Summer 2009 Lectures: Mondays, 10:30-12:20 (WMC 3220) Tutorials: Wednesdays, 10:30-11:20 (BLU 9655), 11:30-12:20 (BLU 9655) Instructor | Course Requirements | Schedule of Weekly Readings and Questions | Required Texts | Tips for reading | History 223 and other History Courses | Home

Content

Our purpose in this course is to familiarize ourselves with essential skills in the discipline of history through a comprehensive examination of a significant and substantial period of European history-from the eve of the Protestant Reformation to the eve of the French Revolution, the so-called early modern period.

History is not an inventory of past events. Its principal business is to interpret the past and to evaluate interpretations of the past. We shall begin by seeing if the term "early modern" is an appropriate name for the period that we shall study. Then through the perspectives of social and cultural history we shall discover the relevance of ritual for Europeans and consider if evidence from the eighteenth century points to the demise of the prevailing social system and to the beginnings of modern Europe.

In addition to developing skills in identifying and evaluating historical interpretations, we shall focus on the basic research skills required for writing history essays. Through the online databases of the SFU library catalogue and by other means students will construct bibliographies in response to specific questions of historical research.

Please bring Cameron, Early Modern Europe to the first class. We will cover pp. xvii-xxxi, 1-28 on 4 May.