Submission of Assignments: The Research Paper and Book Review are to be submitted via the iLearn site by their respective due dates and times (which are listed according to local Sydney time). For your annotated bibliography, submit a digital copy via the main Forum on iLearn and bring a printed copy to class for me. Access to the internet and the ability to download and/or view unit materials are essential. Ability to work with word processing software is required for written assessments. Any technical issue encountered with accessing unit materials and/or with submitting assignments should be directed to the IT department via ask.mq.edu.au. After lodging a complaint/request with them you must also notify me via email concerning the issue as soon as possible after it is discovered. Contacting me after an assessment's due date to say that you could not submit it on time will not result in an extension for that assessment unless IT provides me with a time-stamped notice.

Assignments will be assessed on their level of completion, coherence, grammar, and comprehension.

Assessment tasks / assignments are compulsory and must be submitted on time. Extensions for assignments can only be granted for medical reasons or on compassionate grounds. Without documentation (medical or counselling certificates) or prior staff approval, late work will not be accepted. If required, applications for extensions should be made to me before the assignment's due date. No assignments will be accepted after assignments have been corrected and feedback has been provided (see also the clause below).

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted more than seven (7) days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments – e.g. quizzes, online tests.

Tasks 10% or less. No extensions will be granted. Students who have not submitted the task prior to the deadline will be awarded a mark of 0 for the task, except for cases in which an application for Special Consideration is made and approved.

Tasks above 10%. No extensions will be granted. Students who submit late work without an extension will receive a penalty. This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for Special Consideration is made and approved. 

Assignment tasks handed in early will not be marked and returned before the due date.

For Special Consideration Policy see under Policies and Procedures.

Note on Assessment - To complete the unit satisfactorily you will need to achieve an overall mark worth 50% or above. 

IMPORTANT NOTE ON FINAL MARKS: Please note with respect to the marks you receive for work during the session: that the marks given are indicative only; final marks will be determined after moderation. See further the note on Results in the Policies and Procedures section below.

It is highly recommended that you come to all class meetings (internals). Further, you should complete the readings and any other work for any given week before that week's meeting.

This class is offered internally and externally. Internal students will meet in-class on Weeks 1-10 while external students will access course material via the iLearn website. Every student, whether internal or external, will need internet access that allows the downloading of resources in order to pass this course. Additionally, access to a library and/or article database such as Jstor will be necessary to complete multiple of the assigments. If individual access to such databases is not possible, access is possible via the Macquarie Library website, although a proxy server may be necessary (for more see the "IT Help" link under the "Policies and Procedures" tab).

All lectures, assignments, and readings will be posted on the course's iLearn site for external students (lectures will be recorded and will be accessible via the Echo360 tab on the right-hand side of the iLearn page). Additional resources, including weblinks and additional directions will also appear there.

REQUIRED READING

Trimm, Charlie. 2017. Fighting for the King and the Gods: A Survey of Warfare in the Ancient Near East, Atlanta, SBL Press. (*This book will be available via the Coop Bookstore on campus, but it can also be found online via various booksellers)

There will be additional weekly readings made available via Leganto.

UNIT DESCRIPTION

Conflict was a part of life in the ancient Near East. From local skirmishes to full-scale long-distance campaigns, people fought either to control or to protect each other and their resources. The ways in which they did this evolved over time, but the human condition remained the same. Thus, in any given period developments in warfare can be seen as both the cause and effect of change; there was an inseparable dialectic between warfare and other aspects of civilization—political structure, economic potential, social order, religious understanding, self-identification, technology, artistic expression—that were constantly reacting with each other. This unit will investigate the intimate relationship between warfare and these various aspects of ancient Near Eastern civilizations from the Bronze Age (ca. 3000 B.C.) to the Roman Period (1^st c. A.D.) through use of both archaeological and textual records.

1. Introduction: A Philosophical Treatise on War

2. Writing about War: Ancient and Modern

3. Materials, Technology, Tactics, and Strategy

4. Warfare and Geography

5. Warfare and Politics

6. Warfare and Socioeconomics

7. Warfare and Ritual; Warfare and Religion

8. Warfare and the Individual Will

9. Psychological Warfare and Defeatism

10. Revolts, Rebellions, and the Aftermath of War