Dr. Amy Thompson McCandless 327 Maybank/210B Randolph 953-8025/953-5527  mccandlessa@cofc.edu https://www.cofc.edu/~mccandla/amym.htm     Hours: 9-10:45 TR or by appointment

Course Content
The reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603) encompasses some of the most important religious, cultural, economic, political, and social changes in the history of England.  The Elizabethan period witnessed the spread of capitalism, the growth of trade and industry, and the beginnings of colonization in the Western Hemisphere.  The creation of an English Protestant Church in the sixteenth century had tremendous implications for national and international politics.  The fine arts flourished as never before--it was the age of William Shakespeare, William Byrd, Edmund Spenser, and Nicholas Hilliard.  By focusing on the reign of Elizabeth, we can better understand the ideas, individuals, and developments which created modern Britain.

Course Purpose
A research seminar is designed to give students the opportunity to "practice" history; i.e., to conduct original research using primary sources, to engage in historiographical debate, to present arguments in oral and written contexts, and to revise work in response to external criticism.  The product of this historical research will be a 20-30 page analytical paper on some aspect of Elizabethan England.

Required Readings
Laura Marvel (ed.), Elizabethan England: Turning Points in World History
J.E. Neale, Queen Elizabeth I (3rd ed.)
Susan Doran, Elizabeth I and Religion
Jayne Lewis, The Trial of Mary Queen of Scots
Lara E. Eakins, Tudor Historyhttps://tudorhistory.org/
Primary Sources in Early Modern England  https://www.cofc.edu/~mccandla/tudorlinks.htm

Recommended Readings
Richard Marius and Melvin E. Page, A Short Guide to Writing About History (4th ed.)
D.M. Palliser, The Age of Elizabeth: England Under the Later Tudors (2nd ed.)

Written Assignments
The major written assignment will be a 20-30 page (5,000-7,500 words) analytical research paper on some facet of Elizabethan history. See Marius and Page, A Short Guide to Writing About History, for format. Each student will discuss her/his paper topic and thesis with the instructor during an individual conference on 9 or 11 September.  A statement of the thesis (a one-sentence explanation of what you intend to prove in your paper) and an annotated bibliography on the topic will be presented to the class and turned in to the instructor on 18 September.  A topical outline delineating the issues to be explored in developing your thesis should be turned in by 2 October.  The first version of the paper will be due on 28 October.  Bring two copies (one for the instructor and one for a classmate to critique). Students will exchange papers, and readers will discuss the drafts with the authors in class on 4 November.  The second draft is due on 18 November.  Students will present their papers to the entire class on 2 and 4 December.  Final papers (including annotated bibliography, outline, first and second drafts, student and instructor critiques) are due on or before 4 p.m. on 16 December  (There will be no separate final exam).  Late papers will be penalized one letter grade for each day tardy.

The completed paper should be between 20-30 typewritten pages (exclusive of endnotes), double-spaced in 12-point font (either Times Roman or Courier) with one inch margins, and documented in the humanities style using consecutively numbered endnotes.  Papers should include at least five primary sources and at least ten secondary sources.  All material taken from a specific source, whether paraphrased or quoted, must be cited in the endnotes (See Marius and Page, A Short Guide to Writing About History, for format).  Because you will make substantial revisions between the first and final versions of your paper, you MUST type your work on a word processor. Papers will be assessed on both form (organization, style, clarity, citations, bibliography) and content (nature and proof of thesis and subsidiary arguments).

History majors and minors will also write their reflective essay for their portfolio during the seminar.  See Reflective Essay Worksheet for details.

Class Participation/Attendance
Class participation and regular attendance are essential to the success of the seminar.  Both the quality and the quantity of your remarks will be considered when computing final grades (i.e., you do not get "points" for talking on a subject when you have not read the assignment).  Students will be expected to read the assignments, to lead discussions on the readings, to present portions of their own research to the class, and to critique the work of their classmates.

Grading
Final grades will be based on class discussions of readings (35 percent), annotated bibliography (10 percent), topical outline (10 percent), presentation of individual research materials (10 percent), and research paper (35 percent or 10 percent for each draft and 15 percent for the final version). The grading scale is as follows: 90-100 = A; 86-89 = B+; 80-85 = B; 76-79 = C+; 70-75 = C; 60-69 = D; 0-59 = F.

Date Topics/Readings/Assignments
Aug 26           Course Introduction; Historical Methodology

Aug 28            Discuss: Elizabeth England; "Political and Social Turning Points" and "Conquests and Discoveries"
Marvel, Chapters 1 and 4

Sep 02           Discuss: Elizabeth England; "The Elizabethan Theatre" and "Cultural Turning Points"
Marvel, Chapters 2 and 3

Sep 04            Film: Elizabeth R: The Lion's Cub

Sep 09            Student conferences to select paper topic; no class

Sep 11            Library work to select paper topic; no class

Sep 16            Library Lecture; Prof. Phillip Powell

Sep 18             Student Presentation of Theses
                 Thesis statement and annotated bibliography due

Sep 23             Discuss: Queen Elizabeth I
Neale, 1-135

Sep 25           Discuss: QueenElizabeth I
Neale 137-263

Sep 30           Discuss: QueenElizabeth I
Neale 263-408

Oct 02           Student Presentations of Topical Outlines;
                 Topical outlines due (bring two copies to class)

Oct 07           Student Presentations of Topical Outlines;

Oct 09           Elizabethan Iconography
Outline of Lecture; Link to Portraits

Oct 14            Film:  Elizabeth R: The Marriage Game

Oct 16           Discuss: Elizabeth I and Religion
                       Doran 1-70

FALL BREAK

Oct 23           Film: Elizabeth R:  Horrible Conspiracies

Oct 28           Film: Elizabeth R: Horrible Conspiracies (continued)
                  First draft of papers due (bring two copies to class);
                       Student assignments of paper critiques

Oct 30           Work on critique of classmate's paper

Nov 04           Discussions of paper critiques
                      Critiques of classmate's paper due; first drafts returned

Nov 06           Discuss: The Trial of Mary Queen of Scots
                       Lewis 1-125

Nov 11             Film:  Elizabeth

Nov 13             Film:  Elizabeth (continued)

Nov 18            Student Presentations

Nov 20            Student Presentations

Nov 25            Second draft of papers due

THANKSGIVING

Dec 02             Second drafts returned; reflective essay due

Dec 04             No Class; work on final paper

Dec 16           Final Papers Due
                        Turn in final paper along with annotated  bibliography, outline, first and second
                        drafts, student and professor critiques by 4 p.m.
 

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