Course Catalogue

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This course offers the opportunity to study the earliest form of democracy in the Western world as well as ancient and modern attitudes to it.

1 hour lecture and 1 hour seminar per week on separate days over 10 weeks of one semester

Standard entry to Masters at College level

CLASSIC4001 Athenian Democracy: Model or Mob Rule?

None

2 essays of (2500 words) each, the topic of the second one will be chosen by the student. - 100%

This course aims to:

■ Explore in detail the history of the earliest form of democracy in the Western world as well as ancient and modern attitudes to it

■ Engage closely with a range of literary sources for Classical Athenian democracy

■ Become familiar with important secondary literature on the subject

■ Discuss ancient and modern theories and opinions about democracy

■ Reflect on democracy, ancient and modern, as a type of constitution

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

■ Describe the historical context of the Classical Athenian democracy and its functioning

■ Analyse and evaluate a range of ancient texts as historical sources for Athenian democracy and ancient attitudes to it

■ Summarize and evaluate modern theories about the Athenian democracy

■ Formulate your own interpretations of the sources with due regard for recent scholarship

■ Formulate lucid arguments which demonstrate engagement with primary sources and secondary literature

■ Formulate their own research questions in the field and execute the relevant research.

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.