| Course | Title | Instructor | Description |
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| CLASSIC 5 | LATIN/GREEK ROOTS IN ENGLISH | WATSON, T. | Studies in the formation and use of English words from Greek and Latin derivatives. Particularly useful for first-year students who wish to augment their vocabulary systematically. No prerequisites. |
| CLASSIC 10 | SCIENTIFIC TERMINOL | BRUSUELAS, J. | A study of English terms derived from Greek and Latin and important to contemporary medicine, science and other professions, with emphasis on the development of word-building skills. No prior knowledge of Greek or Latin required. The work is designed to aid undergraduates, particularly those in the sciences, in the development of their technical vocabulary. No prerequisites. |
| CLASSIC 37A | EARLY ROME | ZISSOS, P. | The course is a survey of some of the highlights of Roman civilization from its 8th century BCE. beginnings to the civil wars of the first century BCE. We will look not only at political history, but also at social history, literature, art and architecture, and religion. The course will consider a number of questions , including the various factors underwriting Rome's rise to global dominion. We will also consider how the Romans were able to develop stable principles of government, and how these principles were eventually transformed by the actions of figures like the bloodthirsty dictator Sulla. Although Rome was, like America, a relatively inclusive mix of different ethnic groups and peoples, it maintained a fundamental cultural continuity throughout much of its history. The Roman achievement is undeniably impressive, but it was not without a great cost in human suffering. We will examine the Roman system of slavery (which was non-racial in character), the patriarchal nature of Roman society, and the plight of the poor and underprivileged. In brief, beside providing the students with a solid factual basis for Roman history, the course will also identify some of the issues that have made Roman civilization an abiding fascination, a source of both admiration and loathing for almost all subsequent ages, including our own.
Classics 37A is the first part of the Roman Civilization series (37ABC), which satisfies the Humanistic Inquiry Breadth requirement. |
| CLASSIC 45A | THE GODS | PANTELIA, M. | Classics 45A is the first part of a three-quarter course on Classical Mythology. This class will be an introduction to the most important Greek and Roman myths, their historical and religious context, various interpretations and influence upon ancient and modern art, film and literature. Some of the topics we will discuss are: the creation of the universe, relations between gods and mortals, gender and sexuality, love, marriage, death and afterlife. We will use a standard textbook, but we will also read selected passages from primary sources such as Hesiod's Theogony, Ovid's Metamorphoses and selections from Greek tragedy. The course will make regular use of ancillary visual materials, especially computer resources. The grade for this course will be based on a combination of multiple-choice quizzes and short essay exams. |
| CLASSIC 160 | LITERATURE: AESCHYLUS’ ORESTEIA AND ITS TRANSFORMATIONS | GIANNOPOULOU, Z. | In this course we shall examine a variety of literary treatments of the myth of the house of Atreus, both classical and modern. We shall set the tone by reading Aeschylus’ Oresteia, Sophocles’ Electra, and Euripides’ Orestes and Electra. We shall then turn to three modern appropriations of the myth: Eugene O’Neill, Mourning Becomes Electra, T.S. Eliot, Family Reunion, and Jean Paul Sartre, The Flies. Special attention will be paid to the historical, socio-political, and broadly ideological implications of the various treatments of the myth.
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| CLASSIC 170 | WOMEN & GENDER IN THE ANCIENT GREEK WORLD | KARANIKA, A. | In this course we will study the representation of women in ancient Greek culture and society from Bronze Age to Late Antiquity and early Byzantium. We will analyze both textual as well as visual evidence. By looking at literary, historical and archaeological sources, we will have a synthetic approach and learn more about social experiences of women, their legal status, mythological projections of the female, ancient realities and fantasies. In the second half of the quarter, special attention will be paid to the reception of the ancient female in modern thought and contemporary art and media. This course will also be an introduction to theoretical approaches and methodologies of research in the humanities. No Greek or Latin required. Grade based on midterm and final examination and on class participation.
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| CLASSIC 200B | ATHENIAN AKROPOLIS | MILES, M.M. | A study of the Akropolis of Athens as a civic religious center, with emphasis on how the archaeological remains illuminate festivals, cults and rituals within the social, political and historical setting of Athens in the 5th c. BCE, and how the Akropolis and its buildings have taken on new meanings in the 19th and 20th c. Topics for the first part include analysis of architectural remains and narratives attributed to architectural sculpture, the marble inscriptions set up on the Akropolis as monuments, and the impact of the Akropolis on Roman views of Greece in the initial creation of the ideal of a “Golden Age of Greece.” Other topics include the pivotal ideological role of the Akropolis and its visual imagery in the creation of modern Athens in the 19th c., in the debate over color among 19th c. architects in France and England, and in the controversial removal of sculpture by Lord Elgin which in turn led to current legal considerations of restitution of cultural property from museum holdings. We will conclude with 20th c. versions of akropoleis, such as the Nashville Parthenon and the Getty Museum. Participants will be asked to give one or two oral reports and write a research paper.
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| CLASSIC 220 | GRADUATE SEMINAR: OVID’S METAMORPHOSES | ZISSOS, P. | This graduate seminar will involve a detailed investigation of Ovid’s
Metamorphoses, paying particular attention to features of Ovid’s poetic
language and style, along with problems of interpretation. We will also
consider the importance of the Metamorphoses within the epic tradition and
its profound influence on subsequent literature. Evaluation will be based
on a research paper, a brief exam and in-class performance (including
reports).
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