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Ancient Worlds, New Horizons: Broadening the Study of the Past
25 October 2023 @ 2:30 pm - 6:00 pm
Ancient Worlds, New Horizons: Broadening the Study of the PastUCL, Wednesday 25 October 2023
2:30 Welcome and introduction (Gesine Manuwald/Stephen Colvin)
3:00 Phiroze Vasunia ‘Rethinking the Classical’
3:30 Discussion
3:45 Mairéad McAuley ‘Collaborative Pedagogy: building staff-student EDI partnerships’
4:15 Discussion
4:30 Tea
5:00 Mark Weeden: keynote lecture
‘War in heaven, war on earth – mythology as a means of dealing with disaster’
Comparisons are frequently made between the mythology of the violent succession of kingship in heaven as known from Greek epic poetry of the 7th century BCE and similar stories that were circulating in the areas of northern Syria and central Turkey during the 2nd millennium BCE. But what did these stories mean to people in these areas, how did they use them? Documents in the Hittite and Hurrian languages that are preserved from the time may be able to help us to understand this, and new discoveries are continuing to throw more light on the matter every year.
6:00 Close; refreshments.
The expansion of cuneiform languages at UCL, and the conclusion of a research project Comparative Classics: Greece, Rome, and India, have been a catalyst to rethink the study of the ancient Mediterranean world and its neighbours, and how best to structure degree programmes for a new and wider constituency. We are launching a new umbrella BA programme Classics and the Ancient World in 2024, with three flexible pathways. The thinking behind this was – To reimagine the study of the ancient world and its reception for a new social and intellectual environment; – To protect smaller degree programmes; – To promote both intellectual diversity and interdisciplinarity in an academic environment which disfavours organisational fragmentation. Our colloquium will reflect on the challenges and rhetoric of studying the ancient world, and on how we might reimagine the discipline for a new generation of students. We shall start with a brief overview of how the UCL BA and pathways will work, and finish with an inaugural lecture by Mark Weeden. The event is open to all, and you are welcome to join us in person or via Zoom for all or some of this event. Detail and links are at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/classics/ancient-worlds-new-horizons
The expansion of cuneiform languages at UCL, and the conclusion of a research project Comparative Classics: Greece, Rome, and India, have been a catalyst to rethink the study of the ancient Mediterranean world and its neighbours, and how best to structure degree programmes for a new and wider constituency. We are launching a new umbrella BA programme Classics and the Ancient World in 2024, with three flexible pathways. The thinking behind this was – To reimagine the study of the ancient world and its reception for a new social and intellectual environment; – To protect smaller degree programmes; – To promote both intellectual diversity and interdisciplinarity in an academic environment which disfavours organisational fragmentation. Our colloquium will reflect on the challenges and rhetoric of studying the ancient world, and on how we might reimagine the discipline for a new generation of students. We shall start with a brief overview of how the UCL BA and pathways will work, and finish with an inaugural lecture by Mark Weeden. The event is open to all, and you are welcome to join us in person or via Zoom for all or some of this event. Detail and links are at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/classics/ancient-worlds-new-horizons