The first part of the course aims to give the students a general knowledge of the great problems of European early modern history, so they will construct a basis for more advanced knowledges.

The second part of the course will examine a more particular problem, viewed through the reading and the analysis of texts and documents. The general context, however, will be kept into consideration, too.

The knowledge of Early Modern History is necessary for those who will be teacher in the secondary schools, and it also allows the student to acquire more detailed knowledge in other subjects.

The course is divided into two parts: a general one (1st semester), and a monographic one (2nd semester). Each one of this parts will consist in 36 hours of lesson (the whole course consists in 72 hours of lesson)

The lessons wil begin September 24, 2018

First part (general)

The main problems of Early modern history

Syllabus:

1. Indroduction: history, history of historiography, and sources.

2. The general framework: historical demography, economy and society of Earli Modern Europe

3. The great discoveries: Columbus and others.

4. Early modern political Europe

5. Religion: Reformation and Counter-Reformation

6. The general crisis of the XVII century.

7. The French Revolution.

8. The industrial revolution.

Second (monographic) part:

Erasmus of Rotterdam: an European intellectual of the sixteenth century

- Erasmus' life: self-fashioning and reality.

- A cosmopolitan scholar: Erasmus' friends and correspondence.

- The early works: In praise of folly.

- Learning and philology: the Adagia.

- Erasmus and religion: his translation of the New Testament

- Erasmus and religious controversies ot his own time: his relationship with Martin Luther and the Roman Catholic Church.

- Free will vs. Bondage of the will.

- The Colloquia: religious heterodoxy or simple irreverence?

- Erasmus' legacy.

None.

• The students must gain a general knowledge of historical problems of European early modern history (both of the problems, and of the methods of historical science). They must also get acquainted with a specific issue of early modern history, through the analysis of the primary and the secondary sources.
• The students must learn to understand the historical development of Early modern Europe, to communicate and argumentate their ideas on history, and to ground them upon the documents and their interpretations.
• The students must learn how to do search for secondary sources and to extract helpful information from a history book. They must also learn to speak about history in a public context, to make questions and to ground their statements upon the sources.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

Teaching

Oral lessons and (possibly) practice exercises (such as bibliographical research and writing of papers)

Attendance

Attendance is strictly recommended, but not mandatory.

Course books

Textbooks for the first part of the course

A modern history handbook (chosen between the two listed below), and a complementary textbook:

1. One of the following handbooks:

a. FRANCESCO BENIGNO, L'età moderna. Dalla scoperta dell'America alla Restaurazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2005;

b. CARLO CAPRA, Storia moderna (1492-1848), Firenze, Le Monnier, 2004 (until chapter 25 included, that is, until page 320)

c. Introduzione alla storia moderna, a cura di Marco Bellabarba e Vincenzo Lavenia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2018 (Note: this manual is particularly complex and difficult; it is intended only for students who are strongly interested in world history)

2. Complementary textbook, chosen between the following:

a. GIAMPAOLO ROMAGNANI, La società di antico regime (XVI-XVIII secolo). Temi e problemi storiografici, Roma, Carocci, 2010

b. GUIDO DALL'OLIO, Storia Moderna. I temi e le fonti. Nuova edizione, Roma, Carocci, 2017.

Second (monographic) part of the course (mandatory textbooks):

Erasmus of Rotterdam: an European intellectual of the sixteenth century

One text chosen between the following:

Roland H. Bainton, Erasmo della cristianità. Introduzione di Antonio Rotondò, Firenze, Sansoni, 1970 ed edizioni successive;

Léon E. Halkin, Erasmo. Introduzione di Eugenio Garin, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 1989

[since both books are out of print, the professor will supply copies to the students]

NOTICE: Beyond the reading of the above texts, the students have to study the primary and secondary sources that the lecturer will make available on Moodle platform for blended learning, that will be analyzed during the lessons

Textbooks for the students who choose to give the exam in English

1.  General History:

M. E. Wiesner-Hanks, Early Modern Europe, 1450-1789, Cambridge, Cambridge UP, 2013 (and following reprints)

2.     Erasmus of Rotterdam: a Christian scholar in Reformation Europe (1466-1536)

R. H. Bainton, Erasmus of Christendom, Peabody (MA), 2016

Peter G. Bietenholz, Encounters with a Radical Erasmus. Erasmus' Work as a Source of Radical Thought in Early Modern Europe, Toronto, University of Toronto Press, 2009

 

Assessment

After the end of the first part of the course, the lecturer will organize a written exam concerning general history, that will consist in three open questions (it's not a multiple choice test). The written exam is not mandatory, but it is warmly recommended. After the second part of the course there will be an oral exam concerning a) only the second part of the course (if the student passed the written exam) or b) the entire course (if he/she didn't pass the written exam).

To pass the written exam the student have to answer correctly the three question. Assessment will be based on: 1) the correctness of the answer; 2) the quality of historical argumentation; 3) the correctness in language.

Both the oral exam and the written exam can be given in English, if the students ask for it (as for the written proof, the students are kindly requested to ask for it at least 10 days before the exam)

If the students pass the written exam after the first part of the lessons, the final exam will consist only in oral questions concerning the second part of the course (witchraft and witch-hunts). The final grade will be the mean between the written exam and the oral exam.

If the students don't pass the written exam, or if they choose not to give it, the final, oral exam will concern both the first and the second part of the course.

The written exam with open questions/answers is particularly helpful to train the students for the final dissertation of their courses.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Individual study.

Course books

First part of the course (general history, identical for attending and non-attending students):

1. One of the following handbooks:

a. FRANCESCO BENIGNO, L'età moderna. Dalla scoperta dell'America alla Restaurazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2005;

b. CARLO CAPRA, Storia moderna (1492-1848), Firenze, Le Monnier, 2004 (until chapter 25 included, that is, until page 320)

c. Introduzione alla storia moderna, a cura di Marco Bellabarba e Vincenzo Lavenia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2018 (Note: this manual is particularly complex and difficult; it is intended only for students who are strongly interested in world history)

2. One complementary textbook, chosen between the following:

a. GIAMPAOLO ROMAGNANI, La società di antico regime (XVI-XVIII secolo). Temi e problemi storiografici, Roma, Carocci, 2010

b. GUIDO DALL'OLIO, Storia Moderna. I temi e le fonti, Roma, Carocci, 2004.

Second (monographic) part of the course:

For non-attending students, the topic is different:

The students will choose between the following couples of books:

1.

Raffaella Sarti, Vita di casa. Abitare, mangiare, vestire nell'Europa moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2008 (e successive ristampe)

e Marzio Barbagli, Sotto lo stesso tetto. Mutamenti della famiglia in Italia dal XV al XX secolo, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2013

2.

Massimo Donattini, Dal Nuovo Mondo all'America. Scoperte geografiche e colonialismo (secoli XV-XVI), Roma, Carocci, 2017

e Andrew Pettegree, L'invenzione delle notizie. Come il mondo arrivò a conoscersi, Torino, Einaudi, 2015

 Textbooks for the students who choose to give the exam in English

1.  General History

M. E. Wiesner-Hanks, Early Modern Europe, 1450-1789, Cambridge, Cambridge UP, 2013 (2nd edition)

2.  Monographic reading

D. McCulloch, Reformation: Europe's House Divided 1490-1700, New York, Viking, 2004 (and following editions)

or, at the choice of the student:

Peter H. Wilson, Europe's Tragedy. A New History of the Thirty Years War, Cambridge (MA), The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2009 (London, Penguin Books, 2010)

Assessment

Oral exam.

In case of non-attending students, the exam will evaluate the students' skill to acquire information and to understand correctly a historical monograph.

The professor will test

a. the students' knowledge of historical events (facts, dates, places)

b. their ability to express the acquired information with an appropriate (technical) language

c. their ability to develop their thoughts connecting each other the different facets of history (economy, society, religion, politics and so on).

Oral exam. The exam can be given in English, if the students ask for it.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

The lessons will be given in Italian; the written proof and the exam can be done in English.