History 101  and Clare 103 Europe to 1815                                     
Fall 2008
Dr. Thomas J. Schaeper

General Goals and Objectives of the Course

The particular subject matter for this course is European history roughly from 1500 to 1815.  Students should benefit from this course in many ways.  For example, they will gain much practice in reading, analyzing information, and writing.  These are skills that are practical--that is, they will be necessary for success in a wide variety of professional careers.  Students will also learn much about the development of western civilization.  They will learn how people and countries in the western world came to be how they are today.  Such information can not only be interesting but also useful, for one can understand a person or a society only by knowing its past.  Even though this course does not deal with the twentieth century, students will learn many things that will help them (as human beings, as citizens, or as business and political leaders) to react more wisely to present-day problems.  Every issue that confronts us today has also confronted people in the past.  Thus one can learn lessons for today's world by seeing how persons in the past handled similar situations.  Examples include the following:  What makes a person or a country "great"? What conditions usually contribute to tolerance or intolerance (in race, in religion, etc.)? What sorts of factors often lead to wars or help to preserve peace? What are the advantages or disadvantages of different kinds of governments? What factors tend to be good or bad for social justice and economic prosperity?

What Will Be Expected from Students

You should prepare yourself for each class by reading the assignments as noted in this syllabus or as indicated in class.   Some classes will be all lecture, some will be all discussion, and some will be a combination of these two formats.  Feel free to ask questions and to voice your thoughts concerning matters being discussed.  
            During the course of the semester you will see at  least a couple of films (in part or in entirety) plus numerous illustrations.  Students should pay as much attention to the movies and illustrations  as they do to the lectures and discussions.   
            All students are required to have SBU computer network accounts.  Roughly once each week I will send an email to all students in the class.  I will send these messages to your sbu.edu addresses.  
          The Internet will also be featured in this course in other ways.  Nearly every week you will be asked to read materials on the Internet.  To read these materials you will have to go to the syllabus for this course that is listed on my homepage: http://web.sbu.edu/history/tschaeper).  Nearly every week I will ask you to read short documents.  You will be able to find these materials only by clicking on the relevant links on the online version of the syllabus.  
            There will be one one-hour midterm examination and a two-hour final examination. These examinations will consist of essay questions and short answer questions (identifications, multiple choice, true/false).  The final examination will be comprehensive--that is, it will cover material going back to the beginning of the semester.   
            In order to encourage students to become active participants in the class, and reward those who keep up with the readings, there will be a brief quiz nearly every week.   Each quiz will have three short questions.  There will be no make-up quizzes.  However, at the end of the semester I will drop your lowest three quiz grades.  Thus, if you miss a quiz, that will count as one of the three that I don't use at the end of the semester. There will be approximately 11 quizzes altogether.  In general, the quizzes will occur on days when we will spend part of the class discussing weekly readings--usually Thursdays..  Giving a quiz on that day is one way to ensure that students come to class having done the readings!   I will always let you know in advance the date of the next quiz and the material that it will be based on. 
            My basic advice regarding class attendance is simple: Don't miss any classes.   If you miss more than three classes (for any reason) I will deduct one point from your final grade for each additional absence.  You do not need to give me excuses for absences.  Just remember the penalty for missing more than three classes.          
             Each week in class and/or via email I will make clear what the reading assignments are.
            Any types of cheating or plagiarism will be punished severely, certainly  with a failing grade for a particular paper or exam and possibly with a failing grade for the entire course.  For more discussion of plagiarism, consult the  student handbook and History Department online writing guide:   http://web.sbu.edu/history/writingguideintro.html .   Reading an Internet summary of a book and then paraphrasing that source rather than reading the book and writing your own paper is plagiarism.

Course Readings:

       Spielvogel, Western Civilization.  Volume B: 1300-1815.  7th edition.
        Various Internet readings posted in the online version of this syllabus.
        One additional book, to be selected from the three books discussed below.

Grading and Important Dates  

Your final grade will be based (approximately) on the following:   
                        Midterm exam              20 %,   Tuesday, 7 October      
   
                     Three one-page papers based on Internet readings   10%
   
                    Class participation        10%  
                        Quizzes                        20%  
                         Book Critique.            20%     Due on Tuesday, 2 December
                        Final Examination        20%   
                                 For the 11:30 class, the exam will take place at 1:10 on Monday, 8 December, in our regular classroom.

                                  For the 1:00 class, the exam will take place at 1:10 on Tuesday, 9 December, in our regular classroom.
Disabilities
Students with disabilities who believe that they may need accommodations in this class are encouraged to contact the Disability Support Services Office, Doyle room 26, at 375-2065 as soon as possible to  ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion.

Contacting Dr. Schaeper

My office is on the first floor of Doyle Hall, number 131.  My office hours are:  
                    Tues & Thurs  4:00-4:30
                     Wed  12:30-2:30
I will be in my office at other times, but the hours listed above are especially the ones in which I will make an effort to be available to students.  If you cannot see me during those hours, just let me know  and we can arrange another time for an appointment. 

If you need to contact me, you can do so in three other ways also:  
            a) leave a message on my door  
            b) phone 375-2123.  Leave a message if I am not there.  
            c) email: tschaepe@sbu.edu

Three One-Page Papers
There are 12 sets of Internet readings included in the weekly schedule listed below.  You must select any three of them and write a one-page, double-spaced paper on them.  Each paper must be submitted in the class during which we will discuss the readings.  I will always announce in class the date when we will discuss the next set of readings.  

Book Critique
You will submit a book critique on Tuesday, 2 December.  There will be a severe penalty if it is handed in late.  It should be approximately 1200 words long, double spaced, in 12 point font.  You must choose one of the three books listed below.  They are not in the university's bookstore.  The easiest and cheapest way to obtain them is online, through Amazon.com or some other source.  Amazon usually has cheap used copies of all of them.  You must inform Dr. Schaeper of your selection no later than 30 September.  If you do not choose one of the books by then, I will assign one to you.  Your critique should include these elements.  A summary of the book.  What is the book about?  How is it organized? What major topics does it include?  What major points does the author make?  Is the author giving a new interpretation of the material or revealing new information?  (If the author is saying something new, he/she will say so.)  Does the author's scholarship seem sound?  Is he/she an expert in the field?  Does the author's logic and evidence support the points that he/she makes?  Does the book relate in any way to topics discussed in class?  If you choose the book on witchcraft, for example, you should be able to write a few sentences about how the author's treatment of the topic is similar or different from what you learned in class. In general, is this a good book?  I should warn students, however, that if they criticize a book they must support their comments.  I won't accept it if you merely say a book is boring.  If it is not well written, give an example so support your argument.  Your paper will be based on the quality of your analysis, style, spelling, grammar, and clarity.  If you convince me that you have read the entire book and tried to do a good job, I will be on your side.  If, however, I suspect that you have merely skipped through the book or that you have copied from a review of the book, I will penalize you heavily. 

For more information on writing a book critique see the section on that topic in the Department of History's guide to research and writing::
  http://web.sbu.edu/history/writingguideintro.html .

Choose one of the following:
Brian Levack, The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europe, 3rd edition, Longman,  2006, 360 pp.
Amy Butler Greenfield, A Perfect Red:  Empire, Espionage, and the Quest for the Color of Desire, Harper Perennial, 2006, 352 pp.
Robert Harms, The Diligent: A Voyage through the Worlds of the Slave Trade, Basic Books, 2003, 496 pp. 

Study Guide   Click here for suggestions on ideas to consider in the assigned weekly readings in Spielvogel.

Weekly Class Topics and Assignments:

Week of 25-27 August
                 General Introduction to the Europe of around 1500  
                  The Renaissance and Coming of the Reformation
                 Spielvogel, 337-38, 348-49(Machiavelli), 355-62, 365-69

Week  of  2-4  September
            The Reformation 
            Spielvogel,  373-95
            Internet Readings 

Week of  9-11 September  
            The Counter (or Catholic) Reformation and Religious Wars
            Spielvogel, 395-409
            Internet Readings

Week of  16-18 
            The Age of European Exploration
            Spielvogel, 410-440
            Internet Readings

Week of  23-25 September    
            Crises of the 17th Century       
            Spielvogel, 443-452, 475-81

Week of  30 September-2 October
            Crises of the 17th Century  (continued)
           Internet Readings

Week of   7-9 October  
            Midterm exam  7 October

Week of 16 October
            Seventeenth-Century political developments
   
         Spielvogel, 467-74
            Internet Readings
            The Scientific Revolution  
            Spielvogel, 483-507
            Internet Readings 
            Francis Bacon document

Week of  21-23 October
            Louis XIV and Absolutism

   
         Spielvogel, 452-67
            Internet Readings

Week of 28-30 October
            Eighteenth-century political developments
   
         Spielvogel, 538-54
            Internet Readings   
            
Week of  4-6 November  
            The Enlightenment
   
         Spielvogel, 509-37
            Internet Readings

Week of 11-13 November  
   
         Eighteenth-Century Society and Economy
            Spielvogel, 554-69
           
Internet Readings

Week of 18-20 November
            The Age of Revolutions            
            Spielvogel, 571-93
           
Internet Readings

Week of 25 November
   
         The Napoleonic Era
            Spielvogel, 593-603
            Internet Readings

Week of 2-4 December
            Europe in 1815
            Discussion of Final Exam

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