Spring 2007 Medieval Studies Courses

The following list is intended to be as inclusive as possible. An effort has been made to include all courses listed in the Medieval Studies program regulations as counting toward the graduate minor or undergraduate minor. Courses which might be of interest to medievalists but which do not count toward one of the minors are also included. Please consult the director of the minor program with questions about the relevance of specific courses.

This information is subject to change. Please consult the Registrar's online schedule or the websites of individual departments for up-to-date information on spring courses.

UNC students may also take courses at Duke University through inter-institutional registration. See the courses webpage of the Duke University Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies for the most up-to-date information on medieval courses at Duke.

Art 154 Introduction to the Art & Architecture of the Islamic Lands, 8th - 16th c. CE (MWF 2:00-2:50) Glaire Anderson.
This course introduces the arts of the Islamic lands from the 7th c. rise of the Umayyad dynasty of Syria to the 16th c. expansion of the Ottoman empire . By examining the socio-historical contexts within which Islamic art and architecture developed, the course will provide a basic understanding of its major themes and regional variations.

Art 458 Islamic Palaces, Gardens & Court Culture, 8th - 16th c. CE (MWF 9:00-9:50) Glaire Anderson.
We will examine medieval Islamic notions of palace and garden, relating the material evidence and art historical interpretation to the picture of Islamic court cultures gleaned from readings in social and political history. As we examine the material evidence for palaces and gardens we will also take note of shifts in scholars' assumptions and interpretations of this material as revealed in the historiography.

Classics

CLAR 246 (051) Early Christian and Byzantine Art (TR 12:30-1:45) Carolyn Connor.
This course is a survey of art and architecture from its formative stages through one thousand years and several periods of renaissance of the arts in media such as mosaics, enamels, ivories, and manuscript illumination, among others. Translated Byzantine texts are read and applied to an understanding of the art, for they reveal a great deal about contemporary beliefs, values and attitudes forming the context of the art.

English

ENGL 319 (051) Intro to Medieval English Literature (TR 11-12:15) Joseph Wittig.
In this course we will read a selection of Old English and Middle English literature, with hard texts read in modern English translation. We will look at some of the most famous texts from the medieval period (Beowulf, Gawain and the Green Knight, versions of King Arthur's story) and some of the best known medieval genres (for example, Old English battle poetry, elegies and riddles; Middle English fabliaux, romances, animal tales, lyrics, writings by and for women). We read them both as literary “entertainment” and try to understand something of their historical and cultural context. The course will be taught as lecture and discussion.

ENGL 320 (052) Chaucer (TR 2-3:15) Ted Leinbaugh.
Chaucer's development as an artist as revealed in his poetry.

ENGL 821 (351) and CMPL 894 Medieval Drama (TR 5-6:15)
Don Kennedy.
A seminar in medieval liturgical and cathedral dramas and vernacular mystery and morality plays of the Middle Ages. The course will consider the plays both aesthetically and in relation to the culture that produced them. Also considered will be methods of staging and major research tools in the field.  In the textbook, the Latin, Anglo-Norman, and German plays are edited in the original languages along with translations; the English plays are in Middle English with marginal glosses, but translations of some into modern English will be available. Students will be expected to give reports on assigned readings, work up a lecture/discussion on at least one play, and write a major term paper and give a preliminary report on it. Students interested in continental drama can work on that for reports and the paper. The papers will be due at the end of the semester during the exam period. No final exam. Text: /Medieval Drama/, ed. David Bevington.

German

GERM 514 (260) Old Norse (TTH 12:30 -1:45) Paul Roberge.
Reading and linguistic analysis of Old Norse (Old Icelandic) texts, with study of phonology, morphology, and syntax; comparison with other older Germanic dialects.

GERM 220 (66) and WMST 220 (66) Women in the Middle Ages (TTH 03:30 PM - 04:45) Kathryn Starkey.
How were women represented and perceived in the Middle Ages? How did women participate in the economic, political, religious and cultural life of the Middle Ages? In this interdisciplinary course, we will examine various genres of written and visual works including courtly literature, love poetry, juridical, theological, and medical texts, didactic treatises, mysticism, illuminations and sculpture. Readings and class discussions in English.

GERM 502 (171) Middle High German (TTH 3:30 - 4:45) Kathryn Starkey.
This course teaches the basic elements of the Middle High German language and exposes students to a variety of textual genres from the high Middle Ages such as courtly romance, heroic epic, love lyric, and legal texts. The focus of the course is on language and translation, but the close textual work also provides an introduction to Middle High German literature and culture.

History

HIST 435 (110) Medieval University (TR 9:30-10:45) Michael McVaugh.
The origins and development of the university during the period 1100-1400; types of organization, curricula and degrees, intellectual life, town-gown and student-master relationships.

HIST 472 (131) Early Western Medicine (TR 2-3:15) Michael McVaugh.

HIST 490 (100) By Cross, Sword, and Compass (TR 12:30-1:45) Brett Whalen.
This course examines the relationship between Christian Europe and the “outside world” during the High and Late Middle Ages, beginning in the eleventh century with the First Crusade and ending in the sixteenth century with the early stages of Europe 's overseas colonial activities. Topics for discussion include the crusading movement, missionary work, pilgrimage, and long-distance commercial travel.

HIST 701 Graduate Seminar in Medieval European History (T 5:30-8:20) Brett Whalen.
This course offers a graduate-level survey of major historiographical trends and
debates in the field of medieval European history. The readings will include classic
topics and works (e.g. feudalism and Marc Bloch’s "Feudal Society"), as well as more recent themes and literature (e.g sexuality and Dyan Elliott’s "Spiritual Marriage"). A particular emphasis will be placed on scholarship that deals with religious and cultural history.

Italian

ITAL 398 (096) Purgatory and Paradise (TR 3:30-4:45) Dino Cervigni. Religious Studies

RELI 581 (171) Sufism (TR 3:30-4:45) Carl Ernst.

A survey of Islamic mysticism, its sources in the Qur'an and the Prophet Muhammad, and its literary, cultural, and social deployment in Arab, Persian, Indic, and Turkish regions.

Spanish

SPAN 383 (085) Medieval Spanish Literature (TR 2-3:15) Lucia Binotti.

Women's Studies

WMST 220 (66) Women in the Middle Ages see GERM 220 (66).