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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "AH 228"
COURSE NAME: "Persia and the Ancient Near East: Issues and Approaches"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Fall 2022
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Sophy Downes
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: TTH 4:30 PM 5:45 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES:
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The course is an introduction to the art and archaeology of the Ancient Near East, and to the methods of studying this field. It looks at the role of art and material culture in shaping the inhabited environment from the earliest settlements, through the development of urban centers, to the first ‘world empire.’ While the course will consider the cultures that flourished in the region between the earliest Neolithic settlements (c. 12.000 BC) to the end of the Achaemenid Empire (330 BC), it is not intended as a comprehensive survey. Instead, it uses a series of case studies to consider various theoretical and conceptual issues involved in the production and use of objects / monuments. It will expand students’ visual literacy and their ability to think critically about how objects mediate our position in the world.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the ancient world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern.
May be taken more than once for credit with different topics.

Is a statue ever alive? Why is there no Akkadian word for beautiful? What were the hanging gardens of Babylon? How did the servants in the Royal Tombs of Ur die? This course will address these and other questions in the context of the ANE, with the overall aim of introducing students to the varied, and often unfamiliar, ways in which material culture mediated ANE interactions with the world.

 

The class will be organized chronologically, each week focusing on a particular (set of) objects / monuments. Class will consist of 1) a lecture exploring the relevant historical background and 2) a discussion session for which students will read contemporary scholarship on a theoretical issue related to the material. Core concepts will include: object agency, place and memory, interactions with the gods, ritual violence and the destruction of objects, diplomatic exchange, the uses of visual narrative. Considering objects broadly in terms of their social function, their ability to ‘change the world’ – the course will return to the questions: why do these societies produce and use (art) objects? What can people do / think with these particular (art) objects that they couldn’t do / think without them?
LEARNING OUTCOMES:

Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the ancient world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern.
May be taken more than once for credit with different topics.

Students will learn how to:

 -      look at objects and buildings more thoroughly, and use a wider vocabulary and range of concepts to describe what they see.

-      understand the historical, social, and religious contexts in which these ANE objects/buildings belong.

-      read intensively, respond critically and independently to the material they have read, and discuss their different responses in a productive fashion.

-      form their own arguments and conclusions by moving between data and theory, and learn how to express these arguments and conclusions effectively.

-      reflect on their own engagement with the material world, and the *long*-term patterns of human change/continuity within which they do this.

 
TEXTBOOK:
NONE
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
- Attendance and participationThis is a reading-intense course. Students will be required to bring notes on the readings to class each week, and after class to outline an answer to related questions, which will form the basis of the final exams. 15%.
Mid-terms These will consist of identification and discussion of images studied so far in the course. This will evaluate visual awareness and vocabulary, as well as familiarity with the material studied.25%.
Research paperStudents will choose a research topic in collaboration with the instructor and turn it into a project. The project should involve an analytical and critical discussion of a theoretical approach and its application to an archaeological case study. 30%
Final exam This will be based on the questions raised in-class discussions. This will evaluate critical thinking and the effective communication of independently developed arguments.30%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:

·    You are expected to participate in all scheduled classes; absences will be noted and may affect your final grade. Please refer to the university catalogue.

·    Punctuality is necessary; late arrival will be noted and may affect your final grade.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

SCHEDULE SUMMARY

 

Each week will consist of a lecture, introducing the historical and artistic background, and a discussion period, which will be based on the assigned readings:

 

1 Where is the Ancient Near East?

 

2 Çatalhöyük. Which came first? Did art cause agriculture, or did agriculture cause art?

 

3 The Uruk phenomenon. Cities and narrative

 

4 The Royal Tombs of Ur. Ritual violence and gifts for the dead

 

5 Art of the Akkadian Empire from Sargon to Naram Sin. Landscapes and bodies , aesthetic values.

 

6 The Uluburun Shipwreck. Trade and diplomacy in the Levantine Bronze Age

 

7 Mid-term review and Class visit to Museo Barrocco 

 

8 Mid-terms 

 

9 Are statues ever alive? Cult, assault, abduction

 

10 Assyria. Palace and cosmos, centring the world – Nineveh, Nimrud, Khorsabad.

 

11 Babylon and memory

 

12 Paradises in Babylon and Persia

 

13 Persia. Does pattern keep you safe? Repetition and narrative in Achaemenid small crafts and architecture.

 

14 Review class. The ANE in the Classical and modern worlds

 

15 Final exam