LJMedB35 Res rusticae

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2025
Extent and Intensity
0/2. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
doc. Mgr. Katarina Petrovićová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. Mgr. Dana Stehlíková, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Dana Stehlíková, Ph.D.
Department of Classical Studies – Faculty of Arts
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 16 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The aim of the course is to introduce students to Latin texts dealing with different areas of agriculture in antiquity and the Middle Ages and to show the context in which these texts were transmitted.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, students will be able to
- list all important texts on agriculture written in antiquity and the Middle Ages (including texts originally Greek or Arabic),
- characterise and distinguish between the different types of texts,
- discuss the different approaches taken by authors in producing these texts and the different target audiences,
- compare the different principles of classifying matter in agricultural texts.
At the end of the course, students will have an expanded vocabulary describing different areas of agriculture.
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction to agricultural and economic literature, the main types of texts in Latin literature from antiquity to the end of the Middle Ages. 2. Themes of agriculture in Roman literature (Cato the Elder, Columella, Varro; didactic poetry - Virgil). 3. Palladius, De re rustica (reading of texts, its importance in humanism). 4. Agriculture in Isidore of Seville (Etymologiae). 5. The economic role of monasteries (plan of the garden of St. Gallen, Walahfrid Strabo). 6. The position of agriculture in the system of artes mechanicae in the Didascalicon of Hugo of St. Victor and the encyclopaedia Speculum doctrinale of Vincent of Beauvais. 7. Themes of agriculture in Arabic texts translated into Latin in the 12th century. 8.-10. Petrus de Crescentiis, Ruralia commoda - translations of selected passages from Books I-XII. 11. Treatises on grafting. 12. Veterinary texts of the late Middle Ages. 13. Formation of economic corpora in the late Middle Ages, their contents, new topics, translations into vernacular languages. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Literature
    required literature
  • DE CRESCENZI, Pietro. Ruralia commoda: das Wissen des vollkommenen Landwirts um 1300. Ed. W. Richter. Heidelbergenses. Heidelberg 1995–1998
    recommended literature
  • KELLER, Hagen and Klaus GRUBMÜLLER. Pragmatische Schriftlichkeit im Mittelalter. Erscheinungen und Entwicklungsstufen. München: W. Fink, 1992. info
Teaching methods
One 2-hour seminar per week, reading, class discussion.
Assessment methods
Participation in the seminar on a regular basis (min. 75%), active participation in discussions, home preparation.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught every week.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2024, Spring 2026.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/spring2025/LJMedB35