Information

Studies in the Humanities 120

Instructors: Regula Evitt, Rebecca Tucker, and Bob McJimsey

Block 1: During this block, we'll examine the re-ordering of European culture through the lenses of literature and art from the 12th through 16th centuries. We will consider changing representations of the human body-sacred and profane-in both literary and visual texts as a means for exploring the authority of classical antiquity, the correlated functions of love and political power, and the cultural implications of increasing urbanization for the Renaissance. In literature, our readings will cover a range of genres important to the Renaissance (auto-biography, narrative poetry, lyric poetry, drama) and include selections from the following authors: Plato's Symposium, Augustine's Confessions, Dante's Commedia, Petrarch's Rime Sparza, Chaucer's Pardoner's Tale, The York Crucifixion (anon.), Machiavelli's Prince and Mandragola, Shakespeare's Sonnets and Measure for Measure. In the visual arts, we will look at a variety of works from the period in Europe, with a focus on in-depth study of crucial paintings, sculpture, and architecture by artists ranging from Giotto, Brunelleschi, Botticelli, and Michelangelo to Jan van Eyck, Durer and Pieter Bruegel.

Required Texts:
• Paoletti, John T. and Gary M. Radke. Art in Renaissance Italy, 3rd ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2005.
• Alighieri, Dante. The Inferno of Dante: A New Verse Translation, ed. and trans. Robert Pinsky (Noonday Press, 1996). Bilingual edition.
• Machiavelli, Nicolo. The Prince: A Revised Translation, Backgrounds, Interpretations, ed. Robert M. Adams (New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 1992).
• Machiavelli, Nicolo. Mandragola. Ed. Mera J. Flaumenhaft (Waveland, 1981).
• Plato. Symposium. Ed. Robin Waterfield (Oxford: 1998)
• Shakespeare, William. Measure for Measure. Ed. Ivo Kamps and Karen Raber. New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2004.
•Additional readings, available online via the EReserve system of Tutt Library (http://coloradocollege.docutek.com/eres/) or in binders at the Tutt reserve desk (under HS!20)

Technology:

Database: Images pertaining to each segment of the class will be placed on the College’s image database (http://art1.coloradocollege.edu/). Please see handout for instructions on how to use the database, and how to access the images for each day.

Web Page: All handouts and information can be found at the class web site:
http://faculty1.coloradocollege.edu/~rtucker/RenCulture/

Library web page: Steve Lawson in Tutt library has put together a web site for this class with research tips and resources -http://www2.coloradocollege.edu/Library/Course/HS/120.html

Policies:

Credit/no credit: The Registrar's Office will assume that you want a letter grade for this course unless you let them know otherwise. Be mindful of their deadline for making the change in grade status.

Late assignments: Late assignments lose one full letter grade (e.g., an A- becomes a B-, a B becomes a C, etc.). The exceptions to this policy are, of course, serious illness or family emergency. If either happens, please talk with us. We'll work out a schedule for completing your course work.

Attendance: Attendance is required. Missing class will adversely affect your performance, and your grade. There are no "excused" absences (except as outlined for family emergency and serious illness, as above. You must inform us as soon as possible if such a circumstance arises): plan your schedule accordingly.

·Participation: Your contributions to our class discussions are the key to this course. Come ready to contribute: argue, critique, compare ideas, disagree with each other about the assigned reading, bring in relevant information, etc. Be an engaged audience for your peers

ADA needs: If you have a disability and require accommodations for this course, please speak with us as soon as possible so that your needs may be appropriately met. Because of the intense pace of the Block Plan, it is important that requests for accommodation be made in a timely manner to allow sufficient time to implement necessary adjustments. If you have not already done so, please register with Disability Services, (Learning Commons at Tutt Library, Room 152, 227-8285), the office responsible for coordinating accommodations and services for students with disabilities.

Plagiarism: Using sources beyond your primary text[s] without documenting them is intellectual theft. Borrowing work from other students violates Colorado College's Academic Honor System as well. Plagiarized work receives a grade of "F" and is subject to review by the college honor committee. Please make sure you understand Colorado College's Academic Honor System; respect the academic integrity it calls for and the community of trust it aims to create. Find the text of the Honor System at http://www2.coloradocollege.edu/Students/Pathfinder/Policies/Academic/Constitution/