SalisburyUniversity
Fall 2005
History 490/590
Culture and Contact: The Atlantic World
Dr. Melanie Perreault
HH381 (phone: 410-543-6267)
e-mail:
Office Hours: MW 9-12
(or by appointment)
When European sailors set sail for long-distance voyages in the fifteenth century, they transformed the oceans that had long been seen as a barrier to cultural diasporas into a rapid transport system that facilitated and mediated cultural contact. The confrontation of European, African, and American peoples resulted in a series of complex and often contradictory relationships that highlighted cultural differences; at the same time, they revealed significant similarities that threatened to undermine burgeoning notions of racial or ethnic superiority. This course will examine the collision of cultures in the Atlantic World from the early contact period to the revolutions of the late eighteenth century. During the semester we will examine several important themes, including: the challenge to and persistence of indigenous cultures, the creation of an Atlantic economy, and the development of New World societies.
Assigned reading:
The following books are available for purchase at the university bookstore:
Seed, Ceremonies of Possession
Lery, History of a Voyage to the Land of Brazil
Rediker, Villains of All Nations
Thornton, Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World
********In addition to these readings, students will be responsible for the articles on reserve at the library************.
Course Requirements: Students will be evaluated based on their performance in class discussions, papers, and presentations. Grades will be weighted as follows:
Class participation:20%
Class Facilitation: 10%
Map paper:10%
In Class Essays:20%
Research Paper:30%
Presentation:10%
Evaluation: My final evaluation of your performance in this course will be judged only against yourself—this is not a competition between classmates. Class preparation is important in any course, but it is crucial for the success of this course. You must come to class each week having done the reading and mentally digesting the material. Since this course is a seminar, I expect the vast majority of our time together will be spent in discussion rather than lecture.
Writing Across the Curriculum: In accordance with the university’s emphasis on including writing in all courses, students will have many opportunities, both formal and informal, to improve their writing this semester. Specific details about writing assignments can be found below.
Papers: Students are required to write a short map analysis and a 12-15 page research paper this semester. Detailed instructions for these papers will be handed out separately. Papers will be penalized 5 points for each day late.
Map analysis: Students will write one 3-4 page (typed, double spaced) analysis comparing an old map (1400-1800) of the Americas or Africa with a recent map. In addition to turning in a written version of the paper, students will give a brief (approximately 5-10 minute) report to the class, explaining their analysis.
In Class Essays: We will not have any traditional exams in this course, but we will have two in-class essays designed to reflect on the assigned readings. These are open book, open note writings.
Research Paper: In addition to the book review, students will write a lengthier research paper on the topic of their choice (in consultation with me). This 12-15 page paper will be based primarily on the student’s analysis of relevant documents rather than secondary sources. You are required to turn in a brief written proposal for your paper and meet with me to discuss your progress.
Class Facilitation: Each week, 1 or 2 students will offer a brief presentation on a specific topic related to the more general topic for the class. Students are expected to do a little extra reading (I will have suggested readings) and lead the class for 10-15 minutes.
Presentation: Students will present their final papers during the last week of the semester. There are to be semi-formal presentations, as if you were teaching a 10-minute class on your topic. I’m less interested in oral presentation technique than in your ability to share your ideas with your classmates. In other words, relax—this is not intended to make your palms sweat!
Course Schedule:
* denotes reading in course binder on reserve
Week One: Introduction to Course: What is the Atlantic World?
M Aug 29: Course Intro
W Aug 31: Why Become a Sailor?
Week Two:Pre-Contact Europe
Reading:
* Phillips, “The Outer World of the European Middle Ages,” in Schwartz, Implicit Understandings, 23-63.
M Sep 5: What They Were Leaving
W Sep 7:What They Hoped to Find
Week Three: Pre-Contact America
Reading:
* Salisbury, “The Indians’ Old World: Native Americans and the Coming of Europeans,” William and Mary Quarterly 53 (July 1996), 435-58.
* Richter, “The Iroquois in the World on the Turtle’s Back,” in The Ordeal of the Longhouse, pp. 8-29.
M Sep 12:Diverse Societies
CLASS FACILITATION: The Rise of the Powhatan Empire
W Sep 14:Finding a Research Topic: MEET AT NABB CENTER
Week Four:Pre-Colonial Africa
Reading:
Thornton, Africa and Africans, pp. 1-125.
* MacGaffey, “Dialogues of the Deaf: Europeans on the AtlanticCoast of Africa,” in Schwartz, ed., Implicit Understandings, pp. 249-267.
M Sep 19:West Africa Before Contact
CLASS FACILITATION: Medieval Views of Africa
W Sep 21:Confronting Europeans
Week Five: Iberian Beginnings
Reading:
Seed, Ceremonies of Possession, 1-99
* Selections from Columbus’ Diario.
M Sep 26: Mapping the Atlantic
*****Map Papers DUE******
W Sep 28:Early Contact
Week Six: The Narrative Representation of the Other
Reading:
Jean de Lery, History of a Voyage to the Land of Brazil.
M Oct 3: BOOK DISCUSSION: Jean de Lery
W Oct 5:******In Class Essay******
Week Seven: France in North America
Reading:
*Axtell, The Invasion Within, pp. 23-127.
M Oct 10: Film: Black Robe
W Oct 12: Fur Traders and Black Robes
CLASS FACILITATION: Jesuit Martyrs
Week Eight: From Exploration to Conquest
Reading:
*Lunenfeld, 1492: Discovery, Invasion, Encounter, pp. 185-227.
M Oct 17: Discussion: Discovery, Invasion, or Encounter
W Oct 19:NO CLASS: Individual Meetings to Discuss Research
Week Nine: The English Abroad
Reading:
* Andrews, Trade, Plunder, and Settlement (Selections)
* Cressy, “The Vast and Furious Ocean: The Passage to Puritan New England”
M Oct 24: First Efforts
CLASS FACILITATION: Walter Ralegh and the Quest for Gold
W Oct 26:Colonization
Week Ten: English America
Reading:
*Vickers, Young Men and the Sea, ch. 5, “The Eighteenth Century: Maritime Society Ashore”
M Oct 31: NO CLASS (gone to conference). Work on research projects.
W Nov 2:Maritime Culture On Dry Land
CLASS FACILITATION: Sailor Impressment
Week Eleven: Atlantic Slave Trade
Reading:
Thornton, Africa and Africans, pp. 129-334.
M Nov 7: Middle Passage
W Nov 9:The Peculiar Institution
CLASS FACILITATION: Slave Trade on the Eastern Shore
Week Twelve: Ecological Transformations
Reading:
* Crosby, The Columbian Exchange: biological and cultural consequences of 1492, chs 1-3, 5.
M Nov 14: The Consequences of Contact
CLASS FACILITATION: “Virgin Soil” Diseases
W Nov 16: Transformation
Week Thirteen: Sailor Culture and Piracy
Reading:
Rediker, Villains of All Nations
M Nov 21: BOOK DISCUSSION: Rediker, Villains of All Nations
W Nov 23: NO CLASS--Thanksgiving
Week Fourteen:Revolutionary Atlantic
Reading:
* Paul Gilje, Liberty on the Waterfront, ch. 4, “The Sons of Neptune”
M Nov 28: Sailors as Revolutionaries
CLASS FACILITATION: Prison Ships
W Nov 30:******In Class Essay******
Week Fifteen: Presentations
M Dec 5: Presentations
W Dec 7: Presentations
******FINAL PAPER DUE WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14************