Undergraduate Course: Paganism and Christianity in the Roman Empire (CACA10007)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The Roman Empire, stretching from Britain and the Atlantic coast of Gaul and the Iberian peninsula in the west to eastern Anatolia, the Syrian desert and Egypt in the east, was arguably the most cosmopolitan state the western world had ever seen. This is reflected in the astonishing diversity of divine powers venerated within the Empire, ranging from the classical pantheon to Oriental deities and the natives gods and godesses of the western provinces and from divine powers in human guise to sacred animals. Religious sites included urban temples as well as pilgrimage centres and healing sanctuaries in remote locations as well as sacred springs, trees and mountains. With few exceptions (such as Christianity, Druidism and Manichaeism), the individual had almost unlimited freedom of choice. It was also mainly within the Empire that Christianity grew from a persecuted minority cult to a world religion, a development which has shaped history to the present day. Religion in the Roman Empire can help us to understand the modern world, both because important developments originated then and because the cosmopolitan nature of Roman religion provides a useful analogy for our own time. |
| Course description |
Not entered
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Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should usually have at least 3 courses in Classics related subject matter (at least 2 of which should be in Classical Art/Archaeology) at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this) for entry to this course. We will only consider University/College level courses. |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this course students should be able to demonstrate in written examinations and in course work
- knowledge of major deities, cults, religions, types of sanctuaries and rituals within the Roman world;
- knowledge of important religious developments in the area of the Empire between the late Republic and Late Antiquity;
- an awareness of some significant regional differences in the religion of various parts of the Roman world;
- the ability to use critically a variety of different categories of material and written evidence to reconstruct religious phenomena;
- bibliographical research skills to be able to find independently additional information on Roman religion in its wider context.
They should in addition be able to
- express clearly ideas and arguments in writing
- gather and analyse material independently on a given topic and organise it into a coherent piece of work
- deal independently with a complex body of information
- recognise and focus on important aspects of a complex subject, select specific examples and produce a concise summary
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Special Arrangements |
In order for a student from outwith Classics to be enrolled, contact must be made with a Course Secretary on 50 3580 in order for approval to be obtained. |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Eberhard Sauer
Tel: (0131 6)50 3587
Email: eberhard.sauer@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Elaine Hutchison
Tel: (0131 6)50 3582
Email: E.Hutchison@ed.ac.uk |
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