| CLASSIC 37C | THE FALL OF ROME | FERGUSON, M. | This course will trace the ‘fall of Rome’ from the height of the Empire to the 5th century CE. The nature of Rome’s demise remains an open question – when did the collapse start, and what are the mechanisms that brought a powerful civilization to its end? Can we, in fact, assign a date to the end of the Empire? Accordingly, this course will consider the ‘fall of Rome’ in a continuum, looking first at the tensions and problems inherent in the structure of the Empire from its beginning, and tracing these through the Imperial period to the deposition of Romulus Augustulus, the last Roman Emperor, in 476 CE. The course will focus on the evolution of the Empire’s economy, political system, culture, and religious life, exploring how these different factors interact over time. Military and religious divisions, in particular, will play a central part in our discussion, as will Rome’s continual struggle to maintain her borders against the ever-present threat of barbarian invasion. |
| CLASSIC 45A | THE GODS | GIANNOPOULOU, Z. | 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. Classics 45A is the first part of the Classical Mythology series (45ABC), which satisfies the Humanities General Education Requirement IV. |