From the Gracchi to Sulla: the sources and the history 133-70 BC (PGT) CLASSIC5108

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: School of Humanities
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
  • Typically Offered: Either Semester 1 or Semester 2
  • Available to Visiting Students: No
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

This course investigates the history of the Roman state in the period 133-70 BC from political, social and economic perspectives through a thematic approach. The course offers students the chance to study in depth a range of source material such as inscriptions, coinage and texts, and the opportunity to engage with a central period of Roman republican history.

Timetable

■ 9 x 1 hour lectures on the political, social, and economic history of the Roman state during the period covered by the course, introducing the key individuals of the period, the key events of the period, and the way in which the Roman state functioned and developed during this period.

■ 9 x 1 hour seminars analysing the key sources for the period in relation to their contexts.

■ 2 hours of museum visit; the learning hours for this tour include preparation and subsequent writing up of a museum report.

Requirements of Entry

Standard entry to Masters at College level.

Excluded Courses

CLASSIC4062

Co-requisites

None.

Assessment

Presentation (15 minutes) 30%

Research Project (4000 words) 70%

Course Aims

This course aims to:

■ explore the political, social and economic history of the late Republican period at Rome;

■ understand the ways in which the Roman republican state and its institutions functioned;

■ investigate the important events and individuals of this period;

■ analyse a wide range of literary and non-literary sources;

■ design and carry out an independent research project;

■ critically evaluate modern scholarship dealing with this period.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

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

■ place the important events and individuals of this period in their historical contexts;

■ analyse ancient sources, literary and non-literary, in an informed and perceptive manner, both at a detailed level and in relation to wider material, historical, social, political, economic, and cultural contexts;

■ understand and analyse political, social and economic change in this period;

■ formulate and conduct independent research on a chosen aspect of the nature and development of the Roman state in the period;

■ develop formulate and critique written arguments on the nature and development of the Roman state in the period;

■ use and critique modern scholarship on this period.

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

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