Instructions:

For most modules, you will be asked to write an informal one-paragraph response to the primary sources assigned for that module. There are two questions for each topic, choose one to answer. In your paragraph, you must answer the question completely, be specific with examples drawn from the primary sources, and you must reveal that you have thought seriously and analytically about the material. These response paragraphs amount to 20% of your final grade. You are required to post your paragraph by noon of the day it is due. Paragraphs will not be accepted late. There will be a total of 6 paragraphs due. Your best 5 paragraphs will be counted towards your final grade.

Response #3, due W, June 1, 2016
1.First, use the primary sources detailing feudal relationships to come up with your own definition of feudalism (do not visit Wikipedia or other online sites for help -- instead, develop your definition after reading the primary sources). What seem to be some of the basic rules that governed a relationship between lord and vassal? Indicate in the primary sources where you see these rules essentialized (i.e. use specific quotations from the sources to support your ideas). Second, why do scholars contest this term?
2.From these documents on rural life, what can you tell about the relationship between lord and peasant/serf? (This relationship is the root of “manorialism” rather than “feudalism.”) With these documents, how would you describe rural life around the year 1000 or the social hierarchy of medieval Europe? How does lifestyle vary depending on status, occupation and gender?

..use the books below.

Judith Bennett, Medieval Europe: A Short History, 11th edition (New York: McGrawHill, 2010) ISBN-13: 978-0073385501
Celia Chazell, ed., et. al., Why the Middle Ages Matter: Medieval Light on Modern
Injustice (Routledge, 2012) ISBn:9780415780650