CL1RH: Roman History: the rise and fall of the Republic

Module code: CL1RH

Module provider: Classics; School of Humanities

Credits: 20

Level: Level 1 (Certificate)

When you'll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Dr Samuel Agbamu, email: s.agbamu@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 11 November 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

This module aims to provide students with a general knowledge and understanding of the history of the Roman Republic from the 2nd century BC to the late 1st century BC. In this module, the students will approach and investigate a range of ancient sources in order to offer their own interpretation, draw links to the modern world, and enquire the relevance of Roman antiquity to the issues faced by modern societies. 

This module investigates the mid- and late Republican history of Rome (2nd century BC to late first century BC), a period marked by profound socio-political changes which ultimately led to the crisis of the Republican institutions. It introduces students to the main types of evidence for ancient history and to modern methodological approaches.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to: 

1. demonstrate good knowledge of the history and culture of the period; 
2. search and evaluate information and ideas – make use of library databases and online sources; 
3. compare, critically appraise, and contextualize a variety of selected ancient material; 
4. organise materials and present effectively written arguments. 

Module content

The particular focus of the module is on the circumstances leading up to the first-century BC crisis of the Republic, using texts such as Sallust’s The Conspiracy of Catiline. The course is intended to give students a thorough grounding in the political history of the Roman republic (for the period going from the 2nd century BC to the assassination of Caesar in 44 BC), both as a self-contained objective and to prepare them for the Part 2 ancient history core module on the Roman empire. Lectures cover the history of the republican period with some thematic coverage of particular topics (e.g., literary history, warfare, society).  

The topics are pursued further in seminars which focus on a close examination of the text and themes of Sallust’s The Conspiracy of Catiline, alongside other relevant ancient material.  

The course represents current thinking and research on the various subjects covered, introducing even those students with prior experience of classical studies to new areas and methods. At the same time, no specific knowledge is assumed as a prerequisite for this module. 

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The module will be taught by lectures, discussion groups, and online lectures, with at least two contact hours per week. 

Study hours

At least 20 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Written coursework (historical commentary) of 1,000 words to be submitted in Week 5, Semester 2. 

Reassessment

Additional costs