to syllabus

Unit 7:  The Christianized Roman Empire. 

readings: 

• Hunt, The Making of the West:  Peoples and Cultures, ch. 7 (pp. 243-281). 

• Lualdi, Sources of the Making of the West:  Peoples and Cultures, ch. 7, pp. 120-121, 127-132. 

QUIZ 6 will include Key Terms in Hunt, p. 281.

Questions on Hunt

Ch. 7 (pp. 243-281)

1.  What steps did Emperors Diocletian and Constantine take to reorganize the Roman Empire, and what were the main economic and social consequences?   

2.  What was the effect of Constantine's conversion (in 312 CE) and subsequent support for the Church by other emperors on the spread of Christianity? 

3.  How did the Church hierarchy decide what was "orthodoxy" and what was "heresy"?  What was heretical about Arianism, Monophytism, Nestorism, and Donatism? 

4.  What were Augustine's main arguments in The City of God and Confessions, and how did these ideas influence Christian thought?

5.  What events led to the invasion and conquest of Roman lands by "Germanic" tribes?

6.  Did the Frankish Kingdom and the kingdom of the Visgoths reject or replicate Roman traditions and government?  Explain.   

7.  What was the symbolic role of the Byzantine Roman Emperor during the rule of Justinian, and what were the emperor's real powers?   

BIG QUESTION:  Think about the entire chapter.  What evidence supports this statement?  "Although still called itself "the" (as in "one") Roman Empire, between the late 200s and the mid-500s CE the eastern territories ruled by Byzantium and the "Roman" territories in western Europe became increasingly distinct (different from one another) in their form of government, the organization of their society, and their culture."

Questions on Lualdi

We will focus on two documents for this unit:  "The Nicene Creed" (pp. 120-121) and "The Burgundian Code"(pp. 127-132).

Answer the "Six Questions" for both documents:

• Who wrote it, where, and when?
• What type of document is it?
• Who was the intended audience?
• What was the author's goal?
• What is the author's main point?
• What does it tell us about that society?

OK.  Here are the main discussion questions for these documents:

1.  What specific sections of the Nicene Crede define what is "orthodox" and what is "heresy," and what was the Emperor's role in this process? Explain, using the evidence!

2.  What does the Burgundian Law Code tell us about the social hierarchy in Burgundy in the early 500s?  Explain, using the evidence!