History 1101:  World History to 1500
T/Th 10:00 – 11:40  Imholte 111
Fall 2010

Professor Jennifer Deane
Office: 112 Camden
Office hours:  T/Th 2:30 – 3:30/ Wed 1:00 – 2:00
(or by appointment)
E-mail:  deanej@morris.umn.edu

“It may very well happen that what seems for one group a period of decline may seem to another the birth of a new advance.”  Edward Hallett Carr, What is History?

 “History, like a vast river, propels logs, vegetation, rafts, and debris; it is full of live and dead things, some destined for resurrection; it mingles many waters and holds in solution invisible substances stolen from distant soils.”  Jacques Barzun, Clio and the Doctors

Online study guide: www.bedfordstmartins.com/strayer

PART ONE: FIRSTS AROUND THE WORLD

Week One: Introduction


Week Two: First Peoples

Explore prehistoric art at this site :http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHprehistoric.html#general

Or learn more about the Altapuerca site in Spain (where the unusual quartzite handaxe was found):
http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/atapuerca/discovery/index.php


Week Three: First Farmers

Explore the Neolithic excavation site at Çatalhöyük (sha-TAL-huh-yook)


Week Four: Emerging Complexities in Mesopotamia and Egypt


Week Five: Emerging Complexities in South and East Asia.


Week Six: Emerging Complexity in the Americas

PART TWO: CHANGE AND CONTINUITY IN THE CLASSICAL ERA

Week Seven: Persian Empires and Greek City-States

Week Eight:  Kingdoms to Empire in China and Rome


Week Eleven: Classical Variations:  African Cultures

PART 3:  ACCELERATING GLOBAL CONNECTIONS, 500 - 1500

Week Twelve: Connections Across Eurasia

Week Thirteen: Christian and Islamic Worlds

Week Fourteen: Eurasian Travelers

Week Fifteen: Mongols and Mariners

Week Sixteen: Global Connections by 1500

Final Exam Thursday, December 16 (11:00 – 12:40)
Click here for Study Guide (prepared by discussion sections)

 

Course Overview
Over the course of this semester, we will explore the shared history of humanity on Earth from its earliest origins to the major turning point of cross-global contact in the 15th century.  Rather than treating different societies as separated silos on distinct isolated historical paths, we are going to emphasize commonalities that underlie human existence: influence of geography, shaping of the environment, handling of resources and wealth, and dazzlingly diverse systems of creating, imposing, and maintaining social order. 

In contrast to the famous complaint that history is “just one damn fact after another,” what historians do is actually more like detective work than memorization.  Rather than simply rehearsing the “who, what, where, and when” of the past (as if such certainties even existed!), we ask the far more interesting questions of “how” and “why.”  Studying history is a dynamic process:  we look for change over time, identify patterns of continuity or rupture, and follow particular ideas threading across time and place.  We study the texts, art, laws, garbage, and other clues from distant times and places in order to understand – and be surprised by – our fellow human beings.  And with the help of specific methodologies, tools, and increasingly interdisciplinary practices, we add our own thin but vivid skein to the fabric of history. 

World History to 1500 charts the development and interaction of human societies from the beginning of recorded history around 3500 BCE to the era of global cross-cultural exchange and European invasion of the Americas circa 1500 CE.   The primary purpose of the course is for students to grapple with an explanatory framework for historical development that emphasizes the origins, interactions and implications of complex societies, and to think critically about the concept of “civilization” itself.  In addition, students will learn how to develop, analyze and answer historical questions, and to use both primary and secondary sources in a thoughtful and effective manner. 

World History is of course an enormous, limitless topic, and the material may seem overwhelming at first.  Do not be alarmed!  The goal is not to memorize endless facts, but to learn how to move analytically from the macro to micro and back again.  In other words, you will use the rich topic of global history as a learning site rather than attempt to “learn” all of world history.
To help prevent information overload, the course has been organized into three major chronological sections.  In each of these sections we will be asking the same series of questions to learn about the foundations, organization, beliefs and interactions of increasingly complex societies. We will try to understand what life was like for people in each era, how they attempted to control their environment and each other, and how they perceived the world around them.   Arcing across the semester will be the question of how and why commercial maritime projects exploded in the fifteenth century, and the role played by plants and the environment in those projects of conquest.  Through the assigned readings, lectures, films and discussion sections, the course will emphasize the following clusters of key questions:

Course Goals
After completing this course you should be able to:

You should also have developed the following skills, central to a liberal arts education and of enormous value in any field of work or study:

Course Readings
The following books are required and can be purchased at the UMM bookstore:


Course Requirements
Participation – 20%
Active and informed participation is a key element of this course.  A significant portion of your grade will be based on your participation in discussion sections (evaluated by your TAs) and also periodically in the large lecture group.  You are therefore expected to come to both lectures and discussion sections with readings completed and with thoughtful responses to the discussion questions prepared.  What constitutes active participation?  Making observations about the material, responding to the ideas of others, and engaging with the material through informed discussion.  

Quizzes – 15%
To help you stay on top of the material and gauge your progress on a weekly basis, there will be 16 pop quizzes through the semester.  I will drop your lowest score. A missed quiz will be marked as a “0,” and makeup quizzes must be arranged with me ahead of time. 

Silk Road Activity – 10%
As a change of pace, and to help us consider how diverse were the many peoples who encountered one another along the postclassical Silk Roads, we will be doing an in-class role-playing activity based on the essays in Whitfield’s Life Along the Silk Road.  The assignment will include both oral and written portions, and will be student-run (with lots of guidance and support available from the instructor).  Information and guidelines will be distributed in class.

Research Portfolio – 10%
At the end of the semester, you will produce a portfolio of source materials and a research proposal on any topic relevant to world history before 1500.  The purpose of this assignment is to spark your historical imagination, to help you grapple with a specific topic within the enormous field of global history, and to pursue a topic that interests you.  The portfolio will be due in class on Thursday, December 9th.  Specific guidelines will be distributed in class.

Exams – 45%
There will be three exams as indicated below and on the weekly calendar:

Each exam (including the final) will cover only material assigned since the previous midterm.  Makeup exams will not be available except in emergencies; please contact me as soon as possible if such a situation arises.  Exams will consist of several different types of questions (for example: multiple choice, short answer, map, and essay). A missed exam counts as a “0”.


Course Policies
Reading Assignments
Reading assignments are to be completed before each day’s class meeting:  your textbook gives you with a narrative of events during the period covered by the course (not the only narrative, of course, but one of many possible narratives); Strayer’s selection of textual and visual sources offer depth and detail to our understanding of past societies; Diamond provides an interpretive approach based on geography that we will use as a basis for discussion throughout the course; and the primary source readings offer diverse historical perspectives as well as an introduction to basic historical study.  Lectures will not repeat textbook material, but will build off of the assigned reading for the day – it is thus in your interest to be prepared.  Reading questions will be available on the class website to help you to integrate the broad textbook information with specific additional source material.

Attendance
Attendance at lecture and discussion sections is not optional, and cumulative absences will undermine your participation grade as well as your understanding of the material.  The only “excused absence” is one for which you have a Chancellor’s Excuse.  All other absences simply fall into the same category.  If you are going to miss a class, excused or otherwise, please contact me ahead of time to let me know; after 3 absences, expect the participation grade to plummet. 

Final grades will be calculated as follows:                          Grading Scale:
Participation                20%                                                     94-100:A         77-79:  C+
Quizzes                       15%                                                     90- 93: A-        74-76:  C
Exams                         45%                                                     87- 89: B+       70-73:  C-
Research Portfolio      10%                                                     84- 86: B         60-69:  D        
Silk Road Activity      10%                                                     80- 83: B-           <60:  F

Definitions of Grades & Academic Workload Expectations

F (or N) represents failure (or not credit) and signifies that work was either (1) completed but at a level of achievement that is not worthy of credit or (2) was not completed and there was no agreement between the instructor and the student that the students would be awarded an I.I (Incomplete) is assigned at the discretion of the instructor when, due to extraordinary circumstances, e.g., hospitalization, a student is prevented from completing the work of the course on time.  Requires a written agreement between instructor and student.

Credits and Workload Expectations
The University of Minnesota student work-load policy states:  “One semester credit is to represent, for the average University of Minnesota undergraduate student, three hours of academic work per week (including lectures, laboratories, recitations, discussion groups, field work, study, and so on), or approximately 45 hours over the course of an enrollment period.”  For example:  a student taking a four credit course would be expected to put in an average of 12 hours of effort per week. Therefore, it is expected that, on average, a student will be working over 8 hours per week outside of class time on course related activities (e.g., reading, lab activities, studying).

Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty in any portion of the academic work for a course shall be grounds for awarding a grade of F or N for the entire course.
The University defines scholastic dishonesty as “submission of false records of academic achievement; cheating on assignments or examinations; plagiarizing; altering, forging or misusing a University academic record; taking, acquiring or using test materials without faculty permission; acting alone or in cooperation with another to falsify records or to obtain dishonestly grades, honors, awards or professional endorsement.”

Disability Services
The University of Minnesota is committed to providing all students equal access to learning opportunities. Disability Services is the campus office that works with students who have disabilities to provide and/or arrange reasonable accommodations. Students registered with Disability Services, who have a letter requesting accommodations, are encouraged to contact the instructor early in the semester. Students who have, or think they may have, a disability (e.g. psychiatric, attentional, learning, vision, hearing, physical, or systemic), are invited to contact Disability Services for a confidential discussion at 589-6163 or ds@umn.edu.  Additional information is available at the DS website http://ds.umn.edu.

Mental Health Services
As a student you may experience a range of issues that can cause barriers to learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, alcohol/drug problems, feeling down, difficulty concentrating and/or lack of motivation.  These mental health concerns or stressful events may lead to diminished academic performance or reduce your ability to participate in daily activities.  University of Minnesota services are available to assist you with addressing these and other concerns you may be experiencing.  You can learn more about the broad range of confidential mental health services available on campus via www.mentalhealth.umn.edu.

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