Fall 2005 Graduate Courses - Medieval Institute, University of Notre Dame

715 Hesburgh Library, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556-5629, Telephone: (574) 631-6603, Facsimile: (574) 631-8644, Email: medinst@nd.edu

Fall 2005: Graduate Courses

MI 60001 Introduction to Medieval Studies
Thomas Prugl
M 05:00-05:50

A one-credit-hour course designed to introduce students to the basic bibliographies, handbooks, and research tools in medieval studies. Professors from various disciplines will participate.

MI 60003 Introduction to Christian Latin
Dan Sheerin
MTRF 08:30-09:20

“Introduction to Christian Latin Texts”(= Medieval Latin I) has two goals: to improve the student’s all-around facility in dealing with Latin texts and to introduce the student to the varieties of Christian Latin texts and basic resources that aid in their study. Exposure to texts will be provided through common readings which will advance in the course of the semester from the less to the more demanding and will include Latin versions of Scripture, exegesis, homiletic, texts dealing with religious life, formal theological texts, and Christian Latin poetry. Philological study of these texts will be supplemented by regular exercises in Latin composition. (Medieval Latin II, a survey of Medieval Latin texts, will follow this course in the spring term.)

MI 60021 The Medieval Book
Calvin Bower
TR 03:30-04:45

A historical survey of the medieval book as a cultural, archeological, artistic, and commercial object from about A.D. 300 to 1500.

MI 60110 Introduction to Old English
Katherine O’Brien O’Keeffe
TR 11:00-12:15

This introduction to the study of Old English will focus on the elements of the language preparatory to reading and analyzing a variety of prose and verse texts. Issues for discussion and study will include: current and past constructions of philology, the canon, the politics of editing, issues in translation, interpretative strategies, subject formation, issues in period construction, research tools, possibilities for future work. No prior experience with Old or Middle English is necessary. Requirements: an ungraded midterm assessment, daily class work, a brief paleography assignment, a short paper, a final exam.

MI 60146 Early Chaucer
Dolores Frese
TR 09:30-10:45

If Chaucer had never written the Canterbury Tales, his claim upon our attention as one of the greatest poets ever writing in the English language would be secure based on the earlier works that will occupy us as readers/ writers/ discussants during this term: Book of the Duchess, House of Fame, Parliament of Fowls and the magnificent Troilus & Criseyde . Additionally we will certainly read some--or all--of the short poems that--along with Canterbury Tales (which we will not read)--comprise the Chaucer canon. No prior experience with Middle English is required. Requirements: a midterm, a final, and a term paper. Text: Larry Benson’s The Riverside Chaucer or any scholarly edition of the early poems named above.

MI 60198 Medieval Literature
Kathryn Kerby-Fulton
MW 03:00-04:15

This course will examine the major literary religious writers of late medieval England, including William Langland, Margery Kempe, Julian of Norwich, and (via Middle English translation) Marguerite Porete. These texts will be read alongside Wycliffite writings of the same period in order to illuminate how literary writers sought to defend or enlarge their orthodoxy in response to the challenges of these newer reformist ideas and the sudden rise of heterodoxy. Wycliffism is currently of major concern to both modern literary and historical scholars, as well as to theologians, and therefore the course will take a broadly interdisciplinary approach. Controversially called “the Premature Reformation” by the leading scholar of the field, Anne Hudson, the Wycliffite movement raises fascinating theoretical and ideological problems in relation to these early literary texts in which they first appear in the English religious tradition. Texts: Piers Plowman: by William Langland: An Edition of the C-text , ed. Derek Pearsall (Edward Arnold/University of Exeter); The Book of Margery Kempe, trans. B.A. Windeatt (Penguin); Women’s Writing in Middle English , ed. A. Barratt (Longman’s); Anne Hudson, Selections from English Wycliffite Writings (Cambridge). Optional Texts: William Langland’s Piers Plowman: The C Version, trans. G. Economou (U. of Penn.); any original language edition of Chaucer; Medieval English Political Writings , edited by James M. Dean (Medieval Institute Publications/Western Michigan University).

MI 60361 Plato Christianus
Stephen Gersh
TR 02:00-03:15

This course is designed as an introduction to the philosophy of Plato, the “Platonism” (i.e., Middle Platonism, Neoplatonism) of antiquity, the transformation of Platonism by the Greek and Latin Church Fathers, and the medieval and Renaissance traditions derived from the above. In the first half of the semester, we shall survey the tradition as a whole and deal with a variety of general questions. However, particular attention will be given to two fundamental hermeneutic criteria employed by the followers of this tradition: namely, “radical selectivity” and “philosophical allegorization.” In the second half of the semester, two specific texts which have arguably set the pattern for the Latin and Greek intellectual traditions respectively will be studied in more detail: Augustine’s “On the City of God” and the works of pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. The course is intended to be accessible to students without knowledge of Latin or Greek. Requirement: one final paper of ca. 20 pp.

MI 60363 Poetry and Philosophy in the 12th Century
Stephen Gersh
TR 12:30-01:45

This course will aim to provide a close reading of Bernard Silvestris’s “Cosmographia” and Alan of Lille’s “De Planctu Naturae” against the background of early twelfth-century philosophical thought and grammatical-rhetorical theory. Although it will be initially necessary to cover the philological and historical ground with some care, the course will also attempt to explore in a more speculative and creative manner the question of the kind of relation between philosophy and literature in general that works like the “Cosmographia” and “De Planctu” suggest. As stimuli to such reflections, we shall pause to examine in some detail such textual phenomena as the philosophical allegory, the hermeneutical and metaphysical implications of number, the notion of self-reflexivity, and the negative symbol. The course is intended to be accessible to students without skill in Latin (although the latter would, obviously, be an advantage). Requirement: one final paper of ca. 20 pp.

MI 60400 Early Christianity: An Introduction
John Cavadini
MW 08:00-09:15

This course provides an introduction to the history and thought of the first 500 years of the Christian church. The approach taken will be largely that of social history: we will try to discover not only the background and context of the major theological debates but also the shape and preoccupations of “ordinary” Christian life in late antiquity. Topics to be studied will therefore include canon formation, martyrdom, asceticism, Donatism, Arianism, and Pelagianism. The class will stress the close reading of primary texts. Requirements include class participation, a final examination, the memorization of a few important dates and places, and two papers, one of which will be an exercise in the close reading of an additional primary source and the other and exploration of early Christian exegesis.

MI 60410 Jews and Christians Throughout History
Michael Signer
TR 03:30-04:45

In the closing days of the II Vatican Council Nostra Aetate (Declaration on non-Christian Religions) reversed a negative attitude of the Catholic Church toward Judaism and the Jewish people. This remarkable change promoted “dialogue” with Jews, and positive changes in the ways in which Judaism was presented in Liturgy and Catechesis. Reactions from the Jewish communities were diverse: from rejection to welcoming. This course will explore a number of issues which emerge from the history of Christian thought and theology: How did a negative image of Judaism develop within Christianity? In what ways did these unfavorable teachings contribute toward violence against the Jews? What is the relationship between Christian anti-Jewish teachings and Antisemitism? Is there any correspondence to Christian hostility within Judaism? In what ways have Jewish authors reacted to Christian tradition? We shall also want to construct a more positive theology for the future. How can Jews and Christians develop religious responses to modernity? In what senses can a study of Judaism by Christians, or Christianity by Jews, help either community to understand itself better? How can Christians and Jews develop a theology of “the other” which is not triumphalist, but empathic.

MI 60462 The Jewish-Christian Debate in the High Middle Ages
Michael Signer
T 09:30-12:15

The growth of urban centers in Europe and Iberia during the Middle Ages rekindled the literary debates between Jews and Christians that began in the Early Church. Both Jews and Christians constructed images of the Other that were grounded in earlier arguments from Scripture and augmented them with the new tools of reason and linguistic knowledge. Our seminar will read both Jewish and Christian documents analyzing them in light of the work of modern historians such as Gilbert Dahan, Jeremy Cohen, David Berger, and Gavin Langmuir. In addition to reading disputation literature, we shall analyze papal policy, noble patronage, and canon law.

MI 60465 Topics in Medieval Theology: The Sacraments
Thomas Prügl
MW 11:45-01:00

Pastoral necessity as well as heresies and uncertainties about the nature of the sacraments made it unavoidable for the medieval church to reflect upon its most distinctive liturgical rites. Within the context of the formation and growth of scholasticism, the sacraments provided an excellent training ground to test the strength of western theological thought. Due to the influence of Peter Lombard’s collection of patristic “Sententiae” the sacraments finally became a major field within the institutionalized theology at the universities. Our course will focus on those events and texts of the earlier Middle Ages which challenged theologians like Paschasius Radbertus, Berengar of Tour and Lanfranc of Bec to specify their views about the Eucharist. It will consider the formation of a systematic treatise on the sacraments in the French schools of the 12th century, and finally present the synthesis of high scholastic sacramental theology in Thomas Aquinas and Bonaventure. Besides the generic questions on the nature of the sacraments as such, special attention shall also be paid to baptism, the Eucharist, confirmation and penitence.

MI 60536 Lyric Poetry of the Renaissance
Jo Ann Della Neva
R 02:00-04:30

This course will focus on the love poetry of three French Renaissance lyricists: Maurice Scève’s Délie, the Rymes of Pernette Du Guillet and the Oeuvres poétiques of Louise Labé. In order to study these works within the context of Renaissance lyric traditions, a selection of the poems of the fourteenth-century Italian poet Petrarch will be read in a bilingual version. Special attention will be given to the crucial problem of imitation and originality in the Renaissance; hence various methods of intertextual analysis will be introduced. Other topics for discussion include: the image of the love-object (male/female) as portrayed in these texts, manifestations of erotic desire and neoplatonic love, the use of mythology, the varying poetic genres ( dizain, sonnet, elegy), the identification of literary topoi or commonplaces, feminist literary criticism and the role of rhetoric. Throughout this course, a close reading and analysis of the texts will be emphasized. A strong reading knowledge of French is essential.

MI 60552 Dante I
Piero Boitani
MW 11:45-01:00

Dante I normally covers the Inferno and Dante’s minor works, but this fall, taught by Distinguished Visiting Professor Piero Boitani, it will be slightly different. After a general introduction to Dante’s works and to the structure of the Divine Comedy, the course will examine major scenes and themes specially grouped to enable us to read through the Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. Such will be, for example, the themes of the “noble heart” (from Dante’s early works to the Paolo and Francesca scene in Hell, and onwards), of the dignity of the human being (from Limbo to Farinata and Cato), the episodes of Ulysses and Ugolino, the various accounts of the Donati family, the recurring versions of Creation, and the final vision of God. Text: the paperback edition of Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso published by Oxford University Press with the translation of John Sinclair. Exams: there will be a mid-semester test before the break, and a final exam before Thanksgiving.

MI 60554 Petrarch: The Soul’s Fragments
Ted Cachey
TR 02:00-03:15

Poet, scholar, and diplomat, Petrarch (1304-1374) was a central figure in the intellectual and literary worlds of his time. His introspective and meditative lyric poetry in Italian has moved readers and influenced poets and writers for the last seven hundred years. Describing his spiritual and literary project in the autobiographical dialogue Secretum (The Secret), Petrarch wrote: “I will attend to myself as far as I am able. I will collect the scattered fragments of my soul, and I will diligently focus on myself alone.” The course will focus on Petrarch’s Italian poetry, both the Canzoniere (Songs and Sonnets) and the Trionfi (The Triumphs), upon which his reputation as one of the best and most influential lyric poets of world literature is based. Before taking up the Canzoniere and the Trionfi, we will consider the life of Petrarch, his intellectual activities and his other works, including selections from his epistolary collections (Letters on Familiar Matters and Letters of Old Age) and other Latin works, especially the Secretum. The seminar will be conducted in Italian. Advanced undergraduate students of Italian language and literature are welcome (prerequisites: Introduction to Italian Literature I and II and ROIT 310). English translations of Italian and Latin primary sources will be made available and utilized. Requirements: a seminar presentation; mid-term exam; final paper.

MI 60662 Canon and Literature of Islam
Asma Afsaruddin
TR 03:30-04:45

This course is an introduction to the fundamental religious texts and literature of Islam. The list includes the Qur’an (the central, sacred scripture of Islam), the hadith (record of the speech and actions of the Prophet Muhammad), biography of the Prophet, exegetical literature, historical texts, mystical and devotional literature. Students will read primary texts in English translation with a focused discussion and analysis of form, content, historical background, religious significance, and literary allusions of the various texts. Themes such as “the unity and majesty of God;” prophecy and revelation;” good and evil;”this world and the hereafter” will be dealt with in the lectures and conversation in class. The course lays heavy emphasis on class discussion and student preparedness.

MI 60725 Northern Renaissance Painting
Charles Rosenberg
TR 11:00-12:15

Open to all students. This course traces the development of painting in Northern Europe (France, Germany, and Flanders) from approximately 1300 to 1500. Special attention is given to the art of Jan Van Eyck, Rogier van der Weyden, Heironymous Bosch, and Albrecht Dürer. Through the consideration of the history of manuscript and oil painting and the graphic media, students will be introduced to the special wedding of nature, art, and spirituality that defines the achievement of the Northern Renaissance.

MI 60757 Seminar: Venetian and Northern Italian Renaissance Art
Randy Coleman
TR 03:30-04:45

This course focuses on significant artistic developments of the sixteenth century in Venice with brief excursions to Lombardy and Piedmont. Giorgione, Titian, and Palladio, the formulators of the High Renaissance style in Venice, and subsequent artists such as Tintoretto and Veronese are examined. An investigation of the art produced in important provincial and urban centers such as Brescia, Cremona, Milan, Parma, Varallo, and Vercilli also provide insight into the traditions of the local schools and their patronage.

MI 60804 Old Irish
Peter T. McQuillan
TR 12:30-01:45

The aim of this course is to enable students with no previous knowledge of Irish, medieval or modern, to take the first steps towards acquiring a reading knowledge of Old Irish. By "Old Irish" is meant conventionally the language of the seventh and eighth centuries A.D. The emphasis will be on reading texts in the original language by means of a detailed examination of the grammatical structure of the language. We will also, however, give some consideration to aspects of the literary and cultural contexts in which our texts were composed. The texts that we will use have yet to be decided.

MI 63202 Proseminar in Medieval History II
John Van Engen
R 02:00-04:30

A chronological proseminar in substance and bibliography required of all students in medieval history.

MI 63214 Italian Renaissance
Margaret Meserve
T 02:00-04:30

This course surveys the intellectual, cultural, social, and political history of Italy in the “long” Renaissance (ca 1275-1525). The course, though proceeding chronologically, will engage with specific themes in turn, including the economic and political development of the late medieval city-state; humanism, antiquarianism, and the revival of classical learning; the “rebirth” of the figurative arts; republicanism and despotism; courtly life; social order (and disorder); religious devotion; political upheaval, and intellectual crisis. A constant theme underscoring these various topics, and one which will serve as an organizing principle for the course, is the Renaissance fascination with the past, with origins, antiquity, lineages and pedigree, ancient rights, historical liberties, first principles, and claims to authority. Readings will be drawn from primary and secondary sources in roughly equal measure. Students will write either a long research paper or three short bibliographical and historiographical essays.

MI 63402 Historical Theology Seminar: Medieval Theology
Bernard McGinn
F 12:50-03:50

The last two centuries of the Middle Ages were a time of crisis in church and society, but paradoxically also the era of the “harvest of mysticism,” especially in the vernacular languages (German, Dutch, English, and Italian). This seminar will investigate key texts in late medieval mysticism to explore both their contribution to the history of Christian mysticism and their theological challenge to the present. The format will involve lectures, close text study, and student reports. Reading knowledge of Latin and/or one medieval vernacular language is advisable.

MI 63750 Seminar in Medieval Art
Charles Barber
TR 02:00-03:15

Iconoclasm Seminar
This seminar addresses the implications of destroying art. We will seek to understand manifestations of this phenomenon as both an historical and philosophical event. As such, this seminar will address the impact of verbal discourse on visual material. In particular, we will examine the consequences of “representation” and the claims to a truth in painting that are implied in that notion. To explore this theme we will pick our way through the debates found in primary and secondary readings that address the origins and nature of Byzantine iconoclasm. This early Medieval controversy provides the primary moment for the formulation of definitions regarding the possibility of a Christian art. A thorough examination of the varieties of argument brought to bear on this issue will provide paradigms for the consideration of the power of representation in other periods. Students will be able to address other manifestations of iconoclasm, including those of the Carolingian period, of later Medieval Europe, and of the Reformation.

MI 66020 Directed Readings (for Graduate Students)
Various Instructors
By arrangement

Offers students a possibility, normally in their second or third year, to work closely with a professor in preparing a topic mutually agreed upon. Student and professor must sign a form that records the readings.

MI 67001 2nd-Year Research Tutorial I
Thomas Prügl
By arrangement

An intensive program of reading in primary sources (preponderantly in the original language) and scholarly literature with a view to identifying a worthwhile, original research project, for completion in the following semester,

77001 Field Examination Preparation
Thomas Prügl
By arrangement

Offers students a possibility, normally in their second or third year, to work closely with a professor in preparing for one of their field examinations.

77002 Dissertation Proposal Preparation
Thomas Prügl
By arrangement

Offers students the opportunity to work with their adviser in preparing their dissertation proposal.

88001 Research and Dissertation
Thomas Prügl
By arrangement

Independent research and writing on an approved subject under the direction of a faculty member.

88002 Nonresident Dissertation Research
Thomas Prügl
By arrangement

Required of nonresident graduate students who are completing their theses in absentia and who wish to retain their degree status.