Listed in: Classics, as CLAS-123 | Sexuality, Women's and Gender Studies, as SWAG-123
Frederick T. Griffiths (Section 01)
(Offered as CLAS 123 and SWAG 123) We read in English the major authors from Homer in the eighth century BCE to Plato in the fourth 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 folklore and myth 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? How does slavery work in a culture when it is based on capture rather than racial difference? What do we hear when people in bondage are given voice in epic and drama? Other authors include Sappho, Herodotus, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, and Thucydides. The course seeks to develop the skills of close reading and persuasive argumentation. The requirements are three essays, the first ungraded, as well as two take-home, open book tests with time and word limits. Three class hours per week.
Limited to 40 students. Fall semester. Professor Griffiths.
How to handle overenrollment: Classics/Greek/Latin majors should have priority, followed by first-year students.
Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Emphasis on reading, writing and speaking
Section 01
M 12:00 PM - 12:50 PM BEBU 107
W 12:00 PM - 12:50 PM BEBU 107
F 12:00 PM - 12:50 PM BEBU 107
| ISBN | Title | Publisher | Author(s) | Comment | Book Store | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oresteia | Hackett | Aeschylus (trans. P. Meineck) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | |
| Lysistrata and Other Plays | Penguin | Aristophanes (trans. A. Sommerstein) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | |
| Ten Plays | Signet Classics | Euripides (trns. P. Roche) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | |
| The Histories | Penguin | Herodotus (trans. A. de Selincourt, ed. J. Marincola) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | |
| The Iliad | Penguin | Homer (trans. Fagles) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | |
| The Odyssey | Harper | Homer (trans. R Lattimore) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | |
| Sophocles I: Antigone, Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus | Sophocles (trans. D. Grene) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD | ||
| History of the Peloponnesian War | Penguin | Thucydides (trans. R. Warner) | Do not use a digital edition. | Amherst Books | TBD |
These books are available locally at Amherst Books.