Unit name | Letter Writing in the Roman World |
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Unit code | CLAS37012 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Dr. Sandwell |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None, |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of Classics & Ancient History |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Letter writing can be seen as the ancient equivalent of email. It allowed individuals and groups across the Roman empire to communicate with one another and was a crucial means by which the business of the empire got done and personal relationships maintained despite barriers of distance. This unit will explore both the literary form of ancient letters and the various roles and functions they served within the Roman world. It will cover letters written by Romans and Greeks as well as those sent by Christian groups or individuals. Along the way we will consider: what letters tell us about social and family life and the business of empire; philosophical and spiritual letters; letters of reference and recommendation; issues of communication, delivery and networking; letters and Church formation. We will explore the important role played by letters in the Roman empire and the particular character of letter-writing in this period.
The aims of this unit are to:
On successful completion of this unit students should have:
Seminars.
One essay of 3,000 words (50%) and one examination of 90 minutes (50%).
S. Bradbury, Selected letters of Libanius: from the age of Constantine and Julian / translated with an introduction and notes, 2004.
C. Conybeare, Paulinus Noster: Self and Symbols in the Letters of Paulinus of Nola, 2000.
J. Hall, Politeness and Politics in Cicero's Letters 2009.
I. Marchesi, The Art of Pliny's Letters: A Poetics of Allusion in the Private Correspondence, 2008.
R. Morello and A. D. Morrison (eds.), Ancient Letters: Classical and Late Antique Epistolography, 2007.
J. Muir, Life and letters in the ancient Greek world, 2009.