UNYT::University of New York Tirana

Western Civilization I Western Civilization II

Course Syllabus - Western Civilization I

Course Description:

This course examines the important events, people, and trends that contributed in the making of world civilisation, and specifically Western civilisation. The course begins with an overview of Palaeolithic to Neolithic societies and ends with the Christian Reformations and ends with the emergence of the modern political system (mid-17^th Century). Students are expected to gain an incisive view of major events and developments up to 1648, and to analyse and evaluate their importance today in a critical fashion and beyond a mere quotation of dates, places, and personalities. The course aims at developing a greater understanding of the trends, developments and movements that have shaped civilisations throughout the ages.

Course Outline:

I	Course introduction, subjects, and requirements. How to write a research paper. History and its problems. Palaeolithic to Neolithic societies.
II	EARLY CIVILISATIONS: Palaeolithic to Neolithic societies. The Near East and Western Asia.
III	THE GREEK ACHIEVEMENT (part I): Minoan, Mycenaean, and Archaic.
IV	THE GREEK ACHIEVEMENT (part II): Classical and Hellenistic Period.
V	THE GREEK ACHIEVEMENT (part II): Classical and Hellenistic Period (continued).
VI	ROMAN CIVILISATION (part I). In class test.
VII	ROMAN CIVILISATION (part II).
	EASTER HOLIDAYS
VIII	THE BYZANTINE WORLD (part I): Palaeo-Christian to Middle Byzantine Period. (Visit to the Central Archives of the State, Tirana and the paleo-Christian church of St. George at Tirana). In-Class Test
IX	THE BYZANTINE WORLD (part II): Late Byzantine Period and the emergence of the Ottomans. (Visit at the National Historical Museum and the Art Gallery, Tirana).
X	CRUSADES. Dead-line for the submission of papers.
XI	ISLAM. From its origins to 1300.
XII	POLITICS AND SOCIETIES IN THE MIDDLE AGES. The early Middle Ages in Europe (500-1000 A.D.).
XIII	POLITICS AND SOCIETIES IN THE MIDDLE AGES. The High and Late Middle Ages in Europe (1000-1500 A.D.).
XIV	AFRICAN AND ASIAN CIVILISATIONS UP TO 1500. In class test.
XV	FINAL EXAM.

Textbook:

Bailkey Brummet P., Edgar R. R., Hacket N. J., Jewsbury G. F., Taylor A. M., N. M., Lewis C. J., Wallbank T. W. (2000¹⁰), Civilisation: Past and Present, New York: Longman.

Note: Students may also use the tenth edition of the same textbook as a substitute text.

Additional Readings and Other Materials:

Additional readings shall be assigned from other books, articles, or in-class handouts on a case-by-case basis. Various audio-visual materials shall be included in class presentations.

Supplemental Web-based Research:

Students are expected to supplement their textbook readings with Web-based research, and specific reading assignments may be made from these websites:

http://www.harcourtcollege.com/arts/gardner
http://www.wadsworth.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&product_isbn_issn=0534642004&discipline_number=37
http://www.ablongman.com/brummet (companion web-site to the principal textbook).
http://www.unf.edu/classes/freshmancore/halshall/core1.html (A good and concise supplementary introduction to Western Civilisation).
http://www.historyguide.org/ancient/ancient.html (Lectures on Ancient and Medieval European History).
http://www.historyguide.org/earlymod/earlymod.html (Lectures on Early Modern European History).

Term Paper:

Students will be required to write a term paper on a subject either of their own choice, or chosen from a list after consulting with the instructor. Topics suggested by the students are subject to approval and may involve an oral in class presentation. (See notes on plagiarism.)

Basis for Student Evaluation:

Participation: 10 %
Three in-class tests: 35 %
Term Paper: 20 %
Final Exam: 35 %

Course Syllabus - Western Civilization II

Course Description:

This course examines the important events, people, and trends that contributed in the making of world civilisation, and specifically Western civilisation. The course begins with an overview of the power politics of Islamic and Asian powers and the global impact of European expansion and colonisation (1300-1660) and ends with the ‘developed’ and the developing world after the Cold War. Students are expected to gain an incisive view of major events and developments up from the 14^th Century to the present day, and to analyse and evaluate their importance in a critical fashion and beyond a mere quotation of dates, places, and personalities. The course aims at developing a greater understanding of the trends, developments and movements that have shaped civilisations throughout Modern Times.

Course Outline:

I	Course introduction, subjects, and requirements. How to write a research paper. History: its object and problems. The Islamic Gunpowder Empires (1300-1600).
II	THE ISLAMIC GUNPOWDER EMPIRES (1300-1650) [Visit at Islamic monuments in Tirana or eslewhere].
III	MING CHINA AND NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN KOREA, JAPAN, AND SOUTH-EASTERN ASIA (1300-1650).
IV	THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION AND THE POLITICAL TRANSFORMATION OF EUROPE (1500-1650).
V	RENAISSANCE THOUGHT AND ART IN ITALY AND NORTHERN EUROPE.
VI	FROM ABSOLUTISM TO THE OLD REGIME (1648-1774); LIMITED CENTRAL POWER IN THE CAPITALIST WORLD (1600-1789). In class test.
VII	THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION AND THE ENLIGHTENMENT.
VIII	THE FRENCH AND NAPOLEONIC REVOLUTIONS AND THEIR IMPACT ON EUROPE AND THE AMERICAS (1789-1825).
IX	THE CENTURY OF WESTERN DOMINANCE. The Development of States in the West (1815-1871). In class test.
X	THE TRIUMPH OF THE MIDDLE CLASSES: Western Economic, Scientific, Intellectual, and Cultural Accomplishments, 1815-1914.
XI	WESTERN POLITICS AND DIPLOMATIC FAILURE, 1871-1914.
XII	WINNING THE WAR AND LOSING THE PEACE, 1914-1939; AUTHORITARIAN POWERS: Russia, Italy, and Germany (1917-1939). In class test.
XIII	WESTERN WEAKNESS, DIPLOMATIC FAILURE AND WORLD WAR II.
XIV	THE COLD WAR AND AFTER. THE ‘DEVELOPED’ AND THE DEVELOPING WORLD.
XV	FINAL EXAM.

Textbook:

Brummet P., Edgar R. R., Hacket N. J., Jewsbury G. F., Taylor A. M., Bailkey N. M., Lewis C. J., Wallbank T. W. (2000⁹), Civilisation: Past and Present, v. II, New York: Longman.

Note: Students may also use the tenth edition of the same textbook as a substitute text.

Additional Readings and Other Materials:

Additional readings shall be assigned from other books, articles, or in-class handouts on a case-by-case basis. Various audio-visual materials shall be included in class presentations.

Supplemental Web-based Research:

Students are expected to supplement their textbook readings with Web-based research, and specific reading assignments may be made from these websites:

http://www.harcourtcollege.com/arts/gardner
http://www.wadsworth.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&product_isbn_issn=0534642004&discipline_number=37
http://www.ablongman.com/brummet (companion web-site to the principal textbook).
http://www.unf.edu/classes/freshmancore/halshall/core2.html (A good and concise supplementary introduction to Western Civilisation).
http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/intellect.html (Lectures on Modern European Intellectual History).
http://www.historyguide.org/europe/europe.html (Lectures on Twentieth Century Europe).

Term Paper:

Basis for Student Evaluation:

Participation: 10 %
Three in-class tests: \35 %
Term Paper: 20 %
Final Exam: 35 %

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