HIST 547

The purpose of this two-semester comparative course is to trace the origins and development of occidental and oriental elites (political and religious), with special reference to western Europe and the Ottoman empire. In the first semester, we will begin by studying the most important trends in modern ‘elitist’ thought and looking at the main sociological and historical approaches to elites. The course will then have a roughly chronological structure, comparing (and contrasting !) developments in the East and West down to the early modern period. The second semester will concentrate on modern and contemporary elites.

Week 0: Comparative History as Methodology

Weeks 1-2: Theoretical Approaches

1) The ‘classic’ elitist models: Mosca, Pareto, and Michels

2) Historical approaches to elite studies: pluralism and prosopography

Weeks 3-4: Historical Roots

3) Early elite formation in the West: Rome, the barbarians and Christianity

4) Early elite formation in the East: Byzantium, Persians, Central Asia, Arabs and Islam

Weeks 5-6: Feudalism and Political Elites [inc. comparative feudalism]

5) Feudal lordship and chivalry in the West

6) Centralized feudalism in the East: the Byzantium and Ottoman empires

Weeks 7-8: Religious Elites

7) The West: Church and the Papacy: Independence from worldly authority

8) The East: Religion in the service of the State

Weeks 9-10: Bureaucratic-Intellectual Elites

9) The West: Late medieval government and the Universities

10) The East: Ottoman bureaucracy and Chinese mandarins

Weeks 11-12: Economic-Urban Elites

11) Commercial elites and urbanization in the West

12) Muslim handicrafts and non-muslim merchants in the Ottoman empire

Week 13: Early modern Europe: Local gentries, Parliament and the Estates General

Week 14: Comparisons, discussions, conclusions to Part I

Presentations:

This course will entail weekly classes in the seminar format, in which students will be required to give informal presentations and to participate in the ensuing discussions. Depending on class size, you will prepare two presentations: these should be about 20-25 minutes in length and should provide an overview of the topic you have been assigned. Each week you will be given a short bibliography of material relevant to the following week’s topic(s); even if you are not giving a presentation, you should try to do some reading in order to take part in the discussions.

Essays:

The course will require two essays from every student: one should have a ‘Western’ slant, the other should be ‘Eastern’ in its orientation (pun intended!); however, a consideration of the theoretical and methodological aspects of elitist studies will also be permitted, as long as there is a substantial ‘historical’ content. The essays can be on topics of your own choice (as long as the instructors give their assent!) but we can supply some possible topics or titles if you cannot decide upon one yourself. The essays should be submitted for marking by the end of the teaching period (22 December 2000) at the latest, but you should start reading for them as soon as possible.

Assessment:

Your final grade for this course will be assessed according to the following criteria:

Attendance and participation: 10%

Presentations: 30%

Essays (2): 60%