ART 4210 - Medieval Lives/Foreign Encounters

This course examines the interactions between diverse groups of people during the Middle Ages who were brought together, often for the first time, by pioneering globetrotters who journeyed vast distances across Europe, Asia, and North Africa. These foreign encounters will be explored by reading the traveler’s correspondence, journals, guidebooks, and published narratives, as well as by analyzing the visual culture of the places they visited. Because religion played such a prominent role in shaping attitudes to “outsiders,” the course will survey the major faiths of the medieval world, particularly Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (the monotheistic faiths of the Abrahamic tradition), as well as polytheism and Buddhism. Lastly, we will consider the lasting influence of medieval perceptions of “the other” on the events, institutions, and attitudes of our time. This course satisfies WMU Essential Studies Level 3: Connections – Global Perspectives Category. Not open to Freshmen.

Credits: 3 hours