This seminar-style course introduces students to a problem or theme that is explored through ancient historical texts as well as archaeological evidence. Readings and studies of this material evidence provide the subject upon which a series of writing assignments will focus. AHMA R1B is the second seminar in the University’s required R&C sequence; its aim is to introduce students to college-level research and writing by focusing on a problem or theme related to a specific department’s field of inquiry

This course introduces students to four major literary histories written in the ancient Greek and Roman world (Herodotus, Thucydides, Livy, Tacitus), providing an introduction to the way ancient authors set about the task of writing historical accounts, and how their approaches changed over time. Through close readings and careful discussions of the archaeological evidence, we will consider the ways authors constructed their narratives, the roles of rhetoric and myth, and the strategies they deployed to prove that their account was correct. We will also examine several cases in which conflicting reports of the same events are provided by different authors of literary histories. In these cases we will discuss the problem of how–or whether–to reconcile the differences, and how scholars have approached the problem. Students will write four papers: one short diagnostic essay, two themed essays, and one longer final essay. Students are also required to submit a revision of their second paper and an annotated bibliography before the final essay. This process will involve peer review, instructor feedback, and draft revisions. The instructor will teach students how to craft thesis statements; construct persuasive arguments about ancient texts and modern scholarship; use the library catalog, specialist databases, and other online sources; and cite their sources using the Chicago Manual of Style. There are no prerequisites for this course. The course may be especially attractive to students contemplating a major in Ancient Greek and Roman Studies (formerly Classics), Anthropology, History, or Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (formerly Near Eastern Studies), but it is open to all.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills