B5102 - Civilisations of the Late Middle Ages (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, students will know the characteristics of late medieval civilisation and will be able to identify the cultural, social, economic and political peculiarities of the complex reality of the last centuries of the Middle Ages (12th-15th centuries). They will be able to approach texts and data critically and to evaluate their different incidence in historiography.

Course contents

The course aims to analyse the main political, economic and cultural events of the late Middle Ages society, and the evolution of the relationships between Empire and Papacy.

The first part of the course (approximately 18 hours) will focuse on the general historical framework: the crisis of universal powers; the rise of national monarchies; the medieval commune; origins and character of Italian despotism; the Italian territorial states (XIV-XV centuries).

The second part will focus on the specific topic (monographic course): The renunciation of the pontificate (approximately 12 hours).

Readings/Bibliography

Attending students

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

Papa, non più papa. La rinuncia pontificia nella storia e nel diritto canonico, a cura di A. Feniello e M. Prignano, Roma, Viella, 2022.

 

Non-attending students:

Papa, non più papa. La rinuncia pontificia nella storia e nel diritto canonico, a cura di A. Feniello e M. Prignano, Roma, Viella, 2022.

G.G. Merlo, Basso Medioevo, Torino, UTET, 2010 (only for students not attending).

Teaching methods

Lessons (general approach to the subject); reading and comment of the principal sources.

Assessment methods

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

The final exam will be an oral one, with questions aimed to verify the student's knowledge of the themes discussed during frontal lessons (only for students that participated in classwork) as well as those treated in the program's texts. Among the elements that concur in the final evaluation there are: detailed knowledge of the book's content, property of language, and especially the capacity of organizing the information into complex answers showing expositive and critical skills.

Top marks will be awarded to a student displaying an overall understanding of the topics discussed during the lectures, combined with a critical approach to the material and a confident and effective use of the appropriate terminology.
Average marks will be awarded to a student who has memorized the main points of the material and is able to summarise them satisfactorily and provide an effective critical commentary.
A student will be deemed to have failed the exam if he displays significant errors in his understanding and failure to grasp the overall outlines of the subject, together with a poor command of the appropriate terminology.

This 6 CFU course can be chosen as a part of the 12 CFU Integrated Course “MEDIEVAL INSTITUTIONS AND CIVILISATIONS (C.I.) (LM)”. If the student has the Integrated Course (12 CFU) in his/her study plan, the final grade will result from the arithmetic average of the marks obtained in the two parts (“CIVILIZATION OF THE LATE MIDDLE AGES (1) (LM)” and “MEDIEVAL POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS (1) (LM)”).

Students are reminded that the examinations of the two C.I. modules must be taken in the same session.

Teaching tools

We will use power point slides with images, graphics and geographics maps.

Students who require specific services and adaptations to teaching activities due to a disability or specific learning disorders (SLD), must first contact the appropriate office: https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students .

Office hours

See the website of Berardo Pio