Religions of Rome (CLASSIC, PGT) CLASSIC5127

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

Short Description

This course broadly investigates 'religion' both in Rome and across the empire, from its earliest manifestations through to the high empire. By exploring a range of literary and non-literary evidence, students will get the opportunity to study religion as it was lived, perceived, and experienced. This course will also give students the opportunity to consider how Rome and its religions interacted with a range of other cultures and their religions, and responded to a number of internal and external pressures, including the rise of Christianity.

Timetable

10 lectures shared with the Hons (CLASSIC) version of this course, and 10 hours of seminars, either shared with the Hons (CLASSIC) version or separately depending on student numbers.

Requirements of Entry

Standard entry to Masters at College level

Excluded Courses

CLASSICS4100

LATIN4036

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

Research project (4,000 words) - 75%

Book review (1,000 words) - 25%

Main Assessment In: April/May

Course Aims

This course aims to:

■ Engage with the religious history of Rome from its earliest manifestations through to the high empire;

■ Engage with connections and conflicts between Rome and a variety of other cultures and their religious ideas;

■ Engage with the importance of religion and religious actors in the wider culture of Rome and the Mediterranean, and for a cross-section of society (including freed-persons, elites, and members of lower social strata);

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

■ Analyse and comment upon current scholarly debates in the field of Roman religion.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

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

■ Critically engage with the role of religion across a broad chronological timeframe, and from both the city of Rome and the wider empire;

■ Analyse a wide range of ancient sources, literary and non-literary, in an informed and perceptive manner;

■ Analyse and interpret processes of religious interaction;

■ Engage critically with a range of modern interpretations across the period;

■ Develop and critique written arguments in relation to religion and religious change;

■ Formulate and implement a research project on a topic or question relevant to the course.

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.