May 04, 2024  
2021-2022 Hill Book (Class of 2025) 
    
2021-2022 Hill Book (Class of 2025) [ARCHIVED HILL BOOK]

SPA 352 - Christians, Jews and Muslims of Spain: Medieval Minds in Modern English

Three Credits
Not Offered 2019-2020

This course examines the representation of Christians, Jews, and Muslims; their societal roles; and their interactions as described in English translations of texts produced between the 13th and 16th centuries. Thematically, we will examine the Moorish invasion and the Spanish Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula; laws governing how Christians, Jews, and Muslims were to interact in the Christian Kingdoms; the Cult of the Virgin; the connection between the waning Moorish presence in Spain and moralizing Christian literature /popular ballads idealizing this religious group; and the Inquisition. Literary genres include epic, narrative, and lyrical poetry (with special attention paid to Spain’s Mester de Clerecía (the “cleric’s craft”); historiography; jurisprudence; and didactic prose. To understand the complex relationship that existed between members of these three faiths, special attention also will be given to the socio-political, legal, and cultural milieu of the Iberian Peninsula.

General Education Attribute(s): Catholic Intellectual Traditions
Course Applies to: Middle Eastern Studies
Note: Course is taught in English. Does not count towards the Dual Language or Spanish major or minor.