This course will provide an introduction to the connection between gender and magic in classical antiquity, using ancient literary, documentary, and archaeological evidence to explore ancient mythological figures associated with witchcraft such as the goddess Hecate, the Titan Circe, and the heroine Medea, and ordinary women such as wives, mothers, courtesans, and hags.

One two-hour seminar per week for ten weeks as scheduled on MyCampus.

CLASSIC5129 Women, Witches and Witchcraft in Antiquity

None

The standard assessments for this course are: 

This course will involve student-led assessment, and the portfolio will comprise of pieces of work that the students will prepare for each other based on the week's specific seminar topic. The precise nature of the portfolio is undecided at this time and will vary according to course content. 

■  1 page handout with bibliography on a selected piece of text (25%) 

■ 1 page handout with bibliography on a selected object (25%) 

■  1000 word book review (25%),  

■ 1000 word commentary on a piece of classical reception (25%). 

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

■ There are no alternatives to the assessments, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustment (Students should follow the usual process for extensions). 

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

It is the default expectation that all courses will offer opportunities for reassessment or deferred assessment. Where it is not possible to offer this in some assessment components, the grade achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade, and any exceptions for this course are described below.

[No exceptions]

This course aims to:

Develop students' knowledge of ancient magic and magical practitioners with particular attention paid to women and gender;

Analyse ancient perceptions of magic and magical practitioners with particular attention paid to women and gender;

Provide students with the tools to critically evaluate literary, documentary, and archaeological evidence for ancient magic and magical practitioners with particular attention paid to women and gender.

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

■ Analyse a range of different types of ancient Greek, Roman and other ancient civilisations' magical practice, the nature of the different types of evidence for them, and the problems associated with these;

■ Critique the key themes of the diverse scholarly approaches to magic;

■ Explain literary, socio-cultural, and historical contexts, and how these affect our interpretation of the ancient evidence, with particular attention paid to women and gender.