Classics Options for Visiting Students Semester One

Transcription

1 Classics Options for Visiting Students Semester One Te modules listed below are available to visiting students. Some are in ancient literature, history and culture; some are in the Greek and Latin languages at beginners, intermediate and advanced levels. All modules listed below are weighted 5 ECTS. Most modules are completed in the course of this one semester; those that continue over both semesters are marked in the list below with an asterisk*. Prof. Michael Clarke (michael.clarke@nuigalway.ie) is the visiting student coordinator and will be happy to answer any questions. Detailed information on the content of each module can be found overleaf and in our student handbooks, which can be downloaded from our Website: Te best way to find out more is of course to visit the department on the Arts and Science Concourse, down by the bank, up the stairs to the right. Modules in literature, history and culture First-Year level CC108 Myth and Religion in the Ancient City (Mon 3 pm, AC201; Wed 12 noon, IT125, first foor) *CC114 Written Words and Spoken Languages Part 1 (Tues 5 pm, Ó Tnúthail Teatre) *CC1100 Classics in Twenty Objects 1 (Turs 12 noon, Ó Tnúthail Teatre) Second-Year level CC228 History of the Roman Empire (Tues 1 pm, AC204; Fri 9 am, AC204) CC2102 Mythology and Drama (Mon 10 am, AC214; Wed 3 pm, AC204) CC2103 Mediterranean Origins (Mon 1 pm, AC204; Wed 5 pm, AM108) Final-Year level CC316 Barbarians (Mon 2 pm, AC204; Fri 2 pm, AC204) CCS306 Iconography: Te Classical Tradition in Western Art (Tues 4 pm, AC204; Wed 1 pm, AC204) CCS307 Ireland and the Ancient World (Mon 10 am, AC202; Turs 9 am, AC204) Modules in the Latin language CC230 Beginning Latin 1 (Mon 1 pm, AC203; Wed 5 pm, AC203) CCS315 Intermediate Latin 1 (Mon 2 pm, IT203; Turs 10 am, TB303) CC321 Latin Texts from Ireland and Britain (Mon 12 noon, AM121; Wed 12 noon, IT206) Modules in the Greek language CCS205 Ancient Greek for Beginners 1 (Tues 1 pm, TB304; Fri 9 am, TB301) CCS308 Reading Ancient Greek Texts (Intermediate level) (Mon 11 am, TB506; Wed 11 am, TB506) CCS308 Reading Ancient Greek Texts (Advanced level) (Tues 10 am, TB506) Notes Because of timetable clashes, the following modules cannot be taken at the same time as each other: CC2103 clashes with CC230 CC228 clashes with CCS205 CC306 clashes with CCS315. Rev: 27/08/y

2 Room Codes: AC = Arts & Sciences Building Concourse, AM = Arts Millennium Building, IT = IT Building, TB = Tower 2 (nearest the Bank of Ireland). Ó Tnúthail Lecture Theatre is on the first foor of the Arts Millennium Building. For a searchable map of the campus, see:

3 CC108 Myth and Religion in the Ancient City (Semester One) Co-ordinator: Clarke. 24 lectures (5 ECTS) This module provides an introduction to the study of Antiquity by focusing on the thought and creativity of the earliest knowable Europeans in ancient Greece. Greek Mythology and the Origins of Western Literature (Clarke) These lectures are focussed on early Greek myth, especially the concept of the hero as a figure poised between men and gods, concentrating on artistic evidence from vase-painting and narrative evidence from early epic poetry. The principal sources studied are from the anthology of texts collected by Lopez-Ruiz (see below), which is essential for taking the course. We will also look at the renewal of Greek myth in later ages, from medieval Ireland to Renaissance Italy. Politics, Culture and Society in the Ancient City (Herring) Tese lectures will survey the history and culture of Ancient Greece, in the fiih and fourth centuries BC, a period of dynamic political and cultural innovation. Te module will cover topics including the rise (and fall) of Greek democracy, art and architecture in fiih-century Athens, gender and sexuality, Greeks and barbarians, and the spectacular military career of Alexander the Great. Students will be introduced to original sources for Greek history (in translation). Essential textbooks for Clarke s series C. Freeman, Egypt, Greece and Rome (Oxford) S. Price and P. Tonemann, A History of Classical Europe (Penguin) C. Lopez-Ruiz, Gods, Heroes and Monsters: A Sourcebook of Greek, Roman and Near Eastern Myths in Translation. Oxford. B. Powell, ed and tr Homer, Odyssey. Oxford. Essential textbooks for Herring s series C. Orrieux and P. Schmitt Pantel, A History of Ancient Greece. (Blackwell) P. Cartledge, Ancient Greece: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford) CC114 Written Words and Spoken Languages (Semesters One and Two) Co-ordinator: Bisagni (semester 1 only). 24 lectures (5 ECTS) This module is an introduction to philology, the study of ancient language and literature and the social and material aspects of their transmission. The weekly lecture in the first semester focuses on the rise and development of languages, while in the second semester we explore writing systems and the history of books and texts. Part 1 (Semester One): The Roots of European Languages (Bisagni) How and why do languages change over time? In this part of the module, we will explore this question by examining both modern languages and the languages of the past. Starting from modern English, we will go back in time, searching for the prehistoric ancestor of the Indo-European linguistic family, to which many of the ancient and modern languages of Europe and Asia belong, including Greek, Latin,

4 Irish, English, Icelandic, Sanskrit (the sacred language of India), and many others. These lectures are a general introduction to the discipline known as historical linguistics, and no prior knowledge of ancient or foreign languages is required, but students who want to pursue this side of Classics will be encouraged to move on to begin the study of one of the ancient languages in the future if they wish to do so. Deutscher, G., Te Unfolding of Language. New York: Random House. Trask, R. L., Why Do Languages Change? Cambridge: CUP. Part 2 (Semester Two): Reading and Writing in the Ancient World Much of what we know about ancient civilisation comes from written texts like the works of Homer and Cicero. But how were their works preserved and passed down through thousands of years? In this module we will address that question and related ones by examining the origins and development of writing and reading, as well as looking at how the texts of antiquity were transmitted to our day through manuscripts. Robinson, A., Te Story of Writing. London: Tames & Hudson. Winsbury, R., Te Roman Book. London: Duckworth. CC1100 Classics in Twenty Objects (Semesters One and Two) Co-ordinator: TBC. 24 lectures (5 ECTS) This module will draw together the themes of your other courses and give you an overall guide to Classics. The lectures will introduce you to a series of artefacts artworks, monuments, written texts from points in the three thousand years from the beginnings of civilisation, through the heyday of ancient Greece and Rome, all the way to the rise of modern European nations after the collapse of the Roman Empire in the West. Each lecture will centred around a particular artefact, beginning with the most ancient art of Greece and continuing through the Classical period and into the reception of ancient art and literature in northern Europe and ultimately in Ireland. You will attend a lecture each week, and assessment will be divided between in-class assessment and project work. Your task will be to plan how to pass on your knowledge to others, moving from learner to teacher in your own approach to education. The suggested reading below will serve as a set of reference books which you will find useful for all parts of the Classics course. Suggested reading M. T. Boatwright et al., Te Romans: From Village to Empire. 2nd ed. Oxford: OUP. C. Freeman, Egypt, Greece and Rome: Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean (Oxford, 2014) N. MacGregor, A History of the World in 100 Objects (Penguin, 2010) S. Price and P. Tonemann, Te Birth of Classical Europe (Penguin, 2010) CC2102 Classical Mythology and Drama (Semester One) 2BA, Semester 1. Co-ordinator: Clarke. Lecturer: Doukas This module introduces students to the origins and early development of the Western dramatic tradition, with special reference to Greek Tragedy. Tragedy emerged from the tradition of myth-based hymnic song, accompanied by the dramatic enactment of scenes from the traditional repertoire of mythological

5 narrative. Lectures will focus on the social, cultural and theological aspects of tragic poetry, with reference both to the ideological underpinnings of Greek drama and to the influence of the Greek inheritance on the subsequent development of Western dramatic tradition into modern times. A series of plays will also be read in detail in translation, with close guidance and workshop-style discussion. Our 24 lecture meetings will be divided into two groups. Up to half of the classes will follow a relatively formal lecture format to introduce and explore key themes, moving between the overall interpretation of Tragedy and the specific problems of the individual prescribed texts. The others will be more focussed reading classes on specific target passages from the prescribed tragedies. Key passages will be supplied via Blackboard Aeschylus, Agamemnon in Carson, A. (tr.), Aeschylus, An Oresteia (Faber & Faber, 2009) Aeschylus, Suppliants in P. Burian and A. Shapiro (eds.), Te Complete Aeschylus Volume II: Persians and other plays (Oxford, 2009) Sophocles, Antigone in P. Weinecke and D. Woodruf (eds.), Sophocles, Teban Plays (Indianapolis, 2003) Sophocles, Oedipus the King in P. Weinecke and D. Woodruf (eds.), Sophocles, Teban Plays (Indianapolis, 2003) Euripides, Bacchae in R. Gibbons (tr.), Euripides, Bakkhai (Oxford, 2003) Euripides, Hippolytus in D.A. Svarlein (tr.), Euripides, Alcestis, Medea, Hippolytus (Indianapolis, 2007) Euripides, Cyclops in H. McHugh (tr.), Euripides, Cyclops (Oxford, 2009) Background reading Easterling, P.E. (ed.), Te Cambridge Companion to Greek Tragedy (Cambridge, 1997) Graziosi, B., Te Gods of Olympus (London, 2013) Edmunds, L. (ed.) Approaches to Greek Myth (second edition) (Johns Hopkins, 2010) Padel, R., In and Out of the Mind (Princeton, 1992) Padel, R., Whom Gods Destroy (Princeton, 1995)

6 CCS307 Ireland & the Ancient World (Semester One) Final-Year BA, Semester 1. Co-ordinator: Bisagni. Lecturers: Bisagni and Moran. It is well known that Ireland was never a part of the Roman Empire. Nonetheless, when Christianity came to this island in the fifth century (traditionally associated with St Patrick), the Roman Empire was still in existence, albeit contracting. The language of Ireland s new religion was Latin, and the Christian Church, which was to have a profound influence on Irish society, had already absorbed the culture of Rome in other ways. Latin scholarship flourished in post-roman Ireland, and Irish scholars later contributed to a revival of Classical learning in early medieval Europe. Whereas an older historical model asserts a gradual decline and fall of Roman world after the second century, a newer interpretation instead emphasises its gradual transformation. This module explores how Roman culture was transformed in the Late Antique period and how the legacy of that transformation is Ireland s so-called Golden Age. For the first half of the semester, Dr Moran will explore the historical changes that took place during the third to fifth centuries, and specifically the impact of Christianity on Roman culture and the attitudes of influential Christian writers such as Augustine and Jerome towards Classical literature. In the second half, Dr Bisagni will focus on early medieval Ireland (approx. ad ) and look at Classical and Late Antique influences on HibernoLatin and vernacular texts, ranging from natural science to political theory, history, poetry and epic. Brown, P., Te world of Late Antituity: From Marcus Aurelius to Mohammad. London. Cameron, A., Te Mediterranean world in Late Antituity, AD nd ed., London. Carey, J., King of Mysteries: Early Irish Religious Writings. 2nd ed., Dublin. Charles-Edwards, T. (ed.), After Rome. Oxford. Clark, G., Christianity and Roman society. Cambridge. Ó Cróinín, D., Hiberno-Latin literature to 1169, in D. Ó Cróinín (ed.), A New History of Ireland: I. Prehistoric and Early Ireland. Oxford/New York CC228 The History of the Roman Empire 2BA, Semester 1. Co-ordinator and lecturer: O Rorke This module surveys the history of the Roman Empire from Augustus to Theodoric. We will begin by exploring the expansion of Rome in Italy and the Mediterranean, then consider Augustus s rise to power and the principate. We then shift perspective and ask what being Roman looked like from the periphery by using evidence from the province of Britannia. After studying the Roman world of the second century, we look at the instability of the third and Constantine s

7 transformation of the Roman world into a Christian one divided between East and West. Finally, we examine the breakup of the Roman world and the rise of the successor kingdoms. Students will be introduced to the study of primary historical sources, with a focus on biography, and learn how these can be used to construct historical arguments. Boatwright, M.T. et al., Te Romans: From Village to Empire. 2nd ed. Oxford: OUP. Reading Pack. CC2103 Mediterranean Origins 2BA, Semester 1. Co-ordinator and lecturer: Herring This module examines the evidence for two of the earliest state-level societies in the Mediterranean, namely the Minoans and Mycenaeans. It explores the discovery of these Aegean Bronze Age cultures in the nineteenth century and how the attitudes of the early excavators to their discoveries continue to shape our understanding of them. In the case of the Minoans, there will be particular attention focused on Knossos and its controversial reconstruction. The discoveries from the Grave Circles at Mycenae will be starting point for the study of the Mycenaeans. The module will consider the factors that led to emergence of a state-level society in each case and the features that characterise this form of political organisation. Using primarily archaeological evidence and, where relevant, epigraphic evidence, the module will explore the economy, governmental systems, and religion of the Minoans and Mycenaeans and their relations across the Mediterranean and beyond. The module will also discuss the collapse of the Minoan and Mycenaean civilisations. In addition, there will be discussion of the memory of these cultures, as represented in the epics of Homer, and whether such poetic material can be used in the reconstruction of life in the Aegean Bronze Age. O. Dickinson, Te Aegean Bronze Age. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. J. Lesley Fitton, Te discovery of the Greek Bronze Age. Havard University Press, Cambridge (Mass.). CC316 Barbarians Final-Year BA, Semester 1. Co-ordinator: Bisagni. This module examines the constructed images and historical realities of some of the most important non-graeco-roman peoples in the ancient world. The three main directions that will be followed throughout the module are: (1) an analysis of the concept of barbarian in the Classical world; (2) an examination of selected Greek and Roman sources on barbarians, especially Celts and Germani; (3) a study of these same peoples from within, based on archaeological and linguistic evidence. We will investigate the role that the so-called barbarian peoples of Northern Europe played in ancient history, from the earliest documented contacts with the Mediterranean during the Early Iron Age, to the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth century ad. Caesar, Te Gallic War, ed. C. Hammond (OUP 1999). Tacitus, Te Agricola and Te Germania, ed. A. R. Birley (OUP 1999). Recommended reading Barbero, A., Te Day of the Barbarians: Te Battle Tat Led to the Fall of the Roman Empire. Walker & Co. Bispham, E. ed., Roman Europe. OUP. Burns, T. S., Rome and the Barbarians 100 B.C. A.D JHU Press. Harrison, T. ed., Greeks and Barbarians. Taylor and Francis.

8 Wells, P. S., Te Barbarians Speak. Princeton CCS306 Iconography: The Classical Tradition in Western Art Final-Year BA, Semester 1. Co-ordinator: Clarke. In this module we study the creation and re-creation of images from Classical mythology and ancient history in visual art across the whole sweep of Western cultural history, from Antiquity to modern times. We will focus on four moments in the tradition: (a) Roman sarcophagi; (b) Italian Renaissance painting, c ce; (c) Revolutionary and Romantic art, c ce; (d) High Victorian classicism. Independent research will be central to your work on this module, and toward the end of the course each student will prepare a PowerPoint presentation and deliver it to an audience of class members. Recommended reading Ovid, Metamorphoses translated by A. D. Melville (Oxford World s Classics, 2008) Elsner, M., Imperial Rome and Christian Triumph. Oxford: OUP. Barolsky, P., Ovid and the Metamorphoses of Modern Art. Yale. Beard, M. & Henderson, J., Classical Art. Oxford: OUP. Bull, M., Te Mirror of the Gods. Harmondsworth: Penguin. CC230 & CC232 Beginning Latin 1 & 2 2BA/Final-Year BA/Postgrad, semesters 1&2. Co-ordinator: Moran. Lecturers: Moran (semester 1) and Bisagni s replacement (semester 2) These modules introduce students to Latin, the language of ancient Rome. You will gradually become acquainted with its grammar and vocabulary, and develop reading skills with the aim of accessing Latin texts in their original form by semester two. The process of learning Latin helps to sharpen your understanding of the grammar of most modern languages, including English. You will also learn about the history of the English language and the origins and relationships of Latinate words in English (perhaps 70% of English vocabulary). Students who have a particular interest in historical linguistics can focus on learning more about the relationships between Latin, Greek, English, Irish and other Indo-European languages (not obligatory). No previous knowledge is expected. Jones, P. & K. Sidwell, Reading Latin. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [2 vols: Text and Vocabulary and Grammar and Exercises] Background reading Dickey, E., Learn Latin from the Romans: a Complete Introductory Course using Textbooks from the Roman Empire. Cambridge. CCS315 Intermediate Latin 1 Final-Year BA/Postgrad, Semester 1. Co-ordinator: Moran. This is a course of language study centred on grammar consolidation, designed to enable a student with around one year s prior study of Latin to progress towards confident independent reading and understanding of the language. We will begin at the point where the beginners module ended last year

9 and continue to consolidate grammar, syntax and the broader study of the language, including its IndoEuropean background. Greenough, J. B., et al., Allen and Greenough s New Latin Grammar. Newburyport, MA: Focus. Smith, W Chambers-Murray Latin-English Dictionary. London: Chambers Harrap. CC321 Latin Texts from Medieval Ireland and Britain Final Year BA/Postgrad, semester 1. Co-ordinator: Bisagni. This module is intended for students starting the fourth semester of Latin and aims to consolidate reading skills by focusing on longer selections. We will read Latin texts written in the Insular world during the Early Middle Ages, with special attention to the genres of hagiography and history. We will also cover the manuscript tradition of these works and practice transcribing manuscript exemplars of the texts we read. Texts will be supplied in class. Reading Carey, J., King of Mysteries: Early Irish Religious Writings. 2nd ed., Dublin. Ó Cróinín, D., Hiberno-Latin literature to 1169, in D. Ó Cróinín (ed.), A New History of Ireland: I. Prehistoric and Early Ireland. Oxford/New York Hexter, R., and Townsend, D. (eds) Te Oxford Handbook of Medieval Latin Literature. Oxford: OUP. CCS205 & CCS206 Ancient Greek for Beginners 1 & 2 2BA/Final-Year BA/Postgrad, semesters 1 & 2. Co-ordinator: Moran. These modules introduce students to Ancient Greek. You will gradually become acquainted with its alphabet, grammar and vocabulary, and develop reading skills based on texts adapted from Greek drama. The process of learning Greek helps to sharpen your understanding of the grammar of most modern languages, including English. Students who have a particular interest in historical linguistics can focus on learning more about the relationships between Latin, Greek, English, Irish and other IndoEuropean languages (not obligatory). No previous knowledge is expected. Joint Association of Classical Teachers [P. Jones & K. Sidwell], Reading Greek. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [2 vols: Text and Vocabulary and Grammar and Exercises] CCS308 Reading Ancient Greek Texts 2BA/Final-Year BA/Postgrad, semester 1. Co-ordinator and lecturer: Clarke. This course is designed for those who have already studied Classical Greek for approximately one academic year. We will use the Schoder and Horrigan course, reaching by the end of the semester the point where all basic grammar has been covered and continuous reading begins. Course books (provisional) Schoder, Raymond V. & V. C. Horrigan, A Reading Course in Homeric Greek, Book 1, 3rd ed. Chicago: Focus Publishing. [In library] McLean, B.H., Hellenistic and Biblical Greek: a Graduated Reader. London: Blackwell.

10 Advanced option Students who have studied Greek to the level of fluent reading are welcome to join the advanced Greek reading group, which will focus this semester on the Bacchae of Euripides. Work with this group can be accredited under CCS308 by prior arrangement with Prof. Clarke. Students seeking credit in this way will be assigned an essay as well as participating fully in the classwork. Course book Dodds, E.R. (ed.), Euripides, Bacchae. Oxford.