UGS 1450 - Middle Eastern Civilization: Imperial and Religious Past

Students are introduced to the river valleys of Mesopotamia and Egypt, where agrarian-urban civilization began in c. 3500 BCE and to the factors responsible for the transition of the Middle East from hunting and gathering to irrigation farming. They will learn how the material, artistic, scholarly, and religious elements making up Middle Eastern civilization influenced each other and, as a whole, contributed to the formation of Western European civilization. Technology, science, architecture, and art of the Middle East, the poetry and prose and literature of some of its peoples, and the symbolism of prophetic revelation are examined, as are religious law and theological explanation in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The goal of this course is to help students reach an understanding of the depth of human civilization in its various forms and the lasting contributions these forms have made to our life today.