Teaching code

4S02137

Teacher

Marco Stoffella

Credits

6

Also offered in courses:

• Medieval History (i) of the course Bachelor’s degree in Humanities
• Medieval history - MODULO 1 of the course Bachelor's degree in Philosophy

Language

Italian

Scientific Disciplinary Sector (SSD)

M-STO/01 - MEDIEVAL HISTORY

Period

2 A dal Feb 13, 2023 al Apr 6, 2023.

Lessons timetable Moodle Seminars 5

To show the organization of the course that includes this module, follow this link:  Course organization

Program

The final aim of this introductory course, which is a part of the integrated course in Medieval History (i+p), is to make student comprehend the complexity of researching in history. This will allow students to acquire part of the useful tools, which will permit them to individually lead their own researches and/or autonomous investigations.
Moreover, the aim of this course is also to give students the following knowledge:
- general knowledge of the political and social organization in Europe between 5th and 15th century
After a short introduction, during which general concepts like the Middle Ages, historical sources, and their various typologies will be discussed, the course will synthetically analyse the following topics:
- Late Antiquity and the diffusion of Christianity (the growth of new religious communities that became a fundamental element in the Roman Empire and at the same time a tool of government)
- Western Europe in the early Middle Ages and his regna (the end of the Western Roman Empire, migrations, the birth of new political kingdoms based on ethnic distinctions)
- the Byzantine and Islamic Mediterranean (the progressive rupture of the unity of the Mediterranean See under the Arabic expansion and the role of Byzantium)
- Carolingian Europe (Lombard Italy, the Frankish expansion, Charlemagne and the supposed roots of contemporary Europe)
- the seigniorial order (post-Carolingian Europe, the “feudal society”, the control over work and security in the cities and in the countryside)
- Church reforms (the ideological and political conflicts related to the growth of papal prestige and of the Communal autonomy)
- Empire and Papacy in the Late Middle Ages (conflicts related to different concepts and practice of power between political and spiritual authority)
- political institutions of the Late Middle Ages (political experimentations to give equilibrium to representation and participation within society)
- society and culture in the Middle Ages (the various aspects related to knowledge, its access, and its administration)
- Religious experiences in the Middle Ages (principal religious movements that led to reforms and to very different experiences) - the economies of the Middle Ages (the organisation of work and commerce, with a long-lasting perspective).
From the analysis of programs of the two courses it emerges that the introductory part focuses on the general aspects of the medieval society. The knowledge of those general features is necessary to understand topics discussed in the second part of this course, where different aspects will be chosen from the many already discussed in the previous part.
All students, attending the lectures or not, will be asked to study the introductory book: G. Sergi, L’idea di medioevo. Fra storia e senso comune, Rome, Donzelli, 2005.
All students must learn an handbook in Medieval History to be chosen among the following titles: L. Provero, M. Vallerani, Storia medievale, Firenze, Lemonnier, 2022 (second edition); A. Zorzi, Manuale di storia medievale, Novara, Utet, 2021 (second edition). Students with a good school knowledge of the Middle Ages might choose the more complex: R. Bordone, G. Sergi, Dieci secoli di medioevo, Torino, Einaudi, 2009.
The program is completed by the study of 3 essay, to be chosen on the basis of personal interest on the main topics of the Medieval History, and that will be available in the moodle of the introductory course.
Students attending lectures, and the one inscribed to the course, will receive didactical material related to the lectures on the e-learning platform; these materials are considered part of the exam program, but they do not substitute the essay written by Sergi and the study of one of the handbooks listed above.
Students not attending lectures can receive help by the lecturer to better define the program. All students not attending lectures will be asked to choose an additional book among the following titles: P. Brown, P. Brown, Il riscatto dell’anima. Aldilà e ricchezza nel primo cristianesimo occidentale, Torino, Einaudi, 2015; A. Barbero, Carlo Magno Un padre dell’Europa, Bari, Laterza, 2000; T. Lazzari, Le donne nell’alto Medioevo, Milano-Torino, Bruno Mondadori, 2010; A.A. Settia, Castelli medievali, Bologna, il Mulino, 2017; J.M.H. Smith, L’Europa dopo Roma. Una nuova storia culturale 500-1000, Bologna, il Mulino, 2008; G. Milani, I comuni italiani. Secoli XII-XIV, Bari, Laterza, 2005; C. Wickham, Sonnambuli verso un nuovo mondo. L’affermazione dei comuni italiani nel XII secolo, Roma, Viella, 2017; P. Grillo, Le guerre del Barbarossa. I comuni contro l’imperatore, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2014; J.C. Maire Vigueur, E. Faini, Il sistema politico dei comuni italiani (secoli XII-XIV), Milano-Torino, B. Mondadori, 2010; A. Zorzi, Le signorie cittadine in Italia (secoli XIII-XV), Milano-Torino, B. Mondadori, 2010; P. Freedman, Il gusto delle spezie nel Medioevo, Bologna, il Mulino, 2009, C. Wickham, L’Europa nel Medioevo, Roma, Carocci, 2020; N. D’Acunto, La lotta per le investiture. Una rivoluzione medievale (998-1122), Roma, Carocci, 2020; L. Provero, Contadini e potere nel Medioevo, Roma, Carocci, 2020; G. Melville, Le comunità religiose nel Medioevo. Storia e modelli di vita, a cura di N. D’Acunto, Brescia, Morcelliana, 2020; A.A. Settia, Battaglie medievali, Bologna il Mulino, 2020; R. Santangeli Valenzani, Edilizia residenziale in Italia nnll'altomedioevo, Roma, Carocci, 2011; A. Marcone, Tarda Antichità. Profilo storico e prospettive storiografiche, Roma, Carocci, 2020. The choice of the additional text can be made autonomously; differently it can be discussed with the lecturer during office hours or per e-mail.

Bibliography

Didactic methods

Frontal lectures on main subjects will be followed by discussions with students; on some subjects, texts and sources will be read and analysed, followed by a discussion on their content. Some lectures might be thought by specialists; according to the pandemic situation, during the last teaching weeks some excursions could take place. All practical aspects regarding the excursions will be discussed with those attending lectures. ERASMUS students are kindly asked to get in touch with the lecturer at the beginning of the teaching term.

Learning assessment procedures

The target of the final oral exam is to verify the achievement level of this course. Questions will be based on knowledge acquired through the study of handbooks and material provided by the lecturer and published in the Moodle. The exams last the time necessary to understand the quality and the width of students' knowledge.

Evaluation criteria

Marks are given to students in thirtieths. The oral exam will be divided into two parts: in the first part students will be asked to answer to general questions on the main topics of the Middle Ages starting with the essay of Sergi, on the topics discussed during lectures or on topics acquired through the study of the handbook. If the first part will be successfully concluded, in the second part questions will be asked on the essay or on the book chosen by students.

Exam language

Italiano