Department of Classics

The course offers a comparative perspective on the archaeology of ancient Egypt and Bronze Age Greece (3000-1100 BCE) exploring the public art produced by these two early Mediterranean societies: the Aegean Bronze Age palace centers of Crete and Mainland Greece and the territorial state of ancient Egypt. Honors version available.

This course surveys the archaeology of Palestine (modern Israel and Jordan) from the Persian period (ca. 586 BCE) to the Muslim conquest (640 CE).

We examine one of the most important aspects related to the success and stability of the ancient Roman state-its military. Either as a model for contemporary powers or out of interest in the past, the Roman army has long been the focus of historical and archaeological inquiry. In this introductory course, you will be introduced to the written and material sources of knowledge about the Roman army.

An introduction to Mediterranean, Egyptian, and Near Eastern archaeology through the examination of archaeological sites from the Neolithic period (ca. 9000 BCE) to the Roman Empire (fourth century CE). The sites, geographic and cultural areas, and chronological periods of study vary depending on instructor. Does not satisfy classical archaeology major requirements. Honors version available.

A special topics course on a selected aspect of classical archaeology.

In the Roman Empire and in contemporary Africa, clothing reflects local symbolic systems and global trade networks. Rome is imagined as the source of Western culture, and Africa evokes distant exoticism; this course will complicate such conceptions. Through fashion we explore political, economic, and religious systems, as well as creativity.

This course will examine the methods used by archaeologists to study the material and visual sources for the context, meaning, and representation of violence and warfare in ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt and Western Asia. We will consider the material traces of the human history of violence and conflict by examining cultural practices associated with warfare, political and religious violence, and commemoration of conflict in the ancient past.

A survey of the cultures of the ancient Near East, Mesopotamia, Anatolia (modern Turkey), and the Levant, from the first settled villages of the ninth millennium to the Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE.

A survey of the archaeological remains of ancient Egypt, from the earliest settlements of the Neolithic period until the end of the New Kingdom.

A survey of the material culture of Greece, the Cyclades, and Crete from the Paleolithic period (ca. 50,000 years ago) until the end of the Bronze Age (ca. 1200 BCE). Primary focus will be the urbanized palatial centers that emerged in mainland Greece (Mycenaean) and the island of Crete (Minoan).

The historical development of the art and architecture of Greece from the Bronze Age through the Hellenistic period.

This course explores the archaeology of the Roman world between the eighth century BCE and the fifth century CE, focusing on issues of urbanization, trade and consumption, colonization, and the Roman army.

Archaeology is all about the past, but it is embedded in the politics and realities of the present day. This course will introduce you to the ethical, moral, and political dimensions of archaeological sites and artifacts, especially in situations where the meaning and stewardship of ancient artifacts and monuments are under dispute. Honors version available.

Survey of the archaeology of the Hellenistic Mediterranean from the time of Alexander the Great until the Roman conquest (350-31 BCE), with emphasis on art and architecture of cities and sanctuaries.

This course is designed as an introductory course to the implementation of spatial data analysis in the field of classical archaeology. Students will be introduced to data collection, curation, and analysis in archaeology and given regular workshops in analytical methods used in the field, including Geographic Information Systems (GIS), drone photography and terrain modelling, and statistical analysis of archaeological databases. Students will learn to produce effective visualizations of spatial data.

This course examines the archaeological context of Greek religion, cults, and associated rituals from the Bronze Age until the Hellenistic period with emphasis on urban, rural, and panhellenic sanctuaries, and methods of approaching ancient religion and analyzing cult practices.

In this course we will explore the history and archaeology of Pompeii with the goal of better understanding daily life in the early Roman empire. The course proceeds topically, moving from an exploration of the city's public spaces to an analysis of more private domains--houses, gardens, and tombs. We will also consider evidence from ancient literature and epigraphy. Students may not receive credit for both CLAR 380 and CLAS 73.

This course allows a student to design and execute an independent research project under the supervision of a faculty member. Although the specifics will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the student and the faculty supervisor, the project will normally involve the careful study of key primary sources and engagement with relevant scholarship, and culminate in a major research paper (around 25 pages) or a suitable equivalent in another format (e.g., website, video). Permission of the instructor.

Special readings and research in a selected field or topic under the direction of a faculty member. Permission of the instructor and the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Systematic introduction to archaeological field methods, especially survey and excavation techniques, and theoretical approaches using case studies from the Mediterranean, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.

Required preparation, any intermediate art history course or permission of the instructor. A focused study of sculpture in Ancient Greece.

A survey of Greek architectural development from the Dark Ages through the fourth century BCE. Special topics include the beginnings of monumental architecture, the development of the orders, and interpretations of individual architects in terms of style and proportions.

The development of architecture in the Roman world from the ninth century BCE through the fourth century CE. The course focuses on the development of urbanism and the function, significance, and evolution of the main building types and their geographic distribution.

Survey of Roman sculpture (200 BCE-300 CE), including portraiture, state reliefs, funerary monuments, and idealizing sculpture, with emphasis on style, iconography, and historical development of sculpture in its sociocultural, political, and religious contexts.

A survey of the material remains of the frontiers and provinces of the Roman Empire and the variety of responses to Roman imperialism. Issues of language, gender, ethnicity, globalization, and power will be considered.

Surveys Roman painting from 200 BCE to 300 CE, with emphasis on style, iconography, historical development of painting in its sociocultural, political, and religious contexts. Treats current debates in scholarship.

This course explores the archaeological and historical evidence for life in Egypt between 332 BCE and 324 CE, when the traditions of Pharaonic Egypt came together with the customs and culture of Greek and Roman conquerors to create a society incorporating the traditions of native Egyptian and Mediterranean peoples.

This course will examine the history and material culture of the ancient state known as the Achaemenid Persian Empire through ancient texts and archaeological sources. Beginning in the sixth century BCE, this ancient superpower ruled a vast and culturally diverse empire that stretched from Northern Libya to central Asia. Through an examination of key sites, objects, and texts we will explore the history and diversity of this multicultural empire.

This course surveys the development of Greek material culture from 1200 to 500 BCE, exploring the origins of Greek art, architecture, cities, and sanctuaries in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean.

This course is a survey of the archaeology and architecture of ancient Greek sanctuaries from the Late Bronze Age to the Roman period. We will discuss the development of temple architecture, ritual assemblages, and votive practices.

This is a course on ancient synagogues in Palestine and the Diaspora from the Second Temple period to the seventh century CE.

This course is an introduction to archaeological field methods and excavation techniques, through participation in archaeological excavation.

This seminar takes a participatory approach to ancient Greek theater, exploring the dual nature of drama as performance and script. It provides a historical overview of the extraordinary Athenian fifth century (BCE), emphasizing ways theater interacts with art, law, myth, and politics. Theatrical exercises and performances complement several writing assignments. Honors version available.

This first-year seminar will involve a close reading of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey and Vergil's Aeneid, and as a transition from Homer to Vergil, students will also read the tragedies of Sophocles from fifth-century Athens. Honors version available.

This seminar will study the great tragic heroines of ancient Greek drama, focusing on Clytemnestra, Medea, Alcestis, Phaedra, the Trojan Women, Antigone. Students will also read a contemporary novel, by Fay Weldon, that engages many of these mythic women. Students will study the Greek tragedies intensively, along with their reception in later literature and art. Honors version available.

In this class, we examine descriptions of religious and magical practices in the multicultural contexts of ancient Greece and Rome. Our sources include literary accounts, legal documents, and material objects, such as inscriptions, amulets, tablets, magical images, and papyri.

Translated works of three Greek historians--Herodotus, Thucydides, and Polybius--will provide a lens through which to explore the capacity for literature and other modes of representation to convey history. Honors version available.

A study of Greek and Roman depictions of marginalized and peripheral peoples in both literary and visual sources, with consideration of the origin, development, and social roles ascribed to these groups.

Are there rules for crafting a successful speech? The art and the mechanisms of persuasion will be considered both as a discipline with its own laws and practices and as a window into the values and debates that animate the public life of diverse civilizations.

In this first-year seminar, students will investigate what films set in classical Roman antiquity say about contemporary culture, and will also attempt to understand their impact on the shaping of our sense of history.

This first-year seminar is an introduction to the history and art of Rome from antiquity through the present. Students will survey the entire period, but will look in particular at four specific periods in the city's life from the early second century CE until the present day.

The myth of Helen of Troy has inspired countless creative responses, from Homer's Iliad to Hollywood's Troy; all of them raise questions about the value of beauty and love within society. The course requires no prior knowledge of the classics, although you should be familiar with Homer's Iliad and Odyssey.

Special topics course; contents will vary each semester. Honors version available.

Introduction to the history, literature, religion, philosophy, science, art and architecture of Greece from Homer to Alexander the Great. Emphasis on primary sources. Honors version available.

A survey of Roman civilization from the beginning to the late empire, dealing with history, literature, art and architecture, philosophy and religion, and social and political institutions. Honors version available.

Introduction to the history and culture of ancient Greece, from the Bronze Age to the end of the Roman period, through field study of historical and archaeological sites in Greece.

Systematic study of the formation of medical terms from Greek and Latin roots, to build vocabulary and recognition. For general etymology see CLAS 125.

An introduction to the mythology of the ancient Greek and Roman world. Readings may include selections from Homer, Hesiod, Greek tragedy, and Vergil. Honors version available.

Study of classical epic and tragedy. Special emphasis on Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and on the rethinking of Homeric epic in the tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.

An investigation of the history, aesthetics, politics, and influence of theater in the ancient Greek and Roman world, with attention to themes of power, passion, rhetoric, resistance, gender, and identity. The course also includes a substantial practical component, with students taking on a number of the dramaturgical roles involved in the production of ancient drama.

Course examines law, religion, medicine, social practices, and ideologies in the lives of women in ancient Greece, from Homer to Hellenistic Egypt, using literature, art, and epigraphy. Honors version available.

Course examines the life of women in ancient Rome, from the first beginnings of the organized community in Rome through the early Empire, a period of about 900 years. Also explores aspects of the lives of women in provinces governed by Rome. Honors version available.

Exploration of gender constructs, what it meant to be a woman or a man, in antiquity, as revealed in literary, historical, and archaeological sources. Readings from Homer, Euripides, Plato, Ovid, Virgil, Juvenal, Petronius, and other ancient authors.

This course examines constructions of race and ethnicity in the ancient Mediterranean through art, literature, and archaeology. Students gain a background in the history and culture of the classical world that grounds critical analysis of the primary source evidence, both textual and material. By engaging with modern scholarship on ancient ideas about race and ethnic identity, students also learn to evaluate and critique secondary source material in their original contexts.

An introduction to classical civilization through study of its most important period in Greece. Attention to history, philosophy, and art. Lecture and discussion. Honors version available.

An introduction to classical civilization through study of the period in which it spreads beyond mainland Greece to influence and partially merge with the cultures of the Near East, Egypt, and Rome. Attention to history, literature, philosophy, and art. Lectures and discussion.

An introduction to classical civilization through study of the literature, history, and art of one of the most crucial periods in Roman history. Lectures and discussion. Honors version available.

An introduction to the civilization of the Roman Empire through study of the literature, history, and archaeology of its most colorful period.

Pagans and Christians in the Roman Empire. Special attention to the fundamental cultural and social changes resulting from the Christianization of the Empire.

Study of medicine in the ancient Mediterranean world focusing on Greek and Roman understandings of the body, medical theories, and health-care practices. Consideration of medicine and healing traditions as culturally embedded practices using literary and archaeological sources. Honors version available.

Study of athletics as a unifying force in ancient society, emphasizing the Olympic games and other religious festivals. Consideration of athletic professionalism, propaganda, and social trends using literary and archaeological sources. Honors version available.

The Iliad, the Odyssey. Hesiod, heroic and oral poetry.

An introduction to the three great tragedians of ancient Greece and to their historical and cultural context. Discussion is based on close readings of the English translations of selected plays by Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles. Honors version available.

Introduction to the lyric and elegiac poetry of antiquity in English translation, including Hesiod, Sappho, Catullus, Ovid, and Horace. Honors version available.

Study of classical writers' influence on selected genres of English poetry. Honors version available.

Explores ethnographic writing in the Ancient Mediterranean. How did the Greeks and Romans write about Persians, Egyptians, Scythians, Gauls, Germans, Britons, Hyperboreans, Spartans, and other peoples across time? In what ways did they understand their own identities and explain the distinctions they perceived between other peoples? The course will include some comparison of modern conceptions of ethnicity and depictions of group identities (in film, literature, and other media).

Cicero and Caesar provide a window into the end of the Roman Republic, and the end of the Republic provides a privileged ground for applying different methodologies of research (e.g. history, literature, political science, philosophy, etc.). This interdisciplinary course includes student presentations.

The topic of this course varies according to instructor, but in all cases is designed to bring together all departmental majors in their examination of a particular topic in the study of the ancient Mediterranean from an interdisciplinary perspective. Seminar format and research focus. Majors only, junior or senior standing required.

This course allows a student to design and execute an independent research project under the supervision of a faculty member. Although the specifics will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the student and the faculty supervisor, the project will normally involve the careful study of key primary sources and engagement with relevant scholarship, and culminate in a major research paper (around 25 pages) or a suitable equivalent in another format (e.g., website, video). Permission of the Instructor.

Students may suggest to the chair of the department topics for individual or group study. Advance arrangements required.

The study in English translation of selections from Herodotus, Thucydides, Livy, Tacitus, and others, with consideration of their literary qualities and their readability as historians. Honors version available.

This course combines a survey of the main areas of Roman law in their social and historical context with the close study of primary texts illustrating Roman law in practice, especially case studies from the writings of Roman legal experts; particular attention is given to the logic and application of ancient Roman legal thought and to its social and ethical implications. Honors version available.

A systematic review of English grammar for students of Latin and Greek, combined with practical exercises in prose style and effective writing.

Honors course for departmental majors in classical archaeology, classical civilization, Greek, and Latin.

Honors course for departmental majors in classical archaeology, classical civilization, Greek, and Latin.

Comprehensive coverage of basic grammar and syntax in two semesters, preparing students for reading Plato or Xenophon in GREK 203 (and with the instructor's permission, New Testament Greek in GREK 205).

Comprehensive coverage of basic grammar and syntax in two semesters, preparing students for reading Plato or Xenophon in GREK 203 (and with the instructor's permission, New Testament Greek in GREK 205).

Review of fundamentals; reading primarily in selected prose texts, such as Xenophon, Plato, Lysias, or others.

Reading primarily in selected poetic texts, such as Homer, Euripides, or others.

Readings from the Greek New Testament and related texts, with particular attention to grammar and syntax and consideration of their literary and cultural context.

Readings from classical Greek poetry or prose, with attention to their syntax, style, and cultural and historical context.

Readings from classical Greek poetry or prose, with attention to their syntax, style, and cultural and historical context.

Readings in Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato, or other authors, with attention to their style and cultural/historical context. With permission of the department, this course may be repeated for credit.

Readings from Homer, Greek tragedy, or other Greek poetry. With permission of the department, this course may be repeated for credit.

This course allows a student to design and execute an independent research project under the supervision of a faculty member. Although the specifics will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the student and the faculty supervisor, the project will normally involve the careful study of key primary sources and engagement with relevant scholarship, and culminate in a major research paper (around 25 pages) or a suitable equivalent in another format (e.g., website, video). Permission of the Instructor.

Special Readings in Greek Literature.

The basic elements of Latin grammar, practice in reading and writing Latin, introduction to Roman civilization through a study of the language of the Romans.

Continuation of LATN 101. The basic elements of Latin grammar, practice in reading and writing Latin, introduction to Roman civilization through a study of the language of the Romans.

Review of fundamentals. Reading in selected texts such as Catullus, Ovid, Cicero, or others.

Review of fundamentals. Reading in selected texts such as Catullus, Ovid, Cicero, or others.

Reading in selected texts of medieval Latin literature.

Systematic review of Latin grammar. Reading in Vergil's Aeneid, normally two books in Latin, and the remainder in translation.

Careful reading of selected works of Cicero, exercises in Latin composition.

Systematic review of Latin grammar. Reading in Ovid's Metamorphoses, normally two books in Latin, and the remainder in translation.

This class will read and examine substantial portions of the Latin text of Augustine's autobiographical masterpiece, The Confessions, the most important of his writings, and a seminal work of Greco-Roman literature. Students will also read the entire text in English translation. Through background readings and lectures students will gain a broader understanding of the Late Antiquity, the end of the Roman Empire, the conflicts of Christianity and paganism, and the genres of biography and autobiography.

Readings in Caesar, Sallust, and/or Livy.

Readings in Plautus and Terence, or both.

Readings in Catullus and Horace.

Readings in Ovid, Tibullus, Propertius, or other poets.

This course studies Ovid, Propertius, and Tibullus, focusing on themes such as love, male-female relations, politics, war, Roman culture, and poetry itself.

Readings in Lucretius and related works.

Readings in Petronius and related works.

Readings in the satires of Horace and Juvenal.

Readings in Tacitus and Pliny

This course allows a student to design and execute an independent research project under the supervision of a faculty member. Although the specifics will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the student and the faculty supervisor, the project will normally involve the careful study of key primary sources and engagement with relevant scholarship, and culminate in a major research paper (around 25 pages) or a suitable equivalent in another format (e.g., website, video). Permission of the Instructor.

Special Readings in Latin Literature.

An intensive introduction to Latin grammar and syntax, equivalent to LATN 101 and 102. Students may not receive credit for the following course pairs: LATN 101 and 601; LATN 102 and 601.

An intensive review of Latin grammar, along with vocabulary building and the development of reading and translation skills, equivalent to LATN 203 and 204. Students may not receive credit for the following course pairs: LATN 203 and 602; LATN 204 and 602.