Classics and Film
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| CLAR3068 | Classics and Archaeology | 3 | 20 | Spring UK |
- Code
- CLAR3068
- School
- Classics and Archaeology
- Level
- 3
- Credits
- 20
- Semesters
- Spring UK
Summary
This module will be questioning how various film presentations of the ancient world can be used to better understand both the ancient world itself and our relationship to it. This will involve a critical understanding not just of the content of certain films but also of the related theories of cultural studies, reception studies, film theory, queer theory, semiotics, race and colonialism, sexuality and morality in both the ancient and modern world. As such this module will be heavily theoretical and will expect the students to be able to deal with complex issues not just about the ancient world, but of modern film production too. This also means that the module will have more teaching hours attached to it than other optional modules to accommodate the extra viewings for discussions. Amongst the themes to be discussed will be the use of Greek mythology, Greek and Roman historical events, ancient religion, ancient sexuality, morality, special effects, new technologies and comparative cultural studies; all the while dealing with such case-studies as post-War European cinema, British Art House cinema, Hollywood Blockbusters and comedy and animation. The module will be assessed by a source-analysis commentary and an exam.
Target Students
Year 2 and Year 3 students in the Department of Classics and Archaeology. Available to Subsidiary students and Exchange students.
Classes
- One 2-hour seminar each week for 5 weeks
- One 2-hour screening each week for 5 weeks
- One 2-hour lecture each week for 10 weeks
One two-hour lecture per week, one fortnightly two-hour screening and one fortnightly two-hour seminar.
Assessment
- 80% Coursework 1: 10 minute commentary and script.
- 20% Coursework 2: Online quiz to be taken during the Easter vacation.
Assessed by end of spring semester
Educational Aims
(a) to gain knowledge and understanding of an appropriate and diverse range of primary sources (both ancient and modern) for the study of the reception of the Greek and Roman worlds through the filmed medium; (b) to learn critical and theoretical approaches to the study of these sources; (c) to test these approaches by examining issues of reception, film and cultural studies in traditional assessment formats.Learning Outcomes
(1) Knowledge and Understanding: (a) overall knowledge of how the reception of the ancient world is characterised in modern filmed media; (b) detailed knowledge of an appropriate and diverse range of material (both ancient and modern); (c) understanding of different theoretical approaches to reception and cultural studies.
(2) Intellectual Skills: enhancement of capacity for critical judgement, and of ability to gather, memorize, organize and deploy information, to extract key elements from data and identify and solve associated problems, to engage in analytical and evaluative thinking, and to marshal argument.
(3) Professional/Practical Skills: enhancement of ability to select, sift and synthesize information from a range of primary and secondary sources; to identify and compare central arguments in relation to these materials; to use library resources effectively; and to word-process as well as present material with attention to detail and accuracy, including appropriate referencing skills.
(4) Transferable Skills: enhancement of ability to communicate orally and in writing, and to work under pressure and meet deadlines.