Coordinator: Karen Robertson (English and Women's
Studies); Steering Committee: Nicholas Adams (Art),
Mark Amodio, Leslie Dunn, Don Foster (English), Nancy
Bisaha, Mita Choudhury (History), Christine Reno (French),
John Ahern (Italian), Marc Epstein (Religion);
Participating Faculty. Susan D. Kuretsky (Art);
Robert D. Brown (Classics); Robert DeMaria, Eamon Grennan,
Ann Imbrie, James P. Saeger (English); Patricia Kenworthy
(Hispanic Studies); Eugenio Giusti (Italian); Brian Mann
(Music); Mitchell Miller (Philosophy); Betsy H. Amaru, Lynn
R. LiDonnici (Religion).
The interdepartmental program in Medieval and Renaissance
Studies is designed to provide the student with a coherent
course of study in the arts, history, literature, and
thought of European civilization from the fall of Rome to
the seventeenth century. The student is expected to elect
work above the introductory level in each of three groups of
disciplines: Art and Music; History, Philosophy, Religion;
Language and Literature. In the senior year each student is
expected to complete advanced courses in at least two
departments and write a long paper on a subject that is
interdisciplinary in nature. Furthermore, each student is
expected to show competence in at least one vernacular
language (besides Middle English) and/or in Latin by
completing courses at the intermediate level. Students
expecting to concentrate on the Renaissance should acquire a
reading knowledge of Italian.
In fulfillment of the program each student should elect
at least 12 units from the approved list of courses,
including Medieval/Renaissance Culture. At least three
courses must be chosen from each of the three groups of
disciplines and a thesis must be completed in the senior
year.
Students interested in Medieval and Renaissance Studies
should contact the coordinator or one of the members of the
participating faculty soon after arriving at Vassar. In
order to gain an understanding of the common philosophical
and religious assumptions of the periods, students should
take some of the following courses:
History 215 Medieval Civilization (1)
History 225 Renaissance Europe (1)
Medieval/Renaissance 220 Medieval/Renaissance Culture
(1)
Philosophy 101 History of Western Philosophy I (1)
Political Science 170 Political Theory (1)
Religion 150 Western Religious Traditions (1)
Correlate Sequence in Medieval and Renaissance
Studies: 6 graded units from the list of approved
courses are required, including Medieval and Renaissance
Studies 220 or History 215 or History 225; Art 220 or the
equivalent; and English 220 or English 230-231 or the
equivalent in a foreign language. These courses should be
taken early in a student's career. 100-level work cannot be
included in the sequence and at least 1 unit must be at the
300-level. The courses selected for the sequence must form a
unified course of study and a written proposal articulating
the focus of the sequence must be submitted to the correlate
sequence adviser for approval prior to declaration.
Course Offerings
220b. Medieval/Renaissance Culture (1)
Topic for 2000/01: Cultural Crossroads of the
Mediterranean 1000-1500. This course examines the
conflict and coexistence of Christian and Muslim cultures in
the Mediterranean region from historical and literary
perspectives. Our examination of this period of
extraordinary vitality and cultural ferment includes
the following topics: Norman migrations, the Schism between
the Eastern and Latin churches, the Crusades, the rise of
Italian trading cities such as Venice and Florence,
Frederick II's court in Sicily, and the impact of Arab
learning on Spain and Northern Europe. Ms. Bisaha and Mr.
Ahern.
300. Senior Thesis (1)
Approved Courses
Art and Music
Art 220a. Romanesque and Gothic Architecture (1)
Art 221b. The Sacred Arts of the Middle Ages (1)
[Art 230a. Northern Renaissance Painting] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
Art 235a. Early Central Italian Painting and Sculpture
(1)
Art 236b. Later Central Italian Painting and Sculpture
(1)
[Art 270a. Renaissance Architecture] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
Art 271b. Early Modern Architecture (1)
Art 320b. Seminar in Medieval Art (1)
Art 331a. Seminar in Northern Art (1)
Art 332b. Seminar in Italian Renaissance Art (1)
Music 232a. Studies in Music of the Medieval/Renaissance
Period (1)
History, Philosophy, Religion
Classics 218b. Republican Rome: From the Foundation
through the Age of Augustus (1)
Classics 219b. The Roman Empire: From the Julio-Claudian
Era Through the Fall (1)
[History 215a. The High Middle Ages c. 950-1300]
(1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
History 225a. Renaissance Europe c.1300–c.1525
(1)
History 315b. Crusades (1)
History 320b. Studies in Sacred Texts (1)
Topic for 2000/01: Historical Jesus: Constructs and
Conflicts
History 330a. The World Turned Upside Down: Disorder,
Dissent, and Deviance in Early Modern Europe (1)
History 331a. Women and Gender in Early Modern Europe
(1)
Religion 220a. Text and Tradition (1)
Topic for 2000/01: Adam and Eve
Religion 225. The Hebrew Bible (1)
Religion 227. The New Testament and Early
Christianity (1)
Religion 243. Islamic Traditions (1)
[Religion 246. Jewish Politics and Religion]
(1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
Religion 320. Studies in Sacred Texts (1)
Topic for 2000/01: The Matriarchs and Their
Sisters
Religion 346. Studies in Jewish Thought and History
(1)
Topic for 2000/01: Portraits of Biblical Women
Language and Literature
[Africana Studies 203a. The Origins and Development
of Islamic Literature] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
Classics 300a. Seminar in Classical Civilization (1)
Topic for 2000/01: Greek and Roman Sexuality
English 220-221. Development of English Literature to the
Close of the Eighteenth Century (1)
English 235. Old English (1)
English 236. Beowulf (1)
English 237. Chaucer (1)
English 238. Middle English Literature (1)
[English 239. Renaissance Drama] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01
English 240. Shakespeare (1)
English 241-42. Shakespeare (1)
English 340. Studies in Medieval Literature (1)
Topic for 2000/01: The Middle English Romance
English 341. Studies in Renaissance Literature (1)
Topic for 2000/01: Identity, Sex, Soul, Power:
Renaissance Subjectivities
English 342. Women in the Renaissance (1)
English 345. Milton (1)
English 381. Art of Anonymity (1)
English 384. The Bible as Literature (1)
French 230. Medieval and Early Modern Times (1)
French 332. Literature and Society in Pre-Revolutionary
France (1)
Topic for 2000/01: France on Trial
Hispanic Studies 226a. Medieval and Early Modern Spain
(1)
Topic for 2000/01: Jews, Muslims and Christians in
Medieval Spain
Italian 175a. The Italian Renaissance in English
Translation (1)
Italian 220b. Italian Civilization: Interpreting the
Texts (1)
Italian 237b., 238a. Dante's Divine Comedy in
Translation (1)
Italian 242. Boccaccio's Decameron in Translation:
The "Novella" as Microcosm (1)
Italian 330b. The Italian Renaissance: The Italian Epic
(1)
Tradition from 1300-1500
[Italian 331a. The Italian Renaissance: Poetry,
Theatre, (1)
Politics, and Ideology]
Not offered in 2000/01.
Italian 337b, 338a. Dante's Divine Comedy (1)
Latin 105a-106b. Elementary Latin (1)
Latin 215a. Republican Literature (1)
Latin 220b. Literature of the Empire (1)
Latin 301b. Topics in Latin Literature (1)
Topic for 2000/01: The Life and Works of Horace
[Latin 302a. Vergil] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
[Latin 303a. Tacitus] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
[Latin 304a. Catullus and Cicero] (1)
Not offered in 2000/01.
|