Economy, Politics and Culture in the Roman World

Summary module description:

Aims:
Understanding the Roman world with reference to its relevance to studies of long-term political, cultural and economic change and to contemporary societies and economies.

Assessable learning outcomes:
Knowledge of Roman political structure, social organization, cultural dynamics and economy. Skills to formulate arguments about these based on evidence and to express them in essay form.

Additional outcomes:
Understanding of the importance of knowledge of pre-Modern societies and economies for analysts of long-term political and economic transformations. Transferable skills of collating and synthesising data from written sources, note-taking and original thought.

Outline content:
The relevance of pre-Modern history to understanding political and economic transformations; sources and techniques for reconstructing the Roman world; Europe and the Mediterranean just before the rise of the Roman Empire; the rise of the Roman Empire; Early Roman politics and culture; the Early Roman economy; frontiers and maritime trade; the origins of the Late Roman world; Late Roman culture and economy; the Roman collapse.

Global context:
This module contributes to the distinctive role of studies of pre-Modern periods, and of understanding the importance of politics and culture for economic systems, in teaching economics at Reading.

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:
Ten x 1 hour lectures with directed reading, in order to help students to read widely in order to enhance their knowledge and their performance in assessment.

Summative Assessment Methods:
Written exam 80%
Written assignment including essay 20%

Other information on summative assessment:
One 2,000 word essay worth 20% of the overall mark for the module.

Formative assessment methods:

Penalties for late submission:
The Module Convener will apply the following penalties for work submitted late, in accordance with the University policy.
where the piece of work is submitted up to one calendar week after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for the piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of five working days;
where the piece of work is submitted more than five working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: http://www.reading.ac.uk/web/FILES/qualitysupport/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf
You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Length of examination:
One 2 hour unseen written paper.
Part 1 examinations are held in the Summer term.

Requirements for a pass:
A minimum mark of 40%.