CLAS 3207

Roman Slavery

Winter 2012

Tuesdays and Thursdays 12:30 - 2:00 in H 304

Instructor: Dr. Ilse Mueller            

Office:  H 339

Office Telephone: 474 3450 ext. 4423       

Email: ilsem@nipissingu.ca

Homepage:

Office hours: Thursdays 10-12 and by appointment

This course examines the institution of slavery at Rome. Some of the main themes pursued in this course include the origins and development of Roman slavery, how it was maintained, and what its impact was on a society that depended on slavery for its wealth and power. We will look at the slave supply, at what slaves did, and how they were treated. We will also investigate how slave ownership affected values and attitudes. What, for example, was its impact on family life and sexual behaviour?  

We also will make comparisons with New World slavery and examine the relevance of ancient slavery to contemporary issues related to race and ethnicity.

Required Books:

1. Frederick Douglass, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave; 

2. Sandra Joshel, Slavery in the Roman World, Cambridge 2010;

3. Keith Bradley, Slavery and Society at Rome, Cambridge 1994;

4.  Thomas Wiedemann, Greek and Roman Slavery (a primary sourcebook), Routledge 1981;

5. Brent D. Shaw, Spartacus and the Slave Wars, U of Penn Press 2001;

Additional primary and secondary material will be made available on the course website.

Grade Distribution:

1. Assignment # 1: review of article 

    as presentation or write-up only

    due dates - throughout the term                                15%

2. Research Project Part 1: annotated

        bibliography - Due March 1                                10%

3. Research Project Part 2: The Essay

                                Due April 10                                35%

4. Final Exam - in-class   April 5                                 25%

5. preparedness, attendance, participation

        including weekly reading responses                     15%

Click on the link below to access the password protected

course webpage for lecture topics, reading assignments and lecture notes

if you have forgotten the password, send me an email