History 120: Handbooks and How-To Guides in the Ancient World (Fall 2016)

MagicHandbook

Ancient Egyptian spell book, Museum of Ancient Cultures, Macquarie University

Instructor:	John Bauschatz
Time/Location:	Tu/Th, 11:00 a.m.–12:15 p.m.; Social Sciences 308
Contact Info:	Office: Social Sciences 135 Phone: (520) 621-7422 (office) email: jbausch1@email.arizona.edu

OVERVIEW

Classical antiquity is famous for its epic poetry, drama and history, but decidedly less so for the dozens of volumes that survive on subjects ranging from the interpretation of dreams to the construction of aqueducts, the classification of fishes to the healing powers of plants. Ancient readers devoured such works, even if the topics contained within them were frowned upon by high society (e.g., astrology) or far removed from their everyday lives (e.g., siege tactics). The writers who fed the public craving for such texts wrote both in poetry and in prose and their works were products of meticulous research drawing upon the extensive scholarship available in their day (much of which has not survived).

In this course students will read selections (in translation) from a number of ancient Greek and Roman handbooks. Of great importance to the course will be questions of readership and practicality. The course will serve not only as a springboard for discussions about the nature of literature, but will also expose students to views of classical antiquity far different from those portrayed in history textbooks and Hollywood blockbusters.

GOALS

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

Identify the readership of ancient handbooks and how-to guides.
Explain what the popularity of these volumes tells us about ancient cultures and their priorities and values.
Discuss the usefulness, accuracy and practicality of ancient handbooks and how-to guides.
Compare and contrast the preoccupations of ancient handbooks and how-to guides with those designed for modern readers.

PREREQUISITES

None.

READINGS

There is one required text for this course:

John Bauschatz, ed. HIST 120: Handbooks and How-To Guides in the Ancient World. Cognella, 2016.

This is a sourcebook of primary readings for History 120 available exclusively from Cognella. ***Students must order this text directly from the publisher at the following url: https://students.universityreaders.com/store/.***

There may be additional reading assignments for this course. If so, they will be hyperlinked to this page (see the course schedule, below) or available for download from the D2L site for HIST 120 as pdf files: see the "Readings" area of the "content" section. To view/download them, you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader (free download available here).

To help you organize your thoughts/take notes as you do the readings, I have provided a number of reading guides on the course D2L page (go to the "content" folder, and you'll see them). These are not assignments, and will not be handed in, but we will regularly make use of them in class to guide our discussions. There is a general reading guide with questions that apply to virtually every reading assignment for the course, as well as author-specific guides that go into greater detail.

GRADING

Grading for the course will be based on the following breakdown:

Attendance (10%): How often you come to class. I know that absences are inevitable, so I will allow you to make up up to 2.5 hours (= 2 classes) of missed time. The only way to do this is a 1/1 time trade: i.e., you'll spend however many hours you missed—up to three—doing extra course-related work. If you would like to make up an absence for a given class, please let me know.
Participation (30%): The quality and quantity of your participation in class discussions. I expect you to actively engage in class discussions. If you do not, your grade will suffer. ***Please note: there is a maximum of 30 points available for your participation grade, and there are 30 class sessions for HIST 120. If you make one substantial comment per class, you will finish the course with a perfect participation grade.***
Quizzes (30%): There is a brief (15 minute) D2L quiz to complete for each reading assignment, plus one additional quiz (on the syllabus) = a total of 30 in all. Each quiz will be available to be taken on D2L for 48 hours, from 12:01 a.m. on the first day of availability until 11:59 p.m. on the second day (with one exception: see the course schedule, below). If you do the readings you should have no trouble doing well on the quizzes. Your lowest five quiz grades will be dropped. ***The first quiz is over the syllabus. You MUST get 100% on this quiz, or bad things will happen. It will be open during the first two weeks of class, and you may retake it as many times as you need to.***
Short Papers (30% [10% each]): Three papers of between 750 and 1000 words in length based on course readings will be assigned. These are meant to be exercises in analytical thinking and should not require any additional research or reading (though you are certainly welcome to do additional work, if you like!). The topics for each paper are posted on D2L (in the "Content" section, in the "Short Paper Topics" folder). The papers are to be submitted online (on D2L, via the Dropbox feature) and are due on D2L at 5 p.m. on Thursday, September 22; Thursday, October 20; and Thursday, November 17. Late papers will lose one letter grade for each day late (Saturdays and Sundays included). You have the option to hand in drafts of your papers in advance if you choose. Drafts are due (on D2L, via the Dropbox feature) no later than one week in advance of the due date for each paper.

OFFICE HOURS AND OTHER STUFF

OFFICE HOURS: My office hours for the fall semester are Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9:45–10:45 a.m. in my office, Social Sciences 135. You are also welcome and encouraged to make an appointment to meet with me. Call, email or holler.

D2L: As mentioned above, students in HIST 120 will be expected to be familiar with D2L ("Desire2Learn"), the University's online course content management system. Our use of D2L in HIST 120 will be extensive: we will use D2L not only as a repository for course documents (additional readings, course handouts, etc.) and as a place to post grades, but also for quizzes and for email updates about the course. If you are unfamiliar with D2L, see the D2L help homepage .

Grades: Grades will be entered on D2L within two weeks of the assignment due date or test/quiz administration date. ***It is your responsibility to keep track of your grades over the course of the semester. You have one week from the date of a posted grade to appeal it. After that, the assumption is that you have seen the grade and are OK with it.***

Students with disabilities should contact the UA Disability Resource Center (520 621-3268) for any special needs or accommodations.

Surprise! Cheating is not allowed. If you cheat, and I find out, you will receive a grade of 0 for the assignment and other bad things will happen. (See the U of A's code of academic integrity.)

Paper Grading: The following rubric will be used to compile your grades on papers in HIST 120 (with thanks to Jennifer Kendall!):

Category & Description	Max Points
1.) Paper Mechanics 15 points: The essay adheres to all of the mechanical requirements (formatting, length, margins, proper citations and following any specific instructions for content in the paper assignment). 10 points: The essay has one or two mechanical errors. 5 points: The essay has numerous mechanical errors. 0 points: The essay has numerous mechanical errors and/or is less than the required length.	15
B.) Grammar/Spelling/Composition 15 points: No / almost no spelling, grammar, punctuation or other compositional errors are present. The essay clearly appears to have been proofread and edited. 10 points: There are a few grammar, spelling, punctuation or other compositional errors but the essay appears to have been proofread and edited. 5 points: There are many grammar, spelling, punctuation or other compositional errors present. 0 points: Numerous errors make the essay difficult to read and/or excessively long quotations or paraphrases are used.	15
C.) Content 70 points: The depth of analysis greatly exceeds expectations, details are many and organization is excellent. 55 points: The depth of analysis is good, as are details and organization, and minimum expectations are exceeded. 40 points: The essay is basic with an adequate analysis. 25 points: The essay is poor all around, but there is at least an attempt to follow directions. 10 points: The essay is poor all around, and there is little to no evidence that the author followed instructions. But at least he/she handed something in!	70
Total Possible Points:	100

Final Grades: For the final grade, the following breakdown will be used:

A+ = 98–100	A = 93–97	A- = 90–92
B+ = 88–89	B = 83–87	B- = 80–82
C+ = 78–79	C = 73–77	C- = 70–72
D+ = 68–69	D = 63–67	D- = 60–62
F+ = 58–59	F = 53–57	F- = 0–52

Final grades ending in .5 or higher will be rounded up; those ending in .49 or lower will be rounded down. ***There are NO exceptions to this policy.***

If you would like help with your writing, the University’s Writing Skills Improvement Program (http://wsip.arizona.edu) may be a valuable resource. The Program offers professional individual tutoring in writing for students, as well as biweekly writing workshops. These are free and open to UA students, but you do need to register with the program. This semester, the workshops will be held on Mondays from 2–2:50 p.m. and Wednesdays from 10–10:50 a.m. in Geronimo 216. The first session is on Monday, September 12.

COURSE SCHEDULE

What follows is an outline of the fall semester. Reading assignments are due on the dates specified. For a typical class you'll read a chunk of an ancient handbook/how-to guide in translation, and we'll discuss it. I will often supply you in advance with a list of reading questions to keep in mind while you're doing the reading. These questions will help direct our class discussions.

Check this page often. Readings and assignments are subject to change. I'll try to give a heads-up in class if a major shake-up is imminent. I'll also try to provide you with the readings at least one week in advance.

Week

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

8/22

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL ***THURSDAY, 9/1, at 11:59 p.m.***): D2L Quiz #1 (on the syllabus)

8/23 (1) Introductions: the course

8/24

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 8/25, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #2 (on reading 1)

8/25 (2) Introductions: Ancient Greece and Rome

READING (1): history of ancient Greece (read sections a–h); history of ancient Rome (read sections a–f)

8/29

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 8/30, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #3 (on reading 2)

8/30 (3) Popular Mythology (mythology)

READING (2): Hesiod, Theogony (first half: Bauschatz, 1–7)

8/31

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 9/1, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #4 (on reading 3)

9/1 (4) Popular Mythology (mythology)

READING (3): Hesiod, Theogony (second half: Bauschatz, 8–15)

9/5

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 9/6, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #5 (on reading 4)

9/6 (5) Better Homes and Gardens (agriculture)

READING (4): Cato, On Agriculture (sections 1–52: Bauschatz, 17–40)

9/7

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 9/8, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #6 (on reading 5)

9/8 (6) Better Homes and Gardens (agriculture)

READING (5): Cato, On Agriculture (sections 53–162: Bauschatz, 41–94)

9/12

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 9/13, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #7 (on reading 6)

9/13 (7) Guns and Ammo (warfare)

READING (6): Aineias Tacticus, On the Defence of Fortified Positions (sections I–XXI: Bauschatz, 95–129)

9/14

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 9/15, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #8 (on reading 7)

9/15 (8) Guns and Ammo (warfare)

READING (7): Aineias Tacticus, On the Defence of Fortified Positions (sections XXII–XL: Bauschatz, 130–167)

*Paper #1 draft due (not required)*

9/19

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 9/20, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #9 (on reading 8)

9/20 (9) Entertainment Weekly (Greek poetry)

READING (8): Aristotle, Poetics (parts I–XI: Bauschatz, 169–177)

9/21

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 9/22, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #10 (on reading 9)

9/22 (10) Entertainment Weekly (Greek poetry)

READING (9): Aristotle, Poetics (parts XII–XXVI: Bauschatz, 179–195)

*Paper #1 due*

9/26

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 9/27, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #11 (on reading 10)

9/27 (11) Better Living through Science (engineering)

READING (10): Vitruvius, On Architecture (book 1: Bauschatz, 197–215)

9/28

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 9/29, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #12 (on reading 11)

9/29 (12) Better Living through Science (engineering)

READING (11): Vitruvius, On Architecture (book 2: Bauschatz, 215–232)

10/3

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 10/4, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #13 (on reading 12)

10/4 (13) Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex (but Were Afraid to Ask) (love affairs)

READING (12): Ovid, Art of Love (book 1: Bauschatz, pp233–251)

10/5

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 10/6, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #14 (on reading 13)

10/6 (14) Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex (but Were Afraid to Ask) (love affairs)

READING (13): Ovid, Art of Love (book 2: Bauschatz, pp251–268)

10/10

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 10/11, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #15 (on reading 14)

10/11 (15) Frommer's Guide to Classical Antiquity (travel and geography)

READING (14): Egeria, Pilgrimage (sections 1–52: Bauschatz, pp269–298)

10/12

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 10/13, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #16 (on reading 15)

10/13 (16) Frommer's Guide to Classical Antiquity (travel and geography)

READING (15): Egeria, Pligrimage (sections 53–96: Bauschatz, pp298–324)

*Paper #2 draft due (not required)*

10/17

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 10/18, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #17 (on reading 16)

10/18 (17) The Doctor's Book of Home Remedies (medicine)

READING (16): Hippocrates, On Airs, Waters and Places (Bauschatz, pp325–339)

10/19

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 10/20, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #18 (on reading 17)

10/20 (18) The Doctor's Book of Home Remedies (medicine)

READING (17): Hippocrates, On Ancient Medicine (Bauschatz, pp341–353)

*Paper #2 due*

10/24

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 10/25, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #19 (on reading 18)

10/25 (19) Field and Stream (hunting and fishing)

READING (18): Oppian, Halieutica (book 1: Bauschatz, pp355–422)

10/26

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 10/27, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #20 (on reading 19)

10/27 (20) Field and Stream (hunting and fishing)

READING (19): Oppian, Halieutica (book 5: Bauschatz, pp423–446)

10/31

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 11/1, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #21 (on reading 20)

11/1 (21) The Star (astrology and astronomy)

READING (20): Manilius, Astronomica (book 1: Bauschatz, pp447–486)

11/2

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 11/3, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #22 (on reading 21)

11/3 (22) The Star (astrology and astronomy)

READING (21): Manilius, Astronomica (book 5: Bauschatz, pp487–519)

11/7

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 11/8, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #23 (on reading 22)

11/8 (23) Chicken Soup for the Classical Soul (philosophy)

READING (22): Lucretius, On the Nature of Things (book 1: Bauschatz, pp521–550)

11/9

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 11/10, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #24 (on reading 23)

11/10 (24) Chicken Soup for the Classical Soul (philosophy)

READING (23): Lucretius, On the Nature of Things (book 3: Bauschatz, pp551–580)

*Paper #3 draft due (not required)*

11/14

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 11/15, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #25 (on reading 24)

11/15 (25) Poor Roman's Almanac (calendars)

READING (24): Ovid, Fasti (book 1: Bauschatz, pp581–611)

11/16

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 11/17, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #26 (on reading 25)

11/17 (26) Poor Roman's Almanac (calendars)

READING (25): Ovid, Fasti (book 2: Bauschatz, pp612–646)

*Paper #3 due*

11/21

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 11/22, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #27 (on reading 26)

11/22 (27) Psychology Today (psychoanalysis)

READING (26): Theophrastus, Characters (Bauschatz, pp647–660)

11/23

11/24 Thanksgiving holiday - no class

11/28

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL TUESDAY, 11/29, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #28 (on reading 27)

11/29 (28) Dream Interpretation for Dummies (dream interpretation)

READING (27): Artemidoros, Oneirokritika (book 1: Bauschatz, pp661–731)

11/30

TAKE TODAY (OR ANYTIME UNTIL THURSDAY, 12/1, at 11:59 p.m.): D2L Quiz #29 (on reading 28)

12/1 (29) Dream Interpretation for Dummies (dream interpretation)

READING (28): Artemidoros, Oneirokritika (book 4: Bauschatz, pp732–776)

12/5

12/6 (30) The End

12/7

12/8 Reading Day - no class

12/12

12/13 Final Exams - no class

12/14

12/15 Final Exams - no class

U of A | Bauschatz