Ancient Egypt: Religion and Culture, ACABS 261, 4 credit hours, HU
Winter 2014, Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:00-5:30pm in Angell Aud B + discussion section
Note: syllabus will
be updated as term goes on; exam and due dates will stay the same, as will
readings, but lecture topics may change. Any changes will be noted on the course CTools
website
Instructor: Prof.
Terry Wilfong
Office: 4016 Thayer
Office hours: MW 11:30am-1:00pm (in Thayer 4016), and by appointment
Email (best means of contact): <twilfong@umich.edu>
Graduate Student Instructor: Gina Konstantoupoulos
<gvkonsta@umich.edu>
Class description:
This course is an
undergraduate introduction to the religion of ancient Egypt in its cultural
context. Religion was central to life in ancient Egypt, and in this course
students will study Egyptian religion through its intellectual and material
culture. Students will explore the definitions of religion in ancient Egypt, as
well as the Egyptian understandings of gods and goddesses, Egyptian cosmology
and mythology, temples and their priesthoods, and the roles and uses of magic.
A major component of this course will focus on the reading of the Egyptian
"Book of the Dead" in translation and a study of its illustrations as
an entry-point into understanding Egyptian afterlife beliefs and funerary
practices.
Please note that
this course is about ancient Egyptian religion in its cultural context from
ancient Egyptian sources. Although ancient Egyptian religion figures
prominently in other religious traditions and there have been modern revivals
of Egyptian religion and magic, these are not what we will be covering in this course.
Class requirements:
* Attendance is mandatory,
both for lecture and discussion sections. Grades will be based on material
covered in the lectures and discussions as well as the readings, so failure to
attend lectures and discussion and do the readings will have an adverse impact
on a student's final grade.
* Assigned readings must be done before lecture according to
schedule.
* Exams must be taken on time, papers and section assignments must be handed in
by deadlines: no late exams or papers!
* Short Quiz (=5% of
grade)
* Exam 1 (=25% of Grade): multiple choice and identifications from readings and
lectures.
* Exam 2 (=25% of Grade): identifications, short answers and short essay based
on class readings, lectures and discussion sections: NOT cumulative!
* Paper (=25% of Grade): a short (2,000-2,500 word) paper based on class
readings, lectures and discussions about the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
* Section Work (=20% of Grade): attendance and participation in discussions,
with short quizzes and/or writing assignments.
Reading List
The
following are required for purchase and should be available from UM Bookstores as well as online:
* Byron
E. Shafer, ed., Religion in Ancient Egypt
(1991) (=SHAFER in the syllabus)
* John
Taylor, Death and the Afterlife in
Ancient Egypt (2001) (=TAYLOR in the syllabus)
* The
Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Book of Coming Forth by Day, Translated by R. O. Faulkner, edited by Ogden Goelet (1994) (=BOOK OF THE DEAD in the
syllabus; note that ONLY this publication of the Egyptian Book of the Dead
[ISBN 0-8118-0767-3 or ISBN 0-8118-6489-3] is acceptable for class use)
There is also an optional textbook, either available online or from the Kelsey Museum gift shop:
• T.G. Wilfong, Life, Death and Afterlife in Ancient Egypt: The Djehutymose Coffin in the Kelsey Museum (=WILFONG in the syllabus)
Note that this book is strictly optional, also that the author does not receive any proceeds from its purchase. I wrote this book to summarize some of the things that I teach in this course for a wider audience, so it may be helpful for better understanding of the course subject matter.
There will also be
occasional brief online readings and/or brief handout readings, TBA
1. January 9
(Thursday) INTRODUCTION TO COURSE/ORIENTATION
NO READINGS, NO SECTION MEETING ON THURS. JAN.9
2. January 14 (Tuesday) INTRODUCTION TO ANCIENT EGYPT
NO READINGS
3. January 16
(Thursday) INTRODUCTION TO ANCIENT EGYPTIAN RELIGION: WHAT IS A GOD?
Readings SHAFER 7-30
4. January 21
(Tuesday) BEGINNINGS: CREATIONS AND COSMOLOGIES
Readings SHAFER 88-122
5. January 23
(Thursday) TIME & THE ORGANIZATION OF THE GODS
Readings SHAFER 30-58
6. January 28 (Tuesday)
CLASS CANCELLED, QUIZ Rescheduled
Readings SHAFER 58-73
7. January 30
(Thursday) **SHORT QUIZ AT BEGINNING OF CLASS
NATURE OF THE GODS; DIVINE PLACE; DIVINE WISDOM; GODS IN THE WORLD
Readings SHAFER 74-87
8. February 4
(Tuesday): TEMPLES, KINGS, PRIESTS, DEATH
Readings SHAFER 123-146
9. February 6
(Thursday): KINGS & DEATH, PERSONAL RELIGION
Readings SHAFER 147-178
10. February 11
(Tuesday): EXCURSUS: THE AMARNA PERIOD
Readings SHAFER 179-200
11. February 13
(Thursday):
EXAM REVIEW IN CLASS
12. February 18
(Tuesday): EXAM 1 IN CLASS
13. February 20
(Thursday): GODS & PEOPLE AFTER DEATH
A TEAM OF JACKAL GODS
Reading TAYLOR 7-45
14. February 25
(Tuesday): PREPARATION FOR THE DEAD
Readings TAYLOR 46-91
15. February 27
(Thursday): MUMMIES
Readings: TAYLOR 92-111
WINTER BREAK: NO
CLASS
16. March 11
(Tuesday): ACCESSORIES AND HOMES FOR THE DEAD
Readings: TAYLOR 112-135
17. March 13
(Thursday): RITUALS AND MAGIC FOR THE DEAD
Readings:
18. March 18
(Tuesday): COFFINS
THE DJEHUTYMOSE COFFIN IN THE KELSEY MUSEUM
Readings:
19. March 20
(Thursday): CATCH-UP,
EXAM REVIEW
Readings:
20. March 25
(Tuesday): EXAM 2 IN CLASS
No readings for today
21. March 27
(Thursday):
Readings: BOOK OF THE DEAD pages 11-18, 139-154
22. April 1
(Tuesday): BOOK OF GOING FORTH BY DAY, PART 1
Readings: BOOK OF THE DEAD plates 1-10, pages 154-161
*PAPER ASSIGNMENT HANDED OUT (see "Resources" folder for PDF of paper assignment)
23. April 3
(Thursday):
Topic and Readings: TBA
24. April 8
(Tuesday): BOOK OF GOING FORTH BY DAY, PART 2
Readings: BOOK OF THE DEAD plates 11-19, pages 161-165
25. April 10
(Thursday): BOOK OF GOING FORTH BY DAY, PART 3
Readings: BOOK OF THE DEAD plates 20-29, pages 165-167
26. April 15
(Tuesday): BOOK OF GOING FORTH BY DAY, PART 4
Readings: BOOK OF THE DEAD plates 29-37, pages 167-170
27. April 17
(Thursday): BOOK OF THE DEAD SUMMING-UP/In-class paper review
28. April 22 (Tuesday): SUMMING-UP + MUMMY MOVIES
*PAPERS DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF CLASS: NO EXCEPTIONS!