JCU Logo
JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "AH 367"
COURSE NAME: "Special Topics in Medieval Art: The Art of Memory"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2024
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Nicole Constantina Paxton
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: TTH 1:30 PM 2:45 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: Prerequisite: One previous course in Art History or permission of the instructor
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the medieval world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern.
May be taken more than once for credit with different topics.

Satisfies "the Medieval World" core course requirement for Art History majors
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

This seminar explores memory as a medium for visual representation. Taking a long view of the Middle Ages, the course traces transformations and continuities in the conceptualization of memory over time. From the role of memory in ancient Greek and Roman rhetorical practices to the “memory palaces” of the sixteenth century, students analyse the varied ways that the multi-faceted topic of memory was understood and theorized. In its focus on the visual and art-making, the seminar explores the practical, every-day functions of memory in the medieval period.

 

The course concentrates primarily on art and textual sources from the pre-modern world, but also brings the past into conversation with modern theoretical and scientific scholarship on memory. It addresses the abundance of studies coming out of the “memory boom,” the explosion of interest in memory as a field of academic interest since the 1980s and 1990s. As such, this seminar not only considers fundamental questions concerning the workings of medieval memory, but serves as an introduction to the methodologies and important works of scholarly literature that have shaped the wide-ranging field of memory studies.

 

Topics to be addressed include the relationship between the visual and the mnemonic; the changing role of the mnemonic from the early to later medieval period; pilgrimage and sites of memory; the performance of memory through song, homilies, and commemoration of the dead. Readings are drawn from primary sources and a range of fields, including art history, cultural history, anthropology, sociology, critical theory.

 

Seminar discussions will ask: What is the relationship of memory to the sense of sight? How is memory used in worship or in spiritual contemplation? How does memory disrupt and remake history? What is the role of forgetting in shaping historical consciousness? What is the relationship between personal and collective memory?
LEARNING OUTCOMES:

- Recognize key works of medieval art and architecture.

- Acquire an understanding of the theorization and practice of memory in the pre-modern world.

- Analyse the visual material within its social and historical contexts related to ideas about memory.

- Demonstrate awareness of significant primary source texts.

- Evaluate secondary literature critically and individuate various scholarly approaches.

- Identify key aspects of pre-modern memory, and interpret individual works of art in relation to these ideas.

- Cultivate oral communication skills by discussing art and readings in the classroom.

- Develop writing skills that include: the formation of clear arguments; effective organization and structuring of material; visual analysis; and the incorporation and evaluation of primary and secondary sources.
TEXTBOOK:
NONE
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
ParticipationOn-time attendance at all class sessions; careful study of assigned readings prior to class time; contribution to discussions 5%
Reading PresentationLead a critical review of one assigned reading10%
Midterm ExamThree compare & contrast essays20%
Research Paper ProposalAbstract with outline and initial annotated bibliography 10%
Research Paper PresentationOral presentation presenting thesis and research findings of final paper 10%
Research Paper~2500 words20%
Final ExamTwo compare & contrast essays; one essay with question prompt25%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
You cannot make-up a major exam (midterm or final) without the permission of the Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Office will grant such permission only when the absence was caused by a serious impediment, such as a documented illness, hospitalization or death in the immediate family (in which you must attend the funeral) or other situations of similar gravity. Absences due to other meaningful conflicts, such as job interviews, family celebrations, travel difficulties, student misunderstandings or personal convenience, will not be excused. Students who will be absent from a major exam must notify the Dean’s Office prior to that exam. Absences from class due to the observance of a religious holiday will normally be excused. Individual students who will have to miss class to observe a religious holiday should notify the instructor by the end of the Add/Drop period to make prior arrangements for making up any work that will be missed. The final exam period runs until 3 May 2024.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

1. Introduction to Memory Studies: Approaching Pre-Modern Sources through Contemporary Theories

2. Building Memory as Architecture: Mnemonics in the Ancient World

3. Techniques of Memory: Mnemonics & Medieval Contemplation

4. Building Memory through Architecture I: Mnemonics & the Monastic Mind

5. Pilgrimage and Sites of Memory I: Loca Sancta & Lieux de Memoire

6. Pilgrimage and Sites of Memory II: Imagined Topographies

7. Corporeal Memory: Violence & Mnemonics

8. Memory & Performance I: Homiletics

9. Memory & Performance II: Song

10. Remembering the Saints: Relics

11. Commemoration of the Dead

12. Exam Review

13. Midterm Exam

14. Research Paper Workshop

15. Time, Memory, & Gender: Remembering Women

16. Memory Schemata: Genealogies

17. Abstract Presentations & Group Discussion

18. Building Memory through Architecture II: Spolia

19. Saints & Civics: Collective Memory & the Medieval City

20. Self-Representation: Social Display & Commemoration in the Late Medieval Church

21. Theorizing Memory in Later Byzantium

22. Word & Image: Memory Treatises in the Fifteenth Century

23. Techniques of Memory II: Mnemonics & Renaissance Intellectualism

24. Cross-Temporal Connections & Collective Identity: Memories of the Middle Ages

25. Research Paper Presentations

26. Research Paper Presentations

27. Research Paper Presentations

28. Exam Review

Final Exam

 

There is no textbook for this course. Students will be assigned bi-weekly readings that will be made available through the library. A full list of readings will be provided at the start of the course.