Early Modern Theories of Slavery, from Grotius to the Enlightenment (c. 1600-1800) (P01250)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 11 ? Acronym : HCA-P-EMTSGE

The subject of this course is the intellectual history of debates on slavery between the early seventeenth and the late eighteenth century, that is, approximately from the 'second scholastic' and the emergence of the 'modern' school of natural law to the American and French Revolutions. One of the central themes of this course will be the variety of early modern conceptions of slavery and of the debates focused on them. The course will explore: The range of meanings of 'slavery' and associated terms, which are used in the period c. 1600- 1800; The relationship between early modern debates about slavery and their intellectual, cultural and political contexts; Methodologies and approaches taken by modern scholars to the intellectual history of slavery; The question of the relationship between textual evidence and historical reality.

Entry Requirements

none

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Postgraduate (School of History and Classics), (School of History, Classics and Archaeology, Schedule E)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : Postgraduate

? Delivery Period : Not being delivered

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 9 weeks

? Additional Class Information : Tuesday afternoons

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Students who successfully complete the course will have acquired an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the central debates about slavery in a wide range of works on political and moral philosophy, theology, law and political economy of the seventeenth and eighteenth century. In particular, they will:
-Have acquired a comprehensive understanding of the main currents of debate about slavery between 1600 and 1800;
-Be able to analyse early modern philosophical, religious and legal texts concerning slavery independently;
-Have acquired the ability to relate early modern debates over slavery to their specific historical contexts;
-Have developed an advanced understanding of the complex relationship between early modern theories of slavery and particular sources of classical antiquity (such as Roman Law) on which they draw.
Further, they will also be able to:
-Show a sound understanding of central methodological questions of intellectual history, using the example of early modern debates about slavery;
-Set their own historical research agenda in relation to the intellectual history of slavery debates in the early modern period;
-Prepare and present their own work for seminars and workshops;
-Contribute substantially to group discussion;
-Be able to make efficient use of library and IT resources