All you need to know to complete Western Civ

All you need to know to complete Western Civ Spring 2011 FOR 203 ~ Western Civilization and the Environment ~ Dr. Vonhof

The Utmost Important Information There are two components necessary for completion of this course: 1) The exam in class on Monday May 2 nd 2) The take-home assignment due Wednesday May 4 th The exam is Monday, May 2 nd, at our regular class time, 1:50 2:45 p.m., 146 Baker. The take-home assignment is due by 11:00 a.m., Wednesday May 4 th.. Case-By Case Requests for Alternate Exam Time If you are in both FOR 203 and 204, you may take the exam on Wednesday May 4 th, between 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. (report to room 324 Bray). If you have a significant and plausible conflict, you may take the exam on Wednesday May 4 th, between 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. (report to room 324 Bray). Requests to take the exam on Wednesday May 4 th must be approved prior to Thursday, by Friday April 29 th, at noon (12:00 p.m.). To request approval, you must e-mail Dr. Vonhof before Friday. Do not assume approval until you receive a confirmation response. Dr. Sarah Vonhof, 303A Bray Hall, 470-6594, slvonhof@esf.edu Step One: the First Exam Review your first exam. Know the concepts (refer to the lecture objectives), not the answers to particular questions (i.e., true or C ). Re-consider and study the answers for questions for which you received less than full credit. Sometimes we do recycle questions, but not necessarily verbatim. Step Two: Questions to Pontificate Go through your lecture notes, in-class exercises, readings and texts; and think about these questions. These are big questions look at the list of lecture objectives to see the concepts on which these questions draw, and think about the connections among them. 1. Can you define Western civilization? Has your idea of Western civ changed over the semester? How and why? 2. What did you learn from Diamond s Guns, Germs, and Steel? What is his thesis? 3. What did you learn from Blaut s Colonizer s Model of the World? What is his thesis? Can you compare and contrast Blaut with Diamond? Which theory for the rise of the West seems more accurate or appropriate to you? Why? 4. Can you identify the features, themes, and characteristics of each era we covered (i.e., the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, Reformation, Scientific Revolution, or the Enlightenment)? Can you explain the importance or relevance or legacy of these eras to the history of Western civilization? 5. Can you identify all the various people we ve discussed? The Greek philosophers? The astronomers and scientists? The figures of the Renaissance and Enlightenment? 6. Are you familiar with the readings? White s thesis? Bromley s thesis? 7. What did you learn from the presentations? Think about the presenters objectives and general ideas. The exam will include at least one question for each presentation. 1

Step Three: The Timeline Put together a timeline of all the dates we ve learned and get a sense of the big picture. This is the timeline format that will appear on the final exam. You may want to copy this page to practice. Timeline [20pts]. Place the following labels in the correct boxes along the timeline. Fill in a date where indicated -- ( ). Scientific Revolution ( ) Collision of Cultures at Cajamarca ( ) Enlightenment Domestication of plants, Fertile Crescent ( ) Classical Greece Christianity becomes official Roman religion Magna Carta ( ) Onset of food production in Eastern US Reformation ( ) Middle Ages begin Renaissance begins Printing Press Fall of Rome ( ) Black Death 1 4 7 10 13 2 5 8 11 14 3 6 9 12 2

Step Four: the Take Home Component The take-home component of the exam requires you to illustrate and articulate intellectual insights, the connections among the history you ve learned, and the relevance of this history to your professional and personal development. Construct a concept map that illustrates the relationship between at least 5 concepts (or events or people) covered in the course, your major field of study (including elements within that discipline), and your personal perspective on historic influences of the western tradition (how all of this influences your personal and professional development). Write a 2-3 page narrative (typed, double-spaced, in 12pt font) that explains the concepts chosen and the connections drawn (the cause and effect relationships). Include references or citations as warranted. In composing your essay, focus not just on description (who, what, when) but on explanation (cause and effect, why and how, and the evidence to support this). The best narratives will go beyond the simple description of people, events, or concepts. This take-home component must be turned in by 11:00 a.m., Wednesday May 4 th The teaching team will be grading exams in 324 Bray. You should turn in your assignment directly to a member of the teaching team: do not put papers in my mailbox, or under my door. Assignments will not be accepted via e-mail unless prior arrangements have been made. Late assignments will not be accepted. Step Five: Everything you learned this semester Study this list of learning objectives. Greater emphasis will be placed on the learning objectives after the first exam. What is Western Civilization? and Intro to Guns, Germs, and Steel Define "Western" and "civilization" Discuss various definitions of "civilization" State Yali's question and Diamond's restatement of this as a research question Explain 2 (of 3) objections to Diamond's research question State Diamond's thesis in Guns, Germs, and Steel Describe the Great Leap Forward Collision of Cultures Describe the concept of a natural experiment of history and relate Diamond s example experiment Identify the date of the first encounter between Atahuallapa and Pizarro Define proximate and ultimate List the proximate factors relevant to the collision at Cajamarca Food Production Define food production and founder crops Identify the five areas in which food production arose independently and the dates of onset in southwest Asia (the Fertile Crescent) and the eastern U.S. Distinguish between independent and imported origins of food production Describe and explain the ultimate and proximate factors underlying the broadest patterns of history (figure 4.1) Distinguish among the ways in which plants are domesticated by conscious human choice and by factors not visible to humans Explain why food production thrived in the Fertile Crescent and not on other continents Animals, Axes, and Germs Identify the 2 key roles humans play in domestication Identify the Major 5 animal domesticates Explain Marvin Harris thesis regarding the domestication of pigs in the Middle East Identify the six reasons that make undomesticated animals undomesticable 3

Explain why axis orientation and topography influenced human history Explain how germs influnced human history and identify contemporary lethal gifts Writing and Technology Identify the early purposes of writing and printing Describe the evolution of writing and explain the ways in which it spread Explain the phrase necessity is the mother of invention and its converse Describe the 4 factors affecting the use and adoption of technology Identify the ultimate factor affecting the spread of writing and technology Guns, Germs, and Steel - National Geographic/PBS Documentary, Episode 3 - Into the Tropics Explain the influence of geography on the colonization of Africa List the advantages the Zulus had over the Voertrekkers Describe the role of 'guns germs and steel' in Africa today Government and Religion Describe the way in which Diamond classifies societies. Define egalitarian, differentiating between social structure and social stratification. Describe a kleptocracy and list the strategies for its maintenance. Discuss the origin and rise of the state. Historiography and Critique of Determinism and Diffusionism Define historiography and describe the historiography of diffusionism Describe the colonizer s model (diffusionist world model) Explain the concept of implicit association The Myth of the European Miracle Explain the concept of "the European Miracle" Outline the 6 basic categories of arguments supporting the European miracle also distinguish between cultural and non-cultural arguments Artciluate and support your view on whether Diamond's arguments regarding any of his proximate or ultimate factors fit into any of these categories Explain the concept of implicit association Blaut's Theory of the Rise of the West State Blaut s thesis in The Colonizer s Model of the World Describe the 4 grounds of comparison Blaut employs in his argument...midterm exam... Ancient Civilizations and Natural Resources Describe the natural resource use and environmental impacts in the civilizations of Easter Island, Mesopotamia, and Rome Identify the ecological consciousness of Mesopotamian civilization List the types of conservation attempts of the Roman empire Identify the date of the fall of Rome Knowledge, Philosophy, Science: The Greek Legacy Define epistemology and distinguish empirical knowledge from theoretical knowledge Identify the dates (centuries) of the era of Classical Greece & distinguish this era from other eras of Ancient Greece Describe the basic ideas of the following Greek philosophers Thales, Pythagoras, Democritus, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Theophrastus Explain the legacy of Greek thought on environmental attitudes in the Western tradition Christianity Identify the date that Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire Relate White s thesis in Historical Roots and explain the importance of this essay Describe 3 fundamental components of the legacy of the Christian tradition Explain 3 interpretations of human-nature relationship within the Christian tradition 4

Environmental Ethics Exercise & Discussion Draw and label the environmental ethics continuum Medieval Times: Feudalism, Magna Carta, and the Black Death Identify the dates of the Middle Ages Describe the features of feudalism Identify the date of Magna Carta, the King who signed it; and explain its significance Identify the dates of the Black Death Describe the bubonic plague and Cohn s thesis about the Black Death The Legacy of Feudalism and "Rousseau's Revenge" Describe the legacy of feudalism State Bromley's thesis in "Rousseau's Revenge" and summarize his essay Describe Bromely s concept of social ownership The Renaissance Define and describe the Renaissance Place the Renaissance on a time line Identify three prominent Renaissance figures and their major works Explain two meanings of Machiavellian Describe the timelessness of Shakespeare s plays The Reformation Identify the event that triggered the Reformation as well as the date of that event Explain the ultimate and proximate problems driving the Reformation Explain the paradox of the Reformation Describe the saga of the English Reformation Describe the Protestant Ethic (Weber) and its implications Scientific Revolutions: The Cosmos and the Natural World Describe the concept of a scientific revolution according to Kuhn (1962) Place the Scientific Revolution on a timeline using Copernicus work Identify the prominent figures of the scientific revolution and describe their contributions to Western science Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Newton Compare and contrast the old (medieval) and new (post-renaissance) categories and catalogues of the natural world Identify those who created the new catalogue of nature and describe their contributions to Western understanding of the natural world-- Ray, Linnaeus Identify the decade of Gutenberg s printing press (1450s) The Enlightenment Describe the characteristics of the Enlightenment Place the Enlightenment on a timeline (using Locke s Two Treatises) Identify these figures of the Enlightenment and their contributions to philosophy Locke, Rousseau, Hume, Kant Explain the concept of a social contract 5