Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

An exploration of the cultural and intellectual accomplishments of a specific city that achieved prominence in a particular time period, and had substantial impact and influence on human civilization. Examines the political, social, religious, and cultural factors that help to explain a city's significance and investigates the achievements of its citizens. Students may repeat this course for further credit under a different topic. Breadth-Humanities.

COURSE DETAILS:

Great Cities in Their Time: London

The origins of London are lost in Britain’s pre-Celtic past. After the burning of Camulodunon (Colchester) in 60 BC, the little village on the Thames became the capital—first of a backwater Roman province, then of a kingdom rather peripheral to medieval Europe, and ultimately the seat of the British Empire and one of the great cities of the modern world. Aside from its political influence, London has shaped our language, from Chaucer to Shakespeare to Dickens, and our culture. Cultural trends from coffee and tea to curry and chips have gotten their first footholds in London, and the city remains a gateway between the United Kingdom and the rest of the world.

This course takes a two-tiered approach to London, on the one hand tracing its growth in size and importance through the great minds and great movements associated with it. On the other hand, we are also examining the lives of ordinary Londoners, especially as chronicled through the works of Chaucer, Pepys, Dickens, and various artists and musicians, with an eye toward what makes London unique among large cities.

Grading

Materials

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