Mohammed, Charlemagne & Origins of Europe
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A 7 page essay that analyzes Richard Hodges and David Whitehouse's 1983 text Mohammed, Charlemagne and the Origins of Europe: Archeology and the Pirenne Thesis, which is part of a continuing body of historical scholarship that addresses the nature and validity of Henri Pirenne's famous thesis concerning the origins of the medieval period. This examination demonstrates that, while the fringe elements of Pirenne's thesis can be disputed, the basic premise, which is that Rome did not disappear as a viable political entity quickly, but rather was a victim of gradual decline, is largely substantiated by recent research. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: khmohcha.rtf

Monks in Medieval France / Vows Of Chastity ?
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6 pages in length. Medieval monks.. did they adhere to their vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and sometimes silence? Research suggests not. Evidence points to excesses in physical pleasures, especially in the realms of sex and food. The sometimes perverted sexual habits of some of the monks has been passed down through anecdotal records. Bibliography included.
Filename: Monks.wps

Morris Bishop/ "The Middle Ages"
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A 5 page review of Morris Bishop's classic text on the Middle Ages, a book that has been considered a definitive text on that historical period from its initial publication in 1968. In this single, yet absorbing, volume, Bishop relates the entirety of the thousand year period between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Renaissance. No additional sources cited.
Filename: khbishma.wps

Order of The Canterbury Tales
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A 6 page research paper that discusses the ordering of Chaucer's medieval masterpiece. The writer discusses what is known as the "b" group order and how it differs from the ordering of the tales in the Ellesmere manuscript. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: khbgr.rtf

Parzival/Honor in the Middle Ages
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A 4 page essay that discusses Wolfram von Eschenbach's thirteenth century German epic, in which there is an emphasis on a knight's honor that is directly associated with combat. In this epic, the hero, Parzival, is on a journey that takes him to the Holy Grail, but more importantly, he is also on a spiritual journey of enlightenment that demonstrates the German medieval attitude toward the association between honor and combat. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: khparzi.rtf

Questions on the Crusades
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A 6 page research paper that answers 4 specific questions covering issues pertaining to the Crusades. Topics covered include why Christians won the First Crusade; why religious tolerance dissolved in Islamic Spain; Why the Byzantine emperor expected help from Rome; and Richard the Lionheart as a strategic leader. Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Filename: khcruqu.rtf

Reciprocal Relationships in Yvain
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A 5 page essay that analyzes the reciprocity of relationships in Chretien de Troyes' twelfth century epic poem Yvain, the Knight of the Lion. The writer argues that the message that these relationships transmit to the reader is that that give and take is necessary to the maintenance of society in general. No additional sources cited.
Filename: khyvain.rtf

Religion and the Enlightenment
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A paper which considers the perspective of Voltaire, Kant and Condorcet on organised religion, and the extent to which the Enlightenment thinkers had a direct impact on social change. Bibliography lists 6 sources.
Filename: JLenlgrelig.rtf

Religious Art: Russia & Franc c15th C
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(7 pp) If some one wants to have you "buy something "- whether it is an idea, a belief or an item, there are ways to go about that, that will make you more susceptible to that new thing. Some of these early marketing principles were put into place in both Russia and France to encourage pagan converts, to view the "new ways of the Church more favorably."
Filename: BBeCHart.doc