1 Greek Intellectual History: Tradition, Challenge, and Response Spring 2014 - HIST & RELS 4350 Utah State University Department of History Class: M & F 11:30-12:45 in OM 119 Office: Main 323D Professor: Dr. Susan O. Shapiro Office phone: 797-2091 Office Hrs: MWF 10:30-11:20 & by appointment Susan.O.Shapiro@usu.edu Description and Goals: This course focuses on the religious, ethical and political questions posed by some of the most important thinkers of ancient Greece. Some of these thinkers posed their questions in philosophical texts, while others wrote poetry, drama, history, or essays. But all of these thinkers were asking questions about the relationship between gods and men, the concept of sophrosyne (a combination of self-knowledge and self-restraint), justice, society, and the extent of a person's responsibility for his or her own actions, among other issues. As we try to understand what these Greek thinkers wrote, we will also consider how the questions they asked were (at least in part) a response to the political and social concerns of the day. Through the archaic and early classical periods, the Greeks generally relied on their traditional values -- as reflected in the works of Homer, Hesiod, Herodotus, Sophocles, and others -- to guide them through the choices and challenges of life. But when the Athenian democracy began to offer political power to those with rhetorical skills, and when the Peloponnesian War began to erode many traditional values, a new generation of thinkers emerged who questioned the basis of traditional morality, and were eager to discard it. These thinkers included Sophists, such as Gorgias and Thrasymachus, as well as the dramatists, Aristophanes and Euripides, and the historian, Thucydides. In response to these "new ideas," Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle sought to bring back some of the traditional values, but rather than relying on custom and convention to justify those values, they now supported them with reasoned argumentation. We will follow this process of tradition, challenge, and response, as we read and discuss some of the greatest works of Greek literature and philosophy. Required Texts: 1. Homer, The Iliad (Lattimore translation; University of Chicago Press, 1961) 2. Homer, The Odyssey ( Fitzgerald translation; Farar, Straus & Giroux, 1998). 3. Gagarin and Woodruff, Early Greek Political Thought (Cambridge, 1995) 4. Schein, Seth, Sophocles: Philoktetes (Focus, 2003) 5. Woodruff, P., Thucydides: on Justice, Power and Human Nature (Hackett, 1993). 6. Euripides, Medea (trans. by Diane Arnson; Hackett, 2008). 7. Plato, Republic (Grube-Reeve trans.; Hackett, 1992)
2 8. Henderson, J., Aristophanes: The Clouds (Focus Press, 1993). 9. Plato, Five Dialogues (Grube, trans.; Hackett, 2002) 10. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics (Ostwald trans.; Prentice Hall, 1962). PLEASE CHECK TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE THESE TRANSLATIONS!
3 Requirements: Grades for the course will determined as follows: 2 exams 30% each 60% paper 30% Attendance/Participation 10% Total 100% The grading scale will be: A (100-93), A- (92-90), B+ (89-88), B (87-83), B- (82-80), C+ (79-78), C (77-73), C- (72-70), D+ (69-68), D (67-60). F represents a grade below 60. There will be no curving of grades. Exams: There will be two hour exams, one about half way through the semester and one during finals week. Each exam will concentrate on material covered since the last exam, although it will (of course) build on what has come before. The second exam will have the same weight and format as the first. Since our second exam is scheduled for the last day of finals week, I may offer an optional take-home exam for those who prefer to finish early. Makeups: Exams can be made up only in case of a serious medical emergency (prior notification and doctor's note required). Paper: Students may choose either to read more of a work we have read in class (e.g. Herodotus' or Thucydides' Histories, Plato's Republic or Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics) or to read another work by one of the authors whose works we have read in class (e.g. another play by Aristophanes, Euripides or Sophocles or another Platonic dialogue). Students will then write a research paper of 10-12 pages in which they analyze and discuss their chosen work in terms of the themes we have discussed in class. Students will be expected to use at least 2 or 3 secondary sources (scholarly articles and/or book chapters). The paper should be the result of the student's own analysis, informed (of course) by the secondary readings. Attendance, Class Discussion and Homework: Since we will frequently engage in class discussions of the reading, regular attendance and daily preparation of assigned reading materials is essential. I expect you to come to class every day with your reading assignment completed, ready to pay attention, take notes, and participate actively in class discussions. Class attendance and participation count for ten percent of your grade. Academic Honesty: Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated in this class. If you have any questions about what plagiarism is or what constitutes unauthorized assistance, please do not hesitate to ask me.
This information is available in Braille or large print format upon request. 4
5 Tentative Assignment Schedule Note: Readings Assignments and Papers are Due on the Date Specified Part I: Tradition Week 1 M 1/6 - Introduction; Homer, Iliad, Books 18-19 & 24 (lines 468-551) DRAW 18.483-607 on 8x11 paper F 1/10 - Homer, Odyssey, Book 1 (lines 1-105), & Books 13-16 Week 2 M 1/13 - Homer, Odyssey, Books 17-20 F 1/17 - Homer, Odyssey, Books 21-24 Week 3 M 1/20 - MLK Day - No Class F 1/24 - Hesiod, Works and Days, lines 1-348 (HANDOUT) Week 4 M 1/27 - Poems of Solon and Herodotus on Solon, EGP 25-30 and 77-80 F 1/31 - Sayings of the Seven Sages (HANDOUT) Herodotus, "Debate on Constitutions" (HANDOUT) Week 5 M 2/3 - Sophocles, Philoktetes F 2/7 - Sophocles, Philoktetes
6 Part II: Challenge Week 6 M 2/10 - Thucydides: Pericles' Funeral Oration & Plague (pp. 39-58) Thucydides: Corcyrean Revolution (pp. 89-95) F 2/14 - Thucydides: Melian Dialogue (pp. 97-109) Week 7 M 2/17 - Presidents' Day - no class T 2/18 - no Monday class (too confusing) F 2/21 - Exam 1 Week 8 M 2/24 - Euripides, Medea F 2/28 - Plato, Republic Book 1 Week 9 M 3/3 - Plato, Republic Book 1 and Book 2 (through 368c1) F 3/7 - Gorgias, Praise of Helen (EGP 190-95) SPRING BREAK - March 10-14 Week 10 M 3/17 - Aristophanes, Clouds Paper Topics Due F 3/21 - Plato, Apology
7 Part III: Response Week 11 M 3/24 - Plato, Republic, Book 7 F 3/28 - Plato, Republic, Books 8-9 Week 12 M 3/31 - Plato, Republic (Myth of Er, 614b-621d) F 4/4 - No Class - Work on Papers (Dr. Shapiro @ CAMWS) Week 13 M 4/7- No Class - Work on Papers (Dr. Shapiro @ CAMWS) F 4/11- Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics Week 14 M 4/14 - Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics F 4/18 - Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics Week 15 M 4/21 - Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics Papers Due F 4/25 - Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics Exam Week: April 28 - May 2 F 5/2 - Exam 2-9:30-11:30 AM