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

Learning outcomes

The student, at the end of the course, acquires the suitable knowledge to navigate through the history of the Euro-Mediterranean basin and the critical skills to operate within complex theoretical frameworks, including the realm of historical memory in contemporary culture and the connections of historical studies with other social sciences, to be successfully approached analytically.

Course contents

Literary Sources for the History of Early Medieval Europe

The course provides an overview of events related to the transformations of the Roman world, the birth of early medieval kingdoms, and their developments through the reading and discussion of contemporary narrative sources. The lessons will focus on the European context, considering its connections with the broader Mediterranean area, and will cover a chronological span from the 5th to the 11th centuries.

Specific in-depth analyses will address cultural, religious, and political aspects, with particular attention to the problem of the cultural construction of ethnic and gender identities.

Readings/Bibliography

Both attending and non-attending students will have to take a written exam based on the textbook:

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

Attending students will then have to take an oral exam based on lecture notes and materials that will be uploaded on "Virtuale".

Non-attending students will discuss the contents of a book for the oral exam, to be chosen from the following:

G. Albertoni, L'elefante di Carlo Magno, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2020.

I. Barbiera, Memorie sepolte. Tombe e identità nell'alto medioevo (secoli V-VIII), Roma, Carocci, 2012.

F. Borri, Alboino. Frammenti di un racconto (secoli VI-XI), Roma, Viella, 2016.

G. Gandino, Contemplare l'ordine. Intellettuali e potenti dell'alto Medioevo, Napoli, Liguori, 2004.

S. Gasparri, Desiderio, Salerno, Salerno Editrice, 2019.

P. Geary, In principio erano le donne, Roma, Carocci, 2018.

H. Keller, Gli Ottoni. Una dinastia imperiale tra Europa e Italia (secc. X e XI), Roma, Carocci, 2012.

W. Pohl, Le origini etniche dell'Europa: barbari e romani tra antichità e Medioevo, Roma, Viella, 2011.

G. Ravegnani, Teodora, Salerno, Salerno Editrice, 2016.

Teaching methods

Lectures always based on the presentation of sources in order to clarify the process of critical construction of historical narration.

Active participation of students in the discussion of texts and presented issues will be encouraged.

Assessment methods

All students, both attending and non-attending, will have to take a written exam, followed by an oral exam.

The written and oral exams can be taken in the same session or in different sessions.

To access the oral exam, it is necessary to have taken and passed the written exam with a score of at least 18/30.

The written exam aims to assess the acquired knowledge of the textbook and consists of five open-ended questions that require precise answers and good synthesis skills. The first question is worth 0 to 10 points, while the others are worth 0 to 5 points each. The maximum possible score is 30/30.

The evaluation will focus on:

• Mastery of the content

• Ability to synthesize and analyze themes and concepts

• Ability to express oneself in writing appropriately and using language suitable for the subject matter.

Students who demonstrate an organic understanding of the topics covered in the textbook, critical use of the material, excellent expressive skills, and use of specific terminology will receive excellent grades.

Memorization of the material, along with adequate synthesis and analysis presented in correct but not always appropriate language, will result in satisfactory grades.

Significant gaps in knowledge and/or inappropriate language use, even in the context of minimal knowledge of the exam material, will result in grades that do not pass.

Significant gaps in knowledge, inappropriate language use, and lack of orientation within the content of the textbook will be evaluated negatively.

The oral exam is an open conversation aimed at assessing the acquired knowledge:

• of the content presented during the lectures and the materials available on Virtuale for attending students;
• of the chosen book for non-attending students.

The evaluation will consider the student's knowledge, synthesis skills, and critical abilities based on the exam bibliography.

In the evaluation of the oral exam, particular attention will be given to the student's ability to navigate the exam bibliography to extract relevant information for discussing themes and problems and connecting them coherently.

The evaluation will focus on:

• Mastery of the content

• Ability to synthesize and analyze themes and concepts

• Ability to express oneself adequately and using language appropriate to the subject matter.

Students who demonstrate an organic understanding of the topics covered in lectures, along with critical use of the material, excellent expressive skills, and the use of specific terminology, will receive excellent grades.

Memorization of the material, along with adequate synthesis and analysis presented in correct but not always appropriate language, will result in satisfactory grades.

Significant gaps in knowledge and/or inappropriate language use, even in the context of minimal knowledge of the exam material, will result in grades that do not pass.

Significant gaps in knowledge, inappropriate language use, and lack of orientation within the exam bibliography will be evaluated negatively.

The maximum score for the oral exam is 30/30.

The final grade will be the weighted average between the result of the written exam and the result of the oral exam. At the discretion of the instructor, a special distinction (lode) may be added.

Teaching tools

"Virtuale," the university's repository for sharing educational support tools, will be used: PowerPoint presentations summarizing the contents of the lectures, PDF files of sources and proposed readings.

Office hours

See the website of Giacomo Vignodelli