Reading assignment for The Prince
Please read chapters 5, and 15-19.

Week 13 Writing Prompts (due 12/2)
13a. In what ways did Anselm and Abelard (Sic et Non) demonstrate a common way of thinking? In what ways did the two men differ as scholars?

13b. What do these documents tell us about education and intellectual activity in the twelfth century?

Week 12 Writing Prompts (due 12/2)
12a. The various accounts of the speech of Urban II at Clermont tells us a great deal not only about the origin of the first crusade, but about the process by which the church and secular society worked upon one another. In what ways can we see in these selections the church changing (or trying to change) the behavior of people in medieval society? In what ways can we see the church being molded by the values and practices of society outside the church (think accommodation!)?

Week 11 Writing Prompts
11a. To what extent was feudalism a force for providing order in society? In what ways was it a force which made centralization and social order difficult?

11b. What were the strengths and weaknesses of the manorial system?

Week 10 Writing Prompts


10a. Using Tacitus's description of the ancient Germans, discuss major differences between the Germans and the Romans.

10b. Using especially Tacitus and Gregory of Tours, discuss the interplay between the Germanic and Christian elements in early medieval Europe.

Week 8 Writing Prompt
8a. Discuss the evidence that the Roman Empire after Augustus was no longer purely "Roman" in character. What evidence is there that traditional Roman values or practices were changing? What evidence is there of cultural syncretism in the Empire? Did "Roman" mean the same thing in the second century A.D. as it had in the second century B.C.? Explain.

Note on readings for Tuesday, October 21
Please read books I and IV of the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius. Note the personal tone of Book I, and the morality/values expressed therein. In Book IV, pay particular attention to chapters 3-5, but read through the rest as well.

Week 7 Writing Prompts


7a. In the writings of Sallust and Catullus we can see deep-seated changes in Roman character and morality taking form. What is the evidence that Rome and Romans were changing? What was changing? In what ways do these readings give evidence that changes in values/morality is related to political and social changes?

7b. Was Augustus the last of the old Romans, or the first Emperor? In other words did he represent more traditional Rome with its values and institutions, or a new Rome with a new morality and practices?

Week 6 Writing Prompts
6a. Based on the description of Roman government given by Polybius, in what ways can we see Rome as an ancestor of American government? What are some similarities? What are some differences?

6b. In what ways did the Roman system of government provide it with unique advantages in building a powerful state?

6c. With the Twelve Tables and the stories from Livy we have some of the earliest documents which helped the Romans define and understand themselves. What do these works tell us about the Romans? Why did the Romans attach importance to them?

Readings for 9/29
Thucydides described a revolution in the polis, Corcyra. What was revolutionary about these events? Why did Thucydides see so much importance in the internal difficulties of a single city-state?
To what did Thucydides ascribe the violence and turmoil he described in the passages about the revolution in Corcyra?
How do the words and deeds of Athens in the "Melian Dialogue" accord with the picture of Athens in his Funeral Oration?
What principles motivated the Athenians?
What principles motivated or inspired the Melians?
Why did the Athenians feel it unwise to accept the neutral status of Melos?
According to the Athenians, what role was religion or appeal to the gods to play in making the decision before them?