Daily Life of Jews in Antiquity

Course Code:: 158000155
Status:: Course Not Running 2012/2013
Unit value:: 0.5
Year of study:: Year 2 or Year 3
Taught in:: Term 1

This course will examine various issues of the everyday life of Jews in Roman Palestine. For the rabbis of the first five centuries C.E. all aspects of life were religiously significant. In this course the relationship between rabbinic teachings and the social historical background of Jewish everyday life shall be investigated. The sources available for this investigation are literary traditions, archaeological material, inscriptions and papyri. Jews who lived in Roman Palestine in late antiquity lived in an environment which was greatly determined by Graeco-Roman and emerging Christian culture. Therefore comparisons between Jewish, Graeco-Roman, and early Christian attitudes and values are of particular interest for the various issues under consideration here.
The topics to be addressed in the course will range from housing and living conditions to issues of family life (the respective roles of the householder, his wife, children and slaves; marriage and divorce; family purity), working conditions and types of work, leisure time activities (theatre, bathhouse), burial practices and travel and mobility.

Objectives and learning outcomes of the course

At the end of the course, a student should be able to

critically analyze ancient literary, archaeological, and epigraphic sources which provide evidence on aspects of Jewish everyday life
understand the relationship between religious theory and practice and social reality
examine the ways in which rabbinic halakhah deals with issues of family law and civil law
assess gender differences in representations of ancient daily life
explain the significance of the family and family practices in ancient Judaism
evaluate the role of slaves and slavery in ancient Jewish society and religion
write essays that utilize and integrate the different types of source material utilized in the course

Method of assessment

Exam (60%) and Essay (40%)

SOAS, University of London (The School of Oriental and African Studies)

Department of the Study of Religions