History of Medieval England - Thursday 6th Period: Discussion 1: Introduction and Pre-history to 500

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Good afternoon, class. Now I get to torture you all by making you all stand up and introduce yourselves to your classmates. This is because I'm sadistic want to get you used to the concept of talking during our discussion sessions. Please give your name and what one thing you'd like to find out in this class.

Your homework, due next Tuesday but to be posted in this post is to pick a topic from the once-optional-now-mandatory reading list I gave you on Prehistoric Britain and Roman Britain and give me ETA a minimum of one hundred Wikipedia words on it. Got it? Good.

[[OOC comment threads are done!]]

[[ETA: OOC: At some point I stopped receiving comment notifications for this post. I'm scanning and trying to jump into discussions. But since I'm trying to foster discussion *amongst* all of you, I try not to jump in everywhere.]]

Comments

SIGN IN: Medieval English History Discussion

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Please sign in *below* the person above you, so the thread will collapse.

Re: SIGN IN: Medieval English History Discussion

[cameronmitchell.livejournal.com]

Cameron signs in.

INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Introduce yourself and tell me what you'd like to learn in this class.

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[cameronmitchell.livejournal.com]

"I'm Cameron Mitchell, I'm a junior." Cameron starts off easily, then falters as he tries to come up with something that he wants to learn. "I'd like to learn about... Well mostly cool battles and swordfights, but I'm sure there's a lot more to it so I can learn about that too."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[notcalledlizzie.livejournal.com]

"I'm Elizabeth Weir, and I'm the TA," Elizabeth says. "I'm interested in the early ruling systems and social control in a medieval environment."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[forlornslayer.livejournal.com]

"I'm Buffy the Vampire Slayer Summers. I'm taking this class before I'm interested in learning how the different socio-economic classes got their start in history and how the people developed and the ideas of government and belief and in no way because I keep having dreams about that time period."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[aka-vala.livejournal.com]

"I'm Vala Mal Doran, I'm a junior, and I need a history class before they'll let me out of here, but the one for around here conflicted with self-defense, so I'm taking this one.

I guess I want to learn where English is, why we should care about it's history if it's not around here, and whether they developed any cool art or anything ."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[upforachase.livejournal.com]

I'm Cordelia. I know pretty much nothing about this time period, at least like, normal history, so I'm interested in learning as much as possible. Specifically, I'm looking to expand my knowledge on important dates in history and the details of what happened."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"I'm Parker. I'm a junior. I'm here to torture you! I want to learn the difference between the myths of England-- Arthur, Robin Hood, the Princes in the Tower-- and the reality. Plus, I'd like to know more about the British system of law, since it's the basis of ours."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[lovelylana.livejournal.com]

I'm Lana Lang, sophomore. I'm interested in learning more about the culture of the period.

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[leeadama.livejournal.com]

Lee stands up and says, "I'm Lee Adama and I'd like to learn where England is and why you people seem to care about it more about the history of the planet -- and after I briefly researched this time period by watching "King Arthur", I thought it might be interesting to learn more about invading forces in a time where there was hardly any technology to speak of."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[swerval_zero]

"I'm Zero Hopeless-Savage, and I'm a Junior. I'm here to torture you, too! because I'm half-British, so I'd like to learn more about my father's natiff land, and also so I can maybe find out what exactly was going on with those villagers as what tried to burn me at the stake."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[lady-jessica-bg.livejournal.com]

"I'm Jessica Atreides and I'm a sophomore. I'd like to learn about the power struggles and major conflicts of the Medieval period."

Re: INTRODUCTIONS: Medieval English History

[chasingangela]

"I'm Angela Chase, I'm a junior, and I guess I'm interested in learning about, sort of, the reality behind the sort of fairy-tale image we have of medieval times."

DISCUSSION 1: Medieval English History: Prehistory the British Isles

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Stonehenge? Beaker People? Celts?

Re: DISCUSSION 1: Medieval English History: Prehistory the British Isles

[cameronmitchell.livejournal.com]

"So," Cameron decided to jump right in with the one million dollar question because really someone ought to ask it, "who build Stonehenge?"

Re: DISCUSSION 1: Medieval English History: Prehistory the British Isles

[forlornslayer.livejournal.com]

"I never realized that Stonhenge was built and then rebuit and added on to for several years."

Re: DISCUSSION 1: Medieval English History: Prehistory the British Isles

[aka-vala.livejournal.com]

Vala raises her hand. "So what's with British and where's that? I thought this was English history?"

DISCUSSION 2: Medieval English History: Roman Britain

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Boadicea? Hadrian's Wall?

Re: DISCUSSION 2: Medieval English History: Roman Britain

[cameronmitchell.livejournal.com]

"Okay, you know I read the material and I just keep wondering why they even went to the place to begin with. They got nothing but trouble there. They got harassed by pretty much all of the natives, even had to copy the Chinese and build walls to keep them out instead of taking over the entire land to begin with. In the end, they just end up leaving the place anyway." Cameron rambles on a bit.

DISCUSSION 3: General Medieval English History Questions

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

If you were a geek Parker read something from the readings I gave you, dazzle us with your brillance here.

Re: DISCUSSION 3: General Medieval English History Questions

[forlornslayer.livejournal.com]

"Joseph of Arimathea was gradually inflated into a major saint and cult hero, as well as the supposed ancestor of many British monarchs. He is said to have brought with him to Britain a cup, said to have been used at the Last Supper and also used to catch the blood dripping from Christ as he hung on the Cross. A variation of this story is that Joseph brought with him two cruets, one containing the blood and the other, the sweat of Christ. Either of these items are known as The Holy Grail, and were the object(s) of the quests of the Knights of King Arthur's Round Table. One legend goes on to suggest that Joseph hid the "Grail" in Chalice Well at Glastonbury for safe-keeping."

HOMEWORK: Hand in next Tuesday's homework here

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Hand in next Tuesday's homework here. You must have it in by next Tuesday.

Re: HOMEWORK: Hand in next Tuesday's homework here

[lovelylana.livejournal.com]

"Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico gives the fullest account of the Druids. Caesar notes that all men of any rank and dignity in Gaul were included either among the Druids or among the nobles, indicating that they formed two classes. The Druids constituted the learned priestly class, and as guardians of the unwritten ancient customary law they had the power of executing judgments, among which exclusion from society was the most dreaded. Druids were not a hereditary caste, though they enjoyed exemption from military service as well as from payment of taxes. The course of training to which a novice had to submit was protracted.

All instruction was communicated orally, but for ordinary purposes, Caesar reports that the Gauls had a written language in which they used Greek characters. In this he probably draws on earler writers; by the time of Caesar, Gaulish had moved from the Greek script to the Latin script.

As a result of this prohibition - and of the decline of Gaulish in favour of Latin - no druidic documents, if there ever were any, have survived. "The principal point of their doctrine", says Caesar, "is that the soul does not die and that after death it passes from one body into another" (see metempsychosis). This observation led several ancient writers to the unlikely conclusion that the Druids may have been influenced by the teachings of the Greek philosopher Pythagoras. Caesar also notes the druidic sense of the guardian spirit of the tribe, whom he translated as Dispater, with a general sense of Father Hades."

TALKING IN CLASS: Medieval English History

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Whispering to your seatmate? Throwing notes across the room? Do it here.

Re: TALKING IN CLASS: Medieval English History

[aka-vala.livejournal.com]

Vala gave Cam a look of "Buh?" From across the room. Damn, this class was going to be a bitch. He'd better help her with the homework.

AFTER CLASS: Medieval English History

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

Have a question for Dr. Pierson or Elizabeth Weir? Ask here.

Re: AFTER CLASS: Medieval English History

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"So, if we *did* get the money together to get, say, our class a trip to Europe, would you be faculty sponsor and chaperone?" Parker was bouncing on her toes, eyes sparkling.

OOC: Medieval English History

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

For all your out of character needs.

Re: OOC: Medieval English History

[notcalledlizzie.livejournal.com]

Um... 100 words isn't the maximum? Is it?

Re: HOMEWORK: Hand in next Tuesday's homework here

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Megalithic Monuments

The term can be used to describe buildings erected by people from many parts of the world living in many different periods. In the early 20th century, some scholars believed that all megaliths belonged to one global "Megalithic culture" (Hyperdiffusionism, e. g. by Grafton Elliot Smith and William James Perry), but this has long been disproved by modern dating methods.

In Western Europe and the Mediterranean, megaliths are generally constructions erected during the Neolithic or late stone age and Chalcolithic or Copper Age (4500 - 1500 B.C.E). Perhaps the most famous megalithic structure is Stonehenge in England, although many others are known throughout the world.

The French Comte de Caylus was the first to describe the Monuments of Carnac. Legrand d'Aussy introduced the terms menhir and dolmen, both taken from the Breton language, into antiquarian terminology. He interpreted megaliths as gallic tombs.

Many megalithic monuments were burial mounds which were often re-used by different generations. The chambered cairn is a common type of collective tomb. Some of these are passage graves generally built of drystone walling and/or megaliths often with a round burial chamber in a round mound with a straight passage leading out. Gallery graves have a long megalithic chamber with parallel sides often in a long mound with an entrance at one end.

Many megaliths were thought to have a purpose in determining important astronomical events such as the solstice and equinox dates (see archaeoastronomy). Cup marks on megaliths have been thought by some to represent stars and thus to show the stellar orientation of megalithic sites.