ANCHIST 110

Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome


Please note: this is archived course information from 2019 for ANCHIST 110.

Description

The ancient Mediterranean was a fascinating place. Its history has always captivated Western society, because of its enduring cultural legacy as well as its profound strangeness.

This course explores the rise and development of three of the great civilisations in the region: Egypt, Greece and Rome. It tells the story of how, over thousands of years, Egyptian civilisation evolved from hunter/gatherers to become the superpower of the region, the looming yet alluring behemoth in the East. Toward the end of Egypt’s ancient rule, Greece arose as the "birthplace of Western civilisation", as renowned for its philosophers, historians and writers as it was for its warriors and battles. The rise of Rome followed shortly after, spreading its military and cultural power, but also absorbing and being changed by the cultures it conquered, including those of both Greece and Egypt.

This course examines the history of these cultures, exploring how they became so powerful, and what life was like for the men and women who inhabited them. It features pharaohs and tyrants, empresses and gladiators, commoners and priests, scribes and soldiers. From their lives and stories emerge a picture of civilisations which ebb and flow, and which had many elements in common, but were also fundamentally different from one another.

View the course syllabus

Availability 2019

Semester 1

Lecturer(s)

Lecturer(s) Dr Jeremy Armstrong
Associate Professor Lisa Bailey
Dr Jennifer Hellum

Assessment

Coursework + Exam

Points

ANCHIST 110: 15 points