Skip to main content Skip to navigation
Common Errors in English Usage and More World Civ

Lecture 38: Medieval Lyric Poetry and Music

(Brians 233-236, 246-249)

Questions on the Medieval Lyric Poetry and Music: *In the anonymous 13th Century Franciscan hymn to Mary: Stabat mater dolorosa, what experience does the narrator want to share with Mary? Why? In The Wife’s Lament, why is the woman unhappy? *In Omittamus Studia (p. 246) what is the poet’s reaction to the shortness of life? *What seems to be the attitude of the Comtessa de Dia toward her husband? *What qualities does she say her lover possesses? *What is a “dawn song?” Why was outdoor lovemaking often resorted to in the Middle Ages?

Lecture outline:
Literature
Most famous writers: Dante Aligheri
& Geoffrey Chaucer
Main themes in secular poetry
Music
Typical musical instruments
The evolution of music notation
Evolution of Monophonic into
polyphonic music
Major religious and secular themes
in texts

Off-campus:

A Medieval music manuscript

Supplementary materials:s

Return to syllabus

Lecture 39: The Italian Renaissance: Humanism

(Duiker 346-355; Brians: 261-265, 271-272)

 

Questions about Duiker: *What two regions contributed most to world trade and civilization in the period just before the Renaissance in the late 14th century? *Who were the Medici? What were the major concerns of Machiavelli in The Prince? *What are the main characteristics of Italian Renaissance Humanism? What were the main results of the spread of printing in Europe?

Question about Pico Della Mirandola: *According to Pico, what qualities make man great?

Question about Petrarch: *What qualities does Petrarch ascribe to Laura? Who is more vividly depicted in this poem, the lover or his beloved?

Question about Machiavelli: *What good qualities does Machiavelli say a prince should seem to have?

Lecture topics:
Background
Humanism
Petrarch
Boccaccio
Pico Della Mirandola
Machiavelli
Technological innovations

Supplementary materials:

Return to syllabus

Lecture 40: The Italian Renaissance: Art & Architecture

(Duiker 356-358; Brians optional: 267-269, required: 270)

 

Questions about Duiker: *What were the main qualities sought for by Renaissance artists? *Describe the painting by Leonardo da Vinci illustrated in your book. *What was Michelangelo’s attitude toward the human body? *What is the subject of the ceiling paintings of the Sistine Chapel?

Questions about Leonardo da Vinci: What qualities does Leonardo claim for his own art in contrast to that of others? Why does he feel that perspective is important?

Question about Vasari: *How does this story illustrate typical Renaissance attitudes of artists toward their patrons?

Off-campus:

Supplementary materials:

Return to syllabus

Lecture 42: Early Amerindian Civilizations: Before the Aztecs

(Duiker 156-180)

 

Questions from Duiker: *By what time had humans penetrated almost to the tip of South America? For how long did Teotihuacan flourish? What was the penalty for losing in a Mayan ball game? *How did the Spanish react to the Mayan books they encountered? *What were three of the products that Bernal Díaz observed being sold in the great market at Tenochtitlán? *What were the different roles for men and women defined by the Aztec midwife ritual chants? *What were some of the impressive construction projects created by the Incas? What is a quipu?

Lecture outline
Early immigration across land bridge to
western hemisphere
Anasazi cliff-dwellers
Maya
Raised bed agriculture
Ceremonial cities, pyramids
Religion: human sacrifice & the
ball game
Agriculture
Corn
Chili peppers
Tomatoes
Beans, Squash
Calendar, Astronomy, Codices

Supplementary materials:

Return to syllabus