MARGERY GANZ & MARTIN YANUCK HISTORY 101 SPELMAN COLLEGE FALL 1984 WORLD CIVILIZATION Description As educated people we must know what events and people have influenced our lives and shaped our thinking. As a liberal arts institution serving black women, Spelman is committed to "assisting students in acquiring a core of knowledge which brings breadth and depth to their intellectual experience." In World Civilization we will study the development of various civilizations throughout the world. We will seek to understand people from ethnic and gender perspectives as we examine problems which they confronted and solutions which they devised. We will seek to determine what those problems and solutions mean for us today and in the future as individuals and as members of a global village. This course will provide a background for later courses in the fine arts, humanities, and the social sciences. World Civilization has an interdisciplinary focus as it examines interconnections between a society and its arts, values, and group customs and behavior. World Civilization should also help you in three (important) skills areas. You will practice writing through various types of assignments, and you will learn how to analyze problems as you write. You will read for understanding, bringing what you have learned to the classroom for discussion. Memorization will not get you very far. You must be able to state a problem and then solve it in readable English if the solution is to have any value. Course Goals 1. To provide students with a common body of knowledge which will prove helpful as they progress through the college curriculum 2. To give students an awareness of the growing interaction of the world's peoples from earliest times to the present 3. To understand the basis of current issues as they are rooted in the past, for example ecology, racism, sexism, technology, urbanization 4. To familiarize the student with historical modes of thinking and of historical analysis 5. To lead the student to an awareness of the interaction of geography, technology, and values in the development of a civilization 6. To familiarize students with the cultural heritage of major civilizations and their contributions to the historical development of the world and modern life 7. To give students an understanding of world politics and the diverse patterns of social and economic organization 8. To give the student an understanding of the influence of civilizations as value systems on aesthetics 9. To give students an understanding of their contributions and of their place in the world, past and present, as black women Course Objectives Upon completion of World Civilization (History 101), each student will be able through class participation and written assignments: (l) to demonstrate a knowledge of major civilizations as they developed from Prehistoric times to 1,500 A.D.; (2) to evaluate historical materials; (3) to write a three-paragraph essay containing a thesis statement and supporting evidence on an historical problem; (4) to critique an historical monograph written after 1945; (5) to analyze current issues in their historical perspective; (6) to trace the development of such phenomena as religious consciousness, sexism, militarism, urbanization, racism, and technology; (7) to demonstrate an understanding of the influence of a civilization's value system on the arts and literature; (8) to demonstrate a knowledge of the dimension of civilizations in space and time studied as well as the relationship of geography to the civilizations themselves; (9) to recognize the growing interaction between the world's peoples; (10) to relate the civilizations and trends studied to personal development as black women. Texts K. Reilly. The West and the World L.S. Stavrianos. The World to 1500 Requirements 1. Two in-class hour examinations. 2. Final examination. 3. Book review of an historical monograph or a short paper on a problem or issue of your choice. Either assignment should not be less than four nor more than six pages. 4. Short in-class or home study assignments to be given from time to time. Course Outline Orientation Assignment 1: Civilizations - Reilly: Preface Part I. Ancient World to 1000 B.C. Assignment 2: Masculine-Feminine. Reilly, Chapter 1 Assignment 3: Food Gathering and Producing Stavrianos, Chapters 1 and 2 Assignment 4: Women and Men in the Classical World Reilly, Chapter 2 Assignment 5: The Development of Cities Reilly, Chapter 3 Assignment 6: The Origins of Ancient Civilization Stavrianos, Chapter 3, pp. 35-54 Assignment 7: Nomads Stavrianos, Chapter 3, pp. 54-66 Part II. The Classical World: 1000 B.C.-500 A.D. Assignment 8: The Beginnings of Eurasian Civilization Stavrianos, Chapter 4 Assignment 9: City-State and Capitol City Reilly, Chapter 4 Stavrianos, Chapter 5, pp. 84-102 Assignment 10: Passion and Conquest Reilly, Chapter 5 Stavrianos, Chapter 5, pp. 103-121 Assignment 11: Individuality and Conformity in Classical Times Reilly, Chapter 7 Assignment 12: Indian Civilization Stavrianos, Chapter 6 Assignment 13: Chinese Civilization Stavrianos, Chapter 7 Assignment 14: Peace, War and the Failure of Classical Civilizations Reilly, Chapter 6 Stavrianos, Chapter 8 Part III. 500-1500 A.D. Assignment 15: Traditional World, 600-1500 (Medieval Civilizations of Eurasia, 500-1500) Stavrianos, Chapter 9 Assignment 16: Islam Stavrianos, Chapter 10 Assignment 17: Turks and Mongols Stavrianos, Chapter 11 Assignment 18: Barbarians, Knights and Crusaders Reilly, Chapter 10 Assignment 19: The Medieval Mind Set Reilly, Chapter 12