Over the course of the semester you will develop your ability to read continuous Greek prose clearly and cogently, and to understand Demosthenes' work in the context of the development of the genre of oratory and the events that shaped his world. The course requirements are designed to help you sharpen these skills. You will take one midterm (with the option for a second) and one final exam, which will focus your attention on grammar, syntax and vocabulary, and coherent prose translations. You will write one-page essays either as responses to readings or as creative oratorical exercises, thus honing your writing skills and your ability to understand and synthesize scholarly and/or rhetorical arguments. Finally, you will write and present a final paper which will allow you to demonstrate:

• a comprehension of Greek grammar and syntax
• the ability to translate Greek in nuanced ways
• the use of electronic and print search engines and sources to identify relevant scholarship
• the sophisticated interpretation of relevant scholarship
• writing and oral presentation skills

• ANALYTICAL ESSAY
• CREATIVE RHETORICAL EXERCISE

What I'm looking for in the analytical essay is a single, strong, argumentative point, based on your own attentive, independent analysis of the readings, and supported with a few well-chosen pieces of evidence. You should engage with the assigned scholarship, but don't simply regurgitate it. The role of scholarship is to inform and inspire your thinking, not to replace it.

Obviously 1-2 pages are not enough space to develop a major argument. Instead, think of this essay as your first entry into that week's discussion, and be ready to develop and defend your point further in class. But you should also choose a thesis that you can articulate clearly in a single page. Think small and precise — no sweeping generalizations! Also, don't waste time on summarizing the entire article or speech — get in, make your point, defend it, and get out.

CREATIVE EXERCISE

In this exercise you will choose a form of oratory - intellectual, epideictic, forensic or bouleutic - and compose a brief (no more than one page) creative essay that employs various rhetorical devices and patterns that are appropriate to that genre of oratory. On the second page you will present a brief commentary on your essay, explicating the rhetorical choices you made and the reasons for doing so.

DISCUSSIONS OF SCHOLARSHIP

As the syllabus indicates, we will read a healthy amount of scholarship, examples of oratory, rhetorical criticism, etc. I expect you to come to class having done the reading and prepared to interject questions, take the lead on issues and generally contribute to the discussions.

Some milestones for the project (dates TBD):

• Topic statement
  One paragraph declaring which essay you've decided to develop, and outlining the precise question you intend to focus on, the approach you plan to take, and any expected conclusions. This paragraph should be the outcome of some thoughtful preliminary work. Note: You may choose to write your paper on a question we haven't covered yet in class. In that case, you should have done the relevant primary and secondary readings and begun to think about them by this point. Think of the work it'll save you later in the semester!
• Rough draft
  A working version of the project. All matters pertaining to structure and content should at least be settled, if not fully developed. Some gaps here and there are acceptable, provided that there are summaries of what is missing. The topic, approach, evidence, and supporting materials should all be evident. A bibliography of all secondary sources should accompany the rough draft.
• Presentation
  The last two Fridays of class will be devoted to short presentations describing your projects and their most interesting results for the rest of the class.
• Final Version
  A polished version of your project.