Queer Theory and Ancient History

The course 'Queer Theory and Ancient History' explores the rich spectrum of sexualities, gender identities, and other marginalized populations across the course of Ancient World History, considering the Ancient Near East, North Africa, the Levant, and the Ancient Mediterranean. The course will first introduce participants to the main concepts of Queer Theory, in particular the central contradictory approaches of constructivism vs Essentialism, and discussions of social dynamics of power. Together, we will then apply this to the Ancient World, encountering various historical objects and literature, from Ancient Egyptian tombs, to Ancient Greek pottery, and Near Eastern texts. Each session will focus on a specific aspect of queerness found in the Ancient World, and will be discussed alongside diverse and potentially contradictory modern scholarship, ancient artefacts and literature,
and supporting aspects of queer theory. During the study of evidence of LGBTQIA+ identities will remain the focus, the sessions will also look at the wide breadth of inclusive Queer Theories, including studies of ethnic and racial minorities, and disabled lives. Students will learn how Queer Theory has been used to challenge heteronormative and cis-normative assumptions of historical identities, and the development of our awareness of identities beyond that binary, which have since impacted how we view key artefacts from the past.

Over the course of this module, students will be able to state the different approaches of Queer Theory, and how this can influence the way we view history, particularly in terms of personal relationship to the past, and the 'Queer Ancestor'. Students will gain an understanding of how to 'read' ancient art, and how artistic evidence can be used alongside ancient literature in order to gain a deeper insight into the ancient lived experience. They will be able to discuss how scholarship has developed over the last twenty years in regards to the inclusion of Queer Theory within Classics and Archaeology, and the reassessment of key artefacts and texts. Finally they will be able to discuss the significance of promoting awareness of the diversity of ancient history in research, the classroom, and beyond.