Classics

Advanced Latin grammar including the tense system, the subjunctive, and the gerund(ive) are studied through simplified versions of original Latin authors, such as Ovid and Livy. The course includes an introduction to original Latin literature, offering accessible readings from classical Latin authors, such as Phaedrus, Horace, Pliny the Younger, Seneca and Cicero, all of whom are of constitutive importance to the Latin literary heritage.

 

This course is part of the LM degree program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrolment is by consent of the instructor. The course examines Greek and Roman theatre as a whole (places of performance, festivals and dramatic competitions, poets and preserved works; directors, chorus, players; relationship with public and institutions; the different dramatic genres and their history) and develops a critical attitude towards the main issues concerning the Greek and Roman theatre. Course contents include dramatic performances in the ancient world, with a special regard to Athenian tragedy and its importance for the modern theatre, and Euripides and Alcestis.

This course examines mythical narratives from the ancient Greek and Roman traditions. Students explore some of the central patterns and themes in classical mythology. These include narratives of birth and creation, war and the warrior, fire and flood, animals, gods and humans. The course examines how these symbolic themes are incorporated into a diverse range of myths, including stories of the birth of the cosmos, Zeus's rule over the world, the foundation of cities and peoples, and hero myths in which men confront monsters. It also reviews the story of Troy, which is the quintessential Greco-Roman myth, and the many classical tales of metamorphosis. The course engages directly with these narratives in the surviving literary sources (especially epic and drama), and in classical art, which is a major source for the Greek and Roman myths.

This course is an in-depth study of art production in the Classical world, providing a history of making from Graeco-Roman techniques to their reception in the Renaissance and use until the present day. Students engage with the materials, tools, and processes involved in the production of sculpture, pottery, painting, glass, textiles, and jewelry among other art forms. Students study the complex sequence of actions involved in their production, following the artist as maker as well as investigating the client behind these commissions.

This course offers a study of the main themes and mythical characters of the Greek world, both of the divine and heroic sagas. It discusses the sources of mythology and their ideological adaptation. This course examines the literary adaptations of Greek myths in different genres and periods.

The course provides students with an introduction to the major ancient genre of comedy and will enable them to understand Greek comedy both in its historical context and as a timeless example of the importance of comedy. General and thematic topics may include the origins of comedy and its ritual context; the dramatic festivals of Athens; the staging and performance of comedy (including evidence from archaeology and vase-painting); the development of the genre; the travesty of myth in comedy; the nature of humor; the role of abuse and obscenity; self-referentiality, parody, intertextuality and allusion; plot-construction and characterization; audience-reception and dramatic illusion; and the function of the chorus.