HISTORY 404/504: ROME TO A.D. 337
SYLLABUS- FALL, 2013
Instructor:
Professor S. Thomas Parker
Office:
Withers 477
Office Hours: T-Th 9:00-10:00, 11:15-12:00 & by appointment
Office Phone & Voice Mail: 513-2223
Office FAX: 515-3886
Email:
thomas_parker@ncsu.edu
Class Times: T-Th 1:30-2:45
Classroom:
Withers 160
PURPOSE AND SCOPE: The course traces the development of ancient Rome from its origins
in Italy, through its rise to an Empire embracing the entire Mediterranean World and Western
Europe, to the foundation of Constantinople. The course critically examines the political,
economic, and social achievement of a people who rose from an obscure Italian town to a world
empire, with emphasis on analysis of ancient primary sources in translation.
TEXTBOOKS (all required):
Mary T. Boatwright, Daniel J. Gargola, and Richard J. A. Talbert, The Romans: From Village to
Empire. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University, 2012.
Naphtali Lewis and Meyer Reinhold, eds., Roman Civilization, vol. I- The Republic; vol. 2- The
Empire. 3rd ed. New York: Columbia University, 1990.
Communication with the instructor:
The best means of communication is always by Email, which the instructor checks regularly. He
will also periodically send other important materials, such as study guides, to students via Email.
Thus it is vital that students check their university Email account regularly and
communicate with the instructor through this account. Email sent to the instructor from other
accounts may be recognized as “junk” and thus may be not seen for some time by the instructor.
Statement for Students with Disabilities
Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. In
order to take advantage of available accommodations, students must register with
Disability Services for Students at 1900 Student Health Center, Campus Box 7509, 5157653. http://dso.dasa.ncsu.edu/
Statement on Academic Integrity: Students are reminded to review University policy on
academic integrity found in the Code of Student Conduct at
http://policies.ncsu.edu/policy/pol-11-35-01. The instructor expects that the student's
signature on any work means that the student neither gave nor received unauthorized aid
and all graded assignments were completed honestly.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
Regular class attendance is mandatory. Every student is permitted three (3) unexcused absences
during the course of the semester. Each unexcused absence after the three allowed will lower the
student's final overall grade average by 2%. Any excused absence must be documented (e.g., by a
doctor's note, etc.) by the student and accepted as valid by the instructor. For the university
policy on excused absences, go to http://policies.ncsu.edu/regulation/reg-02-20-03
In addition to regular attendance, it is vital that students avoid being late to class. Late arriving
students in a small classroom are disruptive to both fellow students and the instructor. Any
student who cannot be punctual should drop this class.
Policy on Electronic Devices: All electronic devices—cellphones, laptop computers, etc.—are
banned from classroom use unless specific permission is granted by the instructor. Students
using such devices in class without permission will have the devices confiscated for the duration
of the class. Any student violating this policy a second time will be asked to drop the course.
Course and Instructor Evaluation: I welcome your comments, which are submitted
anonymously and become available to me only after grades have been submitted. See
http://oirp.ncsu.edu/eval/clev
GRADING POLICY:
The instructor will use plus/minus grading. Class participation will count as 10% of the overall
grade. The instructor uses the Socratic Method, i.e. he teaches by asking questions of the students.
Therefore, students should be prepared to discuss the current reading assignment in class.
The midterm examination will be partly objective but weighted toward essay questions. It will be
worth 25% of the overall grade.
Each student will write a term paper of 10-15 double-spaced pages (15-20 pages for graduate
students) from a list of topics provided by the instructor. The paper is to be a typed, polished, and
fully documented (i.e. with footnotes and bibliography) analysis of a particular historical
problem. The paper must conform to a style sheet distributed early in the semester. The term
paper will be worth 35% of the overall grade. Late papers will be marked down in grade.
The final examination will be comprehensive, but weighted towards the final unit of material. It
will be similar to the mid-term in organization. It will be worth 30% of the overall grade.
GRADING CRITEREA:
1. Class participation
2. Midterm examination
2. Term paper3. Final examination
Total
10%
25%
35%
30%
100%
Conversion of numerical grades to letter grades:
97-100 A+
93-96 A
90-92 A87-89 B+
83-86 B
80-82 B77-79 C+
73-76 C
70-72 C-
67-69
63-66
60-62
>60
D+
D
DF
Make-up Exam Policy: Make-ups of midterms or finals are only permitted with a documented
excuse (such as a doctor’s note) that is accepted as valid by the instructor. The dates for the
midterm and final are specified in the syllabus. Otherwise, if you anticipate a conflict that will
necessitate rescheduling an exam, please notify the instructor in advance.
SCHEDULE OF LECTURES, READING ASSIGNMENTS, AND EXAMINATIONS:
8/20 Introduction; Geography of Italy (Boatwright xxxi, 1-4)
8/25 Primary Sources (Boatwright 4-6; Lewis & Reinhold [hereafter as L&R] v. 1:1-49)
8/27 Italy before Rome (Boatwright 6-27)
9/1
The Monarchy & Early Republic (Boatwright 27-64; L&R v. 1, #4-#7:56-63)
9/3
Early Roman Religion (Boatwright 64-69; L&R #10:71-73; #46-#50:136-143); TERM
PAPER TOPICS DUE
9/8
Early Republican Government & Law (L&R v. 1, #25-32:96-105, 107-116)
9/10 Conquest of Italy (Boatwright 69-86; L&R v. 1, #15-#18:81-89)
9/15 NO CLASS
9/17 NO CLASS
9/22 The Punic Wars (Boatwright 87-117; L&R v. 1, #57-#65:159-177; #67:181-182)
9/24 Conquest of the Eastern Mediterranean (Boatwright 117-124; L&R v. 1, #68-#70:182194; #80:207-210)
9/29 Internal Consequences of Imperialism (Boatwright 125-153; L&R v. 1, #94-#95:241-249;
#97-#99:251-262)
10/1 Marius & Sulla (Boatwright 154-193; L&R v. 1, #106:293-294, #104:289-291)
10/6 First Triumvirate & Civil War (Boatwright 196-243; L&R v. 1, #131:347-355; #170:491493; #109:305-306; #107-#108:297-305); Supremacy of Caesar (Boatwright 244-256;
L&R v. 1, #110:306-309; #113:314-317)
10/13 MID-TERM EXAMINATION (BRING BLUEBOOK)
10/15 Augustus (Boatwright 257-308; L&R v. 1, #194:555-572; #197-#199:577-583;
#201:585-588; #203:596-601)
10/20 The Julio-Claudian Dynasty & Life in the Early Empire (Boatwright 309-346)
10/22 The Flavian Dynasty, Trajan, and Hadrian (Boatwright 347-374; L&R v. 2 #141:459-62)
10/27 Urbanism and Culture in the Principate (Boatwright 374-388)
10/29 The Imperial Economy; Case Study: Roman Port of Aila (L&R v. 2 #23:76-85; #24#31:85-123; Parker pdf article to be distributed)
11/3 Women in Imperial Roman Society (L&R v. 2, #91-#103:338-371)
11/5 The Antonine & Severan Dynasties; Roman Law & Citizenship (Boatwright 389-421;
L&R v. 2, #104:373-376; #106:379-380)
11/10 Roman Army & Imperial Frontiers (L&R v. 2, #8:26-41; #135-#140:444-459)
11/12 Diocletian & the Roman Recovery (Boatwright 435-457; L&R v. 2 #119-#124:413-428)
11/17 Religion in the Roman Empire (L&R v. 2, #162:520-528)
11/19 NO CLASS
11/24 The Mystery Religions (L&R v. 2, #165:541-548)
12/1 Christianity in the Roman Empire (Boatwright 421-426; L&R v. 2, #167-172:550-570);
TERM PAPERS DUE
12/3 Constantine (Boatwright 458-465; L&R v. 2, #125-#133:429-441)
12/8 FINAL EXAMINATION IN WITHERS 160 (1-4 pm- bring 2 bluebooks)