Medieval Crime and Community

HIST A305, Loyola University New Orleans Spring 2008 Wednesdays 6:20 to 9:00 Bobet 214B

Instructor: Dr. Sara M. Butler Office: 422 Bobet Hall Telephone: (504) 304-1069 Email: [email protected]

Office Hours: Because I am on maternity leave this semester, I will not have official office hours. You may meet with me after class, or by appointment. Or, please feel free to telephone me if there are any problems at the above number.

Course Description This course explores the interaction between the development of criminal law and social change in the late medieval period from a comparative perspective, examining primarily the English common law, but also the continental courts of law. Classes will be organized thematically and will focus on a broad range of subjects, such as: the passing of the trial by ordeal and its replacement by the jury; homicide and self-killing; the relationship between gender and crime; rape and sex crimes; criminal clergymen; domestic violence; sanctuary, abjuration, and exile; and treason. In examining these subjects, emphasis will be placed on the role played by litigants and jurors to use the law courts to their best advantage, highlighting the gap between the theory and practice of the law. Each class will begin with a 50-minute lecture, then followed by a short-break. After the break, classes will be seminar discussions based on the readings for the week. PARTICIPATION IS ESSENTIAL. Please note: this is a Blackboard course. All lecture outlines and discussion questions will be posted on Blackboard.

Required Reading • Readings for this class are on BLACKBOARD. The readings can be quite heavy at times – do not get behind! You will not be able to participate in class discussions if you have not done the readings.

Grading Scheme and Due Dates Participation: 15% Reading logs: 20% The Advocate Assignment (Jan. 30): 10% Book Review (Feb. 27): 15% Research Essay (Mar. 19, 26, Apr. 9): 20% Final Exam (TBA): 20% Assignment Descriptions a) Participation Please note: Attendance has nothing to do with participation – these are separate categories. As a rule of thumb: in a class of thirty people, I expect to see active participation in the small groups and everyone should attempt to contribute one or two productive comments / insights to the larger group discussion at every class. b) Reading Logs Students will be required to write a response to the article readings of at most one page per reading (double-spaced, normal margins, 12 pt. font). Do not summarize the readings. Instead, discuss something about the article that raised questions / was particularly interesting / relates to other issues we have discussed in the course. The goal of this assignment is to demonstrate that you have thought critically about the readings before class. Students are expected to hand in reading logs at the end of every class. If you have to miss class for any reason, please email your reading log to me as a Word attachment the same day as the class. If you do choose to email in any assignment for this course, it is your responsibility to make sure that I received your work. c) The Advocate Assignment We will watch the movie, The Advocate , in class. In response to your experience, you will be expected to analyze the film for its accuracy and its usefulness as a didactic tool in teaching about medieval law. Please note: in order to complete this assignment, you may well have to go and do a little research on animal trials or medieval continental law in order to make sure that your analysis is well-founded. The length of this assignment should be between 3 and 4 pages (double-spaced type, normal margins, 12 pt. font). The writing style may be casual in nature (meaning: something you might read in the newspaper as opposed to the more formalistic style employed in the articles we read in class). d) Book Review Everyone can choose their own book for review, with consultation of the professor. The book must have to do with some facet of medieval crime. Please see the attached list of suggested books. You may want to order something in through Amazon if you are at all concerned about competing with other students to get your hands on the perfect book. The length of this assignment should be between 4 or 5 pages (double-spaced type, normal margins, 12 pt. font). A book review is not intended to be a synopsis of the book. Expend no more than one-third of this assignment summarizing the main arguments of the book. The remaining two-thirds should pay close attention to the author’s perspective and approach, use of evidence, method, and historical value. Footnotes and a bibliography are not required unless you choose to quote from a text other than the one you are reviewing. Please see the hand-out in the “Course Information” section of Blackboard for a fuller discussion of “How to Write a Book Review.” d) Research Essay The research essay is intended to provide students with an opportunity to explore a subject of interest in greater depth and detail. Essay topics may address a wide variety of historical issues. Students are expected to choose a topic on their own; however, each student must have his or her thesis approved. If a student has difficulty finding a topic, please make an appointment to discuss this with me. The essay should be between 10 to 12 pages (double-spaced, normal margins, 12 pt. font) and it should include footnotes and a bibliography. At least six scholarly books or articles should appear in the essay’s bibliography, of which two must be journal articles (the articles we read in class do not fulfill this requirement – yes, I actually want you to use the databases to find articles...). With the exception of encyclopedias specific to the period (such as, The Dictionary of the Middle Ages , or The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium ), I do not want to see encyclopedias listed as references in your bibliography. The same applies to Internet sources. Most Internet sources are unreliable; at best, they are the equivalent of encyclopedia entries. Unless you have come across a really useful site, written by a qualified historian, do not include this as a source in your paper. Please see the hand-out in the “Course Information” section of Blackboard for suggestions on writing an historical essay.

Deadlines:  Mar. 19: Annotated Bibliography: please bring a proper bibliography of sources you have read (see Chicago Manual of Style to figure out how to a bibliography). Each source should be accompanied by a short paragraph summarizing the work and explaining how it will be useful for your research essay.  Mar. 26: Rough Draft: please bring a rough draft to class – a good rough draft, almost a finished product. You will pair up with someone else in class and you will do formal peer evaluations of each other’s work. You will write down some of your thoughts about your partner's essay on a hand-out that you will be given in class – you must hand in these evaluations with your final paper.  Apr. 9: Final paper due in class.

Please note: I will not read the final draft of this paper unless you have completed all three stages of the writing process.

Research Tools:

Please note: for this class, you will need to spend some time at Loyola's Law Library. You can take out books from the library, however you will need to get a new bar code (see them at the circulation desk at the Broadway campus concerning this matter). Also, Tulane's Law Library is directly behind Loyola's main campus (on Freret St.) -- although you cannot take out library books there, you can certainly peruse their journals and books.

There are a number of useful indexes and bibliographies to help you find articles or books for your field of research. Here are some that you may find particularly useful: 1) The International Medieval Bibliography . This is a paper index that is invaluable when finding journal articles on any aspect of life in the Middle Ages. You will need to consult it at some point (honestly). Each volume represents a publication year and is organized thematically (e.g., daily life, law, women studies, etc). Tulane’s Howard-Tilton Memorial Library, Z6203 I58 2) Iter: Gateway to the Middle Ages and the Renaissance . This on-line index is the most comprehensive bibliography for medieval studies available right now. Available through Monroe Library at http://www.itergateway.org/ 3) The Royal Historical Societies Bibliography . This on-line index includes all works (articles and books) relating to the history of Britain and Ireland. It is searchable by author, title, subject and keyword. http://www.rhs.ac.uk/bibwel.html 4) Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index . This on-line index is searchable by author, title and subject. It is particularly useful for any works that have been published since the early 1990s. http://www.haverford.edu/library/reference/mschaus/mfi/mfi.html

e) Final Examination For the final exam, you will be given the questions in advance. Please note: knowing the questions in advance does not necessarily make this easy. It means that I will expect to see a more polished and well-thought out essay than if you had had the question sprung on you.

Attendance Policy Attendance will be taken orally at the beginning of every class – if you are not present when attendance is taken, you will be considered absent. Each student is permitted to miss class three times without explanation. After that, the student’s final grade will be adjusted by 2 percent for each missed class. Please note, examinations are based primarily on lectures and discussion classes; you cannot hope to pass the exams without attending class regularly.

Extensions and Late Work Policy If you need an extension, please ask for one in advance (“in advance” means at least 2 full days before it is due). Late papers will be penalized a full letter grade per day. For example, if your paper would have received an “A” on the deadline, the next day it will receive a “B.”

Make-up Tests A rescheduled test will be given only in exceptional circumstances. You must notify me within 24 hours of the missed test, stating the reason for your absence. If the excuse is acceptable, your make-up test will generally be scheduled for the next day. As a rule, make-up exams are more difficult than scheduled exams. Recreational activity never constitutes a valid excuse.

Grading Scale

A 90-100 Excellent B+ 85-89 Very good B 80-84 Good C+ 75-79 Very satisfactory C 70-74 Satisfactory D+ 65-69 Minimal pass D 60-64 Minimal pass F below 60 Fail

Notice to Students with Disabilities Students with disabilities who wish to receive accommodations in this class should contact Disability Services at 865-2990 as soon as possible so that warranted accommodations can be implemented in a timely fashion. Disability Services are located in the Academic Enrichment Center, Monroe Hall 405.

Departmental Statement on Plagiarism “Plagiarism – the use of another person’s ideas or wording without giving proper credit – results from the failure to document fully and accurately. Ideas and expressions of them are considered to belong to the individual who first puts them forward. Therefore, when you incorporate ideas or phrasing from any other author in your paper, whether you quote them directly or indirectly, you need to be honest and complete about indicating the source to avoid plagiarism. Whether intentional or unintentional, plagiarism can bring serious consequences, both academic, in the form of failure or expulsion, and legal, in the form of lawsuits. Plagiarism is a violation of the ethics of the academic community.” William G. Campbell, Stephen V. Ballou, and Carole Slade, Form and Style: Thesis, Reports, Term Papers , 6 th edition (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1982), p. 52.

For more information on plagiarism and how to avoid it, go to: http://www,indiana.edu/~wts/wts/plagiarism.html

Where to Find Help with your Writing • Writing across the Curriculum, Bobet 100, ext. 2297 -- the WAC workshops are intended to help you with drafts of your essays. They are extremely helpful, and an excellent resource for students of all writing levels. Student Decorum Tardiness, talking, eating, novel-reading, sleeping , video-game-playing, or generally disrupting the class will not be tolerated. Those disrupting the class will be asked to leave. Also, please turn off all cell phones and beepers before entering the classroom.

Revision of the Syllabus I reserve the right to revise this syllabus at any point once this course is in progress. I will inform students of any changes. Lecture and Reading Schedule: Medieval Crime & Community

Week 1 (Jan. 9): Theories of Violence Introduction to the Course. Lecture: “Violence and its Control.”

Week 2 (Jan. 16): The Criminal Justice System in the Middle Ages Lecture: “Criminal Justice: a Variety of Courts.” Discussion: Esther Cohen, “Law, folklore and animal lore: Animal-trials in Europe (chiefly ), and R.H. Helmholz, “Crime, compurgation and the courts of the medieval Church.”

Week 3 (Jan. 23): Medieval Law on Film Viewing and Discussion of The Advocate (aka “”). Dir. , starring , , . BBC, 1994. 102 min.

Week 4 (Jan. 30): Trial by Ordeal Lecture: “A Brief History of Judicial Ordeals.” Discussion: Charles Radding, “Superstition to Science: Nature, Fortune and the Passing of the Medieval Ordeal,” and Margaret Kerr, Richard Forsyth, Michael Plyley, “Cold water and hot iron: trial by ordeal in England.”

Feb. 6: MARDI GRAS HOLIDAY

Week 5 (Feb. 13): How to Replace the Ordeal? Lecture: “The English Jury and its Role in the Trial.” Discussion: Thomas A. Green, “Societal Concepts of Criminal Liability and Jury Nullification of the Law in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries,” and discussion of Edward Peters, “The Queen of Proofs and the Queen of Torments.”

Week 6 (Feb. 20): Felonies Lecture: “Felonies and their Punishment.” Discussion: Gervase Rosser, “Sanctuary and social negotiation in medieval England”and Gwen Seabourne and Alice Seabourne, “The Law on Suicide in Medieval England.”

Week 8 (Feb. 27): The Law and Gender Lecture: “Gendering the Law.” Discussion of Patricia R. Orr, “ Non Potest Appellum Facere : Criminal Charges Women could not – but did – bring in Thirteenth-Century English Royal Courts of Justice,” and Valentin Groebner, “Losing face, saving face: noses and honour in the late medieval town.”

Week 9 (Mar. 5): Domestic Violence Lecture: “The Medieval Hierarchy.” Discussion of Philip Gavitt, “Infant Death in Late Medieval Florence: the Smothering Hypothesis Reconsidered,” and Paul Strohm, “Treason in the Household.” Week 10 (Mar. 12): Sex Crimes Lecture: “A Brief History of Rape.” Discussion of Barbara A. Hanawalt, “Whose story was this? Rape narratives in medieval English Courts,” and James Brundage, “Prostitution in the Medieval Canon Law.”

Week 11 (Mar. 19): Clergy and the Law Lecture: “Who should prosecute criminal clergymen?” Discussion of Robin L. Storey, “Malicious indictments of clergy in the fifteenth century,” and Helmut Puff, “Localizing Sodomy: the ‘Priest and Sodomite’ in Pre-Reformation Germany and Switzerland.”

Week 12 (Mar. 26): Revenge Lecture: “Italy and the Vendetta.” Discussion of William Ian Miller, “In Defense of Revenge.” In-Class Essay Peer Evaluations.

Week 13 (Apr. 2): Treason Lecture: “The Growth of an idea of Treason.” Discussion of Klaus van Eickels, “Gendered Violence: Castration and Blinding as Punishments for Treason in Normandy and Anglo-Norman England,” and Cynthia J. Neville, “The Law of Treason in the English Border Counties in the Later Middle Ages.”

Week 14 (Apr. 9): Social Misbehavior Lecture: “Personal Liability and the Fourteenth-Century.” Discussion of Sandy Bardsley, “Sin, speech and scolding in late medieval England,” and another reading that will be announced at a later date.

Week 15 (Apr. 16): GUEST LECTURE -- location TBA Cynthia J. Neville, “Ceremony and Ritual in the Baronial Courts of Medieval Scotland, 1100-1400.”

Week 16: (Apr. 23) Scapegoats Lecture: “Medieval Ideas about Witches.” Discussion of Jeffrey Richards, “Witches,” and Ronnie Po-Chia Hsia, “, magic and the in late medieval and early modern Germany.”

Week 17: (Apr. 30): In-Class Exam. Possible Books for Review

Please note: I am quite happy to have you choose a book on your own for review. These are simply suggestions. However, if you decide to choose a book outside this list, please contact me for approval.

Bartlett, Robert. The Hanged Man: A Story of Miracle, Memory, and Colonialism in the Middle Ages. Princeton, 2004. Monroe HV 8579 B37 2004.

Given, J.B. Society and Homicide in Thirteenth-Century England . Stanford, 1977. Monroe HV 6535 G4 1977.

Groebner, Valentin. Defaced: the Visual Culture of Violence in the Late Middle Ages. New York, 2004. Monroe N 8257 G7613 2004.

Hanawalt, Barbara A. Crime and Conflict in English Communities, 1300-1348 . Cambridge, 1979. Monroe HV 6959 E5 H35.

Hunnisett, R.F. The Medieval Coroner . Oxford, 1962. Monroe DA 185 H86, two copies.

Hurnard, Naomi. The King's Pardon for Homicide before A.D. 1307 . Oxford, 1969, repr. 1996. Monroe HV 6536 G7 H87 1997.

Karras, Ruth Mazo. Common Women: Prostitution and Sexuality in Medieval England . Oxford, 1996. Monroe HQ 186 A5 K37 1996.

Maddern, Philippa. Violence and Social Order: East Anglia 1422-1442 . Oxford, 1992. Monroe HN 400 Z9 V56 1992.

McIntosh, Marjorie Keniston. Controlling Misbehavior in England, 1370-1600 . Cambridge, 1998. Loyola Law Library, HN 398 E5 M38 1998.

Neville, Cynthia J. Violence, Custom and Law: the Anglo-Scottish Border Lands in the Later Middle Ages . Edinburgh, 1998. Monroe E-Book.

Otis, Leah Lydia. Prostitution in Medieval Society: The History of an Urban Institution in Languedoc. Chicago, 1985. Monroe HQ 184 A5 O85 1985.