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"Rage—Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus' son Achilles, murderous, doomed…."
With these words Homer inaugurated a poetic tradition that has survived nearly 3,000 years, a tradition celebrating heroes and heroines, gods and mortals, singers and listeners. |
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In this course we will read the works of Homer, Vergil, and Ovid, poets foremost in the epic canon. Yet we will also look to the less-canonical Apollonius and Callimachus, whose poems both reaffirmed and reinvented epic as a vehicle for myth-making.
Our focus throughout the term will be the comparison and contrast of the journeys faced by patriarchal heroes and the matriarchal domains in which heroines reside. We will also consider the poems in terms of mythography (the writing of myth), narration, and genre boundaries. |
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| Students
of CC 224 will
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explore the content, form, and scope of ancient epic;
-- read the epicists in their cultural and literary context; and
-- assess the value of epic to modern audiences.
Furthermore,
students will develop critical reading and thinking skills
through class discussion, written exercises, and other assignments. |
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Professor
Dan Curley |
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| Office: |
210
Ladd Hall |
| Hours: |
TuTH
8:30 - 9:30 a.m, and by appointment. |
| Telephone: |
518.580.5463 |
| email: |
dcurley@skidmore.edu |
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| The
following required books are available in the Skidmore Shop:
-- Homer, Iliad (tr. Fagles)
-- Homer, Odyssey (tr. Fagles)
-- Apollonius, Argonautica or Jason and the Golden Fleece (tr. Hunter)
-- Vergil, Aeneid (tr. Mandelbaum)
-- Ovid, Metamorphoses (tr. Humphries)
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| Class
participation (20%)
Class
participation involves more than just attendance.
Students must also keep up with the readings and assignments,
and participate actively during all sessions. Students
are also expected to come to class on time and to maintain
an environment that promotes the exchange of ideas.
Panels (15%)
Students will explore special topics on Greco-Roman epic throughout the term, and will convene in panels twice this semester to share their thoughts and observations.
Topics and requirements here.
Semester project (25%)
The theme for the semester project, due on the last day of class, is "Reinventing Homer." Students will produce a work in a medium of their choice that echoes and transforms Homeric subject matter or themes.
Further details, including schedule, here.
Examinations
(40%)
There will be two exams, a midterm and a final, each worth 20% of your grade.
The midterm is scheduled for Wednesday, October 24. The final, scheduled for Wednesday, December 19 (6-9 p.m.) , is essentially a second midterm, although it will have some cumulative aspects.
More information on each exam as its date approaches.
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