INQ-110 | The Ancient City

Full Title: Life in the Ancient City

Topic Description:

The history of city life is of particular interest because of the importance of the cities in our own lives as centers of politics, culture and commerce. Scholars agree that the emergence of cities was an integral moment in human history. The urbanized civilizations of the ancient world represent some of the earliest flourishing of the urban form. By engaging with case studies from the ancient world, we will ask: How did city living impact and shape ancient societies? How were cities sustained and constituted socially, economically, and politically? From the start, we will work with the archaeological evidence and the ancient textual sources and learn methods for their analysis. Writing and research assignments will aid us in formulating our own questions and interpretations as we unpack the multi-layered features of the ancient city.

Counts as Global? No

Topic Approved: April 2011