Instructor: Dr. Scott S. Reese
Meeting Time: 11:10-12:25 T, Th
Office Hours: T,Th
9-10
Office Tel. 523-9049
Email: Scott.Reese@nau.edu
Instructor’s Webpage: http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~ssr7
Downloadable Syllabus (in MS Word)
Course Description
and Class Format:
People at prayer, The 1001 Nights, and women in veils are
all part of our popular images of the Islamic world. But how do they fit into
the history of Muslim society? This
course will explore the evolution of the Muslim faith from its beginnings as a
small local Arab religion to a truly global faith stretching from the Atlantic
Ocean to the gates of
This class will be run as a combination of lecture and weekly discussions based on the assigned readings and student generated questions. Ideally, at least part of one class period a week will be reserved for discussion of the material covered over the course of the week. As a rule you should come to class at the beginning of the week having read the chapters assigned in the general survey text (Lapidus) and have the supplementary readings (e.g. Maalouf, Hamdun and various electronic reserve readings) completed by the time of class on Thursday—the day we generally leave time open for discussion.
Required Texts:
Lapidus, Ira A
History of Islamic Societies 2nd Edition
Hamdun, Said and Noel King, Ibn
Battuta in Black Africa, Princeton: Marcus
Weiner Publishers (1994) An account by a
14th century Moroccan scholar of his travels in
Maalouf, Amin The
Crusades Through Arab Eyes
The above books are Required Readings for all students in the course and are available at the NAU Bookstore. Other weekly readings are listed within the body of the syllabus. These include both primary documents in translation and secondary readings intended to add depth and texture to our understanding of the Islamic past. As such, they will form an integral part of class discussions and students will be expected to arrive for class meetings having read and digested the material and be ready for discussion. All or most of these readings can be found through Cline Library electronic reserve which can be accessed via the following link: http://www.nau.edu/library/courses/fall05/his230-reese/
Course
Objectives:
In addition to increasing your knowledge of
our past, this course will also give you the opportunity to develop and utilize
various skills -- especially regarding analytical thought and writing-- which
will be valuable throughout your university career and beyond.
As a Liberal Studies course this class will follow certain themes and is intended to help you develop particular intellectual skills in addition to studying the history of the ancient and medieval worlds. The Thematic Focus of the course is Understanding and Valuing the Diversity of Human Experience, which falls under the Cultural Understanding Distribution Block. There are a variety of Essential Skills you are expected to develop during the course of the semester including: Critical thinking, Critical Reading and Effective Writing.
In particular by the end of this course you should:
·
Learn critical methods of historical inquiry
and terminology.
·
Ability to construct a chronology of Islamic
history to 1500 (Cultural understanding).
·
Ability
to think and write critically through historical interpretation. (Critical thinking, Critical Reading and
Effective Writing.)
·
Demonstrate an understanding of the
diversity and importance of the Islamic faith in the development of human
history as a whole. (Understanding and Valuing the Diversity of
Human Experience and cultural understanding)
Assessment of
Outcomes and Course Requirements: A Variety of tools will be used to help
you achieve the objectives of the course:
1) Two (2) in class exams
Each exam will consist of short response and essay questions based on readings and class notes. Essays must demonstrate a grasp of the historical material and be expressed in your own words. The goal of this assignment is to foster the cultural understanding of students and appreciation of the value of human diversity as well as help them hone their critical thinking skills.
Exams, if missed, may be made-up only for documented medical or grave personal reasons. NO DOCUMENTATION=NO MAKE-UP!! Make-ups will be administered according to departmental and university policy.
A FURTHER NOTE: All exams must be taken using an
examination blue book provided by the student—these are readily available at
the University Bookstore.
2) Article Review (500-700 words)
This assignment is designed to sharpen your ability to comprehend and analyze historical arguments put forward by modern historians of the Islamic world. Weeks 2-4 each contain recent scholarly articles as part of that week’s reading assignment. You need to choose one of these and write a 500-700 word essay that 1) provides a concise summary of the arguments put forward by the author and 2) an analysis of those arguments indicating what you think are the strong and weak points of the author.
Reviews must be turned in on Thursday of the week those readings are due (thus the due dates are September 8, 15, or 22) Since you have multiple opportunities to complete this assignment late submissions will not be accepted.
3) Analytical Essay (800-1000 words)
While exams are designed to test your knowledge of the course material, essays are intended to hone your ability to analyze primary sources and historical arguments. Students will be required to write an essay based on questions relating to either Hamdun’s Ibn Battuta or Maalouf’s The Crusades Through Arab Eyes. This essay will be 800-1000 words in length, and must be typewritten, double-spaced with one-inch margins and font no larger than 12 point. The essay topics and criteria sheets will be handed out in advance of the paper due dates.
Late papers will lose one full letter grade per day late, NO EXCEPTIONS (this will include weekends when applicable). Make and retain a copy of your essay before handing it in-- the instructor is not responsible for “lost” papers. (Also, back-up all computer work on at least 2 separate disks).
Note: Papers delivered as e-mail attachments will not be accepted without prior approval of the instructor.
4) Final Essay
All students will be required to write a final essay as the concluding assessment of their performance in this class. The essay will be in a take home format and will require you to synthesize data from both lectures and readings from through out the term in order to demonstrate your understanding of the Islamic past. Outside research will, of course, not be necessary.
The final essay for
this class will be due in class on Tuesday, December 6th.
5) Participation/Attendance and Weekly Summaries (Weekly Summary Guide)
Class attendance is not a graded portion of the course. However, as a discussion oriented course participation is graded. You are required to show up to each class period having read the material and ready to engage it in a meaningful manner.
In order to help insure that you complete the readings but also to assist you in approaching them critically, each student will be required to bring a five (5) point summary of the main arguments of that week’s readings to class every Thursday (except during weeks when other assignments are due). Each point need be no more than 1-2 sentences but needs to illustrate what you think are the principle foci of the readings.
These will be turned in to the instructor at the end of class. Failure to do so will result in the deduction of ½ point from your participation grade for each summary not turned in (e.g. if you miss one week your potential participation grade will drop from 10 to 9.5 automatically. Keep in mind, however, this is not the only determinant of your participation grade.) Summaries will only be accepted by the instructor at the time of the class meeting (i.e. you may not turn in your summary before or after class.) A separate sheet detailing what you need to look for in different readings will be forthcoming.
Finally, it should be noted that missing more than 2 class periods will have a serious impact on your participation grade.
If you must miss class for whatever reason, it is your responsibility to obtain that day’s notes and any other pertinent information from one of your classmates. If circumstances dictate (e.g. family or medical emergency) that you must miss more than 2 classes, it is also your responsibility to discuss this situation with the instructor.
Extensions, incompletes and make-up exams will be granted only in accordance with University and departmental policy.
Course Evaluation:
Your course grades will be based on the following distribution:
In Class Exams – 15% ea.
Article Review—20%
Analytical Essay – 20%
Final Essay – 20%
Participation/
Weekly Summaries -- 10%
A standard grading scale will be in use
90%+= A; 80-89% =B; 70-79%=C; 60-69%=D; below 60%=F
Plagiarism:
See attached sheet regarding academic conduct and misconduct.
Note1
: Extensions, incompletes and make-up
exams will be granted only in accordance with University and departmental
policy.
Note2:
All cell phones and pagers must be turned off before entering
the classroom. This is a courtesy to your instructor and your classmates. If there is a reason why you need to leave
you phone/pager on during class (e.g. family emergency) please consult with the
instructor before class.
Note
3: Personal recording devices (magnetic tape and/or
digital) may not be used to record class lectures, except in cases of
documented medical need. Please see the instructor for an elaboration on this
policy if you have any questions.
Weekly Schedule of
Topics (bear in mind this is a guide.
Wk. 1 ( Aug. 30-Sept. 1) al-Jahiliyya -- The Age of Ignorance
Social structure
Empire and Religion – South Arabian kingdoms, Byzantine and Sassanid empires
Lapidus
Introduction pp. 3-9,
Wk 2 (Sept. 6-8) Meccan troubles and the age of Muhammad
Waldman The Islamic World pp.3-27 on e-reserve
Mahmood Ibrahim “Social and
Economic Conditions in Pre-Islamic
Review of Ibrahim due
Wk 3 (Sept. 13-15) The Early Community and Succession to the Prophet
Al-Rashidun—The Rightly Guided Ones
Wars of conquest – East and West
Stowasser, “The Hijab: How a Curtain Became an
Institution and a Cultural Symbol” in Afsaruddin, Asma and A.H. Mathias
Zahniser, eds. Humanism, Culture and
Language in the
Keddie, “Introduction: Deciphering Middle Eastern Women’s History” in Keddie, Nikki and Beth Baron eds. Women in Middle Eastern History, Shifting Boundaries in Sex and Gender. pp. 1-22 on e-reserve
Review of
Stowasser or Keddie due
Wk 4 (Sept. 20-22) Creation of the State --
Civil war
Umayyad Caliphate
Waldman, pp. 75-81 on e-reserve
Spellberg, “Early Islam and the
Position of Women: A’isha and the
Review of
Spellberg due
Wk 5 (Sept. 27- 29) The Abbasid revolution
Courtly and Urban life
Life among the Ahl al-Kitab
Waldman, pp. 85-134 on e-reserve
Wk. 6 (Oct. 4-6) Theological and scholarly evolution
Berkey, “Introduction” from The Transmission of Knowledge in Medieval Cairo pp. 3-20 on e-reserve
Berkey, “Women and Islamic Education in the Mamluk Period” in Keddie and Baron, pp. 143-157 on e-reserve
1st Exam
Wk. 7 (Oct.11-13) Commerce and the Quran – Islam in
Hamdun, Ibn Battuta in Black
Wk. 8 (Oct. 18-20)
East Africa and the
Hamdun, Ibn Battuta in Black
1st Analytical Essay Due
Wk. 9 (Oct. 25-27) Expansion in Central and
Ernst, “Admiring the Works of the
Ancients: The Ellora Temples as Viewed by Indo-Muslim Authors” in Beyond Turk
and Hindu—Rethinking Religious Identities in Islamicate
Eaton, “
Wk. 10 (Nov. 1-3) Invaders from the East
Saljuqs
Mongols
Waldman, pp. 248-272 on e-reserve
2nd Exam
Wk. 11 (Nov. 8-10) Invaders from the West
The Crusades
Maalouf, The Crusades Through Arab Eyes
Wk. 12 (Nov. 15-17) The Mamluks and the concept of slavery in Islam
Shaun E. Marmon “Domestic Slavery in the Mamluk Empire: A preliminary sketch” in Slavery in the Islamic Middle East pp.1-23 on e-reserve
David Ayalon, “The Mamluks: The Mainstay of Islam’s Military Might” in Slavery in the Islamic Middle East pp.89-117 on e-reserve
Also review Berkey’s introduction for basic political outline of the Mamluk sultanate
Wk. 13 (Nov. 22-24)
Islam on the Defensive –
Marcus, chs. 1, 2 on e-reserve
Mahoney, “Between Islam and
Christendom: The Ethiopian Community in
2nd
Analytical Essay Due
Wk. 14 (Nov. 29- Dec. 1)
Cont. from Wk. 13
Wk. 15 (Dec. 6) Turn
in Final Essay.