28955 - History of Medieval Europe (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student acquires the required knowledge to orient himself in the history of Europe and Mediterranean basin and the critical skills useful to operate in complex theoretical frameworks, even in terms of historical memory in contemporary culture. The student will be able also to face usefully the connections of historical studies with other human sciences. At the end of the course, the student gains in-depth critical knowledge of the main lines of the formation of Europe through the interaction between historical phenomena and spatial definitions, the most up-to-date historiographical and scientifical debate. Is able to apply specific tools and source analysis, and to critically evaluate different culture. Is able to communicate effectively in written and / or oral form.

Course contents

Climate, environment, economy in the Early Middle Ages.

Climate changements, extreme events and human adaptation processes: early medieval evidences.

Very recent historical studies have shown a rapid and significant climate changement involving all of Western Europe, starting from the V-VI centuries and up to the twelfth.

Through the examination of this new environmental historiography, the reading and commenting on written sources and the analysis of archaeological methods specifically aimed at grasping the palaeo-environmental aspects, the course aims to analyze the processes of human adaptation to the new environmental condition, with particular attention to the forms of its representation in early medieval sources.

Readings/Bibliography

Attending students will have specific readings in order to prepare their own papers.

Not attending students will have a written and an oral test.

Written test will be based on S. Gasparri, C. La Rocca, Tempi barbarici. L'Europa occidentale tra antichità e Medioevo (300-900), Roma, Carocci, 2012.

For the oral test, they will study a book, chosen in this list:

• W. Pohl, Le origini etniche dell'Europa: barbari e romani tra antichità e Medioevo, Roma, Viella, 2011.
• B. Jussen, I Franchi, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2015.
• P.Geary, In principio erano le donne, Roma, Carocci, 2018.
• I. Barbiera. Memorie sepolte. Tombe e identità nell'alto medioevo (secoli V-VIII). Roma, Carocci, 2012.
• Tesori. Forme di accumulazione della ricchezza nell'alto medioevo (secoli V-XI) , a cura di Sauro Gelichi e Cristina La Rocca, Roma, Viella, 2004.

Teaching methods

The course will have a seminar format and will be structured along 15 lessons of two hours each. It 'requires a regular attendance and an active involvement of the students.

After some introductive lectures, readings will be propose to understand the topic in its complexity, on a European dimension (therefore, not always in italian language). Readings will be compulsory made during the course, in order to ensure a good collective discussion of the contents.

Finally, some lessons will be devoted to reading, cataloging and interpreting written sources.

 

Assessment methods

The course constitutes, together with Civiltà dell'Alto medioevo, the integrated course Origini dell'Europa and therefore the final exam is conceived as unique.

Students attending both the courses will prepare a paper that will be the only final test of the integrated course.

Final assessment will be based both on the completeness and accuracy of the work, both on the ability to expose critically the topics.

Not attending students will take only one written test, common for both courses, followed by an oral test: the two tests can be taken in the same scheduled exam date but it's also possible to take the oral test in a succeeding scheduled exam date.

To access the oral exam, students need to have taken the written test and to have passed it with a score of minimum 18/30.

The written test will verify the knowledge gained in the manual and consists of five open-ended questions which requires answers correct and concise (the first, with a score from 0 to 10; the others with a score from 0 to 5). The best possible result is 30/30.

The oral exam, also common to both courses, will be a free conversation to verify the knowledge of the books chosen.

The maximum score assigned for the oral test is 30/30.

For the evaluation, it will be taken into account: property of language; understanding of the issues discussed; ability to propose connections between the various topics.

The final score will be the average between the result of the written test and the oral test. The words of praise can be added at the discretion of the teacher.

Teaching tools

The University's repository will be used for the distribution of teaching tools: power points for the synthesis of lesson contents, pdf files of sources and further readings.

 

Office hours

See the website of Tiziana Lazzari