This module takes a critical and interdisciplinary approach to modern interpretations of ancient literature, culture and art. After first developing a rich and detailed view of a key theme in classical studies (e.g. inebriation, madness, divine signs, humour, emotion, ugliness, the senses), the module will then explore how its central theme is addressed both in the ancient world and in twenty-first century debates.
Total Contact Hours: 40
Also available at Level 5 under code CL735
Final Project (2,500 words) – 50%
Close Analysis Assignment 1 (500 words) – 15%
Close Analysis Assignment 2 (500 words) – 15%
Seminar Participation (in line with participation criteria) – 20%
This reading list will change depending on the subject taught, but would include primary texts, as this indicative list demonstrates.
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics. 2009. (Tr.) L. Brown. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Euripides, Bacchae. 1998. (Tr.) P. Woodruff. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing.
Herodotus, Histories. 2008. (Tr.) C. Dewald. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Osborne, R. Archaic and Classical Greek Art. 1998. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Plato, Symposium. 1989. (Tr.) P. Woodruff. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing.
Xenophon, Symposium. 2013. (Tr.) E.C. Marchant. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
Show systematic critical understanding, through clear expression, of selected authors and topics in classical studies;
Demonstrate developed skills in exegesis, critical analysis, and assessment of a selection of texts and artefacts from ancient Greece and Rome;
Show systematic understanding of the interpretations of and the relationships between, topics covered in classes. These topics are likely to change from one year to the next, but may include Greek and Roman drama, history, philosophy, art and their reception;
Manage their learning through the use of primary sources and current research in classical & archaeological studies.
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