Schedule of Topics and Readings

Africa in the Ancient World
CLAS/HIST240 Ancient Societies
Monmouth College, Monmouth, Illinois
Instructor: Thomas J. Sienkewicz (toms@monm.edu)

Key:

BIA = Snowden, Blacks in Antiquity	Pharaohs = The World of the Pharaohs
Lefkowitz = Not Out of Africa	Cleopatra = Cleopatra: A Sourcebook
Herodotus = http://www.herodotuswebsite.co.uk/ For translations of his history see: http://classics.mit.edu/Herodotus/history.html or http://www.herodotuswebsite.co.uk/Text/extext.htm	Ovid = Ovid's Metamorphoses (http://classics.mit.edu/Ovid/metam.html)

Week I / Week II / Week III / Week IV / Week V / Week VI / Week VII / Week VIII / Week IX / Week X / Week XI / Week XI / Week XIII / Week XIV / Week XV / EXAM WEEK

Part I:
Introduction: Who Were the Ancient Africans?

Week I (Jan. 18)
Why Africa and Blacks in Antiquity?

Week II (Jan. 23 and 25): Read Vergil's Moretum; Summary of "Moretum" / Study Questions for "Moretum"; BIA 1-29 and 144-155; Xenophanes,
Nomenclature for Africans and Blacks
Physical Descriptions of Blacks in Antiquity: Textual Evidence and Artistic Images
Africa and Ethiopians in Greek Mythology and Religion (see Herodotus, Book II)
On Phaeton and Io, click on Ovid 1  and search for "Phaeton" and "Io".
On Perseus click on Ovid 4 and seach for "serpents" and "Andromeda". 
On Phoenix, see http://www.theoi.com, Achilles Tatius, Lactantius' Phoenix and  Images of Phoenix. 

Part II:
Egypt

Week III (Jan. 30 and Feb. 1): Read Pharaohs 13-19, 60-89-125; hieroglyph and Horace (Odes III.30)
The Old and Middle Kingdoms

Week IV (Feb. 6 and 8): Read Read Pharaohs 126-177, Herodotus II-III.66; BIA, 113-115, 2 Chronicles 9:1-12
The New Kingdom, Late Kingdom and the Nubian Pharaohs

Part III:
"Black" Athena

Week V (Feb. 13 and 15): Read BIA 121-125; Herodotus, Book I; and review Book II, 49-58; 171; 282; 282; IV, 147; V, 58, introduction to Black Athena I (on reserve); also Sienkewicz review in Magill's Literary Annual (posted in course public folder); Blacks in Antiquity; Not Out of Africa; Lefkowitz, 1-52  / Study Questions
Blacks in Egypt
Greeks and Egyptians: Aeschylus, Suppliants
"Black" Athena: African Origins of Greek Civilization?
Print Resource Report Due on Feb. 15

Week VI (Feb.20 and 22): Read Lefkowitz, pp. 53-121; Newsweek Sept. 23, 1991:42-50 ("Was Cleopatra Black?")
The Afrocentric Controversy
Ancient Images of Africa and Egypt: Euripides' Helen

Week VII (Feb. 27 and March 1):
Modern Images of Africa and Egypt: Verdi's Aida. See also Cleopatra, 207-306; Lefkowitz, 122-194
Electronic Resource Report Due on Feb. 27

Week VIII (March 6)
Unit Quiz on March 6
Fox Classics Lecture, 7:30 P.M. on March 7, in Highlander Room ATTENDANCE REQUIRED
Summary/Response to Fox Lecture due IN CLASS on March 8th.

Part IV:
Greece and Africa

Week VIII (March 8): Read BIA 101-104, 122-123, Homer on Eurybates, Homer on Ethiopians / Chronology / Black Presence in Classical Greece
The Bronze Age and Homer
Archaic Greece: First Encounters--Cyprus and Naucratis, Aesop
Fox Lecture paper and Mid-course evaluation Due

Week IX (March 20 and 22): Read BIA 105-109. 126-129, 123-125, Herodotus. Books VII-VIII, Asclepiades hand-out (posted in public folders)
The Project Prospectus and Map (Geography) quiz  explained  for this project is due
Classical Greece
Hellenistic Greece: Alexandria and Cyrene

Part V:
Rome and Africa

Week X (March 27 and 29):
Timeline of Roman History / Imaging Roman Africa
Carthage: Justin on the Founding of Carthage (especially paragraphs 4-6) / Strabo on Carthage / Aristotle on the Constitution of Carthage / Study Questions on Aristotle
Dido and Aeneas: Vergil's Aeneid I and IV;
Carthage and Rome: The Punic Wars: Livy's description of Hannibal in Book XXI:.1 and 4;  Polybius on the Character of Hannibal.
Slavery in the Ancient World: Seneca on Slavery:  Epistle XLVII
Rome and African Monarchs: Masinissa and Jugurtha
BIA 109-112, 125-126, 130-136

Week XI (April 2 and 4): Read: Cleopatra, 1-204
Cleopatra Horace (Odes. I.37) hand-outs
Prospectus DUE on April 2

Week XII (April 10 and 12): Read BIA 115-120, 136-143; Apuleius, books 1-2; Apuleius Websites: Benjamin Slade's Apuleius / Golden Ass / Contents of the Golden Ass / Apuleius! The Home Page / The Metamorphoses in Latin / Lucius Apuleius
Roman North Africa
Introduction to Apuleius

Week XIII (April 17 and 19): Read Apuleius, books 3-5
Apuleius Cont.

Week XIV (April 26): Read Apuleius, books 6-8
Apuleius Cont.
Map (Geography) quiz  on April 26
Roman Africa

Part VI:
Blacks in Antiquity

Week XV (May 1 and 3): Read BIA 156-168, 182-215, Latin Poetry hand-outs; Apuleius 9-10
Blacks in Daily Life: Entertainers and Athletes
Blacks in Religion: ISIS
Individual Project Due on May 1

May 8: Unit Quiz

EXAM WEEK
Monday, May 14 at 6 P.M.: Oral Reports and Course Evaluation

This material has been published on the web by Prof. Tom Sienkewicz for his students at Monmouth College. If you have any questions, you can contact him at toms@monm.edu.