Syllabus
University of Texas – El Paso
University of Central Oklahoma
Kirkwood Community College
Team Taught Summer Intersession 2013
Layers of Rome: From Classical to Christian Rome
28 May– 13 June 2013 – University of Texas, El Paso,
Kirkwood Community College
and University of Central Oklahoma
Instructors: Dr. J. A. Sheetz-Nguyen, Dr. Renee Schlueter and Dr. Ronald Weber
jsheetznguyen@ucok.edu – Office Phone: 405-9745842
RSCHLUE@KIRKWOOD.EDU – OFFICE PHONE: 319-398-4998, EXTENSION 5836
rweber@utep.edu – Office Phone – 915-747-6512
Course Description: This course will survey the history, art and religion of Rome
from its founding into the modern era. Classes convene in El Paso and on site in Rome.
Instruction takes place amidst Rome’s archaeological remains, important churches, museums,
and social spaces to foster a comprehension of Rome's historical realities through a direct
personal dialogue with the places and artefacts of Rome, our historical laboratory. The course
will focus particularly on the rise of the Roman republic, the Roman empire, the rise of
Christian Rome, Renaissance Rome and the Victorian era. During the course, special efforts
will be made to engage students and help them to recognize the continuity of artistic expression
from antiquity through the Renaissance into the Victorian period. In the process students will
encounter the works of Renaissance artists such as Bramante, Michelangelo and Raphael:
Baroque artists like Bernini, and Caravaggio and the writings of Victorian travelers such as
Keats and Hawthorne who experienced and recorded the romance of historical Rome.
Course Rationale: This course will provide students with an overview of the history
of Rome within the context of Western civilization, from the Classical to the Modern Age.
Class objectives will be accomplished by dividing course requirements between on site
classroom instruction, with Rome as our historical laboratory, and reading, writing, and
presentation assignments. Beyond the classroom, Rome offers students an opportunity to
explore a world-class city, replete with shops, posh stores, trattorias, parks, and museums.
While contemporary Rome is not ancient Rome, many significant sites are preserved and open
to the public to engage the historical intellect and artistic imagination and inspire us to look
back in time to the second cradle of Western civilization after Athens. Through their research
and experiences students will encounter the historical layering that preserves the remembrance
of human activity from ancient times to the Renaissance. Students will map human activity by
identifying and photographing historical sites, developing a narrative of Rome's history through
individual journal accounts.
Course Objectives: To complete this course, students will
1 Increase their awareness of the historical and geographical spaces of an ancient city
now functioning as a modern European tourist center.
2 Explain the connection between classical, medieval, renaissance and modern Rome.
3 Prepare and present on site in Rome an oral presentation on an historical site, event or
person.
4 Research and prepare a brochure to accompany the on-site presentation.
a. A printed and revised version of the report must be included in the finished
journal.
5 Keep a daily experience journal recording notes from lectures, photographs and
personal observations on life in a non-English speaking country.
a. Revised and organized journals are due in the professor's office one week
after returning to El Paso.
6 Experience the world of travel, crossing international borders, using public
transportation and
living in a foreign environment.
Course Expectations: to complete the course with a high grade students should:
1 Complete all reading and homework assignments.
2 Come to class prepared to participate in all class discussions.
3 Bring a pen, notebook and the assigned reading to every class.
4 Type all assignments in accordance with the MLS style sheet.
5 Know that all assignments are linked to class discussions, readings and videos.
6 Be prepared to present short historical reports on site in Rome.
7 Compile a collection of photos, as part of a journal recording historical discovery and
travel experiences.
8 Attend all meetings on site in Rome equipped with pen, paper and textbook. In Rome
meetings will be on site from approximately 11:00 am to 3:00 pm.
Guidelines for Written and Oral Reports
All reports should describe Who, What, When, Where, and Why the subject is important:
1 When written be from 500 to 1000 words in length.
2 When delivered orally be a minimum of five minutes and no more than 6 minutes
in length and should engage the whole student body. (Ask the students some
questions.)
3 Students should provide a description of their chosen person, event or artifact,
including what or who it is; and when and where it became important.
4 Every student at the time of his/her report must provide a brochure to all the
members of class summarizing the important elements of the report topic with a list
of the sources of the report, (2 books & 1 website) a brief time line, at least one
picture and a statement of the significance of the topic in illustrating the class theme.
5 All reports must state why the subject is important for this class. That is how does
it address the class theme, “The Layers of Rome.”
Guidelines for Journals: all journals must
1 Be typed with pictures and dated
2 MOST IMPORTANTLY: give an account of site visits, side trips, personal
encounter. Each site account must answer the question: how did the experience
provide deeper understanding of the class theme, "The Layers of Rome"?
3 Include elements of daily life in Rome, both inside and outside of class.
a. How did each experience provide deeper understanding of the class theme"The Layers of Rome"?
4 Analyze how class experiences contributed or related to class theme:
5 Include typed, and edited copies of assigned reports.
Required Textbooks:
Kebric, Robert. Roman People. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield
Publishing, 2001.
Macadam, Alta. City Guide (Blue Guide) Rome. New York:
W.W. Norton, 2000.
Partridge, Loren. The Art of Renaissance Rome: 1400-1600.
New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1996.
Course Reader: An Anthology of Selected Readings (CR)
City Map of Rome
Recommended:
Claridge, Amanda. Rome: Oxford Archaeological Guide. New
York: Oxford, 1998.
Woodford, Susan. The Art of Greece and Rome. Edinburgh:
Cambridge Univ. Pr. 2004
Syllabus
Layers of Rome From the Classicalto
Christian Worlds
Meeting Times in El Paso
Dates 4 pm to 8 pm
Class Topic
In Class Activity
Text Assignment
May 14 – UTEP
Republican Rome
Discussion of the
Roman Republic
Kebric, Robert. Roman
People, pp. 1 to 56
Bring printout of
syllabus to all classes.
May 15 – UTEP
Imperial Rome
Discussion of the
Roman Empire
Kebric, Robert. Roman
People, pp. 57 to 86
and 122 to 147.
May 16 – UTEP
Transition to Christian
Rome
Discussion of the
Attraction of
Christianity
Kebric, Robert. Roman
People, pp. 209 to 275.
Draft of Report Due
May 17 – UTEP
Renaissance Rome
Chapel Decoration
Draft of Brochure
Due
Founding of Rome the
Christian City.
Partridge, Loren. The
Art of Renaissance
Rome, pp.1 to 42.
The Great Masters.
Michelangelo: matter
and spirit
Use of art in worship
Partridge, Loren. The
Art of Renaissance
Rome, pp. 43 to 60 and
79 to 108.
Partridge, Loren. The
Art of Renaissance
Rome, pp. 109 to 144.
May 18 – UTEP
Wrap up
Meeting Times and Places in Rome
Dates Class Topic
Readings and Class Activity
28 May- Monday Departure. Depart El Paso. Arrive in Rome in groups. Transport
29 May- Tuesday. Arrival in arranged from Leonardo da Vinci Aeroporto to Villa Maria.
Rome, check in at Villa Maria
Introduction to Trastevere and life in Rome by walking tour
and recovery.
of upper Trastevere neighborhood.
Purchase weekly bus tickets for two weeks at cost of
approximately 30 euros.
Dinner at Villa Maria: KCC/UCO/UTEP Icebreaker
Read: T.W. Potter, “Ancient Rome: an introduction,” Blue
Guide, 59–67.
30 May - Wednesday. 9:00
a.m. meet in lobby at Villa
Class at Crypta Balbi 11:00 am – 1:00 p.m. – directed tour
Maria (VM) for first-site
departure.
Take Bus 44 or 75 to Via
Trastevere and transfer to
Tram 8 for Largo Argentina.
Afternoon walk through
Piazza Navona to Pantheon,
Victor Emmanuel Monument
and Piazza Venezia
and worksheet.
Antique to the Baroque: Foundations of Medieval Rome:
Museo Crypta Balbi, via delle Botteghe Oscure, 31.
“Crypta Balbi”
http://www.romeguide.it/FILES/visite/crypta_balbi_eng.ht
m
Bring Sack Lunch – Largo Argentina neighborhood.
2:00 – 5:00 p.m. – visit Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Santa
Maria sopra Minerva, and San Ignatio.
Piazza Navona – report on three fountains and the Bernini
fountain of Four Rivers or Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi.
“Piazza Navona,” Blue Guide, 182–86.
Visit Pantheon – report on its architecture. Read “The
Pantheon,” Blue Guide, 174-78; Read CR: 1. Vitruvius. Ten
Books of Architecture “Fundamental Principles”, “On
Symmetry: In Temples & the Human Body”
Further Reading: Claridge, OAG, Rome; Read Partridge,
Art, 118-9.
Visit "Santa Maria sopra Minerva" – Christian church built
atop Roman temple dedicated to goddess Minerva. Inside,
look for the painting in the Carafa Chapel entitled the
Assumption of the Virgin, 1488-93 by Filippino Lippi,
look for pieces by Michelangelo and Fra Angelico; and
notice the ceiling frescoed in gold stars on a blue
background. Read-Blue Guide, 178-80
Visit Sant’ Ignazio – find the star and look up to the ceiling.
Set your cameras to no flash. Read "Saint Ignazio" Blue
Guide, 148.
Read - “Vittorio Emmanuele” Blue Guide, 137-38.
Recommended dinner spot – Piazza Navona – we know
this area is pricey, but look for places with “tourist
menus” which include pasta, meat, and vegetable, on
south side of Piazza. We usually need to pay for bottled
water and bread. If you wish only tap water, request acqua
di Roma! Bottled water is mineral water, with salts, and is
generally carbonated. If you do not want mineral water,
but want bottled water, ask for still water.
Going to the Heart of Ancient Rome -the Forum – while
visiting these sites, students will offer an overview of the
May 31 - Thursday –Bring
historical significance of identified sites. Forum
bag lunch. When in Rome, do Scavenger Hunt.
as the Romans, therefore we
While visiting the Forum, Students will be able to visit the
are going to have late
following sites:
lunches. We expect to
complete this day about 3:00
1. Altar of the Divine Julius Caesar and Temple of
P.M.
Castor and
Pollux
To arrive at the Forum, take
Bus 44 to Piazza Venezia. Get 2. House of Vestal Virgins,
3. Arches of Septimius Severus and Titus
off bus, cross street towards
4. Basilicas Aemilia and Julia, Constantine and Maxentius
Victor Emmanuel
5. Rostra, Column of Phocus and Urbis Umbilicus.
Monument; turn right and
Afternoon side trip to – Saint Pietro in Vincolo – home to
take second long staircase to
your left. You will see the
Michelangelo’s Moses.
twin gods Castor and Pollux
greeting you at the top of the Recommended place for dinner – Trastevere – Chinese,
Greek, and Il Galleone in Trastevere is great for fish. Il
steps. We will meet in the
Vascello near Villa Maria is also fantastic for dinner –
Campidoglio – the piazza at
inexpensive – but plan to spend three hours for dinner
the top created by
there. There are great take-away pizza places on Via
Michelangelo.
Carini. A rottiseria near the square offers vegetables and
veal, beef, and fried chicken. You can buy and take back to
Villa Maria for dinner in on the patio.
The Forum
Read: T.W. Potter, “Ancient Rome: an introduction,” Blue
Guide, 60-69.
“The Roman Forum,” Blue Guide, 91–109; and CR Virgil.
The Aeneid. Book VI lines 851-947 and lines 1012-1018
June 1, Friday - Colosseum,
Arch of Constantine and
Palatine Hill
Depart VM. on Bus 75. Get off
bus after passing the Circus
Maximus on your left and walk
to the Arch of Constantine.
Lived Space of Ancient Rome: from the Colosseum,
Arch of Constantine to Palatine Hill – The visit to the
Coliseum will provide students with information on the
architectural aspects of the exterior and interior of the
Coliseum.
We will meet at the Arch of Constantine to move into
Colosseum and then onto Palatine Hill.
While visiting Palatine Hill, students will learn of Caesar
Augustus, the Palace of the Emperors, and the Circus
Maximus.
Rome from a literary perspective will be presented on
Palatine Hill
overlooking Circus Maximus. Topics are:
Hardy, “On Palatine Hill” and “On Building a New
Street in the Ancient Quarter” Jessica Wharton, “Roman Fever” –
Candace Byron, “Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage,”
Recommended sites after the visit to the Colosseum and
Palatine Hill is Nero’s Golden House or Saint Peter in
Chains, home to Michelangelo’s “Moses.” Hike with Dr.
JSN to Baths of Caracalla.
Read - Valley of the Colosseum, Blue Guide, 117–32; and
“The Palatine Hill, Blue Guide, 103-23. CR: 3. Galerius and
Constantine. “Edicts of Toleration” 4. Edith Wharton.
“Roman Fever” 5. Thomas Hardy. “On the Palatine” 6.
Thomas Hardy. “Building a New Street in the Ancient
Quarter”
June 2, Saturday – Italian
National Holiday
Sistine Chapel and Vatican
Museums
Reports in the Villa Maria
Gardens
Raphael
Raphael Stanze in Vatican
Palace
Stanza della Signatura
Stanza de "elliodoro
Salla di Constantino
Sistine Chapel – Last
Judgment
Sistine Chapel – Ceiling
Depart VM at 11:00 meet at
Vatican Museum Entrance.
To get there, walk or take Bus
870 to Piazza delle Rovere and
walk across Tiber to Lungo
Teverre de Sangallo and turn to
right and go to bus stop and
take bus 98 to Piazza del
Risorgimento. Then walk to
Piazza San Pietro.
Michelangelo versus Raphael? A Day at the Vatican
Museum and the Sistine Chapel.
Sistine Chapel – This day we will set out in the early
afternoon in order to beat the long lines at the Vatican
Museum.
Students should be prepared to identify the following large
rooms: Gallery of Maps, Gallery of Tapestries, Stanze di
Raffaello, including Sala di Constantino, the Loggia of
Raphael, Stanza de’Eliodoro, and especially the Stanza
della Segnatura (School of Athens and Disputa –
Disputation on the Holy Sacrament).
In the Sistine Chapel, students should observe the Sibyls,
Isaiah, Zacharia, Ezekiel, and Joel. They should outline in
their mind the entire Creation panel, and the magnificent
Last Judgment.
Take note of the Cortile della Pigna, near the Egyptian
Museum. You will enter the museum through this open
garden.
Read “Saint Peter’s at the Vatican,” Blue Guide, 339-56
June 3, Sunday
Free Day in Rome
June 4, Monday -
Read, CR: Pliny the Younger. The Letters LXV “To
Tacitus” and LXVI “To Cornelius Tacitus”
Optional day
in Rome or Pompeii
Book tickets to Pompeii
in advance
June 5, Tuesday Campidoglio, Capitoline Museum.
Campidoglio, Capitoline
Optional: Corso Walk to Piazza del Popolo,
Museum.
Caravaggio’s
Depart Villa Maria on bus 44 to
Conversion of St. Paul
Piazza Venizia.
Read, Capitoline Museum, Blue Guide, 38 ff and KeatsShelley Memorial, Blue Guide, 173. CR: 7. Tacitus.
“Rebuilding the Temple of Jupiter, 70 CE” 8. George
Gordon, Lord Byron. Childe Harold, Canto IV excerpt
June 6, Wednesday Audience with the Pope and
Saint Peter’s Basilica
Depart VM at 8:00 A.M.
Audience lasts until 12:00 P.M.
After the audience meet at
Obelisk in Saint Peter’s Square
at 1:00 p.m., for Saint Peter’s
Basilica visit.
Site reports will focus on
the message of the
Church: Early Christian
Basilica, Renaissance
rebuilding of Saint
Peters’ and interior of the
Basilica, including
Michelangelo's and
Bernini’s designs, the
Pieta, sculpture,
Baldachinno, Cathedra
Petri (Throne of Saint
Peter).
To get set for the public audience with the Pope on Saint
Peter’s Square one needs to leave VM very early.
After the audience with the Pope, we will visit to Saint
Peter’s Basilica. Walk to Dome is optional – a place that
provides one of the most spectacular views of Rome.
There are certain features of the basilica that should draw
your attention. Instructors will ask you to identify.
Porta Santa
Michelangelo’s
Pieta
Bronze statue of
Cathedra of
the
Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Baldachinno
Michelangelo’s
Saint
Dome
Helena
Bernini’s
Dove
Bernini's
Bees
Read: “Saint Peter’s at the Vatican,” Blue Guide, 339-56
Recommended site visit after the Vatican – Castel Sant'
Angelo
June 7, Thursday - Villa
Borghese, Palazzo Barberini,
Optional: Bernini Walk
Admission to the Borghese is
From Satyrs to Unicorns or from Hadrian to Cardinal
Scippione Borghese: the Villa Borghese
Visit to Villa Borghese, an important palace open to the
public with an art collection that includes Raphael,
only by appointment;
therefore, departure time
will depend upon admission
time.
It is most efficient to take
Bus 75 to Termini Station.
Transfer to Bus 910 to Via
Pinciana (6 stops).
Bernini, and Caravaggio.
Pay attention to statues from antiquity in large reception
room as you enter Villa. Note Roman mosaics of
gladiators on floor. Bernini may steal the show here in his
beautiful sculpted pieces, Truth, David, and Apollo and
Daphne. There are more – be on the look-out.
Caravaggio also has a special showing here, including his
Boy Crowned with Ivy, and David with head of Goliath.
Make sure you identify Raphael’s portrait of his patron,
Julius II.
Site reports will be presented in gardens in front of Villa
Borghese:
Read: Santa Maria del Popolo and Spagna, Blue Guide,
150-6;
“From the fall of the Roman Empire to the present,” Blue
Guide, 68–71;
Renaissance to Twentieth Century Rome, Blue Guide, 71–3.
CR: 18. Pico della Mirandola. From “Oration on the Dignity
of Man” 19. Baldassare Castiglione. The Book of the
Courtier. From Book I—on the “gentleman”; from Book III
on the “lady”
June 8, Friday – Keats-Shelley
House, and Protestant
Cemetery.
Depart VM on Bus 75 to
Termini Station and transfer to
Metro to Spanish Steps.
Age of Romanticism, Era of Nationalism---Keats-Shelley
House
Lunch Lunch near Protestant Cemetery (graves of Keats,
Shelley, Julius
August Gramsci and others)
Read: CR: 13. John Keats. “Ode on a Grecian Urn” and
“To Charles
Brown” 14. Percy Bysshe Shelley. From “Adonais” 15.
Thomas Hardy. “At the Pyramid of Cestius Near the Graves
of Shelley and Keats” 16. Robert Browning. “The Bishop
Orders his Tomb at St. Praxed’s” 17. Johann Wolfgang von
Goethe. Selected letters from Italy, written in 1786.
June 9 – Saturday - Layered
Rome, Ostia Antica.
Optional: Lido Beach
Depart VM. on Bus 75 to
Pyramide
June 10, Sunday – Day Off
June 11, Monday – Day Off
Read: “Ostia Antica,” Blue Guide, 447-61
June 12, Tuesday
Return to El Paso