Chivalry History 301 Stephen Lyons Chivalry Arter 210 Spring Semester, 2013-2014 Hours: MW: 10:00-11:00 TTh: 9:00-11:00 PROSPECTUS A study of the ethos of the Medieval European knight. Students investigate the principles and practices of the chivalric tradition during the period from the 12 th to the 15 th centuries. Among the topics considered are the social status of the knight, the techniques of knightly warfare, the tradition of courtly love, and the ideals and realities of knightly behavior. Consideration is given to transformation of the warrior of the Crusading era to the courtier of the age of the Renaissance. Prerequisites: History 105 or permission of the instructor. Texts: Matthew Bennett Agincourt 1415 Christopher Gravett Knights at Tournament Eric Jager The Last Duel Ulrich von Liechtenstein The Service of Ladies Stephen Lyons, ed. Chivalry Sidney Painter French Chivalry SYLLABUS Week 1: January 14, 16: Introduction Read: Painter, French Chivalry, Chapters I and II Discussion: Context Week 2: January 21, 23: Read: Johan Huizinga, Homo Ludens, Chapters I and V Discussion: Establishing Themes and a Paradigm [HO] Week 3: January 28, 30: Read: Anonymous, Raoul de Cambrai [SL: A] Discussion: A Prototype Week 4: February 4, 6: Read: Bertran de Born, The Troubadour of War [SL: B] Discussion: A Prototype Week 5: February 11, 13: 1
Read: Ramon Lull, The Book of the Order of Chivalry [SL: C] Discussion: Rules of the Game, Part I Week 6: February 18, 20: Read: Honoré de Bonet, The Tree of Battles [SL: D] Discussion: The Rules of the Game, Part II Week 7: February 25, 27: Read: Gutierre Diaz de Gamez, The Unconquered Knight: A Chronicle of the Deeds of Don Pero Niño [Online: http://www.yorku.ca/inpar/gamez_evans.pdf] Discussion: The Historical Hero Week 8: March 4, 6: Read: Chrétien de Troyes, Yvain: The Knight and the Lion [SL: E] Discussion: The Romantic Hero Week 9: March 11, 13: Read: Christopher Gravett, Knights at Tournament See: "A Knight's Tale" Discussion: Play and Games Week 10: March 25, 27: Read: The Tournament of St. Inglevert [SL: F] The Combat of the Thirty [SL: G] Discussion: Play and Combat Week 11: April 3: Read: Matthew Bennett, Agincourt 1415 Discussion: How To... and How Not To... Week 12: April 8, 10: Read: Painter, Chapter III Bernard of Clairvaux, "In Praise of the New Knighthood" [SL: H] Anonymous, Ordene de Chevalerie [SL: I] Discussion: Salvation through Violence Week 13: April 15, 17: Read: Painter, Chapter IV Andreas Capellanus, "The Art of Courtly Love" [SL: J] Ulrich von Liechtenstein, The Service of Ladies Discussion: Play and the Sexes Week 14, April 22, 24: 2
Read: "A Duel to the Death" [SL: K] Eric Jager, The Last Duel Discussion: The Game in Earnest Week 15: April 29: Read: Painter, Chapter V Froissart, "Six Tales of Chivalric (?) Behavior" [SL: L] Discussion: Proving the Positive via the Negative COURSE REQUIREMENTS Class attendance is required: this is College policy. Absenteeism will adversely affect your final grade. Just being present, however, is not enough. There is a participation component to the final grade and this will be based on your involvement in the course. Excused absences will be granted for documented illness and family emergencies only. Please note that participation in co- and extra-curricular activities-- including, but not limited to, athletics--is not a valid reason for missing class. Completion of the reading assignments and informed participation in discussion are also required. History 301 is a discussion class: you will be graded on the frequency and quality of your contributions. There will be a take-home final exam, which will be distributed approximately one week before the last day of classes. Completed exams are due by 9:00 a.m., Friday, 2 May 2014. In addition, you are required to write two papers for the course. The minimum number of pages for each paper is 10, and there is no maximum. Papers are to be produced as Word documents, with 1" margins on all four sides, and written in formal, academic English. Papers are due at the beginning of class on the dates noted. Extensions of time will not be granted; late papers will be accepted at a penalty rate of one full grade per day for each day or part of a day that they are late. The assignments follow below. There are three options. While you are required to write on two of these options, you may choose to write all three. Should you write on all three topics, your two highest grades will be counted toward the final grade for the course. For each paper research is a necessity and therefore footnotes and a bibliography are essential. The required form for citations is The Chicago Manual of Style or Kate Turabian's Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. A brief summary of the form of citation is attached to this syllabus. Option 1. Due on or before Friday, 14 February 2014 The Codex Manesse is an illuminated manuscript dating to c. 1304-1340. The text is a collection of love songs--minnesang poetry. Accompanying the text are 138 miniature illustrations, most of which portray one of the Minnesingers together with a feature of the chivalric tradition. For this assignment, explore the Codex, choose and examine one of the illustrations, then investigate the subject of the image, and the representation from the chivalric tradition portrayed in the illustration. The Codex is available online: http://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/cpg848. 3
Option 2. Due on or before Friday, 14 March 2014 The theme of "The Hero" permeates historical and imaginative literature. We have examined the life of a historical "hero," Don Pero Niño, and we have also considered the Arthurian tale of "Yvain: The Knight and the Lion." How do you account for this enduring fascination with "The Hero?" As you ponder this question and pursue your answer, focus your attention on medieval historical and/or literary figures (but not including Pero Niño or Yvain) who are tied in one way or another to the chivalric tradition. Option 3. Due on or before Friday, 18 April 2014 There are numerous lists of the "Chivalric Virtues." You will find one such list below. Focus your attention on one of the "Virtues," and write an essay on its place in the chivalric tradition. Your essay should draw on the historical reality of the chivalric tradition in the Medieval era, and specific references to that reality are required. The place to begin your inquiry is with an investigation of the historical origins of the word or quality that you have chosen, and the best place to do so is in the Oxford English Dictionary. The Dictionary is available in print in the reference section of the Pelletier Library. It is also available to Allegheny students online: http://www.oed.com.ezproxy1.allegheny.edu:2048. The list: Charity Compassion Courtesy Duty Faith Fortitude Gallantry Generosity Honor Hope Humility Integrity Justice Fidelity Mercy Nobility Prowess Prudence Strength Trust Valor AN ADMONITION: "Every time we postpone some necessary event--whether we put off doing the dinner dishes till morning or defer an operation or some difficult labor or study--we do so with the implication that present time is more important than future time (for if we wished the future to be as free and comfortable as we wish the present to be, we would perform necessary actions as soon as they prove themselves necessary). There is nothing wrong with this, as long as we know what we are doing, and as long as the present indeed holds some opportunity more important than the task we delay. But very often our decision to delay is less a free choice than a semiconscious mechanism--a conspiracy between our reasoning awareness and our native dislike of pain. The result of this conspiracy is a disconcerting contradiction of will; for when we delay something, we simultaneously admit its necessity and refuse to do it. Disrespect for the future is a subtly poisonous disrespect for self, and forces us, paradoxically enough, to live in the past." --Robert Grudin 4
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY DESIRED OUTCOMES FOR HISTORY 301: Students will engage the past through a particular set of themes related to the history of the medieval concept of Chivalry. Students will develop skills in assessing and utilizing primary sources and secondary authorities. Students will develop research skills and work on generating their own interpretations. Students will be introduced to history as a scholarly discipline and profession. Students will develop and improve their skills in reading, writing and thinking within the context of the discipline of history. Papers (each): 25% Final Exam: 25% Participation: 25% FINAL GRADES WILL BE FIGURED AS FOLLOWS: ALL PROVISIONS OF THE HONOR CODE ARE IN EFFECT IN THIS COURSE. VIOLATIONS OF THE CODE WILL BE REPORTED TO THE HONOR COMMITTEE. IN ADDITION TO ANY PENALTIES IMPOSED BY THE HONOR COMMITTEE OR THE ACADEMIC INTEGRITY BOARD, VIOLATIONS WILL RESULT IN A FAILING GRADE FOR THE COURSE. 5
TEN SIMPLE RULES FOR EXPOSITORY WRITING 1. On banished words: a. Except when used in direct quotations, the following words are banished: I, me, my, mine, you, your, yours. b. Except when used in direct quotations, all contractions are banished: [e.g. can t, couldn t, didn t, doesn t, don t, hadn t, hasn t, isn t, shouldn t, they re, wasn t, won t]. 2. On the mystery of the apostrophe, which is more than just a decorative device. The Singular, the Plural and the Possessive: One King Two Kings One King s crown Two Kings crowns [Singular] [Plural] [Singular Possessive] [Plural Possessive] 3. On the ambiguity of IT. Its is a possessive pronoun: as in something owned by it. See, there is no apostrophe. After all, you do not write hi s, (or do you?). It s is a contraction of it is (3 rd person singular, present tense, indicative mood of the verb to be), but since all contractions are banished, this should never appear. See, it s easy. Its is not a word in the English language. 4. On words: avoid overused words: (awesome, extremely, massive, scenario, very, etc.), idiot words (lifestyle, vibes good or bad), idiot expressions (big cheese, call the shots, can of worms, get-go, little fish-big fish, mess with, totally awesome, 24/7, whether or not), and linguistic silliness (there is no top priority or first priority: if it is the priority, then it is both top and first. One more thing about words: always eschew obfuscation. 5. On people and things: a person is a who, not a that: as in the knights who fought, or the men who died, NOT the knights that fought, or the hostages that died. 6. On when to quote a quotation: Quote is a verb, as in: I quote You quote He, she, or it quotes We quote You quote They quote Quotation is the noun, as in: The following quotation shows... And speaking of quotations, they should be kept to a minimum: paraphrase whenever possible. Save quoting quotations for when you want to drive your point home, for when you need a zinger (another idiot word). 6
7. On homophones, a rich source of confusion: There are hundreds of these in English, which makes reading and writing the language such a fun-filled challenge. Air, Ere, Err, Heir; Bight, Bite, Byte; Born, Borne, Bourn, Bourne; Censer, Censor, Sensor; Cent, Scent, Sent; Cite, Sight, Site; Dew, Do, Due; Ewe, Yew, You; Flew, Flu, Flue; For, Fore, Four; Gild, Gilled, Guild; Incite, Insight; Knead, Kneed, Need; Oar, Or, Ore; Pair, Pear, Pare; Poor, Pore, Pour; Praise, Prays, Preys; Raise, Rays, Raze; Rain, Reign, Rein; Seas, Sees, Seize; To, Too, Two; Toad, Toed, Towed; Vain, Vane, Vein; Wail, Wale, Whale; Weather, Wether, Whether are all different words, spelled differently, with different meanings. Make sure you use the right, rite, wright, write one. 8. On another kind of confusion: A lot does not mean the same thing as allot, and alot is not a word in English 9. On mental mush: to think to feel to believe. You can talk about how you feel with your physicians and with people who love you (assuming anyone does). You can talk about what you believe with your spiritual advisors. I am interested in what you think and why you think it. Your thoughts are my concern; your feelings and beliefs are not. 10. On dancing through the tenses, which can be tense. Keep your verbs under control. Readers have been known to get motion sickness when writers lurch between the tenses. A general rule: pick a tense and stay in it. A specific rule: when writing about historical subjects this is easy to remember: history happened in the past, so the past tense is best. 7
TURABIAN QUICK GUIDE Kate L. Turabian s Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations presents the basic documentation style system for footnotes and bibliographical entries. Below are some common examples of materials cited. Each example is given first in bibliography style (a note [N], followed by a bibliographic entry [B]) Online sources that are analogous to print sources (such as articles published in online journals, magazines, or newspapers) should be cited similarly to their print counterparts but with the addition of a URL and an access date. For online or other electronic sources that do not have a direct print counterpart (such as an institutional Web site or a Weblog), give as much information as you can in addition to the URL and access date. The following examples include some of the most common types of electronic sources. Book One author N: Wendy Doniger, Splitting the Difference (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999), 65. B: Doniger, Wendy. Splitting the Difference. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999. Two authors N: Guy Cowlishaw and Robin Dunbar, Primate Conservation Biology (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 104 7. B: Cowlishaw, Guy, and Robin Dunbar. Primate Conservation Biology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000. Four or more authors N: Edward O. Laumann et al., The Social Organization of Sexuality: Sexual Practices in the United States (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994), 262. B: Laumann, Edward O., John H. Gagnon, Robert T. Michael, and Stuart Michaels. The Social Organization of Sexuality: Sexual Practices in the United States. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994. Editor, translator, or compiler instead of author N: 4. Richmond Lattimore, trans., The Iliad of Homer (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1951), 91 92. B: Lattimore, Richmond, trans. The Iliad of Homer. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1951. Editor, translator, or compiler in addition to author 8
N: Yves Bonnefoy, New and Selected Poems, ed. John Naughton and Anthony Rudolf (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995), 22. B: Bonnefoy, Yves. New and Selected Poems. Edited by John Naughton and Anthony Rudolf. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995. Chapter or other part of a book N: Andrew Wiese, The House I Live In : Race, Class, and African American Suburban Dreams in the Postwar United States, in The New Suburban History, ed. Kevin M. Kruse and Thomas J. Sugrue (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006), 101 2. B: Wiese, Andrew. The House I Live In : Race, Class, and African American Suburban Dreams in the Postwar United States. In The New Suburban History, edited by Kevin M. Kruse and Thomas J. Sugrue, 99 119. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006. Chapter of an edited volume originally published elsewhere (as in primary sources) N: Quintus Tullius Cicero. Handbook on Canvassing for the Consulship, in Rome: Late Republic and Principate, ed. Walter Emil Kaegi Jr. and Peter White, vol. 2 of University of Chicago Readings in Western Civilization, ed. John Boyer and Julius Kirshner (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986), 35. B: Cicero, Quintus Tullius. Handbook on Canvassing for the Consulship. In Rome: Late Republic and Principate, edited by Walter Emil Kaegi Jr. and Peter White. Vol. 2 of University of Chicago Readings in Western Civilization, edited by John Boyer and Julius Kirshner, 33 46. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986. Originally published in Evelyn S. Shuckburgh, trans., The Letters of Cicero, vol. 1 (London: George Bell & Sons, 1908). Book published electronically N: Philip B. Kurland and Ralph Lerner, eds., The Founders Constitution (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987), http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/ (accessed June 27, 2006). B: Kurland, Philip B., and Ralph Lerner, eds. The Founders Constitution. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987. http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/ (accessed June 27, 2006). Journal article Article in a print journal N: John Maynard Smith, The Origin of Altruism, Nature 393 (1998): 639. B: Smith, John Maynard. The Origin of Altruism. Nature 393 (1998): 639 40. Article in an online journal 9
N: Mark A. Hlatky et al., "Quality-of-Life and Depressive Symptoms in Postmenopausal Women after Receiving Hormone Therapy: Results from the Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study (HERS) Trial," Journal of the American Medical Association 287, no. 5 (2002), http://jama.amaassn.org/issues/v287n5/rfull/joc10108.html#aainfo (accessed January 7, 2004). B: Hlatky, Mark A., Derek Boothroyd, Eric Vittinghoff, Penny Sharp, and Mary A. Whooley. "Quality-of- Life and Depressive Symptoms in Postmenopausal Women after Receiving Hormone Therapy: Results from the Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study (HERS) Trial." Journal of the American Medical Association 287, no. 5 (February 6, 2002), http://jama.amaassn.org/issues/v287n5/rfull/joc10108.html#aainfo (accessed January 7, 2004). Web site Web sites may be cited in running text ( On its Web site, the Evanston Public Library Board of Trustees states... ) instead of in a parenthetical citation, and they are commonly omitted from a bibliography or reference list as well. The following examples show the more formal versions of the citations. N: Evanston Public Library Board of Trustees, Evanston Public Library Strategic Plan, 2000 2010: A Decade of Outreach, Evanston Public Library, http://www.epl.org/library/strategic-plan-00.html (accessed June 1, 2005). B: Evanston Public Library Board of Trustees. Evanston Public Library Strategic Plan, 2000 2010: A Decade of Outreach. Evanston Public Library. http://www.epl.org/library/strategic-plan-00.html (accessed June 1, 2005). 10