ANHS3635: Semester 2, 2020

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Units ANHS3635 Semester 2 2020 [Normal day]

Unit of study_

ANHS3635: Historiography Ancient and Modern

Semester 2, 2020 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

From Herodotus to Robert Darnton; from Thucydides to John Mearsheimer; from Plutarch's Life of Julius Caesar to Barack Obama's autobiography. In this unit of study you will compare ancient and modern ways of writing history. You will study relevant key texts, theories, and methods - both ancient and modern - and use them in your own historiographic practice. Brace yourself for an unusual, insightful, and challenging journey from ancient Egypt, via Greece and Rome, to modern France and Australia. Looking at history will never be the same again.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	ANHS3635
Academic unit	Classics and Ancient History
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	ANHS2691 or ANHS2692 or ANHS2612
Prerequisites ?	12 credit points at 2000 level in Ancient History or 12 credit points at 2000 level in History
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Ben Brown, benjamin.brown@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Ben Brown, benjamin.brown@sydney.edu.au
Tutor(s)	Ben Brown, benjamin.brown@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Presentation	Student-led Seminar n/a	20%	-	800 words
Outcomes assessed:
Online task	Writing journal/online discussion board n/a	30%	Multiple weeks	1200 words
Outcomes assessed:
Participation	Tutorial participation n/a	10%	Ongoing
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Research essay n/a	40%	Week 12	2500 words
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction: The stakes of the past	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 01	T1 Introductory tutorial	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 02	The past in early Greece	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 02	T2 The prehistory of historiography in Early Greece	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 03	Herodotus	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 03	T3 Herodotus: Ionian historia	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 04	Thucydides	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 04	T4 Thucydides: Experiencing the Past	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 05	History Re-founded: the Enlightenment and Romanticism	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 05	T5 The Romantic past: Herder to Ranke	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 06	Radically rethinking the past I: Marx	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 06	T6 Marx and Class: the engine of history	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 07	Radically rethinking the past II: Weber	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 07	T7 Weber, Rationality and Historical Sociology	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 08	Rethinking culture: Structuralism and anthropology	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 08	T8 Structuralism: Synchrony not Diachrony	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 09	Western Marxism: Gramsci and Critical Theory	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 09	T9 Gramsci and cultural hegemony	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 10	Rupture and thought: Foucault	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 10	T10 Foucault: how does power work?	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 11	History and the Other	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 11	T11 Feminism, history and post-humanism	Tutorial (1 hr)
Week 12	The content of the form: Hayden White	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 12	T12 Metahistory: Style, literature and fiction	Tutorial (1 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

All readings for this unit can be accessed on the Library eReserve link available on Canvas.

Herodotus (Penguin Classics)
Thucydides (Penguin Classics)

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. demonstrate knowledge of the philosophy and practice of history and the ability to apply it to the critique and creation of historical writing
LO2. communicate this knowledge effectively in written and oral English
LO3. demonstrate an awareness of the characteristics of scholarly debate on various approaches to history and engage with it in a critical, reasoned and independent manner
LO4. demonstrate an awareness of the problematic nature of many familiar concepts and of ways in which such problems have been addressed
LO5. demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively to create knowledge with tolerance and integrity
LO6. demonstrate an awareness of the use and abuse of history as part of the use and abuse of knowledge of all kinds
LO7. reflect on the nature of historical knowledge and the relevance of history in the 21st century
LO8. demonstrate conceptual historiographic awareness and skills as an integral step in the overall teaching and learning of advanced students in the ancient history major
LO9. demonstrate a nuanced understanding of the connections between history, philosophy and the natural and social sciences in the production of knowledge
LO10. demonstrate a working knowledge of the major theoretical approaches in historiography
LO11. demonstrate an awareness of cross-cultural issues by examining the nature of history within different cultures
LO12. demonstrate the ability to examine history as part of a complex intellectual domain and use it to engage with familiar contexts and assumptions
LO13. demonstrate an awareness of the ethical issues in the writing of history
LO14. reflect critically on the nature of history and, therefore, on the nature of instituted knowledge of any kind.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

No changes have been made since this unit was last offered

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

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