Schedule:
Week: Do the readings before Monday
of each week. Bring appropriate book as indicated on syllabus or in the
previous class. Accept individual assignments or oral
responsibility. Bring book or reading
notes to be discussed on that day.
Week 1) W. Jan 20, F. Jan. 22- Short History, xiv-xvi and ch. 8
pp. 138 to 153 on Venetian history as Polo
family from Korcula, Venetian territory on Dalmatian
coast, Marco Polo, ed. Milton Rugoff, Introduction & Chronology & Map
Wed. Introduction—student
special interests.
Introduction to times of Marco Polo
(1254-1324, travels 1271-95, ms. ca 1298 in Genoan prison with Rusticello)
Google to National Geographic Marco Polo: Journey or to Netflix Trailer Marco
Polo.
Lecture starts on Burckhardtian view of the Renaissance. Burckhardtian Renaissance.ppt
Fri. Lecture continues on Burckhardtian view of
the Renaissance. Bring Short History-be prepared to discuss
Venice OR bring Marco Polo and be
prepared to discuss Introduction and
Map that follows.
Week 2) M. Jan 24, W Jan 27, F Jan 29- Marco Polo,pp.
1-72 & Afterward by Howard Mittelmark, pp.
285-291
Short History,
ch. 1 & 2
Observation as in Boccaccio Decameron, prologue on the plague http://www.history.vt.edu/Burr/Boccaccio.html
Optional: Burckhardt, Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy
is available in google books, on reserve, in stacks.
Mon. The new global history of the
Renaissance.
Wed. Discussion of empirical
observation in Marco Polo and in Boccaccio.
Lecture on Giotto and beginnings of
Renaissance art. (To
review, login to ArtSTOR & look up Giotto, Arena
Chapel. Know 4 cardinal virtues & 3 Christian virtues and Opposites.)
Fri.
Week 3) M. Feb. 1, W. Feb. 3, F Feb. 5- Marco Polo, 72-143 to finish Part I., A
Short History, ch. 3 on recovering classical
texts and art (if theme interests you,
then consider texts in Bartlett’s recommended book for paper 2)
Petrarch “On the Ascent of Mont Ventoux”
http://history.hanover.edu/texts/petrarch/pet17.html
Petrarch “Letter to Cicero” http://history.hanover.edu/courses/excerpts/111pet2.html
Lorenzo Valla’s exposing of papal
forgery, A Short History, pp.
132-135.
Mon. Lecture on Petrarch and origins of Renaissance Humanism
Wed. Students report and analyze an
example of Marco Polo’s observations (might be used paper 1—see paper
assignment)
Fri. Lecture on Commercial Capitalism of the
Renaissance.
Week 4) M. Feb. 8 Before class, Monday. Thesis
statement and Bibliography divided in Primary Sources and Secondary Sources for
paper concerning observations of Marco Polo. While you may use other editions
as well, plan to cite from class edition, edited by Rugoff.
Marco Polo, pp. 143-216. A Short
History, ch. 4 on papacy in Avignon and returning
to Rome, and finish ch. 8 on Venice (pp. 153-162).
Mon. Feb. 8 Lecture on Renaissance humanists and artists as explorers of antiquity
and of representation of space
(Images in Ch. 15 Janson’s on reserve)
Wed. Feb 10. Lecture beings on Church-State Relations. Church-state.ppt
Fri. Feb. 12 Lecture on Church-State Relations
Western Europe. Students
to compare Western role of Pope to religious situation in Mongol empire as
described by Marco Polo.
Week 5) M. Holiday W. Feb. 18- Marco Polo, 216-283. Completing book. A Short History, ch. 5 on Lay Piety,
Women, and the Family.
M Holiday.
W. Feb. 17 and F. Feb. 19 Film on
Venetian courtesan poet Veronica Franco Dangerous
Beauty.
Week 6) M. Feb. 22, W Feb. 24, F. Feb. 24
Read A Short History, ch. 6 on Medici in
Florence, Visconti and Sforza in Milan.
Sun Feb. 21 Opportunity to visit Getty Center by bus leaving
Alumni entrance at 9 am returning 2:30 p.m.—lots of Renaissance art objects,
gardens, views of ocean, and special exhibits.
Sign up ahead in class.
Mon. Feb.
22 Discussion of ch. 5, Short History and of
Dangerous Beauty.
Lecture on Topics in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
of the Italian Renaissance.
**Wed. Feb. 24 Paper due in 2 copies on Marco Polo and
observation Workshop on papers.
Fri. Feb.
26 Bring Short History and class
notes for review.
Week 7) Read A Short History, ch.
7 on Naples and Sicily.
M. Feb. 29
**Wed. March 2 Exam. (on computers in library) on Readings through Week 6.
For Friday March 4
Browse at websites below to consider
possible paper 2 topic focused in Vespucci.
http://www.loc.gov/rr/geogmap/waldexh.html Waldseemuller
World Map 1507, most expensive purchase of Library of Congress.
Vespucci Amerigo Vespucci The Letters of Amerigo Vespucci.html.
First published letter of Columbus pp. 5-15 The_first_letter_of_Christopher_Columbus.html__
Recommended:
The letters of Amerigo Vespucci and
other documents.html.
archive.org
› ... › California Digital Library
Amusingly, will DNA
analysis solve the issue of Columbus’s birthplace? http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/08/us/08columbus.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Lecture: Why did Amerigo get his name on the map of America? With
full awareness now that “discoverer” may be wrong label for Columbus, why do
museums call indigenous peoples’ art of Americas pre-Columbian, etc.? Enjoy spring vacation.
Spring Vacation (March
5-March 13) Curious about old
maps? Theme of Exploration
Tutorials in History of
Cartography:
http://wwws.phil.uni-passau.de/histhw/tutcarto/english/index-frames-en.html
Library of Congress also
has maps organized for student use; below is on age of exploration:
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/dsxphome.html
Huntington Library
digital library of maps:
http://cdm16003.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15150coll4
Week 8) Short History, ch.15
to consider witches, Jews, or Galileo as possible paper topics. Portable
Machiavelli: Introduction, pp. 9-40.
Machiavelli, “Private letters,” pp. 53-76
M. March 14. Reports on Vespucci
**W. March 16 Any rewrites of paper 1 due. Report on Columbus and on Waldseemuller
F. March 18 Lecture on Jewish Life during the Italian Renaissance
Week 9) Short History, ch. 9 on Florence.
M. March 21 Meet at Special
Collections—hands-on workshop with Renaissance printed books. $
**Proposal Due for Paper 2 with Primary and Secondary Source
Bibliography (faculty will adjust syllabus to provide lecturing related to
student topics)
W. March 23 March 18 Lecture on Transformations by the Printing Press
F. March 25 Lecture with handout:
Machiavelli and Machiavellianism Proposal returned.
Week 10) - Short History, ch. 10 on
1494 invasion and Soderini’s republic in Florence
where Machiavelli served as diplomat.
Machiavelli The Prince, pp. 77-166, especially
questioning conventional princely advise books, pp. 126-146, on advisors pp.
154-157.
M. March 28 Students reporting on
chapters in Machiavelli’s The Prince.
W March 30 Troops of French King
Francis I & of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V in Italy (see Short History, ch.
12, pp. 223-232) as background to classic film Agony and Ecstasy (138 minutes) Complete The Prince & start film.
F. April 1 Last 50 minutes of film
on confrontation of Pope Julius II and Michelangelo completing the Sistine
Chapel.
Week 11) M. March 30-reversing
order on text book: chapter 12 before 11:
Short History, ch
12 on 1527 “ Sack of Rome and its Aftermath: Courtiers
and Courtesans in High Renaissance Literature”.
Machiavelli, selections from The History of Florence, his one Medici commission, pp. 547-574.
M.
April 4 Discussion of sections of Machiavelli’s History of Florence.
Lecture Series on rooms of collection: Piero
de’ Medici’s studiolo in Medici Palace & Isabella d’Este’s studiolo in Mantua
***W. April 6 Abstract and Bibliography divided into Primary and Secondary Sources
for Paper 2 (faculty to return on Fri) Workshop
on paper proposals: bring stuff like notes, articles, books.
Fine to bring a paper
draft to get a fuller student commentary.
ArtSTOR images of
Medici Duke Cosimo I and Eleanor of Toledo:
Celebration of Florentine Vespucci in the Map Room in Palazzo Vecchio;
“Visual Order to Rooms of Collection” (in New Dictionary of the History of Ideas)
**F. April 8 Students bring 2 copies of commentary on student proposal. Proposals returned with student commentary.
Exploration: The Influential Title Page of Abraham Ortelius
Week 12) M. April 6- Short History, Ch. 11 “Paradoxes of the High Renaissance: Art in a
Time of Turmoil”
Machiavelli, The Discourses,
only pp. 168- 234. Consider if any lessons are similar in The Prince and the Discourses.
Look also for sharp contrasts. Add Brief History in ch.
13, pp. 241-244 on period of transition to Medici Princedom & ch. 14, on “Imperial Renaissance,” pp. 260-268, on model architecture of
Palladio and of Il Gèsu 269-271, and on Inquisition
pp. 280-282.
M. April 11 Student close readings of The
Discourses. Intro.
to Neo-Platonism in Philosophy and Art…a distraction
from Realistic Politics.
Please read for Wed. April 8 the
first 8 paragraphs (ending with the lit blue word “Calypso”) of Pico della Mirandola's
Oration (the most famous neo-Platonic statement on the dignity of
humanity): http://bactra.org/Mirandola/
W.
April 13 Neo-Platonism.htm in the Circle of
Lorenzo de’ Medici and Marsilio Ficino
****Paper 2 Due in 2 copies.
F. April 15 Read, Short History, ch.
14
Introduction to The Mandrake Root.
Fri. Bring in 2 COPIES of paragraphs answering 2 short
questions (8 minutes) you have designed for Exam 2 (either
Identify and give the significance or Compare l item to another. To use for review.
Week 13) Mon. April 18 Have textbook and class notes for review for
Exam.
Papers returned...fine to make an appointment at writing center to
improve paper.
Wed. April 20 EXAM
at in computers in lowest level of
library. Since hour exam all chapters assigned in Short History and other reading assignments, and all lectures and classwork since our Hour Exam, week 7 –week
12. 4 Questions Identify and argue the
significance plus 4
Questions: Relate one item (who, what, where, significance) to another item
(who or what, where, when, significance)
About 61/2 minutes each typing.
................
Reading and searching:
Writer of comedy: Machiavelli, The Mandrake Root, pp. 433-479.
Architect Palladio: in google images, write Palladio, then for Venice:
“San Giorgio Maggiore,” “Redentore” then for Vicenza:
“Rotunda,” “Olympic Theatre,” then for Villa Barbaro
“Veronese,” and then “Influence on Monticello,” “Influence on Washington D.C.”
Fri. April 22 Before start of class time, email a Review of student paper to student and
Prof. Horowitz: 1-typed page commentary due on 1 student paper. Find the
thesis: with evidence argue with it, modify it, or support it. If no thesis,
suggest one. Consider what a counter-thesis would be. Has students argued
against other historians or other possible historical arguments. You may make any other suggestions.
Week 14)
M. April 23 Any re-writes of paper 2 Due.
Bring a laptop, ipad,
smart phone or another device for filling in the student evaluations. (Library
circulation desk does loan equipment.)
Discussion of The Mandrake Root: individual assignments on Machiavelli assignment
sheet.
Wed. April 25 Debates on labelling the period
" Renaissance" or "Early Modern Europe".ppt
Last Class. No Final.