Beyond the Classroom
Medieval Multiculturalism An immersion in three cultures “Seeing the buildings I had studied about in class was like meeting celebrities. You experience the language of power in these spaces and how the religions play off of one another.” – Helena Zittel, double major in art history and English
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he UC Davis Summer Abroad course “Three Cultures of Medieval Spain” immerses student scholars in a world where Muslim, Christian, and Jewish communities coexisted and spawned a flowering of scientific, artistic, and architectural achievement. “Medieval Spain was one of the most intriguing historical periods precisely because the three ethnic groups were forced to live together, for better or worse, from 711 to 1492,” said Spanish professor Robert Blake, who created and leads the class. “The Arab world was the top of the heap with the best architecture, science, music, and medicine. Students get a real insight into how the Islamic world operated, its widespread influence, and how this multicultural society existed for hundreds of years before the word ‘multicultural’ existed.”
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