Admission requirements
This course is intended for students enrolled in the (Research) MAs Classics and Ancient Civilizations, tracks Classics or Hebrew and Aramaic Studies; (Ancient) History and/or Religious Studies.
In addition to the general rules set out for admission to the master program, students are required to hold a BA either in Classical Languages, Hebrew, History or Religious Studies. Minimum number of participants is 3, maximum is 20.
Description
Diverse interpretetations of the idea that the known world could, or even would, come to an end was prevalent among Ancient Greek, Roman, Jewish and Early Christian communities, and plays a central role in their literature. These texts dealing with the ‘apocalypse’, which may be translated as ‘unveilling’, provide invaluable insights not only how these ancient authors thought about radical change (and, by extension, about crisis and disaster), but also about how they recarded the world both before and after such a radical shift. In this course, we will discuss the characteristics and objectives of such apocalyptic texts, and study them in a wider context. This not only includes analysing the social, political, cultural and economical contexts from which these texts emerged, but also the afterlife of ancient apocalyptic texts in modern-day apocalyptic movements.
Course objectives
After completion of this course, students will be able to:
Knowledge:
Describe the key characteristics of Ancient Jewish and early Christian apocalyptic literature
Compare Ancient Jewish and early Christian apolocalyptic literature to apocalypse narratives from other contemporary civilisations, particularly ancient and Hellenstic Greeks and Romans
Illustrate the connections between ancient apocalyptic literature and more recent (modern) apocalyptic thinking
Describe the effect of apocalyptic thinking on Ancient Jewish and Early Christian groups
Insights:
Analyse how ancient apocalyptic texts were shaped by the social, political, cultural and economical contexts from which they emerged
Comment on the long-standing, and continuing, interest in and relevance of apocalyptic narratives
Skills:
Research: independent formulation of a complex research question, collecting materials, analyzing evidence, constructing arguments, formulating conclusion;
Critical assessment of primary and secondary literature and constructive overcoming of conflicting opinions in current research; putting forward one’s own opinion in an oral presentation: the oral presentation will give a clear and well-argued interpretation of specific textual passages, making effective use of a handout and/or PowerPoint;
Written presentation: the paper will offer a clear and well-structured presentation of original research;
The student must demonstrate his or her grasp of critical issues in recent scholarship, and assess recent scholarly contributions by confronting them with the original source material;
Develop individual and group-related communicative skills by working together in small student groups and / or putting up insights for discussion in class;
This course aims at active participation and preparation: the student demonstrates involvement in the topic by submitting well-informed and constructive questions and making contributions to the collective progress, on the basis of antecedent independent preparation
The requirements for MA and ResMA students are differentiated:
MA students may expect more help in choosing their topic, literature and research question, and when preparing their presentation (with handout). Their paper may consist of an assessment of the status quaestionis on a given topic.
ResMA students are expected to come up with their own original topic, literature and research question for the presentation (with handout). Their paper will be slightly longer (5500 instead of 5000 words) and more have the form of a scholarly report on a given issue discussed in current research. In addition to that, ResMA students will write a proposal / abstract for a paper to be held at a (fictitious) conference.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Seminar
Assessment method
Assessment
Assignment: Participation in the form of discussion questions (and explantion/defense thereof during class): 10%
Assignment: Modern apocalypses: 10%
In-class oral presentation: 30%
Final paper: 50%
Weighing
The final mark for the course is established by determination of the weighted average. To pass the course, the weighted average of the partial grades must be 5.5 or higher. In addition, students must obtain a passing grade (5.5 or higher) for the final paper.
Resit
Should the conditions above not be met, the final paper is to be revised after consultation with the instructor. Only the final paper can be re-taken.
Inspection and feedback
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
A detailed reading list will be distributed beforehand the first session via Brightspace.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Registration À la carte education, Contract teaching and Exchange
Information for those interested in taking this course in context of À la carte education (without taking examinations), eg. about costs, registration and conditions.
For the registration of exchange students contact Humanities International Office.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Arsenaal
Remarks
Students may not miss more than two sessions in order to get credits. If a student is unable to attend a session, he or she is required to send an email to the instructor(s) beforehand. Compensation for the missed class in the form is mandatory.