A survey of the myths of the gods and heroes of ancient Greece, with a view to their original context in Greek art and literature as well as their place in Greek religion. We will give particular attention to myths that live on in Western art and literature, in order to become familiar with the stories which were part of the repertory of later artists and authors. Three class hours per week.
Fall semester. Professor R. Sinos.
2023-24: Not offered(Offered as CLAS 23 and WAGS 23.) We read in English the major authors from Homer in the 8th century BCE to Plato in the 4th century in order to trace the emergence of epic, lyric poetry, tragedy, comedy, history, and philosophy. How did the Greek enlightenment, and through it Western culture, emerge from a few generations of people moving around a rocky archipelago? How did oral and mythological traditions develop into various forms of “rationality”: science, history, and philosophy? What are the implications of male control over public and private life and the written record? What can be inferred about ancient women if they cannot speak for themselves in the texts? Other authors include Sappho, Herodotus, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, and Thucydides. The course seeks to develop the skills of close reading and persuasive argumentation.Three class hours per week.
Spring semester. Professor Griffiths.
2023-24: Not offeredA study of Roman civilization from its origins to the Empire, with emphasis on major Roman writers. The material will be interpreted in the light of Roman influence upon later Western civilization. The reading will be almost entirely from Latin literature, but no knowledge of the ancient language is required. Three class hours per week.
Fall semester. Professor van den Berg.
2023-24: Not offeredAn introduction to the people of ancient Rome, their daily routines and occupations as well as their place in the developing Roman state. Topics will include religious practices, the Roman army, games, slavery, women’s lives, and Roman law. We will focus on primary sources, including literary as well as archaeological evidence, but will make use of modern representations of ancient Rome for the sake of comparison. Three class hours per week.
Spring semester. Professor Grillo.
2023-24: Not offeredThis course examines the political and social systems and struggles that marked Rome's growth from a small city-state to a world empire. Through various sources (Roman works in translation and material evidence) we will focus on the development of the republican form of government and its transformation into an empire. We will study also the daily life of the people and the impact of Christianity on the Roman Empire.
Omitted 2010-11.
2023-24: Not offeredExcavations in Greece continue to uncover a rich variety of material remains that are altering and improving our understanding of ancient Greek life. By tracing the architecture, sculpture, and other finds from major sanctuaries, habitations, and burial places, this course will explore the ways in which archaeological evidence illuminates economic, political, philosophical, and religious developments in Greece from the Bronze Age to the Hellenistic Period. Three class hours per week.
Omitted 2010-11.
2023-24: Not offered(Offered as CLAS 38 and WAGS 38.) This course addresses the staging of politics and gender in selected plays of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes, with attention to performance and the modern use of the plays to reconstruct systems of sexuality, gender, class, and ethnicity. We also consider Homer's Iliad as precursor of tragedy, and the remaking of plays in contemporary film, dance, and theater, including Michael Cacoyannis, The Trojan Women; Rita Dove, The Darker Face of the Earth; Martha Graham, Medea and Night Journey; Pier Paolo Pasolini, Oedipus Rex and Medea; and Igor Stravinsky, Oedipus Rex.
Omitted 2010-11.
2023-24: Not offeredSpring semester. Members of the Department.
2023-24: Not offeredSpring semester. Members of the Department.
2023-24: Not offered(Fall semester)
This course prepares students in one term to read Plato, Greek tragedy, Homer, and other Greek literary, historical, and philosophical texts in the original and also provides sufficient competence to read New Testament Greek. Three class hours per week. This course is normally followed by Greek 12 and then Greek 15 or 17.
Fall semester. Professor Griffiths
(Spring semester)
This course prepares students in one term to read Greek tragedy, Plato, Homer, and other Greek literary, historical and philosophical texts in the original and also provides sufficient competence to read New Testament Greek. Three class hours per week. This course is normally followed by Greek 15 or 17 and then Greek 12 or 18.
Spring semester. Professor R. Sinos
2023-24: Not offeredAn introduction to Greek literature through a close reading of the Apology and selected other works of Attic prose of the fifth and fourth centuries BC. Additional readings in translation. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Greek 01 or equivalent. Spring semester. Professor Griffiths.
2023-24: Not offeredAn introduction to Greek tragedy as a literary and ritual form through a close reading of one play. We will read Euripides' Bacchae, with attention to poetic language, dramatic technique, and ritual context. This course aims to establish reading proficiency in Greek, with review of forms and syntax as needed. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Greek 01 or equivalent. Fall semester. Professor R. Sinos.
2023-24: Not offeredThis course offers an introduction to New Testament Greek. We will read selections from the Gospels and Epistles and will discuss the social and philosophical context as well as the content of the texts. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Greek 01 or equivalent. Fall semester. Professor D. Sinos.
2023-24: Not offeredA reading of selected passages from the Iliad with attention to the poem’s structure and recurrent themes as well as to the society it reflects. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Greek 12, 15, 17 or equivalent, or consent of the instructor. Spring semester. Professor D. Sinos.
2023-24: Not offeredThe authors read in Greek 41 and 42 vary from year to year, but as a general practice are chosen from a list including Homer, choral and lyric poetry, historians, tragedians, and Plato, depending upon the interests and needs of the students. Greek 41 and 42 may be elected any number of times by a student, providing only that the topic is not the same. In 2010-11 Greek 41 will read Sophocles' Electra. Three class hours per week. Seminar course.
Requisite: A minimum of three courses numbered 01 to 18 or consent of the instructor. Fall semester. Professor Griffiths.
2023-24: Not offeredSee course description for Greek 41. In 2010-11 Greek 42 will read Herodotus' Histories. Three class hours per week. Seminar course.
Requisite: A minimum of three courses numbered 01 to 18 or consent of the instructor. Spring semester. Professor R. Sinos.
2023-24: Not offeredSpring semester. Members of the Department.
2023-24: Not offeredSpring semester. Members of the Department.
2023-24: Not offeredThis course prepares students to read classical Latin. No prior knowledge of Latin is required. Three class hours per week.
Fall semester. Professor Grillo.
2023-24: Not offeredThis course aims at establishing reading proficiency in Latin. Forms and syntax will be reviewed throughout the semester. We will read selections from Seneca’s Epistulae morales and possibly other authors. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Latin 01 or equivalent. Spring semester. Professor Grillo.
2023-24: Not offeredThis course will examine Catullus’ poetic technique, as well as his place in the literary history of Rome. Extensive reading of Catullus in Latin, together with other lyric poets of Greece and Rome in English. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Latin 02 or equivalent. Fall semester. Professor van den Berg.
2023-24: Not offeredAn introduction to the literature and culture of Augustan Rome through a close reading of selections from Augustan authors. Three class hours per week.
Requisite: Latin 02, 15 or equivalent. Spring semester. Professor van den Berg.
2023-24: Not offeredThe authors read in Latin 41 and 42 vary from year to year, the selection being made according to the interests and needs of the students. Both 41 and 42 may be repeated for credit, providing only that the topic is not the same. In 2010-11 Latin 41 will read Cicero. Three class hours per week. Seminar course.
Requisite: Latin 15 or 16 or equivalent. Fall semester. Professor Grillo.
2023-24: Not offeredSee course description for Latin 41. In 2010-11 Latin 42 will read Virgil. Three class hours per week. Seminar course.
Requisite: Latin 15, 16, 41 or equivalent. Spring semester. Professor van den Berg.
2023-24: Not offeredSpring semester. Members of the Department.
2023-24: Not offeredSpring semester. Members of the Department.
2023-24: Not offered