UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO AT MISSISSAUGA

DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY

GGR 363H – FALL 2004

THE SEAS

Instructor: Thomas F. McIlwraith

Room 3104 phone: 905-828-5314

e-mail: tmcilwra@eratos.erin.utoronto.ca

website: http://eratos/tmcilwra/index.html

and scroll through to GGR363H

Class Meetings: Mondays, 9AM to 11AM, beginning September 2004 in Room 1157

Tutorial sessions: one hour, most weeks, Mondays at 2PM or 3PM

Prospectus:

GGR363H focuses on a central element in the consciousness of mankind — the sea — and traces its geography from prehistoric times through to the modern era.

Commerce, human interaction, invention, landscapes and literature: all are important parts of GGR363H.

Human life has always flourished along the continental coastlines, in estuaries and river valleys, and on islands close to shore or far out to sea. From the beginning of time,

the expansion of societies outward and around the world has continued to involve these elements. Inland from coastal plains lie deserts and uplands — "a sea of mountains" –

and oases and passes are landward phenomena equivalent to islands or ocean currents. Overland and overseas exploring are variations of the common theme of discovery,

process, and understanding.

The sea is central also in literature and the arts. It has left an indelible imprint on the landscapes of the world, visible today and narrated in countless prose passages composed

over thousands of years. We shall read some of the outstanding literature of the seas and maritime civilization, for its geographic insights and especially because it is good reading.

Prerequisites:

You must have at least 8.0 FCE -- that is, be in at least third year. Upper-level students from any academic background are welcome to participate in this course.

Students taking Geography or Environmental programs will find GGR 363H complements their other courses.

Class Meetings: WEEK 1 Cultural Diffusion: Land and Water

WEEK 2 Ancient Exploration and Technology

WEEK 3 Greece, and Mediterranean Colonialism

WEEK 4 Rome and Han; Gold and Silk

WEEK 5 Equilibrium for a Millenium

WEEK 6 Norse, Mongol and Hansa Aggression

WEEK 7 Science and the World Sea

WEEK 8 The Great Trading Companies

WEEK 9 More Great Trading Companies

WEEK 10 Staples, Triangles, and Ballast

WEEK 11 Whales, for Pleasure and Profit

WEEK 12 Overwater and Overland

WEEK 13 The Law of the Sea

These weekly sessions consist of presentations on the spread of mankind over the face of the earth, in response to trade, technology, authority, and curiosity. Many focus on

commercial goods, including such important items as cotton, wool, silk, wheat, fish, sugar, pepper, tea, bronze, pelts, opium, and porcelain. Other topics include slaves, gold, pests

and scurvy, malaria, navigating techniques, piracy and much more.

Books, Assignments, and Grading:

All students are to READ the following material:

William H. McNeill, "Diffusion in History," in The Transfer and Transformation of Ideas and Material Culture, ed Peter J. Hugill and D. Bruce Dickson (College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1988), pp. 75-90. Material on reserve.

ASSIGNMENT based on this article in third week 10%

Philip D. Curtin, Cross-Cultural Trade in World History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984). This book may be purchased in the UTM bookstore.

TEST based on this book, in early November 10%

Herman Melville, Moby Dick (first edition, 1851; many editions since), hundreds of pages. There is no assignment, but this is a subject for the final examination.

This book may be purchased in the UTM bookstore, or you may already have a copy. Any unabridged edition will do.

The major ASSIGNMENT deals with changing trade and cultural interaction worldwide. Written, and maybe oral, presentation. Power point possibilities. Details given in third week.

Progress report in October 10%

Final report due in November 40%

FINAL EXAMINATION in December 30%

Atlas:

Have access to a good historical atlas, of which there are several on the Atlas Stand in the UTM Library. Copies of Volume I of The Penguin Atlas of World History (Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Books, revised edition, 1978) are in the UTM bookstore. Consider having it in class for reference as we go along.

... and Remember:

Late assignments will be penalized at the rate of 5% of the awarded grade for every weekday they are overdue. There will be no make-up term tests. (Please see the UTM Calendar website for details.)

Please take a moment to read "Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters" at the UTM website. It is your responsibility to be aware of these conditions.