the impact of such intellectual movements as the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Scientific Revolution, and the Enlightenment; and the expansion of European power, commerce, and culture to the Americas, Asia, and Africa. But we will also try to bring history back down to the personal level. How did people create meaning in their own lives? How did they shape their world, and how, in turn, were they shaped by events, by social structure, and by other people? We will approach such questions through a mixture of lecture presentation, class discussion, reading, student research, slide shows, and video.

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain the emergence of the early modern state system.

2. Assess the changing role of religion in early modern society.

3. Describe the positions of men and women in early modern society.

4. Analyze the structure of society in the early modern period.

5. Analyze the strength of the principal status groups at various times during the early modern period.

6. Explain the impact of intellectual developments (for example the scientific revolution and the enlightenment) on early modern society.

7. Trace the economic history of early modern Europe.

8. Describe the differences (where they exist) between eastern and western Europe between 1450 and 1800.

9. Account for the French Revolution.

Tentative Class Schedule

Week 1 (September 6-11): Introduction To Course And Early Modern Spain

Orientation For Week 1

HIS 215 Scavenger Hunt

Mister Dan Page HIS 215 Orientation Exercise

Discussion Forum Contributions

HIS 215 Scavenger Hunt

Early Modern Spain In The News

History Playhouse: Reconquest

Listening And Viewing

"Reconquest," Episode 2, Blood And Gold: The Making Of Spain, BBC, 2015 (52 mins). This documentary is also available on a public website HERE.

Reading Assignment

Roger Crowley, "The First Global Empire," History Today, 65 (October 2015): 10-17: I recommend that you read the article in its PDF form by clicking the icon in the left margin when you open the article through the NIC Library Database.

Browse extensively in Early Modern Spain In The News Discussion Topic

Optional Extras:

"When Worlds Collide," PBS, 2010 (91 mins): This is the best resolution I could find for this video. The documentary itself is outstanding.

"The Invention Of Spain, Episode 1," BBC Radio 4, August 24, 2015 (30 mins).

Bernat Hernandez, "The Cortes Conquest: The Fall Of Tenochtitlan," National Geographic History, 2 (May/June 2016): 62-73.

***Letter Of Introduction Due through Brightspace (1%)

Week 2 (September 12-18): Renaissance (1)

Orientation For Week 2

Discussion Forum Contributions

Machiavelli and the Renaissance

Listening And Viewing

"The Renaissance: Was It A Thing?," Crash Course World History #22, June 21, 2012 (12 mins).

"Magnificent Medici," Episode 2, Medici -- Godfathers Of The Renaissance, PBS, 2004 (55 mins). This documentary can also be viewed through the NIC Library's Films On Demand.

Reading Assignment

Andrea Frediani, "Becoming Machiavelli," National Geographic History (September/October 2020): 76-89.

Renaissance Era Exercise

Complete the How Machiavellian Are You Quiz

Optional Extras

"Who's Afraid Of Machiavelli?," Imagine, BBC, 2013.

"The Medici: Makers Of Modern Art," BBC, 2008.

Medici -- Godfathers Of The Renaissance, PBS, 2004 (55 mins).

Episode 1, Birth Of A Dynasty (55 mins). This documentary can also be viewed through the NIC Library's Films On Demand.

Episode 3, Medici Popes (55 mins). This documentary can also be viewed through the NIC Library's Films On Demand.

Episode 4, Power Vs. Truth (55 mins). This documentary can also be viewed through the NIC Library's Films On Demand.

Josep Palau I Orta, "Lucrezia Borgia: Marriage And Murder In Renaissance History," National Geographic History (January/February 2017): 62-73.

Laura Fedi, "The Sistine Chapel: Michelangelo's Masterpiece," National Geographic History, 4 (November/December 2018): 48-61.

Browse in Machiavelli's The Prince Discussion Topic

Week 3 (September 19-25): Renaissance (2)

Orientation For Week 3

Discussion Forum Contributions

History Playhouse: Comparing Renaissance Unchained and Medici -- Godfathers Of The Renaissance

Women, Jews, and the Renaissance

Listening And Viewing

"Silk, Sex And Sin," Episode 3, Renaissance Unchained, BBC, 2016 (60 mins).

Reading Assignment

Browse in Venice Ghetto Discussion Topic.

"Was There A Women's Renaissance?: We Ask Four Historians Whether The Great Advances Of The Renaissance Were Extended To Women," History Today, 70 (November 2020): 8-10.

Browse in Renaissance In The News Discussion Topic

Optional Extras

Renaissance Unchained, BBC, 2016

Episode 1, "Gods, Myths And Oil Paints," Episode 1, Renaissance Unchained, BBC, 2016 (60 mins).

Episode 2, "Whips, Deaths And Madonnas," (60 mins).

Episode 4, "Hell, Snakes And Giants," (60 mins).

"Travels With Vasari, Part 1," BBC, 2008: Andrew Graham-Dixon's marvelous encounter with the Lives of the Artists.

"Travels With Vasari, Part 2," BBC, 2008.

ed. Time-Life, "The Italian Renaissance," Voyages Of Discovery: TimeFrame AD 1400-1500. Alexandra, Virginia: 1989: 42-64.

Week 4 (September 26 - October 2): Reformation (1)

Orientation Week 4

Discussion Forum Contributions

History Playhouse: Week 1 - Week 4 Documentaries

Other Week 5 - Week 9 Readings

Listening And Viewing

"Absolute Monarchy: Crash Course European History #13," July 27, 2019 (13 mins).

"The Real Versailles With Lucy Worsley And Helen Castor," BBC, 2016 (54 mins).

"The Enlightenment: Crash Course European History #18," September 9, 2019 (16 mins).

Reading Assignment

Philip Mansel, "King Of The World," BBC History Magazine, 20 (December 2019): 50-55.

Optional Extras

"Power Of Knowledge," Episode 1, Heroes Of The Enlightenment, BBC Worldwide, 2011 (52 minutes).

"Changing Society," Episode 2, Heroes Of The Enlightenment, BBC Worldwide, 2011 (52 minutes).

"The Encyclopedie," In Our Time, BBC Radio 4, October 26, 2006 (45 mins).

Robert Darnton, "Workers Revolt: The Great Cat Massacre Of The Rue Saint-Severin" (1984).

Week 10 (November 7-13): Of Prussia And Russia

Orientation Week 10

Discussion Forum Contributions

A Riddle Wrapped In A Mystery Inside An Enigma?: The Idea Of Russia

Listening And Viewing

"The Rise Of Russia And Prussia: Crash Course European History #17," August 27, 2019 (15 mins).

Reading Assignment

Vladimir Putin, "On The Historical Unity Of Russians And Ukrainians," July 12, 2021.

Browse in Early Modern Russia In The News Discussion Topic.

Janet Hartley, "Hypocrite, Reactionary, Usurper, Sex Maniac?," BBC History Magazine (October 2019): 54-59.

Tim Marshall, "Russia And The Curse Of Geography," Atlantic (October 31, 2015).

Optional Extras

"Frederick The Great And The Enigma Of Prussia," BBC, 2012 (59 mins).

"Out Of The Forest," Episode 1, Art Of Russia, BBC 4, 2011 (59 mins).

"The Life Of Peter The Great: Russia's Greatest Tsar," 2019 (41 mins).

"The Building Of St. Petersburg," In Our Time, BBC Radio 4, April 23, 2009 (45 mins).

"Icons Of Power: Catherine The Great," National Geographic, 2007 (92 mins).

"Catherine The Great -- I: Not Quite Catherine Yet," Extra History, January 28, 2017:

"Catherine The Great -- II: Not Quite Empress Yet," Extra History, February 4, 2017:

"Catherine The Great -- III: Empress Catherine At Last," Extra History, February 11, 2017:

"Catherine The Great -- IV: Reforms, Rebellions, And Greatness," Extra History, February 18, 2017:

"Catherine The Great -- V: Potemkin, Catherine's General, Advisor, And Lover," Extra History, February 25, 2017:

"Catherine The Great -- VI: Succession," Extra History, March 4, 2017:

Browse in Russian Statues Discussion Topic.

***Sunday, November 13: Second Journal Installment Due (Use either the Regular Journal [Option 1] or the Note-Taking/Journal Combo [Option 2] format): This is an ungraded but compulsory submission. Those students who do not submit a journal installment at this time will incur an academic penalty. You should include all the Journal work you have completed to this point in the semester as a single file through Brightspace.

Week 11 (November 14-20): Germany -- Memories Of A Nation

Orientation Week 11

Germany -- Memories Of A Nation

Neil MacGregor, Germany -- Memories Of A Nation (New York: Penguin, 2016).

Discussion Topic: Germany -- Memories Of A Nation

Discussion Forum Contributions

Germany -- Memories Of A Nation

Week 12 (November 21-27): "It Was The Best Of Times, It Was The Worst Of Times": French Revolution

Orientation Week 12

Discussion Forum Contributions

What Was Revolutionary About The French Revolution?

French Revolution In The News

Listening And Viewing

"The French Revolution: Crash Course World History #29," August 10, 2012 (12 mins).

Reading Assignment

Robert Darnton, "What Was Revolutionary About The French Revolution?," New York Review Of Books (January 19, 1989).

Browse extensively in French Revolution In The News Discussion Topic.

Optional Extras

"The French Revolution," History Channel, 2005 (90 mins).

Living The French Revolution And The Age Of Napoleon Course, Great Courses (48 episodes): An in-depth course from Princeton historian Suzanne Desan. This is an option I only include for true keeners. And you will need a Vancouver Island Public Library card to gain access to this video course. But anyone who wants to learn much more about the French Revolution that can be taught in a brief intersession Early Modern European History survey may want to dive into this course. Another excellent resource is Mike Duncan's Mike Duncan's comprehensive 55-episode podcast overview of the The French Revolution.

William Doyle, French Revolution: A Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford, 2001. This is a short book-length overview of the French Revolution.

Week 13 (November 28 - December 4): French Revolution (2)

Orientation Week 13

Discussion Forum Contributions

History Playhouse: Tearing Up History

Listening And Viewing

"The French Revolution: Tearing Up History," BBC 4, 2014 (59 mins).

"Olympe De Gouges: France's Forgotten Revolutionary Heroine," The Forum, BBC World Service, January 14, 2021 (40 mins)

Optional Extras

Browse extensively in Symbols Of The French Revolution Discussion Topic.

"David," Simon Schama's Power Of Art, BBC:

"Terror: Robespierre And The French Revolution," BBC, 2009 (91 mins).

"The French Revolution," 1989, Les Films Ariane: This is a 5 1/2 hour French production released on the 200th anniversary of the Revolution. You will need to turn sub-titles on in your settings.

"Part 1"

"Part 2"

Sunday, December 4: Final Journal Installment Due (Use either the Regular Journal [Option 1] or the Note-Taking/Journal Combo [Option 2] format) [38%]: Please submit everything you have completed on your Journal from the beginning of Week 5 at this time through Brightspace as a single file.

Evaluation

Letter Of Introduction	1%
Discussion Forum Contributions	22%
First Journal Hand-In (Four Weeks Into Course)	22%
Age Of Discovery Mini-Essay	17%
Final Journal Hand-In	38%

a) Letter Of Introduction (1%)

Write a short letter of introduction to me at the beginning of the semester. This should be at least 100 words in length and is designed to give me a beginning idea of who you are and how I might best serve you as a teacher, and to provide me with an opening snapshot of the class as a whole. You need not use the following questions as cues but they may be helpful. Who are you? Where are you from? How might you begin to describe your community and what life is like there if you've come to NIC from far way? What do you miss and what do you think would most surprise me if I were to visit your hometown? What are your interests? Why are you taking this course? What are your thoughts and reflections as you begin HIS 215? How familiar are you already with European History? Are there topics associated with the course that you know will be of potential interest? Do you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions? This is an assignment I ask of students in each of my classes. Although this is not a graded assignment, I would appreciate it if you took several minutes writing a thoughtful introduction. If you are enrolled in more than one class with me this semester, a single letter of introduction will suffice, but mention something about each of the courses. If you have taken a class with me before, please update what you sent me before and send me a new letter of introduction. Submit your Letter of Introduction to me through Brightspace.

b) Age Of Discovery Mini-Essay (17%)

The Age of Discovery mini-essay will ask you to respond to the argument put forth by Ian Goldin and Chris Kutarna that the study of the Age of the European Renaissance can help us to put our own fast-changing era into perspective.

It is fundamentally important that you get this book and that you then offer a response based upon your interpretation of the text. Mini-essays derived from reviews or second-hand summaries will be deemed to be unacceptable. Full instructions for the reading response will be posted on the Assignment Page.

The Age of Discovery mini-essay will be due on Sunday, October 23, at the end of the seventh week of the semester.

c) The Journal (22% + 38%)= 60%

The student Journal will be the most substantial assignment in this course. It will represent your on-going engagement with the core class curriculum. The focus of the Journal should be on analysis, interpretation, and commentary. It should consist of a series of short writings of varying lengths about the course material. I refer to these short writings as entries. The purpose of the journal is to provide you with the opportunity for frequent thoughtful and analytical commentary upon course-related material.

I have provided you with two different options for the Journal: (1) The Regular Journal; or (2) The Note-Taking/Journal Combo. These are described in detail on the Assignment Page of my web-site. You should familiarize yourself with these two models and make a clear choice between the options at the beginning of the course.

This assignment is designed to be coordinated with the on-line Brightspace Discussion Forums. Your Journal entries will overlap with many of the Discussion Forum topics. It is fully appropriate to share commentary from your Journal with classmates in the relevant History Playhouse or Discussion Topic Forums.

It is expected that you work regularly on the Journal throughout the semester, writing in it on a weekly basis. You will need to hand in the Journal to me three times.

You will submit your Journal-in-Progress to me through the Brightspace site at the end of the fourth week of the semester on Sunday, October 2. I want to check to ensure that you are off to a good start and that we share a mutual understanding as to the nature of the assignment. This submission will be graded and is worth 22% of your course grade.

The Journal will again be due at the ten-week mark of the semester (November 13). This check-in is ungraded but mandatory. I want to review what progress you are making. Although you do not necessarily need to be caught up through Week Ten at this time, I do expect to see that you have made very substantial progress on your Journal since Week Four. The Journal assignment includes the expectation that you work regularly upon it throughout the semester and this check-in will provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate that. Those students who do not submit a Journal installment at this time will incur an academic penalty. You should include all the Journal work you have completed to this point in the semester as a single file through Brightspace at this time.

You will hand in your Journal a third and final time at the end of the semester, on Sunday, December 4. You should submit all that you have completed on the Journal from Week 5 on at this time through Brightspace as a single file. This submission will be graded and is worth 38% of your course grade.

d) Discussion Forum Contributions (22%) (History Playhouse Contributions and Other Discussion Forum Contributions)

The Brightspace Discussion Forums are meant to facilitate the sharing of ideas and to engage you with your classmates. You should try to offer commentary upon a weekly basis. Evaluation will be based not just upon the number of contributions but rather more on the level of their thoughtfulness, with added appreciation for genuine engagement with fellow students.

The Discussion Forums will be divided into your reflections upon the course documentaries (History Playhouse) and your discussions upon other course materials. This is in part to emphasize the importance that I attach to the HIS 215 viewing responsibilities. There are several feature videos that rest near the heart of the curriculum. Please do not make any History Playhouse comments on documentaries that you have watched yourself.

As mentioned above, it is fine to have considerable overlap between your Discussion Forum Contributions and your Journal entries. But it is expected that you will put considerable time and thought into each Discussion Forum Contribution and that each contribution will represent your original ideas.

There is an average of two Discussion Forums a week. You certainly are not expected to contribute to each of these forums. I hesitate to suggest a quantitative target, but would estimate that engaged students will have contributed to fifteen or more Discussion Forums by the end of the term. Try your best to keep current with the Discussion Forums as we move throughout the semester. I will leave Discussion Forums up for two weeks after we have moved on to new topics but then will close old Forums as we proceed.

We also will be holding optional BlueJeans discussions. Although there is no requirement that you attend these sessions, I hope that they will foster a sense of group learning. Those students who do participate regularly in this aspect of the course will receive credit here towards their Discussion Forum grade.

Time Commitment

Although the time it takes individual students to complete course responsibilities varies individually, I have set up the course with the expectation that you will probably need to devote a minimum of four hours a week to this course on a regular basis right from the start of the semester to properly engage with it. It is important that you not fall behind on your assignments. Please stay in close communication with me and let me know if you are experiencing challenges in keeping up with the curriculum. The syllabus is loaded with many materials and includes an array of options. You should give yourself permission to slow down and go more in-depth on topics of particular interest and be confident that you should do well in the course so long that you approach your studies with consistent effort and academic rigor.

Late Policy

The curriculum for this course is organized on a week-by-week basis, in which most assignments are cumulative and on-going. Discussion amongst students is also dependent upon classmates keeping current with their studies. Late assignments are also often an extra burden from an instructor standpoint. Due dates should be noted and met.

However, I appreciate that there may be occasions where a very few extra days to polish an assignment in the midst of competing deadlines can be helpful, and thus I deliberately assume a good-faith effort on the part of students to meet the due dates and provide a small cushion of flexibility without any academic penalty. That does not mean the due dates are unimportant or that extensions are automatically granted. You must discuss possible extensions with me directly and I reserve the right to refuse to accept any late assignment if you do not check in with me before the due date. As a general rule, no assignment will be accepted more than two weeks late and no end-of-the-semester assignment will be accepted more than one week late.

Discussion Forum contributions should ideally be made the week of the discussion itself but I will leave up individual Discussions for two weeks after we have moved on to the next week's curriculum.

Writing Support And Peer Tutoring

Writing Support is available to all students at no additional cost. Go to Writing Support for any or all of your assignments. Every visit is a step toward becoming a better writer. Use Writing Support as many times as you like, and at any point in your writing process. The writing support faculty can help you understand the assignment, develop your ideas, outlines, thesis, and revision -- and anything else in-between. Book your appointment through the library website, or visit the library desk to inquire about drop-ins. There's also WriteAway, an online tutoring platform that allows you to upload your papers and assignments for detailed written feedback. Both services may be found at https://library.nic.bc.ca/WritingSupport .

Student Technical Services

Our Student Technical Service team is available to help you with any technical issues that you may be experiencing as a student. Please go to https://library.nic.bc.ca/studenttech for more information.

Learn Anywhere

NIC's Learn Anywhere website is geared to provide a collection of information that will help you be successful learning digitally by covering area such as: What is digital learning? How to be a digital learner while using NIC-supported technologies during your studies? A list of key skills and knowledge all students should have for successful learning in today's world, knowing your rights and responsibilities and Technology Readiness Checklists. More details at: https://learnanywhere.opened.ca/

Community Supports (24/7)

There are several supports available to help any student in distress. If you are in distress, please reach out for support.

Vancouver Island Crisis Line: 24/7 1-888-494-3888 (Available to students located on Vancouver Island only)

Crisis Suicide helpline: 24/7 1-800-784-2433 (Available to students located in Canada only)

BC 211: Full list of community services available across BC. Dial 2-1-1 on BC cellphone (Available to students located in BC only).

Here2Talk: 24/7 counselling support for post-secondary students: 1-877-857-3397 (Available to students located in Canada and offshore).

A Note On Plagiarism And Academic Dishonesty

Everything that you hand in should be your original work unless otherwise indicated. Violations of this policy may result in being reported to the Academic Integrity Committee and in failing an assignment or the course in its entirety. Please talk to me if you have any uncertainty about what is permitted here. I want to help you to get as much out of this course as possible but, for this to happen, you need to put forth strong and honest effort. Some students in the past have used contracted outsiders to complete their work. Please do not do this. What may seem like a dishonest but private choice is actually one with ripple effects that not only disheartens your instructor but which also very negatively impacts upon the education of your classmates. Thank you.

Instructional Accommodation and Access Services for Students with Disabilities (3-17)

Student Appeals Policy (3-30)

Student Complaint Resolution Policy (3-31)

Evaluation of Student Performance Policy (3-33)

Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy (3-34)

Course Outline Policy (3-35)

Academic Standing and Progression (3-37)

Grading System (4-14)

Welcome To The Course