UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA
FACULTY OF HUMANITIES
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
History 455 A01 CRN 25964 Spring 2010
Foundations of Islamic Civilization
Mondays, Thursdays, 0830 to 0950
Instructor: A. Rippin
Office: Clearihue C 305
Office hours: Mondays 10-11, or by appointment.
Telephone: 472-4677 to leave a message
E‑mail: arippin@uvic.ca
Course description
The aim of this course is to provide an overview of the development of the sources of Islamic identity and to ask the question, what makes a civilization at any given point in history “Islamic”? The critical questions to be posed at every point are: What do we know? How do we know? and, more subtly, Why do we know (that is, why has the material behind the what and how questions been preserved and transmitted from the past)?
The case of the formation of Islamic civilization is a particularly stimulating one historically, beyond just the intrinsic relevance of the topic to today’s world. The emergence of a new civilization seemingly out of nowhere and from unknown people, building upon the legacy of great empires, is puzzling while also being well (if not, in fact, excessively) documented.
The course aims to develop knowledge in the historical field of Islamic studies, while furthering student writing and research skills within the context of the study of history, especially the skills of writing concisely and precisely. Another goal of the course is to provoke historical curiosity and to develop methods for investigating (or at least establishing how one might go about investigating) things which may appear trivial or tangential at first but which teach important lessons in understanding the construction of history.
Textbook (required)
James E. Lindsay, Daily Life in the medieval Islamic world
Additional material relevant to the course will be posted to the Web: www.rippin.ca/history455
The course materials can also be accessed through the course site at moodle.uvic.ca if you forget the above address.
Course requirements – SIX assignments plus ONE test
· Assignment 1
An exercise in defining plagiarism while researching a relevant topic derived from the film watched in the first week of classes. A length of 300 words would likely be appropriate. The assignment is worth 10% of the final grade for the course. It is due January 14.
· Assignment 2
Research a classical historian of the Islamic world (someone who died before 1300 CE), assessing different sources of secondary information available (online, journals, books). A length of 1000 words would likely be appropriate. The assignment is worth 20% of the final grade for the course. It is due February 11.
· Assignment 3
Research an Umayyad or Abbasid caliph, assessing different sources of secondary information available (online, journals, books). A length of 1000 words would likely be appropriate. The assignment is worth 20% of the final grade for the course. It is due March 4.
· Assignment 4
On a pre-assigned journal article or book chapter, create an abstract that illustrates a full understanding of the article, the issues behind it, and the historiographical points it raises, and a glossary of key terms. A length of 500 words would likely be appropriate. The assignment is worth 15% of the final grade for the course. It is due March 25.
· Assignment 5
Poster or web page (or similar vehicle designed for public consumption) dealing with some aspect of material culture (broadly defined – “daily life”) relevant to the formative period of Islamic civilization. The assignment is worth 15% of the final grade for the course. It is due April 1.
· Assignment 6
A very brief (two minutes maximum) in-class presentation of a pre-assigned Arabic term or name, its meaning, relevance, historical context. The terms will be assigned and the date of presentation indicated at the beginning of the second week of classes. The presentation may be done via power point, writing on the board, web pages or whatever suits the term and the presenter. A handout can be useful but not essential. The assignment is worth 10% of the final grade for the course.
· Test
You will be responsible for the factual material presented in the student presentations (assignment 6). Worth 10% of the final grade, given in the last class on April 8, lasting 60 minutes.
*Note A: All evaluative elements of the course are required to be completed in order to achieve a passing grade. A grade of “N” will automatically be given to those who do not complete all the evaluative elements. Late submission of assignments, when arranged with the instructor prior to the submission date, are accepted. If you submit your assignment late, it may not be returned at the same time as the other students receive feedback on their work.
*Note B: Students interested in developing team-based research skills are welcome to propose working on Assignment 2 and/or 3 in a collaborative fashion. Using a Wiki format for the writing of the assignment would likely work well and would facilitate tracking the contribution of each team member. The grade assigned to any team-based project would be the same for all participants. The format of the project must be discussed by all the team members and the instructor before work on it commences.
Requirements for the assignment answers
The text of the assignments should be double-spaced and, where appropriate, submitted electronically as an attachment in an email. If you do not receive acknowledgement of the receipt of your assignment within 24 hours please check with the instructor. Make sure you take advantage of the facilities a computer provides: there can be no excuse for most spelling mistakes or grammatical errors. Poor spelling, grammar and sentence structure can defeat the comprehensibility of an otherwise good assignment.
Where necessary, notes should be placed either at the bottom of each page or at the end of each assignment. They should be provided in order to 1) provide documentation for the source of a quotation or 2) provide documentation for an important point which needs justification. The form of the notes is not as important as is consistency in the form employed. A bibliography of works consulted is required in every assignment. Once again, the form is not as important as is consistency in that form. For guidance, see the Department of History’s style guide: web.uvic.ca/history/style_guide.htm (also available at the bookstore as History 100).
Plagiarism is a matter of concern in the University. Taking quotations out of sources without giving proper credit (in a footnote and by using quote marks or indenting a long quotation) is plagiarism. Paraphrasing of someone else’s words is, of course, permitted and will inevitably involve using some of the same words as the original author, but every attempt must be made to express the ideas in your own words. It should be noted that an essay cannot consist solely of quotations. The purpose of an assignment is to research and think about a topic and write up the results of that work in your own words. Plagiarism occurs not only when direct quotations are taken from a source without specific acknowledgement but also when original ideas or data taken from a source are not acknowledged. A bibliography is insufficient to establish which portions of the student’s work are taken from external sources; footnotes or other recognized forms of citation must be used for this purpose.
Evaluation of all written work submitted in this class will take into account the following factors, among others:
· writing skills that include attention to the structure of an argument featuring a thesis statement, detailed and logical topic development, rhetorical flourishes (especially paying attention to the needs of the introduction and conclusion), paragraph development including transition from one point to the next, and provision of sufficient evidence and documentation
· ability to pose important questions, recognize the need for information to solve problems and develop ideas
· the use of a variety of information gathering strategies, resulting in the use of sources which are assessed for their quality, authenticity, accuracy and authority
Course Outline (variations may occur as we seize the opportunity to learn from academic visitors)
January 4, 7 – Introduction to the central questions of the course; the curious historian (read chapter 1)
January 11, 14 – The Qur’an as a historical source (read chapter 2)
January 18, 21 – Establishing the life of Muhammad
January 25, 28 – Creation of empire: the first four caliphs and the conquests (read chapter 3)
February 1, 4 – Establishing Islamic authority and the nature of leadership
February 8, 11 – Establishing the Islamic state: bureaucracy, taxation, cities (read chapter 4)
February 15, 18 – READING WEEK
February 22, 25 – The developed state and the separation of religion and politics
March 1, 4 – Intellectual development of Islamic ideology: law, theology
March 8, 11 – Religion as a means of identity & state cohesion: ritual and language (read chapter 5)
March 15, 18 – Defining the “other”: outsiders and heresies within
March 21, 25 – Material culture and daily life as markers of identity (read chapter 6)
March 28, April 1 – Religion as a means of empire expansion: Sufism
April 5 – EASTER MONDAY
April 8 – Final test
Marking scheme
The numerical test score will be converted to the nine point scale using the Department of History standard scale at the end of this outline.
The assignments will be awarded a letter grade equivalent to a point on the 9 point scale. All the grades, weighed appropriately, will be used to calculate your final grade. The following cut‑off points are used in assigning final grades:
A+ (9) 8.9 (or above)
A (8) 7.9 (or above)
A‑ (7) 6.9 (or above)
B+ (6) 5.9 (or above)
B (5) 4.9 (or above)
B‑ (4) 3.9 (or above)
C+ (3) 2.9 (or above)
C (2) 1.9 (or above)
D (1) 1.0 (or above)
TO: ALL STUDENTS IN DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY COURSES
RE: ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
The standards and reputation of any university are the shared responsibility of its faculty and students. Therefore, subject to the obvious limits implicit in the difference between undergraduate work and specialized research, students at the University of Victoria are expected to observe the same standards of scholarly integrity as their academic and professional counterparts.
Please read the Policy on Academic Integrity in the University of Victoria Calendar.
Offences
Misconduct under this heading that is subject to penalty includes, but is not limited to, the following:
1. Plagiarism. Scholarship quite properly rests upon examining and referring to the thoughts and writings of others. However, there is a difference between a person’s use of an acknowledged restatement of another’s arguments, and the unacknowledged restatement of another’s arguments in the guise of original work. Plagiarism, therefore, is a form of academic misconduct in which an individual submits or presents the work of another person as his or her own.
Plagiarism exists when an entire work is copied from an author, or composed by another person, and presented as original work.
Plagiarism exists when there is no, or there is inadequate, recognition given to an author for phrases, sentences and arguments of the author incorporated in one’s work; and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, it includes the failure to indicate clearly through quotation marks or indentations of longer passages, that materials have been incorporated verbatim into one’s written work. In short, when excerpts from the work of another person are used in one’s work, the author must be acknowledged through footnotes or other accepted practices.
2. Submitting the same essay, presentation, or assignment more than once (whether the earlier submission was at this or at another institution) unless prior approval has been obtained.
3. Cheating on an examination or falsifying materials subject to academic evaluation.
In addition to copying the answers or other work of another person, cheating includes, inter alia, having in an examination any materials or equipment other than those authorized by the examiners; fraudulently manipulating laboratory processes in order to achieve desired results; and using commercially prepared essays in place of a student’s own work.
4. Impersonating a candidate at an examination or availing oneself of the results of such impersonation.
5. Submitting false records, information or data, in writing or orally.
6. Attempting to engage in or assisting others to engage in or attempt to engage in the conduct described above.
Penalties and Enforcement
Academic departments and faculties have the authority to enforce proper standards of scholarly integrity by whatever internal procedures seem most appropriate to their respective disciplines. Students in the Department of History found to have cheated or to have committed acts of plagiarism face sanctions ranging from mark reductions to failure on assignment to failure on the course. Under the University Act, only the President has the authority to suspend a student for academic misconduct.
Appeals
Students may appeal decisions to the Department’s Student/Faculty Committee and then to the Dean of the Faculty, and from the Dean of the Faculty to the Senate Committee on Appeals.
HISTORY GRADES
Mark Letter Grade Point Average
90 - 100 A+ 9
85 - 89 A 8
80- 84 A- 7
75 - 79 B+ 6
70 - 74 B 5
65 - 69 B- 4
60 - 64 C+ 3
55 - 59 C 2
50 - 54 D 1
40 - 49 E 0
0 - 39 F 0