CL2EL: Entertainment and Leisure in Roman Society

Module code: CL2EL

Module provider: Classics; School of Humanities

Credits: 20

Level: Level 2 (Intermediate)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Dr Tim Penn, email: tim.penn@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: 21 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

The Romans, just like modern people, partook in many different forms of leisure and entertainment. These different kinds of entertainment ranged from top-down spectacles in the circus, the amphitheatre, and the theatre which were organised by social and economic elites to bottom-up, DIY activities like board games. But leisure isn’t just about having fun – it has deeper social, political, and economic connotations. So, in introducing you to these topics, this module is also intended to provide a window onto the history of the Roman world, through an important facet of its culture. In this option, we examine a cross-section of different types of Roman entertainment, accompanying social attitudes, and the sources for them. Throughout, we take an interdisciplinary approach to Roman entertainment, and examine the ways we can use different kinds of evidence (textual, iconographic, material) to learn about leisure in the past.

Aims and objectives:

• To offer students a window onto different forms of leisure, both top down and bottom up, in the Roman world
• To introduce students to the main literary, iconographic, and material sources for the study of entertainment and leisure in Roman society
• To investigate the theoretical and political assumptions which inform the study of entertainment and leisure

Module learning outcomes

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

1. Use and assess a variety of evidence in order to explore how entertainment and leisure were defined and practised in Roman society
2. Draw connections between the evidence and arguments presented in the lectures and seminars and additional information encountered during their own research
3. Articulate their arguments effectively and illustrate them with relevant evidence

Module content

This module will cover current approaches to Roman entertainment and leisure and investigate questions related to the role of leisure activities in Roman society. Topics covered may include the amphitheatre, the circus, the theatre, the baths and gymnasia, wining and dining, board games, laws around entertainment and how entertainment and religion intersected and sometimes clashed.

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The course will be taught through a one-hour lecture and a one-hour seminar weekly.

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.

Essay presentations in second half of the term to act as a feedforward session and encourage students to think about approaching Assignment 2 (essay).

Reassessment

Additional costs