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Society and Culture in the Roman World

Course Description

Focusing on social and cultural history, this course follows Rome's expansion from Neolithic village to Mediterranean empire. Themes include the role and status of women, slavery and social power, political violence, life in the provinces, writing and literacy, ethnic identity and acculturation.

Athena Title

Roman Social Hist

Prerequisite

Any HIST course or ENGL 1101 or ENGL 1101E or ENGL 1101S or ENGL 1102 or ENGL 1102E or ENGL 1102S or POLS 1101 or POLS 1101E or POLS 1101H or POLS 1101S

Grading System

A - F (Traditional)

Student Learning Outcomes

  • By the end of this course, students will be able to arrive at conclusions about society and culture in Ancient Rome by gathering and weighing evidence, logical argument, and listening to counter argument.
  • By the end of this course, students will be able to write stylistically appropriate papers and essays. Students will be able to analyze ideas and evidence, organize their thoughts, and revise and edit their finished essays.
  • By the end of this course, students will be able to identify how the history of society and culture in Ancient Rome has shaped social and cultural identities and attitudes, encouraging them to understand diverse worldviews and experiences.
  • By the end of this course, students will be able to apply appropriate methodological approaches to their analysis of primary sources and to organize their evidence to show historical continuities and discontinuities.

Topical Outline

  • The main emphasis of the course will be social history. This means that we will study groups rather than individuals-- aristocrats and slaves, farmers, women, citizens, and subjects. It also means that we shall examine ideas and institutions that affected everyone, such as ideas of marriage, the gods, the body, or Roman law and administration. The first half of the course will focus mainly on Rome itself and Italy; in the second half, we will pay attention to life in the provinces of the Roman empire rather than focusing narrowly on emperors and senators in Italy.
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