Classical Languages

CLAS 100: Ancient Athletics

From Homeric Greece to the Roman Empire, exercise of the body and physical competition played varying roles in Greco-Roman culture, whether regarded as a form of excellence or exciting entertainment. This course will examine the literary and artifactual evidence for athletics in classical antiquity with the aim of understanding its nature and its relation to other aspects of society and culture. 6; S/CR/NC; Humanities; offered Fall 2007 -- J. Bravo

GRK 101: Elementary Greek

Study of essential forms and grammar, with reading of connected passages. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Fall 2007 -- C. Hardy

LATN 101: Elementary Latin

Study of essential forms and grammar. This course should be elected by all students who have taken less than two years of secondary school Latin or who have not studied the subject for two or more years before entering college. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Winter 2008 -- J. Bryce

GRK 102: Intermediate Greek

Study of essential forms and grammar, with reading of original, unadapted passages. Prerequisite: Greek 101 with a grade of at least C-. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Winter 2008 -- J. Bravo

LATN 102: Intermediate Latin

Continuation of essential forms and grammar. Prerequisite: Latin 101 with a grade of at least C-; or appropriate score on the Latin placement exam. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Spring 2008 -- C. Zimmerman

GRK 103: Greek Prose

Selected prose readings. The course will emphasize review of grammar and include Greek composition. Prerequisite: Greek 102 with a grade of at least C-. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Spring 2008 -- J. Bryce

LATN 103: Latin Prose

Review of essential forms and grammar, with introduction to Latin prose through the study of medieval texts, Cicero and elementary Latin prose composition. Prerequisite: Latin 102 with a grade of at least C-; or appropriate score on the Latin placement exam. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Fall 2007 -- J. Bryce

CLAS 110: Introduction to Classical Studies

This course will examine in depth the two most content-rich focal points of Classical antiquity--Periclean Athens and Early Imperial Rome--since they provide a context for so much of what Classics is about and, just as important, what different ages have imagined antiquity to be about. The course will cover Athens and Rome in roughly equal units, providing different perspectives on the material from the variety of approaches that currently make up the study of the Classics: history, archaeology, anthropology, gender studies, literary criticism, philology, religious studies, etc. 6; Humanities; offered Winter 2008 -- C. Hardy, C. Zimmerman

CLAS 111: Classical Mythology

Myth was an integral component of thought, both individual and societal, in the ancient cultures of Greece and Rome. We will study a selection of the most famous Greek myths through close reading of Homer, Greek tragedy, and other ancient sources, and idscuss the most prominent of modern modes of myth interpretation, in an attempt to determine how myth speaks - both to the ancient audiences and to us. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Spring 2008 -- C. Hardy

CLAS 112: The Epic in Classical Antiquity

An introduction to the genre of epic poetry from Classical Antiquity. Students will read in translation examples from the Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman traditions in order to trace the development of the major features and themes of this genre and to understand the considerable influence this genre has exerted both during antiquity and thereafter. Authors will include Homer, Apollonius, Virgil, and Lucan. No prerequisites. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

CLAS 114: Gender and Sexuality in Classical Antiquity

In both ancient Greece and Rome, gender (along with class and citizenship status) largely determined what people did, where they spent their time, and how they related to others. This course will examine the ways in which Greek and Roman societies defined gender categories, and how they used them to think about larger social, political, and religious issues. Readings from epic, lyric, and drama, as well as ancient historical, philosophical, and medical writers. No prerequisites. 6; Humanities, Recognition and Affirmation of Difference Requirement; offered Spring 2008 -- C. Hardy

CLAS 116: Ancient Drama: Truth in Performance

The tragic and comic stage offered the Greeks and Romans a public arena for addressing in an engaging way such fundamental topics as love, family, justice, and the divine. Although the written word has fortunately preserved for us many ancient plays, the proper media for their communication remains, as their authors intended, the stage, the voice, and the body. This course will therefore address a variety of ancient tragedies and comedies with special attention, not only to their themes, but to the manner of their staging and performance. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

CLAS 117: Archaeology of Greece

The course will concentrate on the Prehistoric Period in Greece, from the first arrival of man to the end of the Bronze Age. A major emphasis will be placed on the Minoan and Mycenaean Periods in Crete and Greece respectively. Along with the study of the culture of this period, the course will include a study of archaeological technique, so that the archaeological evidence can be evaluated. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Winter 2008 -- N. Wilkie

CLAS 118: Archaeology of Greece: 1000-323 BCE

This course surveys the material remains of Greek culture from the Early Iron Age through the Archaic and Classical Periods. Emphasis will be given to the development of art and architecture as material expressions of Greek culture, as well as to the physical and topographical definition of the Greek city-states and their institutions. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Spring 2008 -- J. Bravo

CLAS 125: Love, Death and Destiny: The Ancient Novel

The novel is an unfamiliar but delightful area of Greek and Roman literature, with its heyday in the Roman empire of the second century AD. We will study most of the nine Greek ones, which are romantic short novels about ill-fated lovers and their wild, world-wide adventures. We will also read the two Latin ones, Petronius' Satyricon and Apuleius' Metamorphoses, or Golden Ass, which are rich both in satire and an important spiritual dimension. No prerequisites. Read in English. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Fall 2007 -- J. Bryce

CLAS 126: America and the Classics

From Cotton Mather to Caesar's Palace, the classics--expecially the language, literature and image of ancient Rome--has had a wide-ranging influence on American culture. This course will explore that influence from colonial times through the present, with particular emphasis on the Founders and the Latin classics, the Greek Revival and the Jacksonian democracy, the classics and slavery, the place of the classics in the American educational system, African-Americans and the study of classics, and classical pastoralism from Jefferson the Agrarians. 6; Humanities; not offered 2007-2008

CLAS 130: Ancient Greek Religion

This course will survey the principal and distinctive elements of ancient Greek religion, including the cults and festivals of the major deities of the Greek pantheon, hero cult, ritual practices such as sacrifice and feasting, civic and Panhellenic festivals, healing sanctuaries, oracles, and mystery religion. The course will depend on an examination of primary evidence, including selected readings from ancient literature, archaeological remains, and illustrations in art. Students will be able not only to recognize and describe the traits of Greek religion, but also to analyze its role in personal identity, social relations, politics, and ideology. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 204: Greek Tragedy

Selected readings from Greek Tragedy with an introduction to Greek meter. Prerequisite: Greek 103 with a grade of at least C-. Completes the college foreign language requirement. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Fall 2007 -- J. Bravo

LATN 204: Catullus and Other Latin Poets

Readings from the works of great poets in the original Latin, and of further selections in English. Prerequisite: Latin 103 with a grade of at least C-. Completes the college foreign language requirement. 6; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Winter 2008 -- J. Bravo

CLAS 227: Greek History:The Greek World From the Rise of the City-State to the Rise of the Hellenistic Kingdom

A survey of the civilization of the ancient Greeks, emphasizing the evolution of the city-state as a cohesive social, political, and economic organism. The development of the city-state as a response to the physical environment of Greece will form a component of this study, as will a discussion of the historical method: how do we use the few surviving archaeological remains and little written evidence to reconstruct the history of these people and their institutions? The period covered in depth will run from the beginning of the city-state ca. 750 BC to the conquests of Alexander the Great (336-323 BC) and the legacy of international monarchies that followed. 6; Humanities; not offered 2007-2008

CLAS 228: Roman History, Republic and Principate

Introduction to the basic facts of political history from the Etruscan period to the early third century AD. Readings in literary works and primary sources with emphasis on historiography and interpretation of evidence. Some attention to art and architecture. Prerequisite: one Carleton course in History, Classics, or Latin. 6; Humanities, Recognition and Affirmation of Difference Requirement; offered Spring 2008 -- J. Bryce

CLAS 229: The Later Roman Empire, Byzantium and Islam

Introduction to the basic facts of political history of the Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic empires from the third to the ninth centuries AD. Readings and discussion of primary texts from the points of view of social, intellectual, and particularly religious history. Some attention to art and architecture; individual projects of research and interpretation. An important goal is to understand the phenomena of Christianity and Islam in their native context, the Mediterranean world of late antiquity. Prerequisite: one Carleton course in history, classics, Greek or Latin. 6; Humanities, Recognition and Affirmation of Difference Requirement; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 230: Homer: Selections

Reading of selected portions in Greek and either The Illiad or the Odyssey in translation. 3; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 240: Lucretius

Selections from the De Rerum Natura will be read in Latin, the remainder in translation. In addition to examining the author's style and the poem's literary merits, we will study the tenets of Epicurean philosophy as expressed in the poem and thereby gain a greater appreciation of ancient thought about science, ethics and religion. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 241: Petronius

Selections from the Satyricon and/or Golden Ass in the original as well as reading the entire works in English translation. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 242: Apuleius

Selections from the Golden Ass in the original as well as reading the entire work in English translation. Prerequisite: Latin 204. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Winter 2008 -- J. Bryce

LATN 243: Medieval Latin

Reading from representative works of prose and poetry, and from the Roman liturgy. Prerequisite: Latin 204 or equivalent; students with a strong high school background of three-four years may also register upon taking the Latin placement exam. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 244: Plato Symposium

Readings of some of the most significant dialogues in translation, with selections in the original. Prerequisite: Greek 204. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Winter 2008 -- C. Hardy

GRK 245: Herodotus

Study in the original Greek of selections from Herodotus' Histories and in translation of the entire work. 3; Arts and Literature; offered Spring 2008 -- N. Wilkie

LATN 245: Cicero

Representative readings, in Latin, across the range of Cicero's literary activity, including oratory, philosophy, criticism, and correspondence. Prerequisite: Latin 204 or equivalent. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 248: Ancient Greek Composition

Practice in composing Greek prose. Prerequisites: Greek 103 or any higher-level Greek course. 3; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 248: Latin Composition

Practice in composing Latin prose. Prerequisites: Latin 103 or any higher-level Latin course. 3; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 254: Survey of the Latin Silver Age

Readings from representative works of prose and poetry from the Silver Age of Latin literature. Authors will include Pliny, Juvenal, Seneca, Martial, Suetonius, and Tacitus. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Spring 2008 -- J. Bravo

LATN 258: Seminar: Horace

Selection from Horace's Odes, Epodes, Satires and Epistles in Latin and the remaining works in translation. Prerequisite: Latin 204 or equivalent. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 258: Greek Orators

This course will examine in Greek selected public and private orations of Lysias, Derrious themes, and/or others of extant Attic Orators. We will focus on issues both of rhetoric and law, as well as studying Athenian court procedure and political background to the speeches. Supplementary reading in translation. Prerequisite: Greek 204 or equivalent. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 259: Virgil:Seminar

Selections from Eclogues, Georgics, and Aeneid in Latin and all of Virgil in English. Offered simultaneously with Latin 359 without the supplemental assignments for advanced students. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Fall 2007 -- C. Hardy

CLAS 295: Junior Skills Portfolio

A portfolio to be completed by majors in the Department of Classical Languages in the junior year, ensuring their preparation for the senior capstone experience. The portfolio will demonstrate specific skills using basic tools, as outlined in the majors' handbook. 2; S/CR/NC; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Spring 2008 -- Staff

GRK 304: Greek Tragedy for Advanced Students

Intensive study of one play in the original and the remaining plays in translation. Offered simultaneously with Greek 204, with additional assignments for the advanced students. Prerequisite: Greek 204. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Fall 2007 -- J. Bravo

LATN 345: Roman Comedy

Selected readings in the original from Plautus and/or Terence; study in translation of both Roman Comedy and its predecessor Greek New Comedy. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 347: Themes in Latin Love Elegy

This course will consider several major themes comprising the rhetoric of desire among the three Roman elegiac poets of the Augustan Age. The course begins with Tibullus and traces the development of certain images and ideas though Propertius, culminating with Ovid. We will examine how each author makes use of these poetic conventions and adapts them to his own particular style. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

LATN 349: Ovid's Metamorphoses

In this seminar we will read selections from Ovid's poetry in Latin, as well as representative passages from elsewhere in Ovid's corpus, in English translation. Prerequisite: Latin 204 or above. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 351: Aristophanes

Intensive study of one or two plays in the original and of the remaining plays in translation. 6; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 352: Thucydides

Study in the original of selections from Thucydides, Peloponnesian War, and in translation of the entire work. Prerequisite: Greek 204. 3; Arts and Literature; not offered 2007-2008

GRK 353: Greek Epigraphy

Study of selected inscriptions in the original and others in translation. Prerequisite: Greek 204. 3; Arts and Literature; offered Spring 2008 -- N. Wilkie

LATN 359: Seminar: Virgil

Selections from Eclogues, Georgics, and Aeneid in Latin and all of Virgil in English. Prerequisite: Latin 204 or equivalent. 6; Arts and Literature; offered Fall 2007 -- C. Hardy

CLAS 394: Senior Seminar

As part of their senior capstone experience, majors in the classics department will formulate a call for papers developing the current year's theme for a colloquium, and following standard guidelines of the field produce proposals ("abstracts") for their own papers to be presented in the winter term. Prerequisite: Classics 295. 3; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Fall 2007 -- C. Hardy

CLAS 400: Senior Symposium

From proposals ("abstracts") developed in Classics 394, departmental majors will compose a twenty minute presentation to be delivered at a symposium on the model of professional conferences. The talks will then be revised into articles to be submitted to a journal of professional style, accepted and edited by the group into a presentable volume. Prerequisite: Classics 394. 3; S/NC; Does not fulfill a distribution requirement; offered Winter 2008, Spring 2008 -- C. Hardy