History

This course analyzes the interaction between “extra-European” societies and territories and Europe in the modern age. It discusses the expansion of European empires, the consequences of this expansion on colonial societies, the political-social dynamics of these territories, and the reflection and impact of these “new worlds” in Europe. 

This course explores the time when the “Peoples of the Sea” roamed the southern Italian coasts, to the epic era in which Rome and Carthage fought for control over the Mediterranean basin, all the way to the period when Rome lost control of the Mediterranean at the end of Antiquity. One key component of the course consists in a number of fieldtrips to the most famous archeological sites around Naples, including Ischia, Paestum, and Pompeii. The fieldtrips are organized in temporal sequence, and so are the readings and seminar discussion, so as to arrange the course roughly in historical progression from ancient times to late antiquity. The focuses intensively on certain periods and themes, oscillating from the local to the Mediterranean at large, and from the particular to the general. In-class meetings consist of lectures and seminar discussions focusing on the history of Mediterranean life, culture, and politics in a certain historical period; fieldtrips focus more specifically on local history in that period.

The life of the ancient Romans was guided by two important concepts, otium, or leisure time, and negotium, a more structured use of time that may be associated with work of varying kinds. A good Roman life could, and often did, include both. This course explores Roman daily life and the many activities associated with both otium and negotium. The business of ancient Rome was largely conducted in the central and market areas of the city, and students study the ancient Roman Forum, the ancient river port in Rome and its associated features (wharves, warehouses, and rubbish heaps), as well as the ancient port city of Ostia. The leisure time of the aristocracy was noticeably different than that of the poor. They often spent leisure time in a relaxing environment outside of the city, such as villas, where they could pursue all types of activities deemed beneficial to the mind and body. The poor, instead, tended to stay in Rome, and spend their unstructured time at state-sponsored events and venues such as the games held in the Flavian Amphitheater, or at a monumental bath complex, such as the Baths of Caracalla. Alternatively, they would congregate in small taverns or popinae, or they might just sit on the stairs of a city building and play a game. Students visit and study the places where the Romans spent their leisure time looking closely at the leisure activities. As students get to know the Romans by studying what they have left us in terms of physical and literary remains, they discuss how much of what is "reconstructed" from the evidence can be certain, and how much must remain debatable. This course includes visits to Rome-area museums and sites, and special outings to the Roman cities of Ostia and Pompeii.

Castles remain the most impressive physical reminders of Scotland's medieval past. The great royal fortresses of Edinburgh and Stirling provide symbols of Scotland's past nationhood; the ruined walls and towers of baronial castles demonstrate the power and pretensions of the great lords of the middle ages. As military strongholds, centers of government and lordship, and residences of royal and aristocratic households, these castles give access to the main themes of medieval Scottish politics and society. This course studies the castle in its context: the changing needs of military and domestic architecture in response to the needs of war and peace; the siting of castles and their use in wider structures of authority from Lothian and the marches to the Hebrides; and their role in warfare, as places of refuge and as bases for garrisons. Architectural and archaeological evidence is combined with descriptions of the Scottish castle in chronicles and record sources to obtain a full understanding of the buildings and their functions.