BA EVENING DEGREE 2009/10 Greek and Roman Civilization
Programme co-ordinator: Dr Helen Dixon
First Semester
| GRC3003E War and Peace in the Greek Historians |
| Level 3 Credits 5 Semester 1 |
| Co-ordinator: Sonya Nevin |
This module investigates Greek social values through the works of ancient Greek historians. It explores their depictions of society at war and their insights into the social and moral impact of conflict. This module will consider the unique contribution to history-writing made by major Greek historians including Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, Polybius, Diodorus and selected works of Plutarch. The issue of working with fragmentary histories will also be addressed. Each writer will be examined in their own context to develop an understanding of their individual methods and intentions. Students will analyse, interpret and compare historical texts in translation.
| GRC3009E Medicine and Society in Ancient Greece and Rome |
| Level 3 Credits 5 Semester 1 |
| Co-ordinator: Dr Aude Doody |
This module explores the different forms that healing could take in ancient Greek and Roman society. It will examine influential theories of medicine from the Hippocratic writers to Galen, as well as religious and magical healing practices. Tutorials will focus on different views of doctors and patients that emerge from our sources, addressing questions such as the social status of doctors at Rome, attitudes towards women in ancient medicine, and the strategies doctors used to impress their patients. No prior knowledge of medicine (ancient or modern) is required and all sources will be studied in translation.
| GRC3010E Bronze Age Palace to Greek City-state |
| Level 3 Credits 5 Semester 1 |
| Co-ordinator: Dr Christina Haywood |
This archaeology based module will look at the Greek world between the Mycenaean period and the Early Iron Age, which are separated by the greatest unexplained catastrophe of the ancient world (c. 1200 BC). The course will start with the study of the Mycenaean palace state (14th -13th century BC) through its citadels and settlements, cult places and practices, tombs and burial customs, and art, and will then focus on the most significant aspects of the 'centuries of darkness' up to the 8th century revival marked by renewed communications, rebirth of writing and figurative art, and the formation of the city-state.
Second Semester
| GRC3002E Poetics of Exile in the Ancient World |
| Level 3 Credits 5 Semester 2 |
| Co-ordinator: Dr Martin Brady |
Exile and forced expatriation were facts of life in the ancient world. In this module we will look at how exile is represented in the letters of Cicero, the poetry of Ovid and the philosophy of Seneca. We will look at the themes which emerge, in particular the ways in which ancient exiles found consolation in parallels from mythology: we shall read in depth some of the ancient `myths of exile', such as the stories of Ulysses, Aeneas, and Diomedes. We will also examine the political reasons for imposing exile as a punishment, and the way in which exile promoted the spread of Roman culture.
| GRC3008E Slave Revolts in the Roman Republic |
| Level 3 Credits 5 Semester 2 |
| Co-ordinator: Professor Theresa Urbainczyk |
Spartacus is the most famous of slave rebels from the ancient world. This course looks at how his rebellion has been presented by ancient and modern writers and at other slave revolts from antiquity. The primary sources for the course can be found in Brent Shaw's book, Spartacus and the Slave Wars.
| GRC3007E Uses and Abuses of the Ancient World |
| Level 3 Credits 5 Semester 2 |
| Co-ordinator: Dr Helen Dixon |
In this course we shall consider the impact of Antiquity in Europe at various different moments. Since ancient times classical texts have been deployed for a wide range of purposes, from sources of literary inspiration to the use of historical and philosophical ideas to support particular agendas. Some of these 'uses' step so far away from the original ancient contexts that they could be considered 'abuses'. We shall consider to what extent manipulations of classical literature may be viewed as abuses when approached from a particular angle, and vice versa. We will explore a number of aspects of Antiquity, particularly the epic poets Homer and Virgil and the Roman historians, and some of their appropriations. All texts are studied in English, or in English translation.
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