History 115 - The Medieval World

'This course explores the cultural, intellectual, religious, and material contours of the period commonly described as 'medieval', extending roughly from the reorganization of the Roman state in the fifth century to the fourteenth century CE. While historians often emphasize the divisions and dislocations wrought by religious, linguistic, and cultural difference, there also were important continuities and similarities between the societies around, and on either side of, the Mediterranean Sea. These complex relationships will serve as the basis of our discussions and readings, focusing on both primary documents in translation as well as important historiographic perspectives on the period.'