History 105 – Western Civilization to 1648 – T/Thurs 11:30-12:45 pm
Kate Wintrol
Telephone: 895-5261
Office: John S. Wright Hall, A321
Email: kate.wintrol@ccmail.nevada.edu
Office Hours: Friday from 12 to 3 p.m. and by appointment
Required Reading:
The Western Heritage Volume One to 1740 by Donald Kagan.
Supplementary handouts distributed in class and readings from the CD-Rom
Requirements:
This class is designed to provide a broad understanding of the development of
Western Civilization from the ancient Near East to the Reformation. The course will
include both lecture and discussion. You are expected to attend every class and carefully
read the assignments.
There will be three exams, including the final, consisting of identifications and
short answers and three short quizzes on the supplemental readings. The final
examination will have the same format as the exams, with perhaps the addition of a
longer essay question that demands cumulative knowledge. In addition, there will be one
short paper required.
If you have a documented disability that may require assistance, you will need to
contact the Disability Resource Center. It is located in the Reynolds Student Services
Complex, room 137, telephone 895-0866 or TDD 895-0652.
Syllabus is subject to slight changes or revisions.
Grading:
Three exams 20% each, Paper 20%, Quizzes 10% and attendance and participation 10%.
Course Outline:
Week One Aug. 29 and Sept. 1: Introduction, early human history, Mesopotamia, Egypt
and Israel.
Readings – Chapter One and CD-Rom 1.5 Hammurabi’s Law Code
Week Two Sept. 6 and 8: Bronze-Age Greece, Development of the Greek polis, hoplites
and Lyric Poetry.
Readings – Chapter Two and handouts
Week Three Sept. 13 and 15: Athens, Sparta, Persian Wars and the Peloponnesian Wars.
Readings – Chapter Three and handouts
Week Four Sept. 20 and 22: Greek Culture, religion, philosophy, role of women,
importance of athletics
Readings– Handouts and CD-Rom 3.6 On the Murder of Eratosthenes: A Husband’s
Defense.
Week Five: Sept. 27 and 29: Greek Art and Drama
First exam on Thurs. Sept. 29
Readings – Handouts, slides and review
Week Six: Oct. 4 and 6: Philip and Alexander the Great, Hellenistic Culture, Early
Rome, Roman Republic
Readings – Chapter 4 and handouts
Week Seven Oct. 11 and 13: Roman expansion, Hannibal and Punic Wars, Republic in
Crisis.
Readings – Handouts
Week Eight Oct. 18 and 20: Last years of the Republic, Julius Caesar, Cleopatra,
Augustus and Empire
Readings – Chapter Five, CD-Rom 5.1 Augustus’ Moral Legislation: Family Values and
handouts
Week Nine Oct. 25 and 27: Roman art and culture, Romanization, role of women, blood
sports and legions
Readings – Handouts and CD-Rom 4.3 Slaves in Roman Countryside and 5.2 Satirical
View of Women
Week Ten: Nov. 1 and 3: End of Rome, Germanic Invasions, Slides and Review
Second exam on Thurs., Nov. 3
Week Eleven Nov. 8 and 10: Rise of Christianity, Monasticism, Islam, Vikings and
Charlemagne.
Readings – Chapters six and seven, CD-Rom 5.5 Letter of Paul to the Romans
Week Twelve: Nov. 15 and 17: Rise of the state, Crusades, High Middle Ages.
Readings – Chapter eight, CD-Rom 8.2 Sports of the City and 8.3 College life and
handouts
Week Thirteen: Nov. 22: The terrible 14th century
Readings – Chapter nine, CD-Rom 9.1 Flagellants and handouts
Week Fourteen Nov. 29 and Dec. 2: Renaissance and Reformation
Readings – Chapter ten and handouts
Paper Due on Dec. 2
Week Fifteen Dec. 6 and 8: Reformation, review and slides
Readings – Chapter 11 (optional)
Final Exam on Thursday December 15 at 10:10 a.m.
.