Course Syllabus

JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "HS/PH 223"
COURSE NAME: "Historical and Philosophical Aspects of the Italian Renaissance"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2016

SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Fabrizio Conti
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS: TTH 7:30 PM 8:45 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES:
OFFICE HOURS: By appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This course provides an introduction to the history and philosophy of the Italian Renaissance (c. 1300-c. 1550 CE). While multiple dimensions of the era’s history will be investigated, as will a wide range of its philosophical currents, the course's primary focus will be on understanding the Renaissance and Renaissance humanism in their contexts. A particular emphasis will be placed on reconstructing the ways in which those who participated in the Renaissance, as well as those who were excluded from it, lived and understood their experiences.

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Topics include the development of new ideas and ideals of the individual in the Renaissance, Humanism as ‘a program for ruling classes’, Platonism and Aristotelianism, theological and cosmological models, Copernicus’s heliocentric theory, Marsilio Ficino, Pico della Mirandola, Giordano Bruno, Niccolò Machiavelli and Baldassarre Castiglione. Students will also discover and analyze the several apparent contradictions emerging in the Renaissance, such as, first of all, the outbreak of witch hunts. The intellectual debate concerning witches and their persecutions with the related developments in magic, demonology, inquisition, will be studied as constitutive aspects of renaissance culture.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

The aim of this course is to guide students through the discovery of the Italian Renaissance and its many, distinctive acquisitions in different fields, such as civic life, education, social organization, artistic and literary cultures, geography, ethics and politics. Students will acquire basic skills in methodologies involved in historical research, writing, and communication, and will learn how to grasp and decipher the multifaceted and contradictory messages embedded in historical realities.

Course Procedure: Students are given reading assignments prior to the lectures on a given topic. This should enable them to participate actively in discussions during and after lectures. They are expected to keep up with the assigned readings.

Plagiarism

Students must provide appropriate footnotes and a bibliography of ALL sources (both primary and secondary) used in their written term paper in order to avoid plagiarism. Students may consult the internet (e.g. Wikipedia et al.) only for their own information. General information found on the internet is not acceptable as a source for academic papers. However, students are encouraged to research academic databases, such as J-Store or Academic Search Premium, or medieval primary sources published on the internet. Students should feel free to discuss the acceptability of specific internet resources with me should they have any questions on the matter. Cases of intentional or unintentional plagiarism will be dealt with in accordance with the university policy. Students may fail the paper or the entire course depending on the gravity of the situation.

If you have questions about how to cite material properly, refer to the appropriate sections of the MLA Style Manual or Chicago Manual of Style (or make an appointment to speak with me). There are copies of both in the reference section of the library downstairs.

Please note that your papers may be submitted to turnitin.com to check their content for plagiarism.

TEXTBOOK:

Book Title	Author	Publisher	ISBN number	Library Call Number	Comments	Format	Local Bookstore	Online Purchase
The Italian Renaissance Reader	Julia Bondanella and Mark Musa (eds.)	Plume	0452008735
A Short History of Renaissance Italy	Lisa Kaborycha	Pearson	978-0136054849

REQUIRED RESERVED READING:

Book Title	Author	Publisher	ISBN number	Library Call Number	Comments
Under the devil's spell : Witches, Sorcerers, and the Inquisition in Renaissance Italy	Matteo Duni	Syracuse University Press	978-88-952500-1-4

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:

NONE

GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:

Assignment	Guidelines	Weight
2 Short Reaction Papers	These are essays/analysis (reaction papers) based on the reading of a primary source or a scholarly article. You will be given a list of topics, among which you will pick the one you prefer and develop it in about 1500/2000 words. The relevant sources and the questions which serve as guidelines for the analysis will be posted on MyJCU. All written assignments should be submitted to me electronically by 2pm of the due date at the latest. No late assignments will be accepted.	30% (15% each)
Oral Presentation	It will be a 10-15 minutes presentation on a topic of your choice, which can be either based on a scholarly article or a primary source. A list of available sources/articles will be provided. The article/source to be presented must be agreed upon with the professor during the 3rd week of the course.	5%
Attendance and Participation	This means that you: a) are in class; b) have done the readings and thought about them; c) express your views and questions orally in class and are able to make connections with the topics that have been already covered. I assume that occasionally students will have less to say than usual; nevertheless, persistent absence or having failed to do the reading will affect your participation grade. Late arrivals will be noted and will affect your grade. Students cannot leave the classroom before the end of the lecture. Please note that behaving in ways that create distractions for other members of the class (messaging, checking social networks, catching up on e-mail and so on) will lower your participation grade.	10%
Mid-Term Exam	The exams will be in-class written exams composed of short answer and essay questions. Your grade on these exams will depend upon the analytical strength and persuasiveness of your arguments as well as the factual accuracy of your answers. More information about these exams will be provided as their dates near.	25%
Final Exam	The exams will be in-class written exams composed of short answer and essay questions. Your grade on these exams will depend upon the analytical strength and persuasiveness of your arguments as well as the factual accuracy of your answers. More information about these exams will be provided as their dates near.	30%

-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 cour
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:

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

NB: Changes may occur. Any updates will be made to the on-line syllabus

January

Week 1

19 T Introduction: this course, Humanism and the Renaissance

- Paul Oskar Kristeller, Renaissance Thought, Ch. 1: "The Humanist Movement", pp.
3-23 (shared file on MY JCU)

21 TH Renaissance and Scholasticism

- Kristeller, Renaissance Thought, Ch. 5: "Humanism and Scholasticism in the
Italian Renaissance", pp. 92-119 (shared file on MY JCU)

Week 2

26 T Society and culture in Trecento Italy (14th century)

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 21-35

- Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Giovanni Boccaccio:
pp. 60-64; 96-99

28 TH Humanism and literary culture

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 38-51

- Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Francesco Petrarca: pp.
1-11

February

Week 3

2 T The crisis of the Church, and Platonism

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 58-68

4 TH 'How to hold the mean between too little and too much': a Renaissance approach to life

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 69-77

- Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Leon Battista Alberti,
pp. 164-177

Week 4

9 T Women, Saints, and Preachers

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 80-97

- Christine de Pisan, from The City of Ladies (shared file on MY JCU); St. Catherine
of Siena receiving the stigmata (link on MY JCU)

11 TH The power of culture

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 100-116

Week 5

16 T Lorenzo Valla: humanism vs religious traditions

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, Ch. 7: pp. 124-136

- Lorenzo Valla: Discourse on the Forgery of the Donation of Constantine; the Donation of
Constantine (link on MY JCU); Letters

18 TH Venice

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 139-142; 146-161

- Francesco Barbaro, from On Marriage

Week 6

23 T The "universal man"

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 164-175; 178-181

-          Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Giovanni Pico della
           Mirandola, pp. 178-183; Leonardo da Vinci, pp. 185-186 and short texts nos. 3, 11, 19, 483,
           488, 651, 652, 653, 1162, 1340

25 TH First Reaction Paper Due

Political thought

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 184-203

- Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Niccolò Machiavelli,
pp. 258-264; 273-274; 291-293

Week 7

March

1 T Mid-Term Exam

3 TH Renaissance arts

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 206-211; 213-216; 218-221; 250-254

- Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Giorgio Vasari, pp.
382-386

Week 8

8 T Courts and courtiers

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 224-236; 241-244

- Bondanella and Musa (eds.), The Italian Renaissance Reader, Baldesar Castiglione,
pp. 197-205

10 TH Renaissance naturalism

-          Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 260-271

-         Giordano Bruno, On the Infinite, the Universe, and the Worlds, selected pp.
          (shared file on MY JCU)

Week 9

15 T Between science and theology

- Kaborycha, A Short History of Renaissance Italy, pp. 279-298

- Galileo Galilei's Indictment and Abjuration - 1633 (link on MY JCU)

- Stephen Hawking, A Briefer History of Time, selected pp. (shared file on MY JCU)

17 TH Magic and Witchcraft

- Duni, pp. 11-22

- Witchcraft in Europe, ed. by Alan Charles Kors and Edward Peters, pp. 60-67
(shared file on MY JCU)

Week 10

22 T Fifteenth-century literature about witches

- Witchcraft in Europe, Early modern texts about witchcraft (shared file on MY JCU)

24 TH The “cumulative concept” of witchcraft

- Brian Levack, The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europe, Ch. 2: “The Intellectual
Foundations” (shared file on MY JCU)

28 March – 1 April Spring Break

April

Week 11

5 T The “Mythologies of witchcraft”

- Richard Kieckhefer, “Mythologies of Witchcraft in the Fifteenth Century”, Magic, Ritual,
and Witchcraft 1-1 (2006): 79-108 (shared file on MY JCU)

7 TH Renaissance theories of Magic

- Duni, pp. 41- 61

Week 12

12 T Skepticism about witchcraft

-          Fabrizio Conti, Witchcraft, Superstition, and Observant Franciscan Preachers: Pastoral
           Approach and Intellectual Debate in Renaissance Milan, pp. 238-243; 255-264.
           (shared file on MY JCU)

14 TH Second Reaction Paper Due

Heinrich Kramer's The Hammer of Witches

- Witchcraft in Europe, The Hammer of Witches, selected pages (shared file on MY JCU)

Week 13

19 T The Hammer of Witches in Italy: Giovanfrancesco Pico della Mirandola

- Peter Burke, Witchcraft and Magic in Renaissance Italy: Gianfrancesco Pico and His Strix,
pp. 32-48 (shared file on MY JCU)

21 TH The Inquisition in the Italian States

- Duni, pp. 27-38

Week 14

26 T Inquisitors and victims

- Carlo Ginzburg, “Witchcraft and Popular Piety: Notes on a Modenese Trial of 1519”
(shared file on MY JCU)

28 TH The strange case of the Benandanti

- Carlo Ginzburg, The Night Battles, selected pp. (shared file on MY JCU)

Final Exam