CLASSICS HOMEPAGE
FACULTY
A. Koloski-Ostrow (Chair)
A. Hussein
P. Johnston
L. Muellner
C. Walker
STUDENTS
Department Reps
Research Classics
Study Abroad
REQUIREMENTS
University Bulletin
Placement Exam
Latin Teaching Cert.
The Major & Minor
The Senior Thesis
PRIZES
Nuntius NEWSLETTER
COURSES
Spring 2005
Fall 2005
Spring 2006
Fall 2006
Spring 2007
COLLOQUIA
CLASSICAL LINKS
CALENDAR
CONTACT US
AFFILIATED PROGRAMS
Medieval Studies
Religious Studies
Women's Studies
BRANDEIS HOMEPAGE
CLAS/FA 134B Course Syllabus: Spring 2006
Professor Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow
Office: Rabb 128, tel. (781)-736-2183 (voicemail)
Department Office: Rabb 140, x6-2180
Email: aoko@brandeis.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays and Fridays 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., and by appointment.
Class Meets: Block J, Tuesdays and Fridays, 12:10 p.m. - 1:30 p.m., Pollack Auditorium
If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis University and wish to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please see me immediately.
This course satisfies requirements for both Creative Arts (CA) and Humanities (HUM).
REQUIRED TEXTS
1. Nancy and Andrew Ramage, Roman Art, Romulus to Constantine (Prentice Hall 2000) (ISBN: 0-13-440702-4) (price: ca. $72.00) abbreviation: R&R
2. J. J. Pollitt, The Art of Rome: c. 753 BC -- AD 337 (Cambridge Univ. Press 1983) (ISBN: not available) (price: ca. $28.25) abbreviation: Pollitt
RECOMMENDED TEXTS
3. Paul MacKendrick, The Mute Stones Speak (W.W. Norton & Co. 1983 or latest) (ISBN: 0-393-30119-2) (price: $14.95) abbreviation: MacKendrick
4. Frank Sear, Roman Architecture (Cornell Univ. Press, 1992) (ISBN: 0-8014-9245-9) out of print, but on reserve (price: ca. $24.00) abbreviation: Sear
5. JoAnn Shelton, As the Romans Did (Oxford Univ. Press 1988 or latest) (ISBN: 0-19-508974-X) (price: $43.95) abbreviation: Shelton
Both required and recommended texts are also on RESERVE (indicated with R below) in the library along with other suggested reading material for the course. Check your WebCT, as well. Most of the readings from MacKendrick and Sear, for example, are posted there.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This survey course is designed to familiarize students with the art and architecture of ancient Rome, from the founding of the city to the end of the Empire. We consider monumental and domestic architecture, wall painting, mosaics, sculpture, occasional coins and epigraphic evidence, as well as maps and ancient sources. Beside ancient Rome itself, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Ostia, and various cities in the provinces are also examined in some detail in order to provide understanding of the original contexts for these media. We want to know how ancient art and objects of daily life were used, viewed, and appreciated by their original patrons and owners as well as how to recognize and date them. If you take the course seriously, you will time travel to ancient Rome, and that is an aerobic exercise, I promise.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1. You should be present (in mind and body) and participate as actively as you can during lectures, discussions, and any out-of-class activities or fieldtrips. Questions are always welcome and encouraged. Class attendance will be taken on a fairly regular basis, especially at the beginning of the term so that your professor can get to know you. Other classes will have a sign-in sheet for attendance. Please note that it quickly becomes apparent who is present and who is not, especially from the class sign-in sheets that will be distributed.
2. You must complete all assigned readings (from required texts and from books on reserve or articles posted on our WebCT). Your appreciation and understanding of lectures and discussions will be greatly enhanced if you complete reading assignments by their due date. This syllabus contains assignments from your required texts and from various books on the reserve reading list or things posted on WebCT for the first five weeks of classes, up to the midterm break, February 18-26. You will be given as a separate handout in February (it will also be posted on our WebCT for this course) that contains assignments for the rest of the semester. Since my lectures are original creations, you are advised *not* to miss them. Many points made in them cannot be found in the required or reserve reading.
3. You will also take one short map quiz (on geography, possibly with some terminology). The map quiz is announced in advance (scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 7) so that you have time to prepare yourselves. Study guides will be provided and posted on WebCT. This quiz is not given to cause you unnecessary stress or anxiety. Rather it will assure your professor and you that you are not lost (literally and figuratively). Just as it is crucial that you learn to recognize for all time certain important objects, plans, and architectural remains as one of the main objectives of the course, you should have a good sense of the topography and geography we shall travel together, and a sense of some archaeological terminology and chronology. When you make your next trip to the Mediterranean world (or your first trip) and to the ancient sites for yourself, you will be grateful for this exercise. Sorry, no make-up quiz (unless you have a medical or other truly valid excuse issued in advance, if possible).
4. You will take one midterm slide exam on Friday, March 10. (Sorry, no make-up midterm exam is available. If you must miss the midterm altogether for MEDICAL reasons or for some other VALID excuse, approved by your professor, preferably in ADVANCE, you may write a research paper [5-7 typed, double-spaced pages] to make up the omission. The optional research paper may also be completed by those of you with a grade lower than "B" on the midterm slide exam. In this latter case, however, the grade you receive on the research paper will be averaged with the grade you received on your midterm. The research paper's grade, in other words, will *not* replace your entire exam with a new grade. Still, this option should produce a more satisfactory midterm grade, if taken seriously.
5. You will also complete an object-based writing project (which includes a written and drawn object description). A full explanation will be forthcoming. This work will require a sustained effort to be done well, and is due Tuesday, May 2, 2006. You will have opportunities to consult with your professor. You will lose one grade step for every day that your project is late (A+ to A to A- to B+ -- unless you have a medical or other truly valid excuse, presented IN ADVANCE, if at all possible). This assignment is instead of a final exam.
APPROXIMATE GRADE DETERMINATION
1) Class attendance, participation and completion of reading assignments (20%)
2) Map/Terminology quiz (Tues., Feb. 7) (20%)
3) Midterm Exam (Fri., March 10) (30%)
4) Object Project Assignment with Drawing, 2-4 pages (Tues., May 2) (30%)
The optional research paper can be worth 30% ONLY if you have special permission from your professor to use it to replace the midterm slide exam. If written to improve a poor midterm grade, the paper?s grade will be averaged with your midterm grade to produce your new midterm grade.
Total: (100%)
ACADEMIC HONESTY (LAST, BUT HARDLY LEAST!)
You are expected to be honest in all of your academic work. Brandeis University policy on academic honesty is contained in your Student Handbook in section 5 under "Rights and Responsibilities." Instances of cheating, plagiarism, or other alleged dishonesty will be reported to the Office of Campus Life for possible referral to the Student Judicial System. The adjudication process is also outlined in your Handbook. Potential consequences of academic dishonesty include (in addition to an "E" on the assignment) failure in the course, disciplinary probation, and suspension from the University. A record of any offense will remain in a student's disciplinary file in the Office of Student Affairs throughout his or her career at Brandeis. Please know that I take this code very seriously. If you have any questions about my expectations, please ask me.
SCHEDULE
Lecture topics for the entire semester are listed by date below, along with due dates for assignments and field trips.
JANUARY
Tuesday, January 17
What is Roman art, and why study it?
REQUIRED: R&R 7-23 (Intro.); Buy books.
Friday, January 20
Roman Topography and Chronology; Who were the Romans? How do we know them?
REQUIRED: R&R 24-45 (ch 1); Sear 10-28 (ch. 1), 29-48 (ch. 2) (R and WebCT); Pollitt 3-57 (ch. 1).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 1-27 (ch. 1) (R and WebCT).
Tuesday, January 24
Roman Forerunners: Villanovans, Etruscans, and Greeks (1000-200 B.C.E.)
REQUIRED: R&R 48-55 (rest of ch 1); Sear 10-28 (ch. 1), 29-48 (ch. 2) (R and WebCT); rev. Pollitt 3-57 (ch. 1).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 28-70 (ch. 2) (R and Web CT); McKay, A.G. Vergil's Italy (Bath, 1970) 147-193; Salmon, E.T. "Rome and the Latins," Phoenix VII.3 (1953) 93-104; Salmon, E.T. Samnium and the Samnites (Cambridge, 1967) (R); Paget, R. F. Central Italy: An Archaeological Guide (London, 1973).
Friday, January 27
Italian Prehistory in Rome; Introduction to the Roman Forum; Class in Library/Roman Forum Model
REQUIRED: R&R 56-81 (ch. 2); Sear, rev. 29-48 (ch. 2) (R and WebCT).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 71-112 (ch. 3), 113-140 (ch. 4) (R and WebCT); Shelton chs. II, III, IV, XI (R); Dudley, Urbs Roma, 3-9 (Site of Rome), 34 (Servian Wall), 43-47 (Tiber) (R).
Tuesday, January 31
The Roman Republic and its Monuments
REQUIRED: R&R 82-95 (rest of ch. 2).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 113-140 (ch. 4) (R and WebCT); Nash, Pictorial Dictionary 1 & 2, (individual monuments of Forum Romanum) (ch. 5) (R).
__________________________________________________________________________________________
FEBRUARY
Friday, February 3
Hellenistic Rome; Julius Caesar and the End of Republican Rome
REQUIRED: R&R rev. 56-95 (ch. 2); Sear 69-85 (ch. 4) (R and WebCT); Pollitt 58-98 (rest of ch. 1).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 141-177 (ch. 5) (R and WebCT); Shelton chs. VII, IX, X, XIII (R).
Tuesday, February 7
Brick into Marble, or Augustan Rome I: Gods, Temples & Other Architecture;
Map/Terminology quiz
REQUIRED: R&R 96-131 (ch. 3); Pollitt 99-139 (ch. 2)
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 178-215 (ch. 6) (R and WebCT); Shelton chs. IV, V, VIII, XIV (R).
Friday, February 10
Augustan Rome II: Sculpture, Portraiture & the Minor Arts (Glass)
REQUIRED: R&R 132-152 (ch. 4); Sear 49-68 (ch. 3) (R).
RECOMMENDED: Dudley, Urbs Roma, 9-17 (Republic), 51-119 (Capitol and Roman Forum) (R); Nash, Pic. Dic. 1, 63-73 (Ara Pacis), 310-315 (House of Augustus), 401-410 (Forum of Augustus), 446-449 (Forum Romanum) (R).
Tuesday, February 14
The Julio-Claudians I: Tiberius through Gaius (Caligula)
REQUIRED: rev. R&R 132-153 (ch. 4); Sear 69-102 (chs. 4-5) (R and WebCT); Pollitt, 99-136.
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 216-43 (ch 7, Hypocrite, Madman...) (R and WebCT); Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapters relevant Tiberius through Gaius (Caligula) (R).
Friday, February 17
The Julio-Claudians II: Claudius to Nero
REQUIRED: rev. R&R 132-153 (ch. 4); rev. Sear 69-102 (chs. 4-5) (R and WebCT); Pollitt, 136-150.
RECOMMENDED: rev. MacKendrick 216-43 (ch 7, Hypocrite, Madman...) (R and WebCT); Bo?thius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapters relevant Claudius to Nero (R).
Saturday, February 18 - Sunday, February 26 No Classes (Mid-Term Recess)
Tuesday, February 28
Vesuvian Cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Background, History, and Excavation of a Laboratory of Roman Life.
REQUIRED: MacKendrick 244-81 (ch. 8, Victims of Vesuvius) (R and WebCT); Etienne, Pompeii The Day a City Died (selections in WebCT).
__________________________________________________________________________________________
MARCH
Friday, March 3
Vesuvian Cities: Public Life
REQUIRED: rev. MacKendrick 244-81 (ch. 8, Victims of Vesuvius) (R and WebCT); Shelton chs. IV, VII, XIV, XV R; Sear ch 6, 103-118 (R and WebCT).
RECOMMENDED: Mau/Kelsey, Pompeii: Its Life and Art, 1-44 (R); Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, ch. on Pompeii (R); Grant, Cities of Vesuvius, 89-220 (chs. 4-8, Epilogue) (R); browse reserves for other things of interest.
Tuesday, March 7
Vesuvian Cities: Private Life
REQUIRED: rev. MacKendrick 244-81 (ch 8, Victims of Vesuvius) (R and WebCT); Shelton chs. V, VIII, XIII (R); rev. Sear 103-118 (ch 6) (R and WebCT).
RECOMMENDED: see above, last lecture; Grant, Eros at Pompeii (R); Grant, Cities of Vesuvius, 15-24, 25-44, 45-88 (chs. 1, 2, 3) (R); Etienne, Pompeii The Day a City Died (selections in WebCT); Mau/Kelsey, Pompeii: Its Life and Art, 245-279 (The Pompeian House) (R).
Friday, March 10
Midterm Exam (no make-ups, please, unless extreme circumstances discussed in advance if at all possible).
You should have read all REQUIRED readings well before the exam.
Tuesday, March 14
Finish Private Life / View Pompeii Video
REQUIRED: rev. readings from last lecture before the midterm.
RECOMMENDED: rev. readings from last lecture before the midterm.
Friday, March 17
Roman Villas Architecture and Decoration
REQUIRED: rev. Shelton chs. VIII and XIV (R); rev. R&R on Augustus and Julio-Claudians 96-153 (chs. 3, 4).
RECOMMENDED: Jashemski, Gardens of Pompeii vol. 1, esp. chs. 1 and 16; Mau/Kelsey, Pompeii: Its Life and Art, 45-60, 221-226 (R); Etienne, Pompeii The Day a City Died (sections in WebCT).
Sunday, March 19
Required Fieldtrip to Boston, Museum of Fine Arts
(Workshop on Object Projects); details TBA
Tuesday, March 21
The Flavian Emperors
REQUIRED: Sear 134-153 (ch 7) (R and WebCT); Pollitt 150-165; R&R 154-185 (ch 5).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 282-313 (ch 9) (R and WebCT); Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, ch. on Flavian architecture (R).
Friday, March 24
Trajan
REQUIRED: Sear 154-165 (ch 8) (R and WebCT); R&R 186-205 (ch 6).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 314-241 (ch 10) (R and WebCT); Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, ch. on Trajan (R).
Sunday, March 26
Second optional Fieldtrip to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts for students who missed the first one on March 19.
Tuesday, March 28
Ostia: the Port Town of Rome
REQUIRED: Sear 118-133 (ch 6) (R and WebCT); rev. R&R 186-205 (ch 6)
RECOMMENDED: Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapters relevant to Ostia (R); Meiggs, Roman Ostia (R).
Friday, March 31
Hadrian, the Revival of Classical Greek Art, Rome, and his Villa at Tivoli
One-Page Prospectus for Object Project Assignment Due
REQUIRED: Sear 165-184 (ch 8) (R and WebCT); R&R 206-233 (ch 7); Pollitt 165-186.
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 342-373 (ch 11) (R and WebCT); Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapter relevant to Hadrian (R); Boatwright, Hadrian and the City of Rome.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
APRIL
Tuesday, April 4
Roman Towns in the Eastern Provinces
REQUIRED: Sear 210-230 (ch 10) (R and WebCT); rev. Pollitt 165-186.
RECOMMENDED: Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapter relevant to European provinces (R).
Friday, April 7
Roman Towns in North Africa and the Western Provinces
REQUIRED: Sear 185-209 (ch 9), 231-254 (ch 11) (R and WebCT); rev. Pollitt 165-186.
RECOMMENDED: Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapter relevant to North Africa and Western provinces (R).
Tuesday, April 11 (Brandeis Friday)
The Antonines and Severans: Triumphal Arches, Public Works, and Sculpture
REQUIRED: Pollitt 189-201; R&R 234-257, 258-283 (chs. 8, 9).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 374-419 (ch 12, Antonines through Constantine, 138-377 C.E.) (R and WebCT); Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapter relevant to period (R).
Thursday, April 13 - Sunday, April 23 No classes. (Passover Break)
Tuesday, April 25
The Soldier Emperors/ Crisis of the Third Century; The Tetrarchs
REQUIRED: rev. Sear 255-276 (ch 12) (R and WebCT); Pollitt 201-213; R&R 284-295, 296-311 (chs. 10, 11).
RECOMMENDED: MacKendrick 420-445 (ch 13) (R and WebCT); Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapter relevant to period (R).
Friday, April 28
Constantine; a New Rome
REQUIRED: rev. Pollitt 201-213; R&R 312-335 (ch 12).
RECOMMENDED: Boëthius and Ward-Perkins, Etruscan and Roman Architecture, chapter relevant to period (R).
__________________________________________________________________________________________
MAY
Tuesday, May 2
Retrospective and Looking to the Future
Object Projects Due
Photograph: Garlanded Man and Woman, detail, wall painting, Pompeii, House of Caecilius (Photographic Credit: Paula Chabot, 1993),
by courtesy of the vRoma Project: http://www.vroma.org/images/mcmanus_images/paula_chabot/clc/pcclc.15.jpg.
To report broken links, please contact Janet Barry at jbarry@brandeis.edu or x6-2180.
back to top
Department of Classical Studies, 2006.