European History

Major institutions and trends in Europe from the breakup of the Roman World to the 14th century.

This course will focus on the history of Rome under the emperors, from approximately the 40s B.C.E. to the deterioration of the western Empire in the fifth century C.E. Special emphasis will be given to concepts of power and how these play out in politics, spectacle, gender ideals, art and urban structures, and religious practices of the imperial period. Students will make use of the primary sources of evidence, both ancient texts and archaeological material, to increase their understanding of the ancient Romans and to gain greater familiarity with the techniques of the historian in analysis and communication.

This course will focus on the history of Rome as it expands from an archaic 8th century village to become the dominant power in the Mediterranean, through civil war and the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BCE. Although there is special focus on Roman power as it was distributed, manipulated, and claimed by citizens, warlords and demagogues, we will also be looking at social networks and the family, sub-elites and women, polytheism and ritual practice, the development of the city as a space for civic performances, as well as the dynamics of cultural interaction in the ancient Mediterranean. Students will concentrate throughout on the primary evidence (written and archaeological) and the ways in which historians use literary and material documentation to uncover different perspectives on the Roman past.

In this class, you will investigate a variety of topics related to people¿s lives in Classical Greece: democracy, economics, family life, gender, slavery, science, religion, and friendship. You will read and discuss ancient texts from the 4th century BCE ¿ histories, court speeches, how-to manuals, and philosophy ¿ in order to figure out for yourself what happened and how people lived.

Beginning with Herodotus¿ history of the Persian Wars and concluding with Thucydides¿ account of the Peloponnesian War, you will read and discuss various types of ancient sources in order to write your own history of the growth of democracy, the spread of empire, and the persistence of war in Classical Greece.

Games provide entertainment and recreation, but they also reflect, influence, and supply metaphors for many other aspects of life. We will explore the importance of games in shaping medieval and early modern societies by focusing on four games that have come to symbolize the era - chess, jousting, hunting, and dice games. Through our examination of these and other games, we will explore the social, political, religious, economic, legal, military, and intellectual history of medieval and early modern Europe.

This course will focus on the ancient Mediterranean from 800 BCE to the XXX of the Roman Empire in the third century CE, emphasizing concepts of power and identity as demonstrated in politics, gender ideals, material culture and religious practice.