COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course is one of Eastern Nazarene College’s Cultural Perspectives (CP) classes.  CP courses integrate various disciplines in the liberal arts: history, literature, fine arts, philosophy, and natural science.  The goal is to help you understand and appreciate how Western cultural heritage has shaped our world.  Since Eastern Nazarene College is a Christian liberal arts school, we will focus much of our attention on the role of faith in the shaping of western society and culture. 

*John P. McKay, Bennett D. Hill, John Buckler, A History of Western Society: From 
Absolutism to the Present, II.

*William Beik, Louis XIV and Absolutism: A Brief Study with Documents

*Jane Austen, Persuasion.

*Christopher R. Browning, Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final 
Solution in Poland.

*Other reading material will be handed out in class or posted on the webpage 

Students will be evaluated on how well they identify and explain the significance events, terms, ideas, artworks, and individuals of the era studied.  Students will also be graded  on the basis of their reading, writing, and thinking skills.  Those enrolled in this course are expected to read all assignments and come prepared to discuss these in class.  Always be prepared; I may call upon you at any time. Those who fail to keep up with the reading will do poorly in this course. Participation and attendance is required of each individual in this class and will figure into your overall grade.  (Obviously, if you don’t attend or read the assignments, you can’t participate.) 

Two major tests will be administered over the semester involving multiple choice, short answer, and essay questions.  (Study guide for midterm exam.)  In addition, unannounced pop quizzes may be given occasionally at the beginning of class.  These quizzes will cover the most recent reading assignments and the lecture material.  (Always take good notes.  Not all lecture material will be included in your text.)  Those who arrive late or fail to attend class will not be allowed to retake quizzes or tests, unless, of course, a written medical excuse can be provided. 

In addition to a satisfactory evaluation of this work based on content, you are expected to demonstrate competence in English composition and grammar.  Students will complete several writing assignments.  A set of discussion questions is listed below for each week.  You must answer five sets of questions over the course of the semester.  These will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Your answers to each must be typed, 1.5 pages, and double-spaced.  I will not accept handwritten responses.  Your answers are due in class on the day that the reading is assigned.  Late answers will not be accepted.  Additionally, students will write one major book review essay and two brief review essays.  You may choose to write a four-page typed essay on any of the three non-textbooks assigned.  You must, however, write the two short, 1.5-2 page, reviews on the books you do not select for your longer essay.  I will provide a weblink later containing essay questions and pointers on prose and style.  All assignments will absolutely not be accepted via e-mail. 

Finally, a note on proper behavior and academic honesty.  Talking with fellow classmates, eating, doing other work, reading newspapers, leaving cell phones on, walking out early or arriving late all reflect poorly on you as a student and will hurt your overall grade.  Cheating and plagiarism are even worse and will not be tolerated.  Be advised: ANY instance of cheating on tests, essays, or other assignments will result in immediate failure of the course and the evidence will be filed with the Dean of Students Office for inclusion in the student’s permanent record.  For more on this fascinating topic, please refer to the ENC guidelines concerning academic honesty: http://www.enc.edu/history/stephens.plagiarism.html.  Those who are guilty will be caught.  Incriminating evidence is only a Google™ search away. 

2 Exams 20% each - 40%
5 Short Response Papers – 15%
2 Short Book Reviews – 8%
1 Map Quiz – 2%
1 Long Book Review Essay – 20%
Participation, Attendance, and Pop Quizzes – 15% 

Failure to complete any of the assignments will obviously result in a significant lowering of your total grade.  If this all seems too daunting, remember that the last day to register for a class is Thurs., Feb. 2nd, and the last day to drop/add a class is Thurs., Feb. 9th.

SCHEDULE OF LECTURES & READING ASSIGNMENTS
(Readings are to be completed on the day they are listed.) 

WEEK 1 Intro
THUR JAN 26 Course intro, syllabus review, guidelines, note cards. 

WEEK 2 – The Protestant Reformation and Catholic Reform
TUES JAN 31 McKay, “Introduction: The Origins of Modern Western Society”; McKay, Chpt. 14, online pdf: McKay, Chpt. 14 – online pdf (9.43mb) (large file, 9.43 mb, download at ENC or through another high speed connection).

THUR FEB 2 Question set #1: Erasmus, An Age of Gold, McKay, questions 1 and 3, online pdf and Martin Luther, On Christian Liberty, questions 1 and 2, McKay, online pdf.

WEEK 3 – The Reformation and Absolutism
TUES FEB 7 McKay, Chpt. 16 Map quiz now moved to Thurs., Feb 9

THUR FEB 9 Question set #2: “A Foreign Traveler in Russia,” McKay, pgs. 590-591, question 1, 2, and 4.  Last day to drop/add a class.  Map quiz moved from the 7th to the 9th.  Map quiz information

WEEK 4 – Absolutism and the Age of Reason
TUES FEB 14 Read William Beik, Louis XIV and Absolutism: A Brief Study with Documents, and turn in short reaction paper or four-page review essay.  Your paper must be a critical response to the question posed on the web: http://www.enc.edu/history/west_her_louis.html.

THUR FEB 16 McKay, Chpt. 18; Question set # 3: “Voltaire on Religion,” McKay, pgs. 626-627, questions 1 and 3.

WEEK 5 – Culture and Society in the Old and New World
TUES FEB 21 McKay, Chpt. 19. 

THUR FEB 23 McKay, Chpt. 20.  Question set #4: “Gender Construction and Education for Girls,” McKay, pgs. 686-687, questions 1 and 2.

Last day to withdraw or take a course as pass/fail or audit 2/24. 

WEEK 6 – The Era of Revolutions
TUES FEB 28 McKay, Chpt. 21 AND question set #5: “Revolution and Women’s Rights,” McKay, pgs. 722-723, questions 1-3

THUR MARCH 2 McKay, Chpt. 22; Question set #6: “The Testimony of Young Mine Workers,” McKay, pgs. 752-753, questions 1-4; In-class review for exam - Study guide for midterm exam

WEEK 7 – SPRING BREAK, MARCH 6-10

WEEK 8 – Industrialization of the West
TUES MARCH 14 - McKay, Chpt. 24; Question set #7: “Middle Class Youth and Sexuality,” McKay, pgs. 820-821, questions 1-3; read this online selection from Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto for in-class discussion

THUR MARCH 16 MIDTERM EXAM - Study guide for midterm exam

WEEK 9 – Social Class Divisions in European Society
TUES MARCH 21 No class 

THUR MARCH 23 Read Jane Austen, Persuasion, and turn in short reaction 
paper or four-page review essay. Your paper must be a critical response to the question posed on the web.

WEEK 10 – Nationalism and Empire
TUES MARCH 28 McKay, Chpt. 23

THUR MARCH 30 McKay, Chpt. 25. Question set #8: “Faith in Democratic Nationalism,” pgs. 784-785, questions 1-3.

WEEK 11 – The Traumas of the Great War 
TUES APRIL 4 McKay, Chpt. 26

THUR APRIL 6 – ADVISING DAY, NO CLASS

EXTRA CREDIT (5pts added to quiz grade)
Write a critical, two-page, double spaced, typed essay on the similarities or differences between President Woodrow Wilson's diplomacy and President George W. Bush's. Use this online article: "Woodrow Wilson's Burden, Bush's--And Ours" by Robert S. McElvaine.  Is Robert McElvaine right?  Is he wrong?  Make your case using evidence from the McKay book and this piece.  Due in class on Tues., April 18th. 

WEEK 12 – The Traumas of the Great War cont. and From Classicism to Modernism
TUES APRIL 11 McKay, Chpt. 27.  Question set #9: “The Experience of War,” McKay, pgs. 918-919, questions 1, 3, and 4.

THUR APRIL 13 McKay, Chpt. 28

WEEK 13 – From Classicism to Modernism cont. and Global Crises and World War II
TUES APRIL 18 Question set #10: “Images in Society,” McKay, pgs. 934-935, question, last sentence, paragraph 2, pg. 934, and question concerning “brutality and darkness” in last paragraph, pg. 935. 

THUR APRIL 20 TUES NOV 15 McKay, Chpt. 29; Question set #11: “Witness to the Holocaust,” McKay, pgs. 986-987, questions 1, 3, and 4.

WEEK 14 – Global Crises and World War II cont. and the Postwar Era
TUES APRIL 25 Read Christopher R. Browning, Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland, and turn in short reaction paper or four-page review essay.  Your paper must be a critical response to the question posed on the web.

THUR APRIL 27 Chpt. 30 and read the excerpt on the course webpage from a Soviet-era history text, Early Russia-the USSR: Historical Sketches.  What did the author of this selection write about the history of the Soviet Union?  According to the author, how did the Soviets compare with the Americans on issues of justice and equality?  What did the author have to say about capitalism? 

WEEK 15 - Decolonization and the Cold War continued
TUES MAY 2 Question set #12: “A Feminist Critique of Marriage,” questions 2 and 3.

THUR MAY 4 – READING DAY, NO CLASS 

WEEK 16 - FINAL EXAM: Wednesday, 5/10/2006, 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM, OC 103
Final exam studyguide