 UGS 302: The ’s City: (63780)  The Vatican and St. Peter’s through the Millennia

First Year Experience Signature Course, Fall 2012

Professor: Dr. Ann Johns Meeting place and time: DFA 2.204, MWF 12-12:50 email: [email protected] (best way to reach me), phone 471-1936 Office Hours: DFA 2.520, MW 11:00-11:45, F 1-3 and by appointment (M/W/F only) Mailbox: DFA 2.526

 Course Description and Objectives:

In this interdisciplinary signature course, we will examine St. Peter’s, the papacy, and the from its origins in Ancient through the contemporary Papal City with its global presence and reach. Tradition, history, and authority, while important for the development of most any city or state, are particularly critical in the case of the Vatican, as the papacy based (and continues to base) its legitimacy as the center of power of the on the longevity of the Vatican and its direct link to St. Peter. These traditions are most evident in the art, architecture, and liturgical ritual created and developed through the centuries, including such monuments as the , Bernini’s St. Peter’s Square, and the long, complicated construction of St. Peter’s itself.

Throughout its history, the papacy has also envisioned itself as a political center of power. Christianity, after all, was legitimized by the Roman Emperor Constantine, and many of the most important early Christian basilicas had imperial origins and stylistic affiliation with the art and architecture of the Late Roman Empire. Papal political ambition continued in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, when donned their military garb and rode into battle in order to retain and augment the Papal Territories of central Italy. And now in the 20th and 21st centuries, the popes have extended the political and moral authority of the papacy through the sheer numbers of new Catholics, particularly in the developing world. In the 20th century, John Paul II gripped the imagination of the world with his concerted efforts to bring down Communism and reunite Eastern and Western Europe. Today, the Vatican is visited by record numbers of both tourists and religious pilgrims.

We will examine this ecclesiastic city-state in a chronological fashion, weaving together cultural and political history, religious studies, and—most importantly—the splendid history of papal art and architecture. We will begin by examining the translation of early Christianity as it

1 moves from the Holy Land to Rome. We’ll examine the important Constantinian basilicas that even today retain their extraterritoriality from the city of Rome and the state of Italy: S.M. (Santa Maria) Maggiore, St. John Lateran, St. Paul’s outside the Walls, and, of course, the Vatican and the original basilican St. Peter’s, known as Old St. Peter’s (a name we use to distinguish the older edifice from the Renaissance and Baroque structure we see today). We’ll discuss the burgeoning centralization of power in the later medieval papacy, the devastation of the incursion of various Germanic migratory groups, and the subtle but steady shift in power away from St. John Lateran (the Cathedral of Rome and the pope’s episcopal see [the site of his bishopric, as the Bishop of Rome]) to the Vatican hill. Vast reconstruction efforts take place, once again, in many of Rome’s major churches. The years from 1100-1300 saw the growth of the medieval pilgrimage, and Rome, along with Jerusalem and Santiago de Compostella, was an important destination for the religious pilgrim seeking indulgences.

After the Avignon years, Rome once again begins to flourish as a political, religious, and artistic center in the later 15th century. Popes from Nicholas V in the 15th century (Fra Angelico) to Julius II in the early 16th century (Michelangelo and ) to Alexander VII in the late 17th century (Bernini) were keen on leaving their artistic and architectural imprint on both the Vatican and Rome. Rome’s heyday as the artistic capital of Europe paradoxically coincides with its decreasing political stature in the wake of strong European monarchies, burgeoning nation-states, and the discovery of the New World. In a far-reaching move, the popes during these years begin to amass important art collections and—even more significantly—they open these collections to non-clerical visitors. In other words, the modern art museum emerged from the papal collections of the Renaissance and Baroque periods.

By the end of the 17th century, the papacy was bankrupt and Italy was under the domination, at various times and in various places, of the Spanish, the French, and the Habsburg Empire, based (primarily) out of Vienna. Throughout this period, the Vatican maintained its independence from Rome and the rest of Italy, even in the wake of the Risorgimento and the formation of the new Italian state in the 19th century. We will examine the papacy’s mixed record regarding Mussolini, the rise of Fascism, and the final barbarous architectural project of the tiny state: the destruction of the and the construction of the hideously banal , which links the city of Rome with the Vatican City.

As we turn to the modern Church, we'll discuss the Vatican’s role in and responses to the fall of Communism, the rise of capitalism and the changing demographics of the church due to intense missionary efforts in Africa, Asia, and America. Recent demographic changes in Texas—in particular the rapid growth of Spanish-speaking immigrants—have dramatically increased the Catholic population in our own state.

On several occasions throughout the semester, we will visit the Blanton Museum of Art. The Blanton has particularly rich collections of art in the Italian Renaissance and Baroque periods, including the Suida-Manning Collection and the many fine Italian prints in the Blanton Prints and Drawing room. These collections will give us direct contact with the type of work that was commissioned by wealthy churchmen in the papal court or curia throughout the span of several centuries in the Renaissance and Baroque periods. We will also visit the HRC (Harry Ransom Center), which has a number of fine Italian maps and manuscripts of interest to us.

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 Required Textbooks and Readings:

You will be required to purchase 2 books for this course: John Julius Norwich’s recent popular historical account, Absolute Monarchs: A (Random House, 2011); and Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein’s short but useful They say/I say: the moves that matter in academic writing (W.W. Norton & Company, 2010). Other readings for the class will be available as pdfs on Blackboard or as links.

You will be responsible for all reading material on exams, even if we haven’t covered it in class (although, clearly, the more important issues WILL be covered in class). Please read with a critical eye and ask lots of questions!! Discussion of the readings is a critical component of this class. You will NOT, of course, be responsible for the myriad of tiny details that are a major component of our reading. You will be reading for an overall sense of the sweep and scope of the papacy over time.

I will also be making other resources available to you, and they will all be posted on Blackboard. Also, you have almost unlimited electronic resources through our Library. A particularly useful resource is Oxford Art Online, which you need to access through UT Direct (https://login.ezproxy.lib.utexas.edu/login?qurl=http%3a%2f%2fwww.oxfordartonline.com%2f).

If you are interested in art, you may find it useful to consult Sylvan Barnet’s A Short Guide to Writing about Art (at the Coop or other bookstores, or in the Fine Arts Library Reference section, N 7476 B37 1993) or Henry Sayre’s Writing about Art. We cannot stress enough how useful UT’s own Undergraduate Writing Center can be for students (http://uwc.utexas.edu/ ). They are very used to helping students with art history papers, and they also have some online assistance for art history papers. You pay for these services in your fees, so you may as well use them! This is especially important if English is not your first or principal language.

I will place useful texts on reserve at the FAL (Fine Arts Library).

You do NOT need to bring your books to class unless told to do so.

 Class structure:

This course is organized around 3 units. In unit one, we will examine the ancient and early Christian origins of the papacy and St. Peter’s basilica, as well as the consolidation of pontifical power in the Middle Ages. In unit two, we will explore the artistic highlights of the Vatican and St. Peter’s created during the Renaissance and Baroque periods (15th through 17th centuries). In unit three, we will examine the vicissitudes of the papacy and the Vatican City in the wake of nationalization, world war, Communism, and globalization. You will be tested on the key images and fundamental concepts for each of these units on the basis of 3 in-class essay tests, each worth 10%. All of the images for which you will be responsible will be available on UT’s DASe data base (more information below).

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You will write 2 papers for this class. Each of these papers is broken down into 2-3 components, with each component having a separate due date. For the first, 3-part paper, you will select one of several works at the Blanton Museum of Art; I will chose these works based on their pertinence to the lectures, readings, and class discussions. For this paper, you will be recording your observations and presenting a brief historical account. In art history, we call this kind of visual investigation a formal analysis, and it is one of the staple assignments of our discipline. I will give you very detailed instructions a bit later in the course.

For the second, 2-part paper, you will work in groups of three. Each group will choose a specific papacy to analyze, and each person will write a different section of the final paper. You will be required to help edit your group members’ contributions, and you will turn in your final written portion of this assignment as a group project. For the third part of this project, students will give group powerpoint presentations during the last few days of class. For both assignments, you will be re-writing your papers and editing the writing of your classmates. In addition, we will be visiting with Krystal Wyatt-Baxter, Instruction and Assessment Librarian, who will assist you in navigating UT’s world-class libraries. You will need to pick a pope who was an important builder or patron of the arts, and I’ll assist you with your choice.

You will also be required to attend one of the University Lecture Series, to be held September 17 and 18 in Bass Concert Hall. One will highlight faculty and student research on our campus and the other will be titled Election 2012: History, Rhetoric, Politics.

Please note that this is not a pious or reverential class about the Catholic Church! This is an art history class, and we deal with facts, artifacts, and art! And popes are human, with human foibles. So don’t be offended if we mention the Pope’s son, wife, or corruption trial!

(Here, the papacy as the Whore of Babylon, courtesy of Reformation-era Protestants)

We meet together as a class three times a week, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, from 12-12:50. I will start AND end on time, so please arrive on time and do not leave early. I will present some of the material in a lecture format, but at all times, I expect you to be engaged and ready to participate in discussions. We may have impromptu quizzes and/or writing assignments given at any time if I feel that it would benefit the class. Please feel free to ask questions at any time, but note that since the room will be darker than normal (so that we can see the images), you

4 may have to wave your hand a lot to get my attention. I would much prefer that you make your comments to the class as a whole than to the person next to you, as this disturbs your neighbor and distracts your professor.

Although this is a writing class, it is also a seminar, and so participation is an essential component of this class! Please arrive prepared, engaged, and ready to contribute. At this point, you might be thinking, “I don’t know how to talk about art”! or “I don’t know anything about the Vatican”! Well, that’s why you’re here! And we’re aware that participation is more difficult for some of you, but all of you are smart and each and every one of you has something worthwhile to contribute to these discussions. So speak up! But please don’t speak up when someone else— one of your classmates, for example—is speaking. Be respectful, and this includes not texting, sleeping, knitting, etc. during section or class.

Again, note that I will not tolerate ringing cell phones, text messaging, and inappropriate uses of laptops. Please silence your phones, save your text messages until another time, and use your laptops only for class purposes. The misuse of these electronic gizmos is inconsiderate to your fellow students and it makes your professor(s) want to place you in a lower circle of Hell (see Dante, Inferno). I also reserve the right to ask you to leave class if I find you using these devices inappropriately, as they are distracting to others in the room. This includes texting (phones) and checking Facebook, playing solitaire, etc., on your computer. Please remember that what is on YOUR computer screen may be very distracting to those BEHIND you.

I will post any class study guides, links to images, writing samples, and other resources on Blackboard. In addition, the powerpoints for each lecture will be posted shortly before each class on Blackboard. For each class, we will present several “key” images that will form the basis of our discussion, and all of these will be available on DASe (see below).

Very important! You have a peer mentor for this class who is very familiar with this material. Not only has she taken most (all?) of my classes, but she has also studied in Italy with me. Use her as a resource!!! Come see us during office hours!

We have created a closed Facebook site (“The Pope’s City”) for this class. You have to request that we add you. This is an excellent way for you all to have a dialog with one another, with me, and with your peer mentor.

 DASe Image Data Base:

All of the images for which you will be responsible can be found on UT’s DASe data base: https://dase.laits.utexas.edu. The images are posted under JOHNS Vatican St. Peter’s in 3 collections, one for each essay test. Detailed instructions about DASe are posted on the course Blackboard site. You can download these images and use them for studying. We will review the DASe site in class.

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I will also post each lecture’s powerpoint on Blackboard, shortly before class. I’m warning you now that there is usually very little written information (also known as “metadata”) included in the powerpoints, so you still need to come to class. You are welcome to bring your laptops to class and take notes through DASe or in the notes portion of powerpoint. You may not use your laptops for any reason other than class notes. We will ask you to leave if we spot a misuse of laptops.

 Studying strategies:

It is VERY important that you keep up with the reading and attend class. You should also begin organizing your notes (class and reading) and becoming familiar with the key images on DASe throughout the semester, and not wait until the day before each exam. Experience has proven that you CANNOT absorb all of these images in one (or 2 or 3) nights. ALL of us need some time to accumulate our “image banks”, so start early. Make flash cards. Look at your book. Consult your notes. Look at the images on DASE. Form study groups. Learning to look at art and architecture is a skill, just like learning a language or mastering calculus. For some of you, this material will all come easily; for others, it will be a struggle. Start your studies early on.

For each exam, you will be allowed to bring one 3x5 index card, handwritten (both sides OK). On these index cards, you can write names, dates, or whatever else you think you’ll need for the exam. For example, we will usually have a lot of long Italian names. Put them on the index card! Have a hard time remembering dates? Put these on the card, too. These cards will be collected along with the exams, so be sure to put your name on it. I allow these cards in order to ease your exam anxiety, but I also do this to encourage you to think about the larger concepts and not sweat the small stuff. Warning: I will deduct 10 points from your exam if you’ve printed the information and/or used a larger note card!

Please feel free to email me if you have any questions, or—better yet—come see me in office hours. I practically insist! Your peer mentor will also inform you of her office hours, and I urge all of you to avail yourselves of our time and advice. There is a very high correlation between following these study strategies and receiving a good grade. We will review studying strategies on September 21st.

 Grading:

There will be three essay tests in this course, with each test worth 10%. There will be no final, comprehensive exam, and therefore WE DO NOT MEET DURING THE WEEKS OF FINAL EXAMS. Each test will cover ONLY the material since the previous test; in other words, the tests are not cumulative. As essay tests, the exams will not stress simple identification, and therefore you will not have to memorize vast amounts of material. As mentioned above, you will be allowed one 3x5 index card, handwritten (both sides), per exam. These cards will be collected with your exams, so be sure to put your name on your index card. Please note that we will hand out a practice test on February 6 (and all handouts will be posted on Blackboard). THERE WILL BE NO MAKE-UP EXAMS.

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There will be 2 paper assignments. You will write the first paper in 3 parts (for 30%) and the second paper in 2 parts (for 20%). The first paper will involve visits to the Blanton Museum, while the second paper will be a group project that is research-based. For the second project, you will also be giving a short group powerpoint presentation to the class (for 10%). I will give you MUCH more detailed instructions later in the semester, but please begin by entering the due dates into whatever calendar system you use. And, LATE ESSAYS WILL BE MARKED DOWN **TWO** GRADES A DAY (that is, from a hypothetical A to a B+).

….AND NO INCOMPLETES WILL BE GIVEN IN THIS COURSE.

Any grading issues need to be resolved by the student and the professor NO LATER THAN Monday, December 3 (and preferably MUCH earlier). This means that YOU are responsible for checking your grades on Blackboard. If I have inadvertently left out a grade or entered an incorrect grade, please notify me early on.

UT now uses the +/- system of grading, which is as follows:

A (4.00) = 94-100; A- (3.67) = 90-93; B+ (3.33) = 87-89; B (3.00) = 84-86; B- (2.67) = 80-83; C+ (2.33) = 77-79; C (2.00) = 74-76; C- (1.67) = 70-73; D+ (1.33) = 67-69; D (1.00) = 64-66; D- (0.67) = 60-63; F (0.00) = 0-59

IMPORTANT: Please note that Blackboard adds up your grades mathematically. I, however, look at other issues: has your work improved dramatically over the course of the semester, were you a stellar contributor in class, etc. Also, I round up any grades ending in 0.5. So please don’t email me and beg for an A- when you see an 89.5 on Blackboard! I am not heartless and I will OF COURSE round this grade up!

The reverse of this situation is also true. If the quality of your work steadily declined, your final grade will certainly reflect this. What should you do if your grades start to slide? Come see me and/or your peer mentor!!! We will make time for you!

 Attendance:

We will take attendance for EVERY class, at the beginning, so you should arrive on time and prepared. If you arrive more than 10 minutes late, you will receive ½ of an absence. You are allowed 3 unexcused absences. Important religious holidays, serious illness (colds, for example, are not serious), or true family crises are, of course, perfectly valid reasons for missing a section, but they must be documented. After 3 absences, your OVERALL class grade will go down by ONE GRADE PER ABSENCE. For instance, if you accumulate 5 absences in class, and your final grade is an A-, your grade will be lowered to a B; if you accumulate 7 absences, your grade would be a C+; etc.

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 Academic Honesty:

Plagiarism, both deliberate and inadvertent, has become an even greater problem in the age of the Internet (you might be interested in this recent New York Times article about plagiarism: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/education/02cheat.html?_r=1). It is a particular problem for new students, who may be unclear on citations for academic writing. I will discuss this in class in preparation for your writing assignments, but please remember that if you decide to use someone else’s information and/or thoughts, you MUST cite it, whether the information is from print media or the Internet. Please remember that the ease with which you can find sources on the internet is equaled by the ease with which I, too, can find those specific sources; in other words, I can find Wikipedia, too! So CITE YOUR REFERENCES AND WRITE YOUR OWN THOUGHTS!!! We will review this policy when I hand out the essay assignments.

Any type of cheating, plagiarism, collusion, etc., is grounds for an immediate “F” in the course; a second cheating offense often means expulsion from the University. Besides being, ultimately, harmful to the student who cheats, it is extremely unfair to fellow students, and it is time-consuming and disheartening for your professors. I attempt to create courses in which students neither want to nor can cheat. And you should know that unlike some of my academic colleagues, I WILL file the paperwork on this issue with Student Judicial Services.

 Writing flag:

This course carries the Writing Flag. Writing Flag courses are designed to give students experience with writing in an academic discipline. In this class, you can expect to write regularly during the semester, complete substantial writing projects, and receive feedback from your instructor to help you improve your writing. You will also have the opportunity to revise one or more assignments, and to read and discuss your peers’ work. You should therefore expect a substantial portion of your grade to come from your written work.

 Learning Differences and Disabilities:

The University of Texas at Austin provides, upon request, appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-6441 TTY. Please inform me privately, several weeks in advance of any exam, if you have the official University paperwork, and we will accommodate your special needs.

LATE ESSAYS WILL BE MARKED DOWN ONE GRADE A DAY,

AND THERE WILL BE NO MAKE-UP EXAMS

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RECAP: Essay Test I: 10%; Essay Test II: 10%; Essay Test III: 10% Blanton Paper I, Part I: 10% Blanton Paper I, Part II: 10% Blanton Paper I, Part III: 10% Papal Paper II, Part I: 10% Papal Paper II, Part II: 10% Group Presentation: 10% Class Participation: 10%

THERE IS NO FINAL EXAM DURING EXAMS WEEK.

 CALENDAR OF READINGS, ASSIGNMENTS, AND EXAMS  (Subject to Change)

(NOTE: The readings should be completed by the date under which they are listed)

Aug. 29 (W): Review of the Syllabus and Introduction

Aug. 31 (F): St. Peter, according to the Bible and to historical sources; How to read for general content/How to read scholarly work Reading: http://www.veritasbible.com/drb; http://faculty.washington.edu/davidgs/ReadArticle.html

Sept. 3 (M): [Labor Day]

Sept. 5 (W): The foundation of the Papacy in Late Imperial and Early Christian Rome; Art History ABCs, part I Reading: Norwich, 1-10; Janson’s, 235-245.

Sept. 7 (F): Art History ABCs, part II, at the Blanton Museum of Art

Sept. 10 (M): How to read a map: Roman geography, topography, and urbanism

Sept. 12 (W): Constantinian Rome, the Lateran complex, and Old St. Peter’s Reading: Norwich, 11-26; Janson’s, 245-254, 262-265.

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Sept. 14 (F): Art History ABCs, part III, at the Blanton Museum of Art

Sept. 17 (M): The formation of the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages Reading: Norwich, 26-50.

Sept. 19 (W): The papacy, Charlemagne, and the Donation of Constantine Reading: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/donatconst.asp; Norwich, 51-117.

Sept. 21 (F): Writing how-tos, part I: writing essays and taking essay tests Reading: Finish They say/I say by the beginning of class; also, peruse http://uwc.utexas.edu/taxonomy/term/30, an online resource from the University Writing Center Blanton Paper, Part I, due at the beginning of class

Sept. 24 (M): Rome, the Papacy, and pilgrimage c. 1100 Reading: The Marvels of Rome, 3-14; Norwich, 118-180.

Sept. 26 (W): Artistic revivals in late 13th C. Rome Reading: Norwich, 181-226; John Paoletti and Gary Radke, Art in Renaissance Italy (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, 2012), 56-66.

Sept. 28 (F): Boniface VIII, the Jubilee, and the Babylonian Captivity Reading: 3 Jubilee texts, from Katherine Jansen, Joanna Drell, and Frances Andrews (eds.), Medieval Italy: Texts in Translation (Philadelphia, 2009), 291-294; Dante, Inferno, Canto XIX, translated by Allen Mandelbaum (New York, 1980), 168-175.

Oct. 1 (M): Essay test #1: Ancient and Medieval Rome

Oct. 3 (W): After Avignon: Rome in the early Renaissance Reading: Norwich, 227-244; Paoletti and Radke, 286-299..

Oct. 5 (F): Krystal Wyatt-Baxter, Instruction and Assessment Librarian, PCL

Oct. 8 (M): Rome in the Renaissance: Sixtus IV and the Borgia Reading: Norwich, 245-262; Paoletti and Radke, 299-310.

Oct. 10 (W): Julius II: Part I, Architecture Reading: Norwich, 263-288; Janson’s 565-583. Blanton Paper, Part II, due

Oct. 12 (F): [No Class]

Oct. 15 (M): Julius II: Part II, Painting

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Reading: http://members.efn.org/~acd/vite/VasariMichelangelo5.html

Oct. 17 (W): The Medici Popes and the , 1527 Reading: Norwich, 289-308.

Oct. 19 (F): Rome in Print at the Blanton Prints and Drawing Collection

Oct. 22 (M): The Papacy and the Counterreformation Reading: Norwich, 309-327; Janson’s 602-609.

Oct. 24 (W): Sixtus V and Rome Reading: Marder, Tod A., “Sixtus V and the Quirinal,” Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 37, No. 4 (Dec., 1978), 283-294.

Oct. 26 (F): Images of Rome at the HRC (Harry Ransom Center)

Oct. 29 (M): The Church Triumphant, Bernini, and Urban VIII Reading: Norwich, 328-349. Blanton Paper, Part III, due

Oct. 31 (W): The Church Triumphant, Bernini, and Alexander VII Reading: Antinori, Aloisio, La Magnificenza e l'utile: Progetto urbano e monarchia papale nella Roma del Seicento, reviewed by Henry Dietrich Fernández, Renaissance Quarterly, Vol. 62, No. 4 (2009), 1290-1291.

Nov. 2 (F): The Church Triumphant and the Jesuit Order

Nov. 5 (M): Essay Test #2: Renaissance and Baroque Rome

Nov. 7 (W): The Papacy in the 18th century: declining influence and new papal projects Reading: Norwich, 350-380; Wittkower, Rudolf, Art and Architecture in Italy 1600-1750: Late Baroque (New Haven and London, revised edition 1999), 9-13.

Nov. 9 (F): The Vatican and the Reunification of Italy Reading: Norwich, 381-416.

Nov. 12 (M): Writing how-tos, part II: editing your work & the work of your peers

Nov. 14 (W): The Vatican, Mussolini, and the World Wars Reading: Norwich, 417-452; Robert Hughes, “Futurism and Fascism,” in Rome (New York, 2011), 385-436.

Nov. 16 (F): The Papacy and Modernity: collecting in the 20th century Reading: Norwich, 453-468.

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Papal Paper, Part I, due

Nov. 19 (M): The Papacy and the post-modern world Reading: “Letter of His Holiness Pope John Paul II to Artists”, 1999 http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/letters/documents/hf_jp- ii_let_23041999_artists_en.html

Nov. 21 (W): [Happy Thanksgiving!]

Nov. 26 (M): Essay test #3 (10%): Rome since 1700

Nov. 28 (W): In class presentation practice

Nov. 30 (F): Class presentations

Dec. 3 (M): Class presentations

Dec. 5 (W): Class presentations

Dec. 7 (F): Conclusions, Evaluations Papal Paper, Part II, due

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