Fall Term, 1999, History 121: Western Civilization from Earliest Times to the Reformation Instructor:

Jim Wright, Office S109, Phone 4560300, X 3242 (which has voice mail), or messages can be left with the departmental secretary 3833 or, as a last resort, with the message center at the switchboard.

Texts: A History of Western Society, McKay Prophets, Commoners, King and Outcasts, Wright (You don't get wes/civ from two books, people. Read!)

Required Reading:
Week 1, Chapter 1
    Case 1, The Third Way
Week 2, Chapter 2
    Quiz 1
    Case Discussion 1
Week 3, Chapter 3
    Quiz 2
    Case 3. Incident at Melos
Week 4, Chapter 4
    Quiz 3
    Discussion 2
Week 5, Chapter 5
    Quiz 4
Week 6, Chapter 6
    Quiz 5
    Case 5, The Convert
Week 7, Chapter 7
    Quiz 6
    Discussion 3
    Case 6: Twilight
Week 8, Chapter 8
    Quiz 7
    Discussion 4
Week 9, Chapter 9
    Quiz 8
Week 10, Chapter 10
    Quiz 9
Week 11, Chapter 11
    Quiz 10
Week 12, Chapter 12
    Quiz 11
Week 13, Chapter 13
    Quiz 12
    Case 5, Graven Image
Week 14, Chapter 14
    Quiz 13
    Discussion 5
Final Examination

Examinations this semester will be weekly multiple choice exams each of which will be worth twentyfive points. The final exam will cover the last chapter. For each chapter there will be a study sheet distributed far in advance of the exams. The objective items will be worth one point a piece for a total of 350 points. Another 125 points may be achieved through the case studies. You will do five cases which makes them worth 25 points each. If you do an outstanding job on the cases, and you choose to do two extra cases you can raise your grade one level. Just doing the extra cases in a slipshod manner gets you nothing. They must be done to my satisfaction. This means the discussion points will be well considered and the essays polished. Your grade will be based upon the number of points you achieve. Cases: The cases are intended to provide you with an application of the factual material presented in your text. The text tells you, in general, facts about men and women who have lived in the past--the cases ask you to take that information and apply it to everyday life situations encountered by these people. On those weeks we do cases you will read the case before you come to class, read the questions at the end of the case and comment upon them. Then in your discussion groups you will again confront these questions, discussing why you have selected your answer and why your fellow student has selected another or the same answer. YOUR INSTRUCTOR READS THE DISCUSSION RESPONSES CAREFULLY WHEN EVALUATING THE CASES. The entire case, including two typed essays, the discussion statements and the vocabulary is due a week after the discussion takes place.

Grades: There is a total of 475 possible points in the course. The grade is determined by taking .9, .8, .65 times either 25 points (per quiz) or the number of points possible (after three quizzes, 75). The final grades are based upon a curve with the top of the curve being the highest number of points actually achieved.

Make Ups/Late Assignments: There will be no make up examinations this semester for any reason, nor will late assignments be accepted.

Late: There is nothing that burns me like a student who comes in late on a regular basis. Coming in late once can be understood, things happen. If you come in late regularly, I will drop you.

History is not, as you have been taught to think, memorizing facts and dates. in point of fact there is not one date on any of my examinations. History cuts across many fields of study--geography, theology, philosophy, education, and records the lives lived by our ancestors, and their thoughts. History is a liberating discipline which enables you to evaluate the thoughts and actions of men in the past thereby giving you choices in the present. My own humble bias is that history constitutes the most important class in your schedule. (This is not necessarily an opinion widely shared.)

Course Objectives:
1. to introduce the student to the origins of Western Civilization
2. to introduce the student to the development of western institutions, social, familial, political, religious and economic
3. to develop in the student an awareness of those events which have given Western Civilization its distinct character
4. to develop in the student an awareness of those ideas and institution which are (or were) distinctly those of western civilization

Media: Triton has a wealth of material available for the ambitious student. The Independent Learning Lab has the Civilization and Ascent of Man series, and various other titles on Western Civilization covering all periods. The college library owns most of the classic texts referred to in the bibliography. Internet: There is now much useful material on the Internet, textual and visual (how is a pyramid or cathedral constructed?) for all areas of this course. Ther Perseus Project has put on the net virtually all of the texts of ancient Greece. This material was once only available at major university libraries.