Brandeis University, Spring 2009
CLAS 145B: The Ancient Cities of Vesuvius
Tues. & Fri., 3:10 – 4:30 p.m., Lown 2

Instructor: Randall M. Colaizzi
Department of Classical Studies, Rabb 128
Phone: 508-259-1202
E-mail: colaizzi@brandeis.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays and Fridays 1:30-2:30, & by appointment.

This course satisfies requirements for both creative arts (CA) and humanities (HUM).
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.

Required Texts:

Mary Beard,   The Fires of Vesuvius. Belknap/Harvard. ISBN: 0674029763 (Beard)
Joanne Berry, The Complete Pompeii, Thames & Hudson. ISBN: 9780500051504 (Berry)
Alison Cooley, Pompeii:  A Sourcebook.  Routledge. ISBN: 0415262127 (Cooley)
Robert Harris, Pompeii (A Novel). Ballantine. ISBN 0345475674 (Harris)
Other required texts are posted on LATTE and indicated by * (asterisk) in the Schedule.
Most required and recommended texts are also on RESERVE (R) in the library along with other suggested reading material for the course.


Course Description:

    This course is a survey of the history, art, and daily life of Pompeii and Herculaneum, Roman towns destroyed (and preserved) by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79. Students will study not only the many peoples (Oscans, Greeks, Samnites, and Romans) who lived in these places in Antiquity, but also the centuries of archaeological excavations that have revealed their cultures.  We will study a wide range materials and sources: ancient texts, inscriptions, art, artefacts, and architecture–even evidence from vulcanology, botany, and forensic pathology.  Two fictional works--one ancient, and one modern--will recreate, in different ways, the life of pleasure among the villas of Roman Campania.

Course Requirements:

  1. You should be present (in mind and body) and participate as actively as you can during lectures and discussions.  Questions are always welcome and encouraged. Class attendance will be taken on a regular basis, orally at the beginning of the term so that your professor can get to know you, and then by sign-in sheets distributed at the beginning of every class. Please note that it quickly becomes apparent who is present and who is not, especially from the class sign-in sheets, but it is important that you come to class.
  2. You must complete all assigned readings (from required texts and from books and articles posted on LATTE). 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 and recommended texts (and from various books on the reserve reading or items posted from time to time on LATTE) for 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 quiz on geography and terminology (see the Schedule). Study guides will be provided and posted on LATTE. 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. Sorry, no make-up, unless you have a documented medical excuse or other serious family emergency.
  4. You will take one midterm exam (see the Schedule). (Again:  no make-up, unless you have a documented medical excuse or other serious family emergency). If your grade is unsatisfactory (C or lower) on the midterm, you can come to your professor to discuss the possibility of an optional research paper to improve your grade. 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 a writing project; a full explanation will be forthcoming. (See the Schedule for the deadlines.) This project requires a sustained effort to be done well. You will have opportunities to consult with me about this. Unless you have a documented medical excuse or other serious family emergency, you will receive no credit if you miss the deadline.  This assignment is instead of a final exam.

Grading:

Class participation, attendance, project prospectus 20%
Map & Terminology Quiz 20%
Midterm Exam 30%
Writing Project (5-6 pages) 30%


Academic Honesty:
      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.   The Short Version:  Your Work Must Be Your Own.

Brandeis University, Spring 2009 Randall M. Colaizzi
The Ancient Cities of Vesuvius Dept. of Classical Studies, Rabb 128
CLAS 145B Phone:  508-259-1202
Preliminary Schedule  E-mail:  colaizzi@brandeis.edu
Note that the Readings are due 
Date Units, Topics, & Events by the end of the Unit (* in LATTE)
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 1 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Pompeii:  Introduction & History Introduction Berry, 6-15*
T   1/13 Disaster in the Shadow of Vesuvius Berry, 16-33*
F  1/16 Rediscovering Pompeii's Buried Past Berry, 34-63*
T   1/20 No Class:  Brandeis Monday Birth and Growth of a Roman Town Berry, 64-85*
F 1/23 What's New at Pompeii & Herculaneum AOK-O,1-11*
T 1/27 Destruction of Pompeii Cooley, 27-43*
Introduction Beard, 1-25*
The Deadly Shadow of Vesuvius Video
The Bay of Naples N. Geographic*
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 2 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Pompeii:  Public Life Life in the Public Eye Berry, 120-133
F 1/30 The Last Years of Pompeii Berry, 234-243
T 2/3 Politics & Public Life Cooley, 111-136
Who Ran the City? Beard, 188-215
Street Life Beard, 53-80
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 3 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Pompeii:  Religion(s) Gods, Temples, and Cults Berry, 186-209
F 2/6 Public Building & Urban Identity Laurence, 20-37*
T 2/10 Religion Cooley, 83-110
A City Full of Gods Beard, 276-308
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 4 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Pompeii:  Leisure The People of Pompeii Berry, 86-91
F 2/13 The People of Pompeii Berry, 102-109
T 2/17 No Class:  Midterm Recess The Theaters of Herculaneum and Pompeii Berry, 134-139
F 2/20 No Class:  Midterm Recess Gladiatorial Games Berry, 140-149
T 2/24 Baths and Bathing Berry, 150-153
Deviant Behaviour Laurence, 70-87
Leisure Cooley, 44-82
Pleasures of the Body Beard, 216-250
Fun & Games Beard, 251-275
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 5 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Pompeii:  Livelihood Economic Life in a Roman Town Berry, 210-233
F 2/27 Houses & Trade W-H, 118-142*
T 3/3 The Temporal Logic of Space Laurence, 122-132
Commercial Life Cooley, 157-191
Earning a Living Beard, 152-187
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 6 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Pompeii:  Homes Houses & Society Berry, 154-185
F 3/6 Reading the Roman House W-H, 3-16*
T 3/10 The Language of Public & Private W-H, 17-37*
House and Home Beard, 81-119
Painting and Decorating Beard, 120-151
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 7 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
F 3/13 Midterm Exam
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 8 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Eat, Drink, & Be Merry & Dinner at Trimalchio's Petronius, 20-66*
T 3/17 Death and Burial Berry, 92-101
F 3/20 Display and Self-Promotion & Zanker, 72-77*
Honorific Tombs & Zanker, 122-124*
City of the Dead Beard, 309-313 
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 9 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Introduction to Herculaneum A Roman Town Gives Up Its Dead Judge, 687-693*
T 3/24 The Dead Do Tell Tales At Vesuvius Gore, 557-613*
F 3/27 The Dead Reveal Their Lives Deiss, 189-196*
Antiquity's Treasure Troves Deiss, 197-210*
Life of a Roman Town Deiss, 1-4*
Origins and Legends Deiss, 5-9*
The Long Sleep, and Resurrection Deiss, 24-31*
Treasure Revealed--The Great Dig Deiss, 32-39*
Herculaneum Uncovered Video
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 10 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Herculaneum:  The Villa of the Papyri Houses of the Rich Patricians Deiss, 40-59*
T 3/31 Roman Luxury:  The Villa of the Papyri Deiss, 60-82*
F 4/3 The Library of the Villa dei Papyri Sider, 2-56*
A Roman Villa in Malibu Video
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 11 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Herculaneum:   Public & Private Houses of the "Poor" Patricians Deiss, 83-97*
T 4/7 Story of a Roman Lawsuit Deiss, 98-102*
F 4/10 Houses of the Middle Class Deiss, 103-112*
T 4/14 The Plebs--Houses and Shops Deiss, 114-142*
F 4/17 The Baths--Everybody's Club Deiss, 133-148*
Sports--The Palaestra Deiss, 149-153*
The Basilica--A Roman Courthouse Deiss, 154-166*
Curtain Time--The Theater Deiss, 167-181*
Main Street and the Forum Area Deiss, 182-188*
-- ------- ------------------ Unit 12 ------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------
Fire & Water The Water System Jansen, 257-266*
T 4/21 Prospectus Due The Water Supply Nappo, 26-27*
F 4/24 Pompeii's Water Supply Berry, 240-241
T 4/28 Pompeii:  A Novel Harris, 1-346