Classics 031: Greece and the Barbarians |
| Instructor: | |
| Time/Location: | Tu/Th, 11:20–12:35; Science Center 181 |
| Contact Info: |
Office: Trotter 104 |
OVERVIEWClassics 031 follows the political and social history of Greece from the Mycenaean Age to the creation of the Athenian Empire of Pericles. We will explore our subject through the lens of the modern historian as well as those of Greek prose writers and poets; but we will also employ documentary texts (inscriptions), archaeological remains, artwork and other types of material culture (coins, funerary items, potsherds) to obtain a well-rounded view of the Greeks and their world. Particular attention will be given to the connections between Greeks and non-Greeks and to the Greek perception of their "barbarian" neighbors. |
GOALSBy the end of this course, you should be able to:
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PREREQUISITESNone. |
READINGSThe required texts are as follows:
The following texts are recommended:
If you like, you are welcome to use different/cheaper editions of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, the Homeric Hymns, Hesiod's Works and Days and Theogony, and the Histories of Herodotus, provided that your edition(s) provide line numbers (for poetry) and paragraph/chapter divisions (for prose). The editions of Homer and Herodotus listed above contain the exact selections that we will be reading for the course. The Hesiod is simply a convenient (though perhaps expensive) collection of his works along with the Homeric Hymns. Required and recommended texts will be available in the bookstore, but you may be able to find used copies for less elsewhere: amazon - Barnes & Noble - abe Books. There are a few additional readings for this course, all of which will be available electronically: see the course schedule (below) for details. The following texts are general reference works useful for classicists and ancient historians and can be found locally, most in McCabe and/or the Classics Seminar Room (Trotter 115). They may prove helpful starting points for supplementary research (i.e., papers):
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GRADINGGrading for the course will be based on the following breakdown:
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OTHER INFOSurprise! Cheating is not allowed. If you cheat, and I find out, you will receive a grade of 0 for the assignment and be reported to the Office of the Deans. (See their policies on academic honesty.) Office hours will be held whenever I am in my office. One can generally find me there between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., M–F. (A more detailed breakdown of when I will be available is posted outside my office door.) You are also welcome and encouraged to make an appointment to meet with me. Call, email or holler. |
COURSE SCHEDULEWhat follows is a sketch outline of the Spring semester. Nightly reading assignments are due on the dates specified. With the exception of the map quiz, quizzes will be not be announced in advance. Some of the reading assignments are pdf files. To view/download them, you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader (free download available here). There are also a couple of audio files I would like you to listen to. To do so, you'll need RealPlayer (free download available here). Check this page often. Readings and assignments are subject to change. I'll try to give a heads-up in class if a major shake-up is imminent. I'll also try to have readings posted at least a week before the due date. |
Part 1: Minoans, Mycenaeans and MysteryIn the first section of the course we'll survey the Greek Bronze and so-called "Dark" Ages: a period of approximately 2200 years (ca 3000 B.C.–ca 800 B.C.). For the most part, written sources do not exist for this time, but a wealth of archaeological data means that much is known about a few civilizations (the Minoans and Mycenaeans, most famously). We will look to later sources, and the Homeric poems in particular, for hints of what the culture of this early period must have been like. |
Part 2: The World of Homer and HesiodIn the second part of the course we'll examine the eighth century B.C., a period that witnessed a cultural rebirth in Greek society. It is during this period that Greek literature takes flight—in the persons of Homer and Hesiod—and Greek religion, athletics, colonization and a number of other important social phenomena have their beginnings. |
| Week | Tuesday | Thursday |
| 3 | 9/19 Panhellenism in the Eighth Century: the Emergence of "Greek" Culture READ: Osborne, chapter 4 (pp70–136) |
9/21 Epic Poetry, the World of Homer and the Homeric Question READ: Osborne, chapter 5 (pp137–160); Lombardo, introduction (ppix–xx) or the introduction(s) to your text(s) of the Iliad and Odyssey HEAR: some of the bards recorded by Milman Parry here (click one of the "Milman Parry Songs" links in the box at right and find a tune that has both a manuscript you can see and a linked audio file you can listen to) - Stanley Lombardo read from the Iliad (in Greek) here (pick a selection) |
| 4 | 9/26 Homer 1: Iliad, part 1 READ: Iliad (selections, books 1–12, pp1–129) |
9/28 Homer 1: Iliad, part 2 READ: Iliad (selections, books 13–24, pp130–240) Short Paper #1 due at 5 p.m. |
| 5 | 10/3 Homer 2: Odyssey, part 1 READ: Odyssey (selections, books 1–12, pp241–365) |
10/5 Homer 2: Odyssey, part 2 READ: Odyssey (selections, books 13–24, pp366–482) |
| 6 | 10/10 Homer 3: The Homeric Hymns and Later Epic READ: Homeric Hymns: read hymns 3–5 (pp115–165) and 7 (pp167–169); hymns 1 (p. 97), 6 (p. 166) and 8–33 (pp170–196) are optional; Battle of the Frogs and Mice (pp197–207) |
10/12 Hesiod: Greek Justice and Religion READ: Hesiod, Works and Days (pp23–51); Theogony (pp53–87) |
Part 3: The Individual and the StateThe third section of the course is devoted to the developments that took place in Greek society and culture in the seventh and sixth centuries B.C. This was a period that witnessed rapid growth in literature and philosophy, saw the development of a variety of types of governments among the Greek city-states and provided the setting for the emergence of Athens and Sparta, the two Greek poleis that would in large part determine the history of Greece for many years to come. |
Part 4: Greece and the Barbarians: the Early Fifth CenturyIn the final section of the course we'll concern ourselves with the conflict between the Greeks and the Persians, conflicts between the Greeks themselves and the buildup to the Peloponnesian War and the transition from the archaic to the classical period. We will read extensively from Herodotus, the first "real" historian, and trace contemporary developments in art, poetry, architecture and philosophy. |
| Week | Tuesday | Thursday |
| 11 | 11/14 Herodotus and the Persians, part 1 READ: Herodotus
(selections, pp1–74) |
11/16 Herodotus and the Persians, part 2 READ: Herodotus (selections, pp75–118) |
| 12 | 11/21 Herodotus and the Persians, part 3 READ: Herodotus (selections, pp119–189) Short Paper #3 due at 5 p.m. |
11/23 Thanksgiving Break |
| 13 | 11/28 The Persians on Stage: History and Tragedy READ: Aeschylus, The Persians (41pp) |
11/30 The Birth of Philosophy READ: Presocratics Reader (pp9–107; skip the introductions to individual sections if you like) |
| 14 | 12/5 Athletic Contests and Epinician Poetry READ: Pindar, Olympian Odes 9, 11, 13; Pythian Odes 4, 11, 12; Nemean Odes 1, 8 (63 pp; skip the introductions and notes if you like); Bacchylides, Odes 3, 5, 13 (21pp); West, Simonides (pp160–172) |
12/7 Student Presentations |
| 15 | 12/12 Student Presentations |
12/14 Reading Period |
| 16 | 12/19 Exam Period | 12/21 Exam Period Final Paper due at 5 p.m. on Friday, December 22 |
