Syllabus

**Rome via Brooklyn**

A Study Abroad version of CLAS 1110

Via is Latin for “by way of” or “road” and is still a common term for a street in Italian.

Overview

This section is taught over 21 days in Italy. Like a regular on campus course there are 45 instructional hours and your professor is available for “office” hours as well. However, the instruction for this course takes place in museums, on archaeological sites, and in the streets of Rome. You can anticipate most instructional days having about 3 hours (and very occasionally up to 6) learning alongside your professor and fellow students. There will be lectures and presentations and discussion all enriched by your own readings and preparations on your own time. You will not just read about Rome and Italy, but see, taste, smell, feel, and hear it. There will be opportunity to explore modern Rome as well and draw connections between past and present.

If you’ve already taken CLAS 1110, we can find ways for you to participate and earn credit, just ask!

Bulletin Description

CLAS 1110: Tyranny, Democracy, Empire: Classical Cultures

3 hours; 3 credits

Introductory study of ancient cultures through close reading of a variety of texts; most sections will focus on Greece and ROME, but some may explore other classical traditions such as those of India, Mesopotamia or China. Attention to such questions as literary genre, material and performance contexts, gender, political institutions, religion, philosophy, models of culture and the creation of a classical tradition. Practice in close reading and communication by means of critical writing, class discussion and other methods, such as collaborative group work.

Prerequisite: None.

This course fulfills the World Cultures and Global Issues requirement of the Flexible Common Core of the CUNY Pathways General Education Requirements. For some Brooklyn College students it may also apply towards your College Option General Education Requirements.

Instructor

Liv Mariah Yarrow, Professor and Chair, Classics

This will be my fourth time leading a student trip to Rome, but my first with Brooklyn College students. I’ve more than 20 years of teaching experience with this course, and a deep knowledge of the city of Rome. In my research I specialize in the history of the Republican period and have a particular passion to understand why history is remember in specific ways.

BIO

Publications

Learning Outcomes

Pathways Objectives

Gather, interpret, and assess information from a variety of sources and points of view.
Evaluate evidence and arguments critically or analytically.
Produce well-reasoned written or oral arguments using evidence to support conclusions.
Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or interdisciplinary field exploring world cultures or global issues, including, but not limited to, anthropology, communications, cultural studies, economics, ethnic studies, foreign languages (building upon previous language acquisition), geography, history, political science, sociology, and world literature.
Analyze the historical development of one or more non-U.S. societies.
Analyze and discuss the role that race, ethnicity, class, gender, language, sexual orientation, belief, or other forms of social differentiation play in world cultures or societies.

Course Specific Objectives for all CLAS 1110 Sections

to use with accuracy and precision basic terms of literary analysis relevant to the texts read in class, and to describe differences among the literary genres represented by the class readings.
to read literary texts critically.
to identify traditions and practices specific to ancient cultures and describe how they help shape the texts produced within those cultures.
to identify traditions and practices which modern cultures borrow from Greece and Rome
to write interpretive prose which is clear and cogent.
to make articulate contributions to classroom discussion of texts.

Required Materials

Approximate cost: 50-80 dollars depending on used vs new, digital vs. paperback

Books

Claridge Amanda Judith Toms and Tony Cubberley. 2010. Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide 2nd ed. rev. and expanded ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Used is great, just be sure it is the 2010, not 1998 edition. An eBook is also fine as long as you can easily navigate it on a tablet or eReader that you can bring with you each day.

Aicher Peter J. 2004. Rome Alive: A Source-Guide to the Ancient City. Vol. 1. Wauconda Ill: Bolchazy-Carducci.

Used is great. An eBook is also fine as long as you can easily navigate it on a tablet or eReader that you can bring with you each day. You only need volume one! (Volume two is the same texts in the original Latin and Greek: consider buying if you are studying either or both languages.)

Tomalin Barry and Gioia Toffoli. 2021. Culture Smart!: Italy : The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture. London: Kuperard.

Any format: this one you are unlikely to need to carry with you each day.

Any and all additional readings will be posted on this website. You will also use this website to submit course work. If a reading is password protected for copyright reasons, it is always the same password, just ask the professor for a reminder.

Smart Phone or Tablet Apps

WordPress (Required to Submit Assignments) – iOS, Android

CityMapper (Download Rome to work offline) – iOS, Android

GoogleTranslate (with camera functionality enabled) – iOS, Android

DuoLingo (Practice some Italian!) – iOS, Android

WhatsApp (To let us communicate in real time individually and as a group) – iOS, Android

Readings and class discussion will cover potentially sensitive topics including contemporary politics, sex, gender, violence, race and ethnic identity, and religion. Students will be expected to treat viewpoints different from their own with respect.

Graded Aspects of the Course

30% Participation

evaluated based of engagement in onsite lecture, discussion, and informal group work, including demonstrating your preparation for the day’s activities through assigned readings and other suggested supplemental materials. (2 pts per instructional day)

30% Travel and Reading Reflections Blog

At least 15 of the 21 days you will make daily post on the class WordPress website of no less 300 original words, 2 original pictures, and at least one quote from an ancient author (i.e. from the assigned reading). There are more suggested writing prompts than you need to complete, choose those that work best for you and find your own voice in sharing your experiences. (2 pts per post unless otherwise indicated)

10% Peer feedback and support

You should aim to write open-ended, engaging and substantive comments on at least two classmates blog posts each instructional day of the trip. 60 comments total. For full credit, you must leave at least two comments for each classmate over the duration of the course (share the love!). Comments need to be three or more sentences in length. An example: “I like how you reflected on… I also noticed… Have you considered…” You’re encouraged to include links and images in your comments. (6 comments per point)

13% Partnered presentation

In the first half of the trip, you and your partner will give a shared concise and well researched 10-minute presentation on recent research related to monument or artifact to the whole class. Your topic and partner will be chosen before departure with the instructor, along with suggested peer-reviewed scholarship. You will summarize and explain this scholarship to your peers, perhaps in conversation with each other or in the style of an interview podcast or just by taking turns. Any visual aids, maps, plans, reconstructions, should be uploaded as a supplemental blog post to the course website.

17% Solo presentation

During the second half of the trip you will give a concise and well researched 10-minute presentation on recent research related to a monument or artifact to the whole class. Your topic will be chosen before departure with the instructor, along with suggested peer-reviewed scholarship. You will summarize and explain this scholarship to your peers. Any visual aids, maps, plans, reconstructions, should be uploaded as a supplemental blog post to the course website.

Remember

You are expected to put in twice the time out of this class as you do in this class. That’s twice the amount of time you physically spend with your instructor. This is college-wide policy. See the current Bulletin.