Professor
Ann Earle
Lecturer in Humanities
802 654-2682 330 Library
Office hours
3:50-4:20 Mondays and
Wednesdays
Enlightenment and
Revolution - Humanities 205 - Spring 2006
Course Description
This course will explore western cultural history from 1600 to 1824, that is,
from Hamlet to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. We identify contexts
and multiple points of view.
We will follow the humanist tradition in the liberal studies, with that tradition's emphasis on texts, vocabulary, models, ideas and themes.
We will examine such concepts as self-interest, natural law, the social contract, balance of power, the baroque, revenge, optimism, romanticism, enlightenment, and humanism.
Format
Classes will
include lectures and interactive sessions. Students will prepare in writing for
some classes, and lead discussions. We will encounter significant works of art,
and students will organize group presentations on shared experiences beyond the
classroom.
Grades
Participation
25%; group work 25%; quiz average 25%; final 25%.
I subscribe to the academic integrity policy of the college. When in doubt,
document.
Any one with special needs and those who have scheduled events which conflict
with class time should talk with me as soon as possible. Assignments
will be posted on eCollege, and students are responsible for checking between
classes.
Participation:
The participation grade will relate to your reading assignments before class,
with understanding, your respect for other students, and listening
to them, learning their names and using them in class, disagreeing
with civility and supporting others’ efforts. I look for
willingness to communicate, to ask questions, and to engage in
activities. It is essential to have your text, or copies
from the web or from the library reserve assignments with you in class.
Whenever a written response to the reading or to a guest speaker or experience outside the classroom is assigned, they must be on time. If these responses are not handed in on their due date, they will lower the overall participation grade, even if they are not individually graded.
Unexcused absences, late arrivals, and early departures are not okay, and
will count against you. The dean’s office must approve excused absences.
More than 3 unexcused absences will mean a lower grade, and more than
4 will mean the highest possible grade will be a C-, and more than 5
may result in failure in the course. If you feel you have a
legitimate reason for missing all or part of a class, please submit it in
writing.
Group work: Your group work should show thought, effort, curiosity, imagination, understanding, connections, and responses to other students. It needs to meet guidelines and be complete. Written work assigned for the group before class should be handed in before class. Any assigned work not handed in on the due date can be submitted one class later, but it will count less. Sometimes you will have class time to respond in writing to the group experience. These must be handed in before you leave the classroom to count.
Quiz average: Announced, random, or take home. In-class quizzes cannot be made up, unless there is a dean’s office approved reason for missing class.
Final exam: This will be a combination of take home essays and a portfolio of your class work.
Texts you should own (Additional readings will be assigned adventitiously)
Austen, Jane. Pride
and Prejudice. Introduction by M. Drabble. Signet Classic, 1996. ISBN
0451525884, $4.95..
Sobel, Dava. Galileo's Daughter. Penguin, 2000. ISBN
0140280553 $15.00
Voltaire. Candide. Trans. David Wootton. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Co., 2000. ISBN is 0 87220 546 0. $5.99
Be sure to purchase the
editions above, as we will have open book discussions and quizzes.
You will also need to purchase any complete edition of either Hamlet or
The Comedy of Errors, by Shakespeare. Used copies are widely available.
A booklet compiled by the bookstore is a work in progress, and will be required
for purchase later.
Assignments (these are tentative and may be changed at any time)
1-16-2006
Introduction to the baroque, enlightenment, and humanism, and
Florence, Italy.
1-18 Galileo's Daughter Chapters 1-3 -- See the
questions in Doc sharing.
Choose an
image from this group to print and bring in, with title, artist and date,
and your observations.
These faces represent the
kind of men John Locke, father of the Enlightenment, met in the Netherlands,
where he lived in exile until William III was called to the English throne by
Parliament in the Glorious Revolution of 1688:
Officials of the Drapers' Guild, by Rembrandt,
1662
1-23 GD 4-8 Put a quote you like on eCollege Talk under Galileo,
with the source.
1-25 GD 9-12 and the chronology
1-30 GD 13-16
2-1 GD 17-20
2-6 GD 21-25
2-8 GD 26-29
2-13 GD 30-33 Sharing questions
2-15 Descartes, Pascal,
Robespierre. Hobbes TBA
2-22 Locke, Second Treatise on Government and Letter of Toleration
TBA
2-27 The Glorious Revolution in England and Versailles under Louis XIV
3-1 Candide Ch
1-12 Click
here for Candide resources
Look at these questions on Candide; Voltaire
biography
Diderot and the Encyclopedia
3-6 Candide Ch 13-21
Handel and
Bach For all composers, see
Classical Music
3-8 Candide Ch 22-30
Masterpieces in Detail essay on
Gainsborough’s painting: (on reserve)
Mr./Mrs. Andrews, by Gainsborough, 1748
3-20-4-12
Pride
and Prejudice reading assignments
Map of Jane Austen's England
Click here for a list of characters in Pride and Prejudice
Jane Austen Info Page
4-19 Keats and other romantic poets, and selections from Mary Shelley’s
Frankenstein
April 24 and 26, and May 1 and 3 are days for group presentations.
These dates and readings may be revised during the semester. Be sure to check eCollege for the latest updates.
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