Course Catalogue

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Ranging broadly across the ancient world from Mesopotamia, Egypt and Nubia to Greece and Rome, this course introduces students to outstanding women of the past, from the (in)famous to the relatively unknown. We will explore the sources - both direct and indirect - that help us reconstruct the lives and experiences of women in the ancient Mediterranean world and its environs, using key themes to guide comparative case studies.

10 x 2 hour seminar as scheduled on MyCampus. This is one of the PGT options in Classics and may not run every year. The options that are running this session are available on MyCampus.

Standard entry to Masters at College level.

CLASSIC4101 Women and power? The extraordinary and ordinary women of the ancient world (Hons) - course code to be confirmed

None

The standard assessments for this course are:

■ Critical analysis (3000 words: 70%)

■ Group project 1500 words (30%).

If required, for instance where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, the following alternatives are available:

■ There is no alternative to the analysis, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustments (students should follow the usual process for extensions).

■ Individual project as alternative to group project.

Further reasonable adjustments may be provided where necessary. Students are encouraged to consult with the course convenor.

This course aims to:

- Explore key primary sources that might enable the reconstruction of the social and cultural roles of ancient women, paying particular attention to their possible biases

- Use broad comparative themes, such as religion, politics, sexuality, ethnicity, to the reconstruct lives and experiences of ancient women by

- Problematise ancient perspectives on ancient women across cultures, balancing predominantly male ancient sources with direct glimpses of women themselves

- Consider how to draw on primary evidence in contrasting modern scholarly on ancient women with popular views 

- Debate the nature of 'power' and how that might have applied to the women studied in the course

- Encourage group-working and leadership skills on a shared project.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

- Contextualise and present primary sources on ancient women culturally and temporally and make cross-cultural comparisons

- Critically analyse secondary sources and their approach to ancient women

- Identify and apply critical approaches to our evidence to present the experience of ancient women in their respective cultural worlds

- Present contextualised views of the legacies of key ancient women in light of ancient and modern perceptions of them

- Create and curate a virtual exhibition showcasing the primary evidence for women in the ancient world and opinions of them.