HSY2640

The twelfth-century renaissance: culture and society

(ART)

Constant Mews

6 points + 2.5 hours per week + Second semester + Clayton + Prerequisites: A first-year sequence in History or permission + Prohibition: HSY3640

Synopsis: This subject examines the flowering of cultural activity in France, England and the Rhineland 1070-1170, known as 'the twelfth-century renaissance', and its relationship to wider changes in European society at this time. It will look at the writings (available in translation) of particular individuals, notably Guibert of Nogent, Abelard and Heloise, John of Salisbury and Hildegard of Bingen, in terms of their response to changing perceptions of self and the external world which developed in the twelfth century. The subject will also examine the tensions provoked by competing visions of cultural and religious renewal.

Assessment: Precis Exercise (750 words): 15% + Essay (2250 words): 55% + Examination (1.5 hours): 30%