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Lecturer(s)
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Šestakova Lenka, Mgr. Th.D.
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Course content
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1) General characteristics of religions in the ancient Middle East 2) Ancient pantheon: main deities, their characteristics, iconography, mutual relations 3) Similarities and differences between religious systems of individual regions in the Middle East: mutual influence of religious ideas, their development from the first evidence up to the Hellenistic period 4) The mythology of the ancient Middle East (myths about the origin of the world, about the creation of man, about relations between deities); the role of mythological compositions in the cult 5) Deity worshipping: cult ceremonies in temples 6) Priesthood and its function, the importance of the temple in society 7) Private level of religion: worshipping of personal deities, the cult of ancestors, folk ideas 8) Demons and other supernatural beings, worshipping of natural forces, black and white magic, healing 9) Interpretation of divine signs, divination 10) Images of the underworld and afterlife 11) The moral dimension of religion, good and evil, theodicy 12) Comparison of religions of the ancient Middle East and other regions (Greece, Rome, Egypt, India etc.). 13) Religions and politics: the role of the state and monarch; the relation between the secular and spiritual realms
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Learning activities and teaching methods
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- Graduate study programme term essay (40-50)
- 18 hours per semester
- Contact hours
- 52 hours per semester
- Preparation for an examination (30-60)
- 60 hours per semester
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| prerequisite |
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| Knowledge |
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| - to know history of ancient Middle East - to characterize cultures of ancient Middle East - to identify different ancient religious systems and to characterize them - to identify important deities of given period - to name important religious texts of given period |
| Skills |
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| - to work individually with academic literature in Czech and English - to gain information from the contemporary information sources and to interpret them critically - to use effectively modern information technology - to work with different kinds of sources |
| Competences |
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| N/A |
| N/A |
| learning outcomes |
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| Knowledge |
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| - to identify and characterize different religious traditions of ancient Middle East - to characterize main features of religious systems in given regions in the Middle East (Mesopotamia, Iran, Syria, Anatolia) - to characterize important texts of religious content (myths, anthems, prayers, incantations, etc.) from the ancient Middle East - to explain contains of important religious texts |
| Skills |
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| - to work individually and critically with relevant professional sources - to interpret the roles of religion in societies of various periods and regions of the ancient Middle East - to link religious phenomena with political-social ones |
| Competences |
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| N/A |
| N/A |
| teaching methods |
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| Knowledge |
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| Self-study of literature |
| Individual study |
| Students' portfolio |
| Seminar classes |
| Collaborative instruction |
| Textual studies |
| Skills demonstration |
| Group discussion |
| Lecture |
| Lecture supplemented with a discussion |
| Seminar |
| Skills |
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| Students' portfolio |
| Textual studies |
| Lecture supplemented with a discussion |
| Competences |
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| Lecture supplemented with a discussion |
| Textual studies |
| Individual study |
| Students' portfolio |
| assessment methods |
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| Knowledge |
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| Individual presentation at a seminar |
| Group presentation at a seminar |
| Skills demonstration during practicum |
| Oral exam |
| Skills |
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| Oral exam |
| Individual presentation at a seminar |
| Competences |
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| Oral exam |
| Skills demonstration during practicum |
| Individual presentation at a seminar |
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Recommended literature
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Foster, Benjamin R. Before the Muses. An Anthology of Akkadian Literature. Bethesda: CDL Press, 2005. ISBN 978-1-883053-76-5.
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Lambert, W. G. Babylonian Wisdom Literature. Oxford, 1959.
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Oppenheim, A. Leo. Starověká Mezopotámie: portrét zaniklé civilizace. Praha, 2001. ISBN 80-200-0749-0.
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Prosecký, Jiří. Encyklopedie mytologie starověkého Předního východu. Praha : Libri, 2003. ISBN 80-7277-188-4.
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Prosecký, Jiří. Slova do hlíny vepsaná. Mýty a legendy Babylónu.. Praha: Academia, 2010. ISBN 978-80-200-1893-9.
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Sasson, Jack M. Civilizations of the ancient Near East. Vol. I, II. Peabody : Hendrickson Publishers, 2000. ISBN 1-56563-607-4.
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Sasson, Jack M. Civilizations of the ancient Near East. Vol. III, IV. Peabody : Hendrickson Publishers, 2000. ISBN 1-56563-607-4(2.
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