Western Civilization
Honors
Course
Overview
This
honors course explores the foundations and development of Western culture. Its
aim is not to present a comprehensive survey of European history but rather to
develop an understanding of Western history and culture through an exploration
of selected topics. We begin the course with a brief unit on Western foundations
in the classical and early medieval periods. The main focus of the course is on
the development of Western Civilization over the last 1,000 years, from the
later Middle Ages through the twentieth century. We will pay special attention
to the four themes described below as we trace the development of Western
culture and evolve an understanding of what its means to be “Western.” Of
special significance is the global impact of the West and its interactions with
other cultures.
Readings
There
is no textbook for this class.
Readings
are drawn for a variety of sources.
- Core readings for the topics
within each unit
- Primary source readings, and
- Extended secondary essays by
leading historians
GOALS:
- Demonstrate
an understanding of the major events in the history of Western Civilization
from the later Middle Ages to the 20th century.
- Trace
four key themes in the development of Western Civilization and understand
their impact on the present and their implications for the future:
·
Development of representative government, democratic citizenship,
and individual rights
·
Development of nation-states and nationalism
·
Material development of Western Civilization: its economic
development and its scientific and technological leadership
·
Global impact of Western Civilization.
- Read and recognize a variety
of approaches to writing history including social history, cultural history,
environmental history, and history of technology.
- Read
critically as historians do, evaluating sources, placing readings in
historical context, and using primary sources to corroborate or challenge
historical interpretations.
- Communicate
an understanding of history in oral, written, and multimedia formats.
Unit
Proficiencies: Students will be able to...
ALL UNITS:
- Read and analyze primary sources for each
unit, assessing the origins and purpose of the sources, placing them in
historical context, and using the primary sources to corroborate or
challenge historical interpretations.
- Read secondary materials
(short essays and excerpts from the works of leading historians), identify
author’s thesis, analyze the main ideas, and assess conclusions.
CONTENT
OF COURSE: FIRST
SEMESTER
Introduction: Classical
and Early Medieval Foundations
- Legacy
of
Greece
,
Rome
, Early Middle Ages
- Reading
history sources: primary sources and secondary materials.
Introduction proficiencies:
student will be able to
- Define
primary source, analyze critically and use primary sources (both texts and
artifacts) to construct historical arguments to answer historical questions.
- Define
secondary material, read critically, identify the author’s thesis, analyze
main ideas, and use secondary sources to construct historical arguments to
answer historical questions.
- Explain
the political and cultural legacies of ancient Greece and Rome
Unit 1: Rise of the West
in the High Middle Ages
- Revival
of
Europe
in the High Middle Ages
- Islam
and the Crusades
- Revival
of Royal Power
- Development
of Limited Monarchy in
England
Unit 1 proficiencies: student will
be able to
- Explain
how multiple factors cause history: evaluate the connections that link the
revival of trade, the development of technological innovations, and the
revival of town life to a general revival of
Western Europe
in the High Middle Ages.
- Describe
the cultural and intellectual revival of the West in the High Middle Ages.
- Describe
the rise of Islam and its contacts and clashes with the West; list the
causes of the Crusades evaluate their impact on European society; discuss
the Crusades as an example of unintended consequences in history.
- Analyze
and give examples of the role of the Church in the social, cultural, and
political history of the Middle Ages.
- Identify
reasons for the revival of royal power and the rise of strong nation states
during the later Middle Ages.
- Describe
the significant reigns and events in
England
after the Norman Conquest that established the foundations of
constitutionalism.
- Evaluate
the impact of the Magna Carts on American constitutional development.
- Contrast
constitutional monarchy in
England
with absolute monarchy in
France
- Explain
the factors that made the late Middle Ages a troubled period in for the West
Unit 2: Age of
Exploration
- Background/causes
- English
Colonies in
America
- The
Columbian Exchange
- Commercial
Revolution
- Western
Global Dominance
Unit 2 proficiencies: students
will be able to
- Identify
and describe economic, religious, and political factors that led to the Age
of Exploration.
- Give
examples of and evaluate the impact of technology as an important factor in
the ability of Europeans to explore distant places and maintain links to
their overseas empires.
- Identify
routes explored by the Atlantic Powers and the geographical reach of the
colonial empires they established around the world.
- Assess
the impact of disease on exploration and conquest.
- Explain
the concept of the Columbian Exchange; give examples and evaluate its impact
on Europe, Africa, and the
Americas
.
- Identify
the role of groups and individuals who played key roles in the founding of
the English colonies in North American and analyze the economic and
religious motivations of the early settlers.
- Contrast
the development of the three colonial regions.
- Explain
the concept of the Commercial Revolution and describe the system of global
trade that placed
Europe
at the center of things.
Unit 3: The
Renaissance
- Origins
of Renaissance culture
- Renaissance
outlook
- Renaissance
writers
- Renaissance
art and artists
- Northern
Renaissance
Unit 3 proficiencies: students
will be able to
- Define
the term Renaissance; explain the historical forces that gave birth to this
movement in
Italy
at the end of the Middle Ages.
- Understand
that the Renaissance is a transitional period and be able to give examples
of historical continuity as well as historical change; identify elements of
a “modern” outlook that are identifiable in Renaissance culture;
- Evaluate
the impact of technology and trade on the development and spread of the
Renaissance in
Western Europe
.
- Explain
the concept of humanism as an intellectual, cultural, and civic concept and
identify aspects of humanism in primary sources.
- Contrast
the political visions of Niccolo Machiavelli and Thomas More and explain how
they are both evidence of changing ideas about politics.
- Contrast
Italian and Northern humanists and draw conclusions about the difference in
social and cultural impact of the two Renaissance movements.
- Evaluate
examples of Renaissance painting, sculpture, and architecture; describe
characteristics of Renaissance painting, contrasting Renaissance art with
the art of the Middle Ages; identify Renaissance characteristics in
representative works of early and High Renaissance artists.
- Explore
the question, “Was there a Renaissance for women?” through multiple
sources, using primary sources and selections from the writings of modern
historians.
Unit 4: The
Reformation
- Background
causes of the Reformation
- Martin
Luther
- John
Calvin
- The
Reformation in
England
- The
Catholic Counter-Reformation
- Legacy
of the Reformation
Unit 4 proficiencies: students
will be able to
- Describe
the background causes of the Protestant Reformation, evaluating the
impact of religious, political, social, and technological factors and
the role of the individual in the Reformation.
- Identify
and describe differences of religious interpretation that separated
Catholics and Lutherans and Calvinists.
- Evaluate
the social and political impacts of Protestantism and its historical
significance for key themes in Western Civilization.
- Show
on a map the geographic division of Christianity that resulted from the
Protestant Reformation.
- Explain
the political issues that drove Henry to separate the
English
Church
from
Rome
.
- Assess
the impacts of the English Reformation on the English political system.
- Compare
and contrast the approaches to religious reform taken by Henry VIII and
Elizabeth I, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of
Elizabeth
’s “via media.”
Unit
5: The English Revolution
- English
nationalism/Reign of Elizabeth I
- Background
causes of the English Revolution
- The
English Civil War
- Restoration
of the monarchy
- Glorious
Revolution and the Revolution Settlement
- Impact
on political institutions in
Britain
- Legacy
of ideas
Unit 5 proficiencies: students
will be able to
-
Identify the strengths of
Elizabeth
that made her one of
England
’s most successful monarchs.
-
Identify the political and religious problems during the Tudor era
that the Stuarts inherited when they came to the throne.
-
Describe the opposing
political philosophies that pitted the divine right Stuarts against the
constitutionalism of Parliament, giving specific examples of this conflict
of perspective.
-
Evaluate the roles played by
religious, social, and economic factors in the political clashes between
king and Parliament.
-
Explain the causes and assess
the consequences of the Civil War phase of the revolution.
-
Evaluate the significant role
that individuals played at each stage of the revolution.
-
Explain
how the English Revolution brought about permanent changes in the
institutions by which
England
was governed.
-
Assess the legacy of the
English Revolution for Western political ideas.
CONTENT
OF COURSE: SECOND
SEMESTER
Unit 6: The
Enlightenment, French Revolution, and Napoleon
- The
Scientific and the Print revolutions
- Political,
economic, legal, and social ideas of the philosophes
- Background
causes of the French Revolution
- Events
of 1789
- Phases
of the Revolution
- Reign
of Terror
- Napoleon
- Long-term
impact of Napoleon and the French Revolution
Unit 6 proficiencies: students
will be able to
- Explain
the principal ideas that formed the basis of the Enlightenment and the
relationship between the Enlightenment and the Scientific Revolution.
- Assess
the impact of print culture on the development and spread of Enlightenment
ideas.
- Identify
and analyze the principal social, political, religious, legal, and economic
ideas associated with the philosophes.
- Evaluate
the role of women in the Enlightenment and its impact on the position of
women in society.
- Discuss
the background causes of the French Revolution.
- Evaluate
the French Revolution of 1789 as a popular revolution that drew support from
a broad range of French society.
- Explain
how the revolution moved through moderate, radical, and reactionary phases.
- Assess
the extent to which the ideals of the revolution were achieved.
- Evaluate
Napoleon in terms of his influence on the French Revolution and 19th Century
Europe
, including the growth of nationalism and liberalism.
- Describe
the organization of post-Napoleonic
Europe
.
Unit 7: The Industrial
Revolution and Nineteenth Century Ideas
- The
Revolution in
Britain
- Social
and economic impacts
- The
Second Industrial Revolution
- Liberalism
- Democracy
- Socialism
- The
New Imperialism
Unit 7 proficiencies: students
will be able to
- Explain
why the first industrial revolution began in
Britain
: identify the key factors needed for an industrial “take off.”
- Assess
the impact of industrialization in its first phase on the middle and working
classes, for women and children, and on health and the environment.
- Explain
the idea of a “second industrial revolution” and assess its impact on
the emergence of mass culture.
- Describe
and contrast the fundamental principles of laissez-faire capitalism, utopian
socialism, and Marxism
- Critique
the ideas of Karl Marx.
- Contrast
an evolutionary model of democratic change in 19th century
Britain
with continuing revolutionary change in 19th century
France
and assess the progress made by women and labor reforms for workers.
- Read
essays on social change in Victorian Britain and analyze nineteenth century
social change from a social history perspective.
- Define
the forms of imperialism, evaluate the factors that led to a new surge in
empire building, and identify areas around the world where the Great Powers
“scrambled” to build colonies.
Unit 8:
Nationalism and World War I
- Nationalism
in the 19th Century
- The
New Imperialism
- Background
Causes of the Great War
- Technology
and War
-
Paris
Peace Conference
- Russian
Revolutions
Unit 8 proficiencies: students
will be able to
- Identify
and describe factors that contribute to nationalism and its growing
importance as a factor in late 19th century
Europe
.
- Explain
how nationalism draws together the German Empire and the
Kingdom
of
Italy
as new states but destabilized the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires.
- Evaluate
the cause of the New Imperialism and its impact on international tensions
before World War I.
- Identify
the background and immediate causes of World War I.
- Evaluate
the impact of technology and new weapons on the course of the war.
- Analyze
the causes of World War I from a cultural history perspective.
- Analyze
the national interests of the “Big Four” and assess the impact of the
peace settlement on
Germany
and European society in the inter-war period.
Unit
9: Russian Revolutions and the Rise of Stalin
- 19th
Century Background
- Events
leading to the March Revolution of 1917
- Problems
of the Provisional Government
- The
Bolshevik Revolution of November 1917
- The
consolidation of the Revolution under Lenin
- Stalin
and totalitarianism in the
Soviet Union
Unit 9 Proficiencies: Students
will be able to
- Analyze
the background causes of the Russian Revolutions in the problem faced by
Russia
in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
- Analyze
the ways Lenin modified Marx’s ideas to apply them in a Russian setting.
- Explain
the events that led to the March Revolution of 1917.
- Analyze
the weakness of the Provisional Government and the strengths of the
Bolsheviks.
- Analyze
the consolidation of the Revolution under Lenin.
- Evaluate
the extent to which Lenin left in place a totalitarian regime in the
Soviet Union
.
- Describe
and assess the success of the “Stalin Revolution” in agriculture and
industry.
- Describe
the elements that constituted the “Great Terror” and explain how Stalin
used terror to consolidate his control.
Unit 10: Road to World War II
- Rise
of Totalitarianism
- Rise
of Hitler
- Totalitarianism
in
Germany
- Road
to War: 1933-1939
- Appeasement
- Blizkrieg
in
Europe
: 1939-1941
- The
Holocaust
Unit 10
proficiencies: students will be able to
- Describe,
compare, and contrast the two totalitarian systems in Europe: Communism in
Russia
and Nazism in
Germany
.
- Describe
the factors that explain the rise of the Nazi movement and Hitler’s rise
to power.
- Analyze
the Nazi revolution as a “revolution from below” taking a social history
perspective on the rise of Nazism.
- Discuss
the background and immediate causes of World War II.
- Assess
the actions, and inactions, of the Allies during the era of appeasement.
- Describe
the outbreak of the war and assess the extent of Nazi victories in
Europe
by 1941.
- Trace
the course of the Holocaust from pre-war harassment and legal restrictions
through the genocide of the “Final Solution.”
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