Download Dr. Christoph Greger Humanities 41A Fall 2016 Study Guide for Unit

Dr. Christoph Greger
Humanities 41A
Fall 2016
Study Guide for Unit 3:
Hebrews and Romans
Below are some topics – concepts, questions, ideas and objects – that are fairly important to the course.
These are all topics that either we’ve covered in class or that are covered in some detail in our textbook,
Culture and Values (volume 1). In order to assure yourself of a good grade on quizzes, midterm and final
exams, you should familiarize yourself with most of these concepts. Of course you’re not expected to be an
expert on any of these topics, but you should be aware of why they’re important, what some of the questions
are about them, what’s unique about them… and you should be able to communicate some of this stuff in
writing, of course.
The Hebraic Tradition











The story of the creation
The covenant between God and the Jews
The promised land, Canaan
The story of Abraham and Isaac
The story of the Exodus from Egypt
Moses
The Ten Commandments
King David
Some key differences between Hebraic and Greek religious traditions.
The importance of sacred texts in the Hebraic tradition
Some chief characteristics of the Hebraic God
The Romans



















A rough idea of the geography of the Roman Empire, as well as its approximate dates
Foundation myth #1: The story of Romulus and Remus
Some of the economic and social classes of ancient Rome: Patricians and plebeians
Some of the key political institutions of the Roman Republic: consuls, senators, the assembly,
tribunes.
Some characteristics of the Roman military
Hannibal, and the wars with Carthage
A little about Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, Cleopatra, and the Civil war that ended the Republic
A little about Octavian, and how he became the first emperor, Augustus Caesar
Foundation myth #2: Virgil and the Aeneid, the story of the Trojan prince Aeneas
What Hades is like, based on Virgil’s description of it in book VI of the Aeneid.
Some developments in engineering: the arch and hydraulic setting cement
Some of the feats of Roman engineering: aqueducts, baths, coliseums, roads.
Some features of Roman architecture, as embodied in the Roman temple, the Pantheon
Some attitudes towards love and empire, as expressed in the poems of Catullus, Horace and Ovid
The story of Apollo and Daphne, from Ovid’s Metamorphosis
Key concepts of the Roman philosophy of Stoicism, as set forth in the writing of Marcus Aurelius
Maybe a little about Epicureanism, and how it contrasts to stoicism
Key aspects of Roman art and architecture: Roman portraiture, Roman “victory” architecture
The city of Pompeii – its art and décor, as well as its fate…