HIB038b Female Rulers, Wives and Holy Women in Byzantium in the 4th - 14th century

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2022
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Petra Melichar, PhD (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Petra Melichar, PhD
Department of History – Faculty of Arts
Supplier department: Department of History – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Mon 10:00–11:40 L21
Prerequisites
none
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 25 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 7/25, only registered: 0/25, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/25
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
  • History (programme FF, B-HI_) (3)
Course objectives
The goal of the seminar is to introduce the students to the lives and actions of important female rulers, imperial consorts and holy women, who in various ways strongly impacted Byzantine history and culture. Based on presentations and lecture of selected sources the students will learn about women from various levels of the Byzantine society and different parts of the Byzantine Empire. Through the women´s lives they will be able to oberve the life of the imperial court, female monasteries and the life of common people in towns and countryside.
Learning outcomes
Having succesfully concluded the seminar the students should possess a basic knowledge of Byzantine history and culture be able to describe the position of women in the Byzantine society at different times and environments depict life in Byzantine nunneries and the specific features of the Byzantine monastic life be able to summarize the most important features of the imperial court have an overview of basic literature and some sources related to this field.
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction 2. Crown and Cross: St. Helena 3. Woman in the Desert: St. Mary of Egypt 4. From the Circus to the Throne: Theodora the Wife of Justinian 5. Kassia, the pious poet 6. Defender of Orthodoxy: Empress Theodora 7. The Story of Two Sisters: Zoe and Theodora 8. The Dramatic Life of Thomais of Lesbos 9. A Historian at the Imperial Court: Anna Komnene 10. Princess-Abess: Irene Palaiologina Choumnaina 11. A Foreigner on the Throne: Anna of Savoy 12. Her Husband´s Right Hand: Irene Kantakouzene 13. The Story from the Commonwealth: Mara Branković/ projects 14. Projects
Literature
  • ZÁSTĚROVÁ, B. Dějiny Byzance. Praha, 1994. info
Teaching methods
lecture complemented by the reading of a source
work in groups
discussion
Assessment methods
active in-class participation, final group project
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2022, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/autumn2022/HIB038b