In case you missed this posting under the response to Gabe's, here is tomorrows preparation note.

-Andrew & Ravinder-

                  This week we will be going over the history and rise of state sovereignty. We will be pulling from chapter two of Jackson, chapter five of Spryt, and chapters three and five of Tilly. Things to consider regarding early mid-evil Europe when doing these readings are: how did the roles of church and state interact with one another, what did the boundaries look like in Europe during the middle ages, how did the roles of church and state effect these boundaries, what did the power struggle look like during this time period, what role did violence play and how did it change/ who were the different parties involved in violence?

                  While reading further consider how the above things changed over time to allow the idea of a sovereign state to take hold. Basically further think about where the answers to the above questions continued on, or how they effected change in Europe in the later middle-ages. Things to consider: the different authors theories on what caused the sovereign state's establishment, who ultimately took control/ was victorious in the use of violence, how the interaction of church and state created new ideas that possibly became the catalyst for the idea of a sovereign state, how the term sovereign changed meanings/ hands over time and why, whose job was it to protect the people/ who had the duty to provide that protection, how did religion change in the mind of man and in its relationship with secular authorities, what was it that truly gave birth to the sovereign state?

                  Lastly, be aware of your personal opinions and beliefs regarding the different arguments for what people, organizations, occurrences, ideas, or happenstances were truly responsible for the sovereign state coming into being. This is where the knowledge of the different authors arguments, or acknowledgment of the existence of other arguments, will come into play in our discussion time. Please come prepared to have a strong intellectual palaver, while also striving to have fun.