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History 424-01W-Early Modern English History
TTH 8:00-9:50, DBH 113
Dr. Ginger Frost
DBH 109, ext. 2819, gsfrost@samford.edu
Office Hours: MW 8:00-9:30 and by appointment

Purpose: The purpose of this course is to explore the history of England from 1485 to 1714 (Tudor-Stuart dynasties). We will concentrate primarily on England, although we will discuss Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and the empire as necessary. Students should come away from the class with a better understanding of the social, political, and intellectual history of England and some grasp of the most essential historiographical issues of the field. They should also develop speaking, critical thinking, and writing skills.

Assignments: This course is divided into four roughly chronological sections. A paper is due at the end of the first three sections; the final will have one comprehensive section and one section covering the last part of the course. You must do three of these four assignments, either two of the papers and the final, or all three papers, skipping the final. The only exception is that everyone must do the first paper; after that, you will get a break at some point in the semester. Try to choose which one to skip wisely. You may, of course, do all four; if you choose that option, I will drop your lowest grade. Each of these papers and the final is worth 25% of your final grade.

Another 15% of your grade will be based on in-class quizzes and assignments. The final 10% of your grade will be based on class participation which includes attendance, talking in class, and general interest in the course.

Lateness, Absences, and Make-ups: I value promptness; chronic lateness is unnecessary and rude. Please be to class on time. I will take attendance every day at 10:30 a.m. The only excused absences are illness (with a doctor's note) or university business (also documented). As soon as you know the dates you will be gone for the latter, please let me know. I will mark off that day as "excused" and will average your class grades without it. Otherwise absences will count against your grade, both overall and in particular. Three lates will equal one absence. I will offer no make-ups for missed quizzes or class participation; one cannot "make up" class discussions. I will, however, drop the lowest in-class grade before averaging them.

I also value promptness in papers. Papers are always due at the BEGINNING of class. I will take off 10 points a day for each day it is late, including weekends, up to 40 points. I will accept no papers more than a week late.

Academic Dishonesty: Anyone caught cheating in this course will be flunked for the course. All papers should be original and written specifically for this class. Furthermore, students may not plagiarize.

Plagiarism is the act of stealing the words or ideas of another person and passing them off as your own. The definition of plagiarism is four words in a row. If you use four or more identical words in a row from ANY text, you must (1) put those words in quotation marks; and (2) cite the reference in parenthesis after the quote. For example, "he had returned from his journey aloft" (Plato, 749). Remember: BOTH the quotation marks AND the page reference must be present to avoid penalties for plagiarism. Close paraphrasing by changing a word or two or the tense of the verbs is also plagiarism.

If you use the IDEAS of a writer, but not his/her exact words, you should cite the author and page without the quotation marks. However, you should NEVER use quotation marks without citation. In other words, any time you quote something, you must also tell the reader where the words originated.

If you unintentionally plagiarize, you will be docked ten points FOR EACH INSTANCE. If you intentionally plagiarize, you will flunk the course.

Students may not collaborate on formal papers, or on the final examination. Any students involved in such collaboration will receive zeroes on their papers or exams. If two students are knowingly involved, BOTH are guilty and will be penalized accordingly.

Discussion Methods: Please observe the following rules in discussions:

(1) Be to class on time. The rudest thing a student can do is be consistently late to class. It is disruptive to everyone and harmful to discussion. If you are consistently late, I reserve the right to penalize your overall class grade. You will also miss the quizzes, etc., which will hurt still more of your grade.

(2) Do not speak, walk about the classroom, read, or be disruptive when someone else is speaking.

(3) Turn off all pagers and cell phones before you enter the classroom; if you have some emergency reason for leaving them on, please set them on vibrate mode.

(4) Try to stay on topic. Your remarks should actually follow up on those of any speaker (either to disagree, agree, expand the point, etc.). I will ask, then, that no one raise his or her hand DURING another person's speech. You may only do so after the first speaker has stopped. This will show that you have actually listened to all s/he has had to say.

(5) Do not make personal remarks about others during discussions. I expects students to disagree on occasion, of course, but these should be intellectual differences only.

(6) Be careful not to dominate class. You are not graded for the amount of speaking, but the quality and appropriateness of your comments.

(7) Please use gender-inclusive language (this goes as well for written work).

These rules are meant to ensure that all students feel free to contribute to class and to be taken seriously. Without a feeling of safety and acceptance, no one will want to participate, and the class will be a disappointing bore.

Texts: The following are books are required:
Thomas More, Utopia (Dover Thrift Edition)
Christopher Haigh, Elizabeth I: Profiles in Power
William Shakespeare, Henry V (Dover Thrift Edition)
Lagomarsino and Wood, The Trial of Charles I: A Documentary History
David Underdown, Fire From Heaven: Life in an English Town in the Seventeenth Century
Packet of readings available from instructor.
As you can see, there is no textbook. However, I have placed some texts on reserve in the library. Should you get lost, or need a reference, you can consult them.

Each student will turn in up to three synoptic papers, due September 16, October 9, and November 13. ALL students must do the first paper; students may skip one of the last two (or they may choose to skip the final). Students may also choose to do all three papers and the final, and I will drop the lowest grade.

Answer the following questions in a 5-6 page essay:

PAPER ONE: The ideas of the Renaissance, as exemplified in the works of Thomas More, and the Reformation, as exemplified by the work of Thomas Starkey and Thomas Cranmer, entered England in the period 1485-1547. Which ideas were more influential in the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII? Why? Or were other ideas even more important than these?

PAPER TWO: Assess Elizabethan England in the following areas: politics/war, religion, economics, and culture. Which area was the most successful? Which was the least? How much credit should Elizabeth receive for the successes of her reign, and how much blame should she receive for its failures?

PAPER THREE: The Civil War had many long-term causes, religious, social, and political. After reviewing the trial of Charles I and the effect of the war on Dorset, which reasons would you argue were the most important (in other words, was this primarily a religious, political, or economic revolution)? Considering the strength of feeling on both sides, why did the monarchy recover as soon as Cromwell was dead?

HINTS FOR WRITING PAPERS:
In these papers, you are making an argument. You should state your points and then back them up with evidence from your readings and the lectures. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions, but there are some arguments that are easier to defend than others, since they have more logic and evidence behind them. Remember, you must try to anticipate and meet any objections to your points. One of the best ways to do this is to include the reasons you have NOT chosen some of the other options as well as the reasons you have chosen the one(s) you have. Of course, you may choose more than one answer or none of the answers if you wish; as long as you make a convincing argument, you can be creative. Please use only the lectures and readings assigned for the course.

It is a good rule of thumb to use as many of the readings and lectures as possible in your essays. It is also a good idea to read the assigned question before we start on the next section of the course. This will help you to formulate your essays. Always back up your position with logic and examples from the readings whenever possible.

Papers should be written in formal English (no use of first or second person, no contractions, avoid passive voice, etc.). Please use standard ten or twelve point type, one-inch margins, and double spacing. Double spacing is approximately 26 lines per page. Some computer software has over 30 lines a page and calls it double spacing, so count them if you are at all unsure. Any student turning in a paper in single space or space and a half will be penalized ten points. I will not read past the end of page six, so do not go over the limit. And be sure to avoid plagiarism (see pp. 1-2 of the syllabus for guidelines).

Papers are due at the BEGINNING of class. I will count off ten points a day for every day a paper is late up to forty points. I will accept no papers that are more than a week late. You may not collaborate on formal papers with other students, and they must be original and written specifically for this course.

I will also be happy to read over rough drafts and make suggestions in order to help you succeed. This does, however, require you to have a draft done early. Even if you do not have something written, you can come by and discuss your ideas if you would like. Remember: the most important part of writing papers for me is thinking through your answer carefully. Good luck!