The aim of the course is to provide students with an overview in the general European history of early modern times. First of all, the lecturer will describe the chronological sequence of the main historical events. Then, in the monographic part of the course, he will help the students to study a single topic through the bibliography and the documents.

The course is divided into two parts, that will be taught one after the other. Each one consists in 36 hours of lesson (the whole course consists in 72 hours).

General part:

1. Introduction: History, Historiography, and primary sources

2. The general framework: demography, economy and society in early modern Europe.

3. The geographical discoveries (XV-XVIII cent.)

4. Politics, war and State building in early modern Europe

5. Reformation and Counter-Reformation

6. The general crisis of the seventeenth century

7. The American and French revolutions

8. The industrial revolution.

Monographic part: magic and 'superstition' in the early modern age

- Foreword: the study of 'popular culture' today

- The notions of 'magic' and 'superstition' from early Christianity to the threshold of the modern age

- 'Superstition' as the religion of the popular classes - Popular magic and learned magic

- The demonization of magic and the anti-magic battle of the churches and states

- The forms of 'superstition' and popular magic: orations, spells, rituals, recipes

- From the pact with the devil to 'popular errors' and from 'popular errors' to ethnographic investigations

The student at the end of the course should possess adequate general knowledge, both in terms of content and methodology and, in addition, specific and in-depth knowledge of a particular problem in early modern history through the analysis of texts and documents and critical reflection on them.

- The student at the end of the course should have learnt to understand the historical facts of the early modern age, and to communicate and support his or her own ideas about historical facts based on the documents and the different interpretations that have been given of them. -

The student at the end of the course should have learnt to carry out bibliographical research in the field of history, as well as to extract useful knowledge from a history book. He/she should also show that he/she can speak about history in a public context, asking questions and arguing his/her statements, and that he/she has acquired the basis for further knowledge in the field of history.

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

Frontal lessons

Innovative teaching methods

Debate. Debate between two groups of students on a general course topic.

Attendance

Attendance is not compulsory, but strongly recommended.

Course books

For the general part

Study of one textbook (of your choice from the two indicated) and one supplementary text:

1. Textbooks

a. Francesco Benigno, L'età moderna. Dalla scoperta dell'America alla Restaurazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2005 (and subsequent reprints and editions);

b. Carlo Capra, Storia moderna (1492-1848), Firenze, Le Monnier, 2004 (and subsequent reprints and editions; to be studied up to the chapter on the Napoleonic era, excluding the Restoration).

[For students with a strong interest in 'global history' topics, it is possible to study in the university textbook Introduzione alla storia moderna, a cura di Marco Bellabarba e Vincenzo Lavenia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2018. It is a textbook by several authors, very complex in structure and topics, many of which will not be addressed in the lessons of the course].

2. Supplementary text to the textbook, chosen from 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

For the monographic part [Important note: for out-of-commerce books, the lecturer undertakes to facilitate students' study by activating Urbino bookshops and, if indispensable, providing them with partial reproductions of the volumes].

Michael D. Bailey, Magia e superstizione in Europa dall'Antichità ai nostri giorni, Torino, Lindau, 2008

Alfonso M. Di Nola, Lo specchio e l'olio. Le superstizioni degli italiani, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2000

Ernesto De Martino, Sud e magia [ed. originale Feltrinelli, 1959 e altri anni], Nuova edizione ampliata Roma, Donzelli, 2015

In addition to the texts, attending students will have to study on the lecture notes, the documents that will be displayed during the lectures and the material that the lecturer will make available on Moodle, which is an integral part of the examination programme.

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

Merry Wiesner Hanks, Early Modern Europe, 1450-1789, Cambridge 2022

Euan Cameron, Enchanted Europe. Superstition, Reason, and Religion, 1250-1750, Oxford, Oxford UP, 2010

Michael D. Bailey, Magic and Superstition in Europe. A Concise History from Antiquity to the Present, Plymouth, Rowman and Littlefield, 2007

Assessment

 (Intermediate test +) oral interview.

The examination consists of an oral interview. During the course, after the conclusion of the general part of the course (indicatively between the last days of October and the first week of November), a written intermediate test consisting of three open-ended questions on the general part of the course only will be taken. The mid-term test is not compulsory, but is strongly recommended to all students, because, if passed, it allows them to take the oral interview (at the first examination session in January-February) on the monographic course only.

The intermediate exam, with open questions, is intended to ascertain  the acquisition of basic general knowledge (names, dates, events) firstly; secondly, the ability to present historical arguments in a coherent and orderly manner, also connecting them to their precedents and developments and/or identifying analogies and differences with other historical phenomena; finally, the ability to express reasoned opinions in the historical field.

The oral test is intended to ascertain the same abilities in the context of a discussion, with different timing, methods and interactions from the written exposition

Criteria and parameters of evaluation

Intermediate test: In general, the teacher will take into account the completeness, accuracy and precision of the answers, regardless of their length. Oral interview DIMENSION 1: Factual knowledge: names, dates, location in time and space of events) - Level 1 (insufficient) Poor knowledge of the necessary placing in time and space of events; absence or near absence of chronological and geographical references; incorrect sequence of events - Level 2 (18 to 22):  Inaccurate knowledge of places and dates, but good memorisation of the sequence of events - Level 3 (22 to 26):  Good knowledge of places and dates and effective narration of events - Level 4 (26 to 30): Complete knowledge of names, places and dates, also of secondary but relevant characters and/or events.  DIMENSION 2: In-depth knowledge: Meaning of events and their relation to the preceding and following history - Level 1 (insufficient):  No or very little connection between what precedes and follows tel time the subject of the question - Level 2 (18 to 22): Mechanical and imperfect connections, but present (e.g.: 'The Protestant Reformation was caused by the abuses of the clergy') - Level 3: Good connections between the events preceding and following the subject of the question - Level 4: Articulate and precise connections between what precedes and what follows the subject of the question in time. Placement of the subject of the question in its context with all the necessary elements DIMENSION 3: Knowledge of the historiographical debate and different interpretations of phenomena and their relevance to the present - Level 1 (insufficient)  No knowledge of the existence of different interpretations of the historical phenomenon covered by the question - Level 2 (18 to 22): Inaccurate and general knowledge of the different interpretations of the phenomenon - Level 3 (22 to 26):   Correct knowledge and exposition of the different interpretations of the phenomenon - Level 4 (26 to 30): Knowledge of the different interpretations of the phenomenon and their theoretical and/or documentary foundations.             The final grade will be an average of the 3 dimensions.

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

General part (the same as for attending students)

The study of one textbook ("manual") AND of a supplementary textbook is required.

1. Main textbook. The students can freely choose between the following:

a. Francesco Benigno, L'età moderna. Dalla scoperta dell'America alla Restaurazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2005 (and other editions);

b. Carlo Capra, Storia moderna (1492-1848), Firenze, Le Monnier, 2004 (and other editions. This text has to be studied only until the Napoleonic period).

c. [For the students interested in "global history" there is also the textbook: Introduzione alla storia moderna, a cura di Marco Bellabarba e Vincenzo Lavenia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2018. It is a very complex text, and it deals also with topics that will not be treated in the lessons]

2. Supplementary textbook. The students can freely choose 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

Monographic part:

For non-attending students, the monographic course programme, as an alternative to the one for attending students, includes the study of three texts of their choice from the following list (dates are generally relative to the latest edition)

Anna Foa, Ebrei in Europa. Dalla peste nera all’emancipazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2014

M. Donattini, Dal Nuovo Mondo all’America, Roma, Carocci, 2017

M. Garbellotti, Per carità. Poveri e politiche assistenziali nell’Italia moderna, Roma, Carocci, 2013

C. Ginzburg, I benandanti. Stregoneria e culti agrari in Friuli tra Cinque e Seicento, Torino, Einaudi, 1966 (nuova ed. Milano, Adelphi, 2020)

B. P. Levack, La caccia alle streghe in Europa, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2008 (e successive ristampe)

R. Mazzei, Per terra e per acqua. Viaggi e viaggiatori nell’Europa moderna, Roma, Carocci, 2013

O. Niccoli, La vita religiosa nell’Italia moderna, Roma, Carocci, 2017

R. Sarti, Vita di casa. Abitare, mangiare, vestire nell'Europa moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2003 (e edizioni successive).

M. Vovelle, La rivoluzione francese 1789-1799. Nuova edizione ampliata, Milano, Guerini Scientifica, 2016

M. E. Wiesner-Hanks, Le donne nell’Europa moderna, Torino, Einaudi, 2017

Textbooks in English (both texts are mandatory)

E. Cameron, Enchanted Europe. Superstition, Reason, and Religion, 1250-1750, Oxford University Press, 2010

F. Young, A History of Exorcism in Catholic Christianity, London, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016

Assessment

(the same as for attending students)

(Intermediate test +) oral interview.

The examination consists of an oral interview. During the course, after the general part of the course has been completed (approximately between the last days of October and the first week of November) there will be an intermediate written test consisting of three open-ended questions on the general part of the course only. The mid-term test is not compulsory, but is strongly recommended to all students, because, if passed, it allows them to take the oral interview (at the first examination session in January-February) on the monographic course only. The intermediate exam, with open questions, is intended to ascertain firstly the acquisition of basic general knowledge (names, dates, events); secondly, the ability to present historical arguments in a coherent and orderly manner, also connecting them to their precedents and developments and/or identifying analogies and differences with other historical phenomena; finally, the ability to express reasoned opinions in the historical field. The oral test is intended to ascertain the same abilities in the context of a discussion, with different timing, methods and interactions from the written exposition Criteria and parameters of evaluation Intermediate test: In general, the teacher will take into account the completeness, accuracy and precision of the answers, regardless of their length. Oral interview DIMENSION 1: Factual knowledge: names, dates, location in time and space of events) - Level 1 (insufficient) Poor knowledge of the necessary placing in time and space of events; absence or near absence of chronological and geographical references; incorrect sequence of events - Level 2 (18 to 22):  Inaccurate knowledge of places and dates, but good memorisation of the sequence of events - Level 3 (22 to 26):  Good knowledge of places and dates and effective narration of events - Level 4 (26 to 30): Complete knowledge of names, places and dates, also of secondary but relevant characters and/or events.  DIMENSION 2: In-depth knowledge: Meaning of events and their relation to the preceding and following history - Level 1 (insufficient):  No or very little connection between what precedes and follows tel time the subject of the question - Level 2 (18 to 22): Mechanical and imperfect connections, but present (e.g.: 'The Protestant Reformation was caused by the abuses of the clergy') - Level 3: Good connections between the events preceding and following the subject of the question - Level 4: Articulate and precise connections between what precedes and what follows the subject of the question in time. Placement of the subject of the question in its context with all the necessary elements DIMENSION 3: Knowledge of the historiographical debate and different interpretations of phenomena and their relevance to the present - Level 1 (insufficient)  No knowledge of the existence of different interpretations of the historical phenomenon covered by the question - Level 2 (18 to 22): Inaccurate and general knowledge of the different interpretations of the phenomenon - Level 3 (22 to 26):   Correct knowledge and exposition of the different interpretations of the phenomenon - Level 4 (26 to 30): Knowledge of the different interpretations of the phenomenon and their theoretical and/or documentary foundations.             The final grade will be an average of the 3 dimensions.

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.