Skidmore College Department of Classics

Classics Courses Fall 2001

CG110: Elementary Greek. 4 credits MW 11:15am-12:10am, TuTh 9:40am-11am Professor Mechem Why study ancient Greek? To study Greek is to study ourselves as creators, leaders, thinkers and as humans. Greek sharpens awareness and understanding of how languages work and offers speakers of English the opportunity to rediscover their own language; over thirty percent of all English words (particularly those of the sciences and humanities) are formed from ancient Greek roots. Students in this course will acquire the basics of Greek grammar through reading selections from a variety of authors and texts, including Aesop, Plato, Herodotus, and the New Testament. Counts towards the Foreign Language requirement. Prerequisite: None.

CL 110: Elementary Latin. 4 credits MW 10:10am-11:05am, TuTh 9:40am-11am Professor Arnush Latin, the root of the Romance languages of French, Spanish and Italian, and the language of the sciences and medicine, lies at the heart of Western civilization. The study of Latin and Roman culture leads to a greater understanding of our own literature and civilization, improves writing and reading skills, and helps to develop precise thinking. Students in this course will acquire the basics of Latin grammar and vocabulary while reading selected prose passages and poems by Cicero, Catullus, Vergil, Martial and Caesar. Counts towards the Foreign Language requirement. Prerequisite: None.

CL 310: Seminar in Latin Poetry: Lovers in Love. 3 credit. TuTh 2:10-3:30pm Professor Curley A survey of the erotic poetryof Propertius and Tibullus from various perspectives: as first-person expressions of desire, as the fictions of poets, and as gestures within the larger genre of elegy. Ultimately, we will consider the question of why "I" plus "you" plus "love" equals poetry. Readings are in Latin. Counts towards the Foreign Language requirement. Prerequisite: CL201 or 202.

CG 311: Greek Prose: Murder, Bravado, Persuasion. 3 credits TuTh 12:40pm-2pm Professor Arnush Can you admit to the murder of your spouse's lover and be acquitted in democratic Athens? Can you, the untested son of a sausage-seller, convince the Athenians to give you an army? Can you persuade your fellow citizens, grossly outnumbered, to continue to fight the foul Macedonians? We will examine these and other examples of oratory from Classical Athens, where the art of persuasion was perfected. Counts towards the Foreign Language requirement. Prerequisite: CL 104 or 206.

GO 303: Classical Political Thought. 3 credits M 10:10am-12:10pm, WF 10:10am-11:05am Professor Burns The development of Western political thought through the ancient and medieval periods. Primary attention is given to the writings of Plato and Aristotle. Selected Greek, Roman, and medieval thinkers may also be considered. Topics to be discussed include the activity of philosophy, the relation of ethics and politics, justice and the rule of law. Prerequisite: GO 103 or permission of the instructor.

CC 220: Classical Mythology. 3 credits MWF 12:20pm-1:15pm Professor Curley A study of the important myths in Greek and Roman culture, with attention to their religious, psychological, and historical origins. Comparative mythology, structural analysis, modern psychological interpretations and the development of classical myths in Western literature and art receive attention. Prerequisite: None. Counts towards the Breadth: Arts B requirement and the Humanities requirement.

HF 200: Classical Mythology: Honors. 1 credit Tu 7:30pm-8:30pm Professor Curley In the Honors add-on to Classical Mythology students will read primary sources and scholarship which approach Greek myths from various perspectives. Through this reading and subsequent in-class discussion, students will learn how to draw inferences from Greek myths and analyze them. This will allow students to begin to think mythically and to deepen their understanding of the use and purpose of myths for the Greeks. Open to all students enrolled in CC220.

CC 224: The Hero(ine)’s Tale: Traditions of Greek and Roman Epic. 3 credits TuTh 11:10am-12:30pm Professor Curley “Rage—Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles, murderous, doomed…” Thus Homer inaugurated a poetic tradition celebrating gods and mortals, heroes and heroines, singers and listeners. We shall read Homer, Hesiod, Vergil, and Ovid, the foremost epic poets, yet we shall look beyond the canon to Apollonius and Callimachus, whose poems reaffirmed and reinvented epic as a vehicle for myth-making. We shall examine the journeys of patriarchal heroes and the heroines' matriarchal domains. This course is recommended for students interested in myth, narration, genres, and issues of gender. Prerequisite: None. Counts towards the Breadth: Arts B requirement and the Humanities requirement.

CC 365: Women in Antiquity. 3 credits MW 2:30pm-3:50pm Professor Mechem Did matriarchy exist in Bronze Age Greece? How was the Lesbian poet Sappho viewed by her contemporaries? Were Athenian women allowed out-of-doors or were they confined to their homes? Could Roman women own property, have affairs, get divorced? These are a few of the questions we will consider as we look at the role and status of women in classical antiquity. Through readings and visual images culled from primary sources in literature, history, epigraphy, art and archaeology, we will examine the question of whether women had control over their lives in political or economic ways and what kind of influence they had on their world. Prerequisite: None. Counts towards the Women's Studies Major.

HI 202: Roman History. 3 credits MWF 1:25pm-2:20pm CC 290: Research in Classics. 1 credit Tu 4pm-5pm Professor Arnush From Caesar to Constantine, from Russell Crowe as a Gladiator to Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra, we will explore the history of the Roman World. Topics will include Etruscan civilization, Rome's conquest of Italy and the Mediterranean, the survival of Greece, the evolution of Roman culture and the rise and spread of Christianity. Special emphasis is given to daily life in ancient Italy and the provinces, derived from reading historical accounts and examining archaeological remains. Students in HI 202 must also enroll in CC 290, which will meet occasionally and focus on developing research skills in history. Prerequisite: None. Counts towards the Breadth: Society B requirement and the Social Sciences requirement. Cross-listed with the International Affairs minor.

PH 203: History of Greek Philosophy. 3 credits TuTh 12:40am-2pm Professor Gonzalez A basic grounding in the history of Western philosophy through reading and discussion of selected works of Plato and Aristotle. Prerequisite: None.