European
Humanities
2011-12
Mr. Spragins
Students who take this humanities option will
study a survey of the history of ideas from the Ancient Greek world to the
Twentieth Century. The major periods that we will cover are the Greek World,
the Roman World, the Medieval World, the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, The
Romantic Era, and finally the Modern World. We will focus on the commanding
ideas typical to thinkers of each period: their conception of human nature,
the relationship between the individual and society, and the connection
between man and the natural world. We will study how a culture’s
literature, art, and music reflect the period's zeitgeist. Our central goal will be to define the moral,
political and philosophical principles that uphold civil society today.
Students taking this Humanities course will satisfy their History, English,
Art and Music requirements. The course will meet every day of the ten-day
cycle. The course will meet in a technology-enhanced room where we can make
full use of the computer’s multimedia capabilities and exploit internet
research opportunities. Twice during the ten-day cycle students in this
section will meet for the 3rd and 4th periods.
First Semester Topics and Texts:
September: Western
Ancient History in Twenty Minutes: The Age of Mythology
September: Homer:
Essay on Odysseus vs. Achilles
October: The Greek Ideal Project
October: Roman World Project
October: The Middle
Ages in Europe: Beowulf, part one
November: Early
Renaissance: The Prologue from Chaucer’s Canterbury
Tales
November: High Renaissance Art and Architecture; Shakespeare’s The Tempest
Thanksgiving Break
December:
Shakespeare’s Macbeth
January: The
Enlightenment; Voltaire's Candide
Midyear Exam (20% of
Semester Grade)
Second Semester Topics and Texts:
January:
The French Revolution
February:
Romantic Poetry: Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge and Keats
February:
The Industrial Revolution
March:
Russian Short Stories
March:
Josef Conrad, Heart of Darkness
April:
Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis
April:
World War One Poetry
April:
Modernism: Art, Poetry and Music
May:
Artifacts Essay
May:
The Origins of World War II
May: Lorca, La Casa de Bernarda Alba
May:
Primo Levi, Survival in Auschwitz
Final Exam (20% of Semester Grade)
Course Goals for the First Semester
Our primary task in the first semester will be to write essays on the major
texts. These papers will feature original theses informed by class
discussions, homework assignments, and revision. At the beginning of the
semester the student will write an essay which describes his particular
writing goals for the semester (such as improved thesis statements, better
organization of arguments, and clearer expression of ideas). The students will collect documents from
drafts of their papers into an electronic portfolio to demonstrate the progress
that they have made toward the achievement of their writing goals. We will
also be using new software, Writewell, to help students track their
improvement in writing through the semester.
We hope to produce well-organized essays that persuasively prove their
thesis statements by referring to specific characters, moments, and
quotations from the texts. The final drafts of these essays will be free of
grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors. The essays will be written in
elegant and rhetorically effective prose. To accomplish these writing goals,
the class will make extensive use of Gilman’s resources for writing: the Fenimore Library, the Writing Center, and our high tech
classroom which features a notebook computer for each student!
Classes will be driven by student ideas. Students will generate their
own thesis statements for major papers. Emphasis will be placed on the
variety of legitimate responses that can be made to a text rather than any
one correct path to understanding.
Students will lead class discussions and participate in a variety of
group activities. They will deliver presentations together and give speeches.
The students will also stage their own interpretations of scenes from The
Tempest during a Shakespeare Festival in early December.
There will be regular quizzes and tests on reading comprehension,
vocabulary, and grammar. Students will also be evaluated for their class
participation, preparation and general enthusiasm for the course.
Late Paper Policy:
Extensions will be granted for legitimate reasons, i.e. sickness, academic
crunches, and the like. However, no extensions will be granted on the day that a
paper is due. Papers are docked in grade five points for each
day that they are late (including weekends.)
Civil
Behavior in the Classroom
Vital to the success of our class this year will be basic civility. To
the very best of our ability, we must keep the tone of the class up-beat and
enthusiastic. We must be tolerant of differences and patient with each other.
Without trust, people will be less willing to take chances, to participate in
discussions, and to work cooperatively on group projects. It will be my
responsibility to set the tone and to model appropriate behavior.
No verbal abuse will be tolerated. Just as important is avoiding non-verbal
comments about each other and the class, such as slouching in chairs,
appearing to be deathly bored, staring out the window, sleeping, rolling
one’s eyes at people’s comments, snickering, snorting, etc. etc. etc. Just be
polite!
Businesslike decorum is required in dress. Our classroom is a place of
business, not a social center. Appropriate dress reflects an appropriate
attitude. So, tuck your shirts in before you come to class!
Repeated lateness to class will not be tolerated! If it happens more than
once, you will need to get a late pass from Ms. Turner or Mr. Schmick to
return to class.
Extra Help
I will be running a study hall in our classroom during 5th period every day.
Students are welcome to sign out and meet with me. It is easiest to reach me
by email. My email addresses are jspragins@gilman.edu
and sprago @aol.com. My office phone number is
(410) 323-3800 ext 252. Students and parents can also call me at home before
10:00 p.m. at (410) 828-5212.
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