Mar 29, 2024  
OHIO University Undergraduate Catalog 2021-22 
    
OHIO University Undergraduate Catalog 2021-22 [Archived Catalog]

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CLAS 3430 - Women in the Ancient Mediterranean


Explores the main sources of information about women in the related Mediterranean cultures of Greece, Rome the Near East and Egypt from 2000 B.C.E. to the 4th century C.E. These cultures are all patriarchal societies with an agricultural base for the economy, where women were seen as inferior to men, and their roles were tied to reproduction and care of the household. Textual evidence consideration includes economic and legal texts, epic, love poetry, drama, religious texts and funerary inscriptions, while the archaeological evidence includes sculpture and paintings. Focuses upon the culturally defined gender biases in the sources, and on feminist methodologies devised to clarify and interpret these biases.

Requisites: WGS 1000 or Soph or Jr or Sr
Credit Hours: 3
OHIO BRICKS Bridge: Diversity and Practice
Repeat/Retake Information: May be retaken two times excluding withdrawals, but only last course taken counts.
Lecture/Lab Hours: 3.0 lecture
Grades: Eligible Grades: A-F,WP,WF,WN,FN,AU,I
Learning Outcomes:
  • To apply critical thinking to theories about women’s roles in these different cultures based on literary and artistic material.
  • To become familiar with what is distinctive about women’s roles in each different culture, through literature and art.
  • To recognize how and to what extent the views of women in our modern society are derived from those held in these ancient societies.
  • To understand the aspirations and values of both women and men within the contexts of their cultures.
  • To understand the biological, cultural, and economic factors common to ancient Mediterranean civilizations which define women’s roles.
  • To understand the gender biases in male portrayals of women in ancient literature and art.



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