Week 1:

Class introduction (Tuesday 8/26)

Lecture 1 (Thursday 8/28) view slides
Neolithic and Agricultural Revolution
Reading: Spielvogel 1-7

Week 2:

Lecture 2 (Tuesday 9/2) view slides
Mesopotamia and Egypt: the first states
Reading: Spielvogel 7-33

Lecture 3 (Thursday 9/4) view slides
Assyria and ancient Israel
Reading: Spielvogel 34-46

Week 3:

Lecture 4 (Tuesday 9/9) view slides
Early Greek civilization
Reading: Spielvogel 55-69

Video 1 (Thursday 9/11)
"Athens"
Reading: Spielvogel 69-88

Week 4:

Test 1 (Tuesday 9/16)
Material covered in lectures 1-4, video 1, Spielvogel chapters 1-3
See Assignments page for question formats and terms for identification

Lecture 5 (Thursday 9/18) view slides
Persian Empire; Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic kingdoms
Reading: Spielvogel 46-54, 89-112

Week 5:

Lecture 6 (Tuesday 9/23) view slides
Early Rome
Reading: Spielvogel 113-126
Add-drop deadline today

Video 2 (Thursday 9/25)
"Roman City"
Reading: Spielvogel 126-146

Week 6:

Lecture 7 (Tuesday 9/30) view slides
The Roman empire: Augustus to Septimius Severus
Reading: Spielvogel 147-168

Discussion 1 (Thursday 10/2)
Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars
Reading: Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars, lives of Augustus and Gaius (Caligula)
Quiz 1 on Suetonius

Week 7:

Lecture 8 (Tuesday 10/7) view slides
Christian origins
Reading: Spielvogel 168-178

Test 2 (Thursday 10/9)
Material covered in lectures 6-8, video 2, Spielvogel chapters 4-6
See Assignments page for question formats and terms for identification

Week 8:

Lecture 9 (Tuesday 10/14) view slides
The Dominate and the Christian Roman empire
Reading: Spielvogel, 179-186

Lecture 10 (Thursday 10/16) view slides
The post-Roman west and east Rome
Reading: Spielvogel, 187-206

Week 9:

Lecture 11 (Tuesday 10/21) view slides
The caliphates and the Islamic world
Reading: Spielvogel 206-212, 237-242

Lecture 12 (Thursday 10/23) view slides
Early medieval West
Reading: Spielvogel 213-234

Week 10:

Lecture 13 (Tuesday 10/28) view slides
Early Byzantium
Reading: Spielvogel 234-237

Test 3 (Thursday 10/30)
Lectures 10-13, video 3, Spielvogel chapters 7-8
See Assignments page for question formats and terms for identification

Week 11:

Video 4 (Tuesday 11/4)
"The Crusades"
Reading: Spielvogel 243-259

Lecture 14 (Thursday 11/6) view slides
High Middle Ages: economy and society
Reading: Spielvogel 259-270

Week 12:

Veteran's Day (Tuesday 11/11)
No class

Lecture 15 (Thursday 11/13) view slides
High Middle Ages: culture and art
Reading: Spielvogel 271-294

Week 13:

Lecture 16 (Tuesday 11/18) view slides
Political evolution of Europe, 1000-1300
Reading: Spielvogel 294-302

Make-up lecture day (Thursday 11/20)
No reading

Fall Break--No Classes

Week 14:

Lecture 17 (Tuesday 12/2) view slides
The disasters of the fourteenth century: famine, plague and war
Reading: Spielvogel 303-336

Test 4 (Thursday 12/4)
Lectures 14-17, video 4, Spielvogel chapters 9-11
See Assignments page for question formats and terms for identification

Week 15:

Lecture 18 (Tuesday 12/9) view slides
The Renaissance
Reading: Spielvogel 337-372

Discussion 2 (Thursday 12/11)
Bocaccio, The Decameron
Reading: Boccaccio, Decameron, I: 1, 2; II: 3, 9; III: 1, 2, 10; IV: 5; VI: 7, 10; VII: 2; VIII: 1; IX: 3
Quiz 2 on Boccaccio, Decameron