Courses of Instruction

CLASSICS (CLS-Arts and Science)

MPF, MPT 101 Greek Civilization in its Mediterranean Context (3)

Exploration of ancient Greek civilization, from pre-Homeric to Hellenistic times, presented within a broad framework of cultures with which Greece interacted in the Mediterranean basin. Various aspects of Greek civilization are highlighted including history, politics, economics, society, art, science, philosophy, and literature. IIIB, H, CAS-B-HST.

MPF, MPT 102 Roman Civilization (3)

Exploration of the legacy of ancient Roman civilization from its legendary beginning through the Republic to the Empire at its greatest extent. Various aspects of Roman civilization highlight the Roman experience including history, literature, philosophy, political and social institutions, religion, art, and the unique ability of Rome to assimilate Greek and other cultures. IIIB, H. CAS-B-HST.

MPF, MPT 121 Introduction to Classical Mythology (3)

Introduction to Greek mythology. Presentation, explanation, and interpretation of myths within representations of mythology, as well as comparative study of non-Greco-Roman myth. IIB, H. CAS-B-LIT.

Advanced Courses

Note: Consult the MP Thematic Sequence descriptions for prerequisites and appropriate courses for fulfilling that requirement.

210A Classical Antiquity Through a Lens (3)

An introduction to filmic projections of classical myths and historical crises. This course aims at heightening students' awareness of the ways in which films construct our images of classical antiquity in the service of contemporary ideological agendas.

MPT 210C Roman Cities (3)

This visually-oriented course examines four ancient cities, Rome, Ostia, Herculaneum, and Pompeii. Intends to recreate, as much as possible, the experience of actually visiting these cities in order to determine what the physical plant of Roman cities reveals about the civilization of the Romans.

MPT 210E Eureka: Monumental Discoveries in the Attics of Antiquity (3)

Introductory survey of monumental discoveries (ancient and modern) that have changed and influenced the course of history, intellectual thought, and artistic taste and enlarged and transformed our knowledge of the ancient world. Specific discoveries from selected archaeological sites direct the focus of the course: e.g. Egypt, Troy, Crete, Athena, Delphi, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Rome.

MPT 210J Introduction to Egyptian Art and Archaeology (3)

Introduces students to the art and archaeology of Pharoanic Egypt, including many of the most important monuments: funerary architecture, temples, sculpture, wall paintings, tomb furnishings, and other arts. The course also establishes an outline of Egyptian history and geography, with an emphasis on Egypt and its place in the larger worlds of Africa and the Mediterranean.

MPT 210R Race and Ethnicity (3)

Relies on a variety of primary evidence to study how the Greeks and Romans defined race and ethnicity and how they defined themselves as individual peoples when they confronted cultures and peoples distinctly different from themselves. Examination of the relationship between current theories of race and ethnicity and the theories and practices of the Greeks and Romans. Cross-listed with BWS 210R.

210Z Classical Tradition in Russian Poetry (3)

This course is designed to introduce students to the way Russian literature, and especially poetry, responded to Greco-Roman antiquity. For the Russian intelligensia, the study of classical antiquity, with its rich mythological tradition and history, represented a window into the West, an opportunity to establish Russian literary heritage within Western literary canon.

MPT 211 Greek and Roman Epic (3)

Study of the epic as genre including examination of conventions and techniques of oral and written epic, a discussion of the kind of society which produces such a work, and a study of the epic hero. Works of Homer and Vergil will be read supplemented by readings from other ancient and post-classical authors. CAS-B-LIT.

MPT 212 Greek and Roman Tragedy (3)

Study of the origin and development of Greek drama will highlight unique aspects of its fifth century form and dramatic presentation while exploring the reasons for perennial relevance of the extant plays. Selected dramas by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides supplemented with some comparative material from Roman post-classical drama. CAS-B-LIT.

MPT 213 Greek and Roman Comedy (3)

Examination of the origin and development of comedy, the particularities of ancient dramatic presentation, and the changing role of comedy in ancient society. Readings from plays of Aristophanes, Menander, Plautus, and Terence supplemented by some comparative material from postclassical drama. CAS-B-LIT

MPT 215 Roman Historians (3)

Why and how the Romans wrote history, nature of Roman historical writing, and development of Roman historiography are essential topics. Reading and analysis of Livy, Sallust, Tacitus, and Suetonius. Supplementary reading in the background of the Roman Republic and Empire. CAS-B.

MPT 235 Women in Antiquity (3)

Study of the status of women in the Greek and Roman world from Bronze age through early centuries of Christianity conducted in light of literary, artistic, and archaeological evidence in order to increase knowledge and understanding of Greek and Roman family and social life and of our own society as well. Cross-listed with WMS 235.

310 Advanced Topics in Classics (1-3; maximum 6)

Examination of an author, work, topic, or new critical perspective on classical civilization not usually given substantial treatment in regular course offerings. May be repeated once if topic changes. Recent offerings include:

MPT 310D Democracy and Identity in Ancient Athens (3)

Multidisciplinary study of the development of democracy in Athens as well as the social, political, economic, and cultural conditions that gave birth to this unique political system and the tension between the individual and the state from the mid-6th century until the death of Socrates in 399 BCE.

MPT 310E Conflict in Greco-Roman Egypt (3)

Explores life in ancient Egypt as it experienced first Greek, then Roman, domination. Considers themes ranging from the role of the imperial court to the social differences that structured life and the colonial administration of Egypt, including gender, ethnicity, economic status, literacy, and religious identity. Also highlights the shifting role of the new capital, Alexandria. Cross-listed with BWS 380I.

MPT 310I Ancient Imperialism (3)

Exploration of the range of ancient Mediterranean empires from the earliest Mesopotamian empires through the fall of the Roman Empire. Critical examination of the various accounts modern anthropologists, historians, and political scientists offer to explain the causes of their rise and fall, along with the defenses offered by imperialists and the grounds for opposition from those who resisted. Exploration of various distinctions offered between ancient and modern forms of imperialism.

MPT 310P From the Lair of the Cyclops to the Surface of the Moon: Travel and Self-Definition in Antiquity (3)

Examination of the ways in which the ancient Greeks and Romans explored and broadened the boundaries of their world and continually adapted their conceptions of their own place within it.

MPT 310S Egypt in Greco-Roman Fiction (3)

This course will study a series of Greek and Roman literary texts that represent Egypt. Course focuses on how representations of the Other function to confirm or construct one's own identity, and how those constructions function in various types of literary discourse.

MPT 310T Arts and Empire in the Classical World and Russia (3)

This course is a study in how artists of very different national heritages and times related to the empires and the imperial powers that conditioned and influenced their art.

MPT 316 Greek and Roman Lyric Poetry (3)

Examination of tone, form, and content of lyric poetry. Beginning with creations of the Greek Lyric Age, course explores Roman response to the whole range of Greek lyric achievements of Catullus, Horace, and Ovid in creating distinctly Roman themes and style. CAS-B-LIT.

MPT 317 Greek and Roman Philosophical Writers (3)

An examination of the philosophy, personalities, and backgrounds of the principal philosophers. Discussions of problems of being and becoming, monism and pluralism, knowledge, value and society. Readings from the pre- Socratics, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Lucretius, Seneca, and Boethius. Prerequisite: CLS 121. CAS-B-LIT. Offered infrequently.

MPT 321 Justice and the Law in Antiquity (3)

History and development of constitutional and civil law in antiquity with special emphasis on Roman law. Examines ancient jurisprudence and development of the concept of justice. Some comparisons made between ancient and modern legal systems.

MPT 322 Growing Old in Greece and Rome: The Sphinx's Riddle (3)

Looks at literary and nonliterary evidence to study old age in Greece and Rome as part of the entire life span. Seeks to distinguish between literary representations and the actual experience of old people and examine continuities between classical and postclassical cultures. CAS-B-LIT.

MPT 331 From Epic to Romance (3)

Critical survey of novelistic narrative literature in the ancient world, focusing on the so-called ancient novels or ancient romances written in the late hellenistic and imperial period. Begins with the epic ancestors of these works and goes on to modern versions of romance in print and film. CAS-B-LIT.

MPC 401 The Age of Pericles (3)

Comprehensive study of Athenian civilization from 480 to 429 BC. This is neither a history nor a literature course, but a search for global understanding; attempts to look at a complex period from a variety of angles (political, social, literary, artistic, intellectual) and to find a basis for relating its specific subject matter to other bodies of knowledge and other modes of inquiry. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.

MPC 402 The Age of Augustus (3)

Comprehensive study of Roman civilization from 63 BC to AD 14, a period that is perhaps the most significant and exciting era in Roman civilization, the culmination of seven centuries of Roman growth and expansion and the prediction of the five centuries of Rome's future. Focus is the concept of leadership in a Roman society that was being transformed from a republic to an empire. Emphasis is not only on the ways in which a leader shapes a society but also on the ways in which a leader is shaped by a many-faceted society. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.

480 Independent Reading for Departmental Honors (3)

Individually arranged program of study concentrating on a particular author, major work, or significant aspect of ancient culture and society, normally culminating in a substantial research essay and comprehensive examination. Prerequisite: superior performance in course work within department as well as good general academic standing.

630 Studies in Classical Humanities (1-4; maximum 12)

Directed study in special areas and disciplines which overlap with classics. Prerequisite: graduate standing and permission of department chair and instructor required.

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