CLAS 1003 - Private Lives & Public Spectacles in Greece & Rome

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2017

This course is a companion to our other first year course, CLAS 1004 The Ancient World Through Film. We recommend that students take both courses, but it is possible to do either by itself. Historical studies can explore many different aspects of the past: political, economic, social and cultural. In this course, we focus on the different ways in which Greeks and Romans shaped their private lives and public world. This specialised theme provides a conduit through which we can explore in detail significant aspects of ancient Greece and Rome whilst at the same time acquiring some broad overviews of their political system and history. Beginning with the Homeric bard and the origins of the Olympic Games, the first half of this course will explore the Greek concept of competition, sports and drama festivals which developed within the city-states of sixth and fifth century BC Greece. How did these affect the concept of state-identity and philosophical notions of the ideal citizen? The second half of the course will explore the political importance of public displays in the Republic and Imperial periods of Rome. Here we contrast the different values given to public 'dignitas' (prestige through public office) and private 'otium' (luxurious leisure). Other important aspects concern private banquets (social and political networking), and the public spectacle, such as gladiatorial combats and chariot races, which became highly politicised in the Empire and exploited by emperors. This course is not available with exemptions from lecture or tutorial attendance.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code CLAS 1003
    Course Private Lives & Public Spectacles in Greece & Rome
    Coordinating Unit Classics, Archaeology and Ancient History
    Term Semester 2
    Level Undergraduate
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 3 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Course Description This course is a companion to our other first year course, CLAS 1004 The Ancient World Through Film. We recommend that students take both courses, but it is possible to do either by itself. Historical studies can explore many different aspects of the past: political, economic, social and cultural. In this course, we focus on the different ways in which Greeks and Romans shaped their private lives and public world. This specialised theme provides a conduit through which we can explore in detail significant aspects of ancient Greece and Rome whilst at the same time acquiring some broad overviews of their political system and history. Beginning with the Homeric bard and the origins of the Olympic Games, the first half of this course will explore the Greek concept of competition, sports and drama festivals which developed within the city-states of sixth and fifth century BC Greece. How did these affect the concept of state-identity and philosophical notions of the ideal citizen?
    The second half of the course will explore the political importance of public displays in the Republic and Imperial periods of Rome. Here we contrast the different values given to public 'dignitas' (prestige through public office) and private 'otium' (luxurious leisure). Other important aspects concern private banquets (social and political networking), and the public spectacle, such as gladiatorial combats and chariot races, which became highly politicised in the Empire and exploited by emperors. This course is not available with exemptions from lecture or tutorial attendance.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Margaret O'Hea

    Other staff who participate in this course:

    Dr Jacqueline Clarke
    Dr Margaret O'Hea
    Prof. Han Baltussen

    Contact details will be available on MyUni at the start of teaching.
    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

    Lecture schedule and tutorial programme will be available on MyUni before the start of semester.
  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
    1 Demonstrate familiarity with core features of Classical Athenian cultural history through the study of a) sporting and dramatical festivals, b) private cultural practices such as symposia;
    2 Demonstrate an historical understanding of the cultural and social tensions between increasingly-defined "public" and "private' spheres in democratic Athens (5th-4th centuries BC);
    3 Demonstrate an historical understanding of the evolution of "arena" mass entertainment in the Roman world, and contrast this with private "spectacles" such as banquets and aristocratic funerals, with special emphasis upon their political and social functions and an examination of their effects upon Roman popular and élite cultures;
    4 Demonstrate an ability to evaluate the usefulness and relevance of different types of historical or textual evidence;
    5 Demonstrate an ability to construct a well-developed argument based on fragmentary historical and archaeological evidence;
    6 Demonstrate knowledge of the scholarly techniques of presenting your written work.

    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    1, 2, 3, 4, 5
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    4, 5
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    5, 6
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    4, 5, 6
    Intercultural and ethical competency
    • adept at operating in other cultures
    • comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
    • able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
    • demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
    1, 2, 3
    Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
    • a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
    • open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
    • able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
    5, 6
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources

    Dodge, H.  (2011),  Spectacle in the Roman World

    Mahoney, A. (2001), Roman Sports and Spectacles. A Sourcebook. Newburyport: Focus.  

    Recommended Resources
    If you have never studied ancient Greece or Rome before, we recommend you buy:

    Lane Fox, R. The Classical World. (Penguin, 2005 or later edition)
    Online Learning
    You may purchase the Course Booklet from Image and Copy (level 1, Hughes) at the start of semester, or you can download it as a pdf from MyUni.
    Lecture slides (as pdfs) and audio recordings (where available) will be on MyUni. Details of assessment, graduate attributes will be on MyUni, as well as weekly readings for tutorials - where copyright limitations permit - and those weblinks which we  deem useful to you as scholarly sites.
    Hints and guides to your written work, links to application forms for late submissions, the exams website, are all on MyUni.
    NOTE: the only thing that you won't see is the full MyGrades, with all your marks. You will see your feedback to the bibliographic critique in this folder, but not your other grades. The tutorial marks will be on your Assessment Feedback sheet, which is attached to the back of your hard copy of your submitted tutorial paper. This may be further developed in the near future.
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    Lectures supported by problem-solcing tutorials developing material covered in lecture.
    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    2 x 1-hour lectures (or equivalent) per week 24 hours per semester
    1 x 1-hour tutorial (or equivalent) per week 12 hours per semester
    5 hours reading per week 60 hours per semester
    3.5 hours assignment preparation per week 42 hours per semester
    1.5 hours revision per week 18 hours per semester
    TOTAL WORKLOAD 156 hours per semester
    Learning Activities Summary
    The full tutorial programme and lecture list will be available on MyUni at least a week before the start of teaching, and will also be in hard copy in the Course Booklet which can be purchased at Image and Copy Centre, level 1 Hughes Building.
    Small Group Discovery Experience
    Our tutorial programme is embedded with Small Group Discovery work throughout the semester. This includes - but is not restricted to - analysing, discussing and presenting primary material in small groups within the tutorial class.
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment task Task type Weighting Course learning outcomes
    Critique (approx 500 words) Formative & summative 10% 1, 6
    1500-1600 word tutorial paper 1 Formative & summative 20% 1-6
    1500-1600 word tutorial paper 2 Formative & summative 30% 1-6
    2-hour formal exam Summative 40% 1-6
    Assessment Related Requirements
    Compulsory lecture attendance: attending the lectures is for your own benefit (we have tracked the correlation between attendance and final results for several years and the statistics are clear: those who attend have better results). Audio recordings of lectures do not replace lectures, but are meant to assist in revision.  Finding a study-buddy is helpful in case you miss a lecture (we know this can happen) will allow you to catch up on notes.
    Assessment Detail
    Bibliographic Critique
    The point of this exercise is to show that you have read and understood three secondary readings on a particular tutorial topic, and that you can use the Harvard Citation and Bibliography system as provided to you on MyUni for this course.

    It is both quantitatively and qualitatively different from a tutorial paper. Firstly, whereas a tutorial paper addresses the tutorial topic, or question, this simply requires you to provide a short summary and assessment of the arguments and/or evidence provided by two different articles/chapters as provided by us for you all to read. The third article or chapter must be one you have found yourself, by using the footnotes, citations and bibliography of the other two readings.

    Pick out the key points with a very brief evaluation of what is being discussed. Make sure that you include citations and a properly-formatted bibliography of the three authors used. At most, the whole thing with bibliography should be an A4 page to a page-and-a-half  in length. Print it out, as for the tutorial papers (see below). We will briefly discuss this in Week 2 (the introductory tutorial).

    Tutorial papers
    In addition to attending lectures and tutorials, you must submit two tutorial papers, each 1500-1600 words in length, and each on one of these tutorial topics.  You cannot submit a paper on Topic 1 in Week 2 (although we will discuss it in class), and there are no formal tutorials in Week 7. This leaves 10 weeks, and 10 topics from which to choose. 

    These fall into two sections: Greek and Roman. You must:
    a.  Write your 1st tutorial paper on a Greek topic chosen from Weeks 3-6 (topics 1-4) 
    b.  Write your 2nd tutorial paper on a Roman topic chosen from Weeks 8-12 (topics 5-9)
    Submit each paper to your tutor, at your tutorial, on the day that particular topic is discussed. For example, if you were writing on Tutorial Topic 1, you would have to hand it up in Week  3, when we will explore it in class.  

    But wait - there’s more. Within each section, there will be a limit of 6 students per tutorial writing on any one topic. Because of this, in your first tutorial meeting, your tutor will ask you to nominate which topics you wish to write about.  So have a think about this before your first tutorial, and have a second choice in mind in case you miss out on a popular topic.

    2-hour formal exam  
    This exam is held in the University's formal exam period. All the answers are in essay form (no multiple-choice questions). All the details as to how it is structured, as well as dummy papers to revise with, will be dealt with in the last lecture of the semester, so make sure you come along. Be sure to read the EXAMS folder in MyUni to understand the process. Some salient points:

    a.  You, and you alone, have to find out from the University’s Exams website, when the CLAS_1003 exam is on, and where it is. Don’t rely on a friend. If they get it wrong, so you do and there are no alternative arrangements for missing an exam because you mistook the date, time or venue. Don’t book a holiday that falls within the exam timetable. That will be 40% of your final mark down the drain, because we will not provide an alternative date for your convenience.

    b.  Supplementary exams are for people who submit the appropriate application form, along with documentary evidence within 5 working days of the exam to the School of Humanities office (not us in Classics) on convincing medical or compassionate grounds. Those who get a mark between 45-49% overall also automatically get a supp. offer, provided that they have submitted all three written assignments. Make yourself available during the supplementary exams week! As with the main exam period, if you are not available to sit the supplementary exam, then itwill not be available to you.  The link is on the University exams website, and a link will be on MyUni for this course.

    c.  We do not offer take-home exams, or any alternative assessment to the formal written exam.

     

    Submission

    Tutorial papers are to be handed in to your tutor, at the tutorial for that particular topic. Unless you have a medical certificate that you can present with your finished tutorial paper, or an official notification from a Student Counsellor (from the Student Centre), any late submission will incur the following penalties:

    §  10% (of the final mark) off for the first week late

    §  A further 10% (of the final mark) for the second week

    §  No mark for any paper submitted more than 2 weeks from the due date

    If you have any other good reason to hand up a paper late, you must consult with your tutor before the due date, not afterwards.

    Things that do not count as a reasonable
    1. excuse:  other essay deadlines (response: organise your workload better)
    2. holidays, or family commitments for which you had plenty of time to plan ahead
    3. headaches or minor ailments  or any events which are foreseeable and therefore for which you should have done some planning. 

    Things that may reasonably be considered:

    1. medical conditions that are not forseeable 
    2. serious personal bereavement or family problems. 

    Without wishing to be glib about this, real studies have been done in the USA of the apparent rapid rise  in mortality rates of grandparents around college exam times... 

    Ongoing health conditions that might seriously affect your ability to complete tasks on time should be sorted out with a Disability Liaison Officer at the start of semester. Do not leave this until it all goes pear-shaped in Week 11, or you will may find yourself in a pickle, since you need to provide written (if confidential) evidence of the problem. 
    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

    The course will make use of SELT for course and teacher evaluation.
  • Student Support
  • Policies & Guidelines
  • Fraud Awareness

    Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

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