Department
of History, Philosophy, Religion, and
Social Sciences
Choate Rosemary
Hall
Wallingford,
Connecticut
Directed
Study:
CLASSICAL ROME
Spring 2004
term
Hypertext Course
Syllabus
Goals
of the Directed Study
This
is a topical exploration of Roman history. While most of the focus
is traditional political, diplomatic, and military history, there will
be an effort to incorporate recent scholarship in social history of
the period as well.
Course
Policies and Grading
A
summary of course policies and grading standards can be found online
by clicking here.
Texts
and Course Materials
There
are two texts for the course:
- Allen M.
Ward et al., A
History Of The Roman People. Prentice-Hall, 2002. Fourth
edition. ISBN 0130384801.
- Anthony
Everitt, Cicero: The Life And Times Of Rome's Greatest
Politician. Random House,
2003. ISBN 037575895X.
Program
and Workload
This
is designed as a tutorial. As such, the syllabus is defined by a series
of questions to be answered in essay submissions. Weekly class meetings
will review the most recent submission and discuss topics relating to
the forthcoming assignment.
Schedule
of Paper Topics
Instructions: The following topic questions are intentionally broad. You
should approach each essay by articulating a specific thesis that reflects
what you have learned from the texts you read. Papers should be at least
2-3 pages in length. No outside research is expected, but you may wish
to supplement your reading with other sources. Remember to include the
Honor Code Pledge on each submission.
Essay #1: "Victory over
Carthage and achievement of empire changed Rome for the worse." Respond.
(Due April 20.)
Essay #2: "The Gracchi
were irresponsible demagogues who threatened the Republic and therefore
richly deserved their disastrous fates." Respond.
(Due April 28.)
Essay #3: Respond to
one of the following: "If Julius Caesar had lived, the Roman Republic
would have survived." OR "Julius
Caesar’s career was the major reason that the Roman Republic
did not survive." (Due May 5.)
Essay #4: "What made
Augustus so great was that he combined the good things about many of
his predecessors without exhibiting their bad traits." Respond.
(Due May 12.)
Essay #5: Describe the three main causes of the fall of Rome and
discuss which was the most important factor and why. (Due May
19.)
Essay #6 (final project):
Write a review of Everitt's Cicero biography that discusses the extent
to which
the
man's
life reflects Rome's greatest
strengths and weaknesses as a culture/society. The essay should
be 3-5 pages in length. (Due May 28.)
|