Classical Studies < University of Chicago Catalog (2023)

Department Website: http://classics.uchicago.edu

Programs of Study

The BA degree in Classical Studies allows students to explore Greek and Roman antiquity in a variety of ways and provides excellent preparation for careers that require strong skills in interpretation and writing, such as teaching, scholarly research, law, and publishing, and in the humanities in general. Students may choose from the following three variants based on their preparation, interests, and goals:

The Language and Literature Variant combines the study of Greek and Latin texts with coverage of diverse areas, including art and archaeology, history, philosophy, religion, and science.
The Language Intensive Variant focuses on languages with the aim of reading a larger selection of texts in the original languages; it is designed especially for those who wish to pursue graduate studies in classics.
The Greek and Roman Cultures Variant emphasizes courses in art and archaeology, history, material culture, and texts in translation.

Each of our variants has additional requirements. Current and prospective majors should review carefully the variant requirements linked above.

All courses taken to fulfill the requirements of the major must be taken for quality grades. The introductory first-year sequences in Greek and in Latin may be taken for Pass/Fail grading only if they are not being used to meet language requirements for the major.

Students in other fields of study may also complete a minor in Classical Studies. Information follows the description of the major.

Language and Literature Variant

The Language and Literature variant combines the study of Greek and Latin texts with coverage of diverse areas, including art and archaeology, history, philosophy, religion, and science. It allows students to focus their language study exclusively on Greek or on Latin, or they may study both languages with an emphasis on one or the other.

Six courses (or the equivalent) in Greek and/or Latin, including the intermediate level (20100-20200-20300) or above in at least one of those languages. Examples of ways to satisfy the language requirement include:LATN20100-20200-20300 Intermediate Latin I-II-IIIAND LATN21100 Roman Elegy-LATN21219 Philosophical Prose: Cicero, Tusculan Disputations-LATN21300 Vergil; ORLATN20100-20200-20300 Intermediate Latin I-II-IIIAND GREK10100-10200-10300 Introduction to Attic Greek I-II-III.
Six courses in Greek or Roman art, history, philosophy, religion, science, material culture, or classical literature in translation, with courses divided between at least two of those fields and with approval of the director of undergraduate studies. Any course that carries a Classical Civilization listingmeets this requirement. Other eligible courses are offered in disciplines such as Art History, Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities, Philosophy, and Political Science. These courses should be chosen in consultation with the director of undergraduate studies.
By the end of the Spring Quarter of their third year, students are required to submit to the director of undergraduate studies a research skills paper of around 10–12 pages as a Word or PDF file in an email attachment. The paper will normally substitute for a final paper in a Greek (above 20300), Latin (above 20300), Classical Civilization, or Classics course. Students will be expected to develop a reasoned argument on a particular topic, based not only on primary materials (ancient literary texts; material culture; etc.) but also on research of relevant secondary bibliography. Students should declare at the start of the quarter if they wish to take a certain course in conjunction with the research skills paper and should work closely throughout the quarter with the faculty instructor, who must approve the paper as satisfying the requirement.
CLCV29500 Senior Seminar. The Senior Seminar takes place over two quarters (Autumn and Winter), and students register for it as a single course in one of those two quarters. The Senior Seminar is a requirement for all Classics majors, whether they are writing a BA paper or not.

Summary of Requirements: Language and Literature Variant

Six courses in Greek or Latin ^*		600
Six courses in Classical Civilization (CLCV) divided between at least TWO of the following fields: Greek or Roman art, history, philosophy, science, religion, material culture, or classical literature in translation		600
CLCV29500	Senior Seminar	100
Total Units		1300

*	Must includethe intermediate level (20100-20200-20300) or above in at least one of those two languages.

Language Intensive Variant

The Language Intensive Variant is designed for students who expect to continue Classical Studies at the graduate level. It aims to provide the level of linguistic proficiency in both Greek and Latin that is commonly expected of applicants to rigorous graduate programs. The program assumes that, in addition to the requirements for the major, students have completed, or have credit for, a year of language study in either Greek or Latin. Students must also use some of their general electives to meet the language requirements of this program variant.

No course that is used to meet one of the following requirements may be used simultaneously to meet a requirement under any other category.

Six courses (or the equivalent) in one classical language (Greek or Latin) at the 20000 level or above.
Six courses (or the equivalent) in the other classical language, three of which may be at the introductory level.
Four courses in Greek or Roman art, history, philosophy, religion, science, material culture, or classical literature in translation, with courses divided between at least two of those fields, and with approval of the director of undergraduate studies. Any course that carries a Classical Civilization listing meets this requirement.Other eligible courses are offered in disciplines such as Art History, Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities, Philosophy, and Political Science. These courses should be chosen in consultation with the director of undergraduate studies.
By the end of the Spring Quarter of their third year, students are required to submit to the director of undergraduate studies a research skills paper of around 10–12 pages as a Word or PDF file in an email attachment. The paper will normally substitute for a final paper in a Greek (above 20300), Latin (above 20300), Classical Civilization, or Classics course. Students will be expected to develop a reasoned argument on a particular topic, based not only on primary materials (ancient literary texts; material culture; etc.) but also on research of relevant secondary bibliography. Students should declare at the start of the quarter if they wish to take a certain course in conjunction with the research skills paper and should work closely throughout the quarter with the faculty instructor, who must approve the paper as satisfying the requirement.
CLCV29500 Senior Seminar. The Senior Seminar takes place over two quarters (Autumn and Winter), and students register for it as a single course in one of those two quarters. The Senior Seminar is a requirement for all Classics majors, whether they are writing a BA paper or not.

Summary of Requirements: Language Intensive Variant

Six courses in Greek ^*		600
Six courses in Latin ^*		600
Four courses in Classical Civilization (CLCV) divided between at least TWO of the following fields: Greek or Roman art, history, philosophy, science, religion, material culture, or classical literature in translation		400
CLCV29500	Senior Seminar	100
Total Units		1700

*	Six courses in one classical language (Greek or Latin) at the 20000 level or above, and six courses in the other language, three of which may be at the introductory level.

Greek and Roman Cultures Variant

This variant is designed for students who are interested in ancient Greece and Rome but wish to focus more on history (political, intellectual, religious, social) and material culture than on language and literature. Because the program allows many courses taught in other departments to count toward the major, it is especially suited to students who declare their major late or who wish to complete two majors.

The program assumes that, in addition to requirements for the major, students have met the general education requirement in civilization studies by taking two or three courses in a sequence relatedto the Ancient Mediterranean World: HIST16700-16800-16900 Ancient Mediterranean World I-II-III; Rome: Antiquity to the Baroque sequence (taught in Rome); or Athens: Greek Antiquity and Its Legacy sequence (taught in Athens). Students who have met the general education requirement in civilization studies with a different sequence should complete one of these three sequences, which may then count toward the nine courses in classical civilization required for the major.

No course that is used to meet one of the following requirements may be used simultaneously to meet a requirement under any other category.

Three courses in Greek or Latin(or the equivalent) at a level appropriate to the student’s prior competency,including at least one course at or above the 10300 level.
Nine courses in Greek or Roman art, history, philosophy, religion, science, material culture, or classical literature in translation, with courses divided between at least four of those fields, and with approval of the director of undergraduate studies. Any course that carries a Classical Civilization listing meets this requirement.Other eligible courses are offered in disciplines such as Art History, Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities, Philosophy, and Political Science. These courses should be chosen in consultation with the director of undergraduate studies.
By the end of the Spring Quarter of their third year, students are required to submit to the director of undergraduate studies a research skills paper of around 10–12 pages as a Word or PDF file in an email attachment. The paper will normally substitute for a final paper in a Greek (above 20300), Latin (above 20300), Classical Civilization, or Classics course. Students will be expected to develop a reasoned argument on a particular topic, based not only on primary materials (ancient literary texts; material culture; etc.) but also on research of relevant secondary bibliography. Students should declare at the start of the quarter if they wish to take a certain course in conjunction with the research skills paper and should work closely throughout the quarter with the faculty instructor, who must approve the paper as satisfying the requirement.
CLCV29500 Senior Seminar.The Senior Seminar takes place over two quarters (Autumn and Winter), and students register for it as a single course in one of those two quarters. The Senior Seminar is a requirement for all Classics majors, whether they are writing a BA paper or not.

Summary of Requirements: Greek and Roman Cultures Variant

3 courses in Greek or Latin		300
Nine courses in Classical Civilization (CLCV) divided between at least FOUR of the following fields: Greek or Roman art, history, philosophy, science, religion, material culture, or classical literature in translation		900
CLCV29500	Senior Seminar	100
Total Units		1300

SeniorSeminar and BA Paper

Candidates for the BA degree in all variants of the Classical Studies major are required to take CLCV29500 Senior Seminar in their fourth year. Writing a BA Paper is not required for the BA in Classical Studies, but it is required for graduation with special honors.

The Senior Seminar serves as a capstone experience for the class of graduating majors and an opportunity to reflect on the field of Classical Studies as an academic discipline. The purpose of the BA paper, for students who opt to write one, is to enable students to improve their research and writing skills, and to give them an opportunity to focus their knowledge of the field upon an issue of their own choosing.

In theirthirdyear, by Monday of eighth week of Spring Quarter, students planning to write a BA Paper must submit to the director of undergraduate studies a short statement proposing an area of research. The statement should include an abstract of a paragraph or more, outlining the problem that you wish to tackle and sketching the argument you hope to elaborate in response. You can, if you wish, discuss questions of method or earlier scholarship. You should make reference here, with as much specificity as possible, to the primary sources on which you will draw to substantiate your claim.

The statement must be approved in writing by a member of the Classics faculty who agrees to be the director of the BA paper. In certain cases, students may have two co-chairs, including one member of the Classics faculty and one faculty member from another department. Classics faculty at the level of associate professor and above may advise up to three BA papers, while assistant professors may advise as many as two papers. Students needing assistance in finding a faculty member with whom to work should consult with the director of undergraduate studies.

Students may register for CLCV29500 Senior Seminar in either Autumn or Winter Quarter of their fourth year, but they are expected to participate in seminar meetings throughout both quarters. (Students enrolled in programs of study abroad in their fourth year should discuss accommodations with the director of undergraduate studies.) In addition to the Senior Seminar meetings, BA Paper writers will meet separately to discuss research problems and compose preliminary drafts of their BA Papers. Participants in the BA Paper meetings are expected to exchange criticism and ideas with each other and with the preceptor/course assistant, as well as to take account of comments from their faculty readers.

For students not writing a BA Paper, the Senior Seminar grade is based on assignments, presentations, and participation over the Autumn and Winter Quarters. For BA Paper writers, the grade for the Senior Seminar is identical to the grade for the BA Paper and, therefore, is not reported to the Registrar until the paper has been submitted in Spring Quarter. The grade for the BA Paper depends on participation in the Senior Seminar as well as on the quality of the paper. At the end of Autumn Quarter, a provisional grade for the Senior Seminar will be assigned to each student.

The deadline for submitting the BA Paper in final form isFriday of third week of Spring Quarter. This deadline represents the formal submission, which is final; students should expect to submit and defend substantial drafts much earlier. Both hard copies and digital copies are to be submitted to the faculty director, seminar preceptor, and director of undergraduate studies, unless otherwise indicated. Students who fail to meet the deadline will not be eligible for honors consideration.

Students who undertake a double majormay, in some cases, write a single BA Paper satisfying both majors. In order to qualify for special honors in Classical Studies, this combined paper must have a substantial focus on texts or issues of the classical period, and must have a Classics faculty member as a reader.CLCV29500 Senior Seminar (the two-quarter Senior Seminar) is required of all students majoring in Classical Studies, whether as a double major or as a single major. The use of a single essay to count as a BA Paper in two majors requires approval from directors of undergraduate studies in both majors. The Petition to Use a Single Bachelor's Paper for Two Majors consent form, to be signed by the directors of undergraduate studies, is available from the College advisers. It must be completed and returned to the College adviser by the end of Autumn Quarter of the student's year of graduation.

Grading

All courses taken to meet requirements in the major or minor must be taken for quality grades.

Honors

To be recommended for honors, a student (1) must maintain an overall GPA of 3.25 or higher and a GPA of 3.5 or higher in the major and (2) must also demonstrate superior ability in the BA paper to interpret Greek or Latin source material and to develop a coherent argument. For a student to be recommended for honors, the BA paper must be judged worthy of honors by the faculty director, preceptor, and an additional faculty committee. Before the end of the Winter Quarter, the director of undergraduate studies will consult with both the faculty director and the BA preceptor to ascertain which students in the BA Seminar are likely to be nominated for honors and which papers will be forwarded to the faculty committee.

Minor Program in Classical Studies

The minor in Classical Studies requires a total of six courses in Greek (GREK), Latin (LATN), or Classical Civilization (CLCV). Of these six courses:

Only three may be elementary language courses (e.g., GREK10100-10200-10300 Introduction to Attic Greek I-II-III).
CLCV courses (1) may not be double-counted with the student’s major(s) or with other minors and (2) may not be counted toward general education requirements.

Students must meet with the director of undergraduate studies before the end of Spring Quarter of their third year to declare their intention to complete the minor. Students choose courses in consultation with the director of undergraduate studies. The director’s approval for the minor program should be submitted to the student’s College adviser by the deadline above on the Consent to Complete a Minor Program form, obtained from the College adviser or online.

The following groups of courses would comprise a minor. Other programs may be designed in consultation with the director of undergraduate studies. Minor program requirements are subject to revision.

Sample 1:

GREK10100-10200-10300	Introduction to Attic Greek I-II-III	300
GREK20100-20200-20300	Intermediate Greek I-II-III	300
Total Units		600

Sample 2:

LATN10100-10200-10300	Introduction to Classical Latin I-II-III	300
Any three CLCV courses*		300
Total Units		600

*	CLCV courses (1) may not be double-counted with the student’s major(s) or with other minors and (2) may not be counted toward general education requirements.

Prizes and Grants

The Arthur Adkins Summer Research Fellowshipis expected to be worth $5,000 this year. The fellowship is targeted to third-year undergraduates who are bound for graduate school, and it provides means and opportunity for the writing of a superior research paper on any aspect of the ancient world from the Bronze Age through Late Antiquity. It may be used for travel to classical sites and collections or to other research centers, and/or for living expenses during a summer devoted to research between the third and fourth year. Applicants must submit to the Classics Department Administrator (by the first Friday of Spring Quarter) a transcript, a statement (2–3 pages) outlining their project and its relationship to existing knowledge in the field, a plan of research together with a provisional budget for the summer, and a letter from a faculty supervisor. A written report of what was accomplished during the period of the fellowship must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies by the first week of the following Autumn Quarter.

This fellowship is not limited to Classical Studies majors and minors, or even to students of Greek and Latin, and although it may be used for research abroad, it does not require such research. But it does require that a student have a well-developed research project by the time of application.

The David Grene Fellowshipis expected to be worth $5,000 this year. The fellowship is targeted to undergraduates whose intellectual interests in the classical world have led them to an area of knowledge which they are unable to pursue during the regular academic year, and it allows them an opportunity to explore that interest through independent study during the summer before graduation. The independent study may involve training in a new discipline such as paleography or numismatics, first-hand experience of ancient sites and artifacts, or ancillary language study. It may be carried out under the auspices of an organized program like the American School of Classical Studies at Athens or the American Academy in Rome, or it may be tailored entirely according to the student's own plan. Applicants must submit to the Classics Department Administrator (by the first Friday of Spring Quarter) a transcript, project statement (2–3 pages), a provisional budget, and a faculty letter of recommendation. A written report of what was accomplished during the period of the fellowship must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies by the first week of the following Autumn Quarter.

This fellowship is not limited to Classical Studies majors and minors, or even to students of Greek and Latin, and it need not directly involve the study of classics, but applicants must be able to demonstrate a background of interest in the classical world.

ThePausanias Summer Research Fellowshipis expected to be worth $5,000 this year. The fellowship provides support to an undergraduate student in Classical Studies for research abroad in sites of interest for classical studies. It may be used to pursue a project of the student's own design or to participate in appropriate institutional programs abroad. Applicants must submit to the Classics Department Administrator (by the first Friday of Spring Quarter) a transcript, project statement (2–3 pages), provisional budget, and a faculty letter of recommendation. A written report of what was accomplished during the period of the fellowship must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies by the first week of the following Autumn Quarter.

This fellowship is limited to Classical Studies majors and minors.

TheJohn G. Hawthorne Travel Prizeis expected to be worth $5,000 this year. The prize is given to an outstanding undergraduate student of classical languages, literature, or civilization for travel to Greece or Italy or for study of classical materials in other countries. It may be used to pursue a project of the student's own design or to participate in appropriate programs conducted in Greece or Italy. Applicants must submit to the Classics Department Administrator (by the first Friday of Spring Quarter) a transcript, project statement (2–3 pages), provisional budget, and a faculty letter of recommendation. A written report of what was accomplished during the period of the prize must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies by the first week of the following Autumn Quarter.

This prize is open to any student who has taken a GREK, LATN, or CLCV course in the College, and may be used for travel in Greece and/or Italy, or for classics-related study there or in other appropriate locations.

TheLeon Golden Undergraduate Research Fellowshipis expected to be worth $5,000 this year. The fellowship is intended to enable undergraduates majoring in Classical Studies to develop an original research project in the field or to pursue training in ancillary studies that will enrich their work in classics. Applicants must submit to the Classics Department Administrator (by the first Friday of Spring Quarter) a transcript, a statement (2–3 pages) outlining their project together with a provisional budget, and a letter from a faculty supervisor. A written report of what was accomplished during the period of the fellowship must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies by the first week of the following Autumn Quarter.

This fellowship is limited to Classical Studies majors, and it requires that a student have a well-developed project by the time of application.

TheNancy P. Helmbold Travel Awardis expected to be worth $5,000 this year. It is awarded to an outstanding undergraduate student of Greek and/or Latin for travel to Greece or Italy. Applicants must submit to the Classics Department Administrator (by the first Friday of Spring Quarter) a transcript, an itinerary or project statement (2–3 pages), proposed budget, and a faculty letter of recommendation. A written report of what was accomplished during the period of the award must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies by the first week of the following Autumn Quarter.

This award requires a student to have taken a GREK or LATN course (not merely a CLCV course) in the College. It may or may not be used for study or research, but it must be used in Greece and/or Italy.

The Paul Shorey Foreign Travel Grantis expected to be worth $3,000 this year. The grant is given to a student of Greek or Latin who has been accepted to participate in the Athens Program or the Rome Program of the College, and it is to be used to defray costs incurred in the program. The terms of the grant stipulate that it is to be awarded to a "needy and deserving" student. Students who have been accepted into one of the programs and who wish to be considered for the Shorey grant are invited to submit statements explaining their needby the first Friday of Spring Quarter.

The Classics Prizeis a cash award of $500 made annually to the student who graduates with the best record of achievement in the Classical Studies major.

Examples of past successful application statements for the summer awards are available from the undergraduate prize coordinator, Peter White, or the director of undergraduate studies, David Wray.

Offered through the Society for Classical Studies (SCS):

TheLionel Pearson Fellowshipseeks to contribute to the training of American and Canadian classicists by providing for a period of study at an English or Scottish university. The competition is open to students majoring in Classics, or closely related fields. Fellows must undertake a course of study that broadens and develops their knowledge of Greek and Latin literature in the original languages; candidates should therefore have a strong background in the classical languages. Normally, the recipient will hold the fellowship in the academic year immediately after graduating with a bachelor’s degree. The term of the fellowship is one year. The recipient may use the fellowship for part of a longer program of study, but under no circumstances will support from the fellowship extend beyond one year. Fellows are responsible for seeking and obtaining admission to the English or Scottish university where they intend to study.

The maximum amount of the fellowship will be $24,000, which may be used to offset academic fees, travel expenses, housing and subsistence costs, and book purchases. The fellowship amount ($24,000) is the maximum that the SCS can award, but the Faculties of Classics of both Oxford and Cambridge Universities have generously offered to support the tuition expenses of any Pearson Fellow enrolled at their institution. In these instances funds provided by the SCS should be adequate to offset the fellow’s other expenses, and the SCS will attempt (but it cannot guarantee) to obtain a similar accommodation from another institution in the UK should the fellow attend a university other than Oxford or Cambridge.Note: The SCS cannot guarantee tuition support from other Faculties at Oxford and Cambridge (such as Philosophy or History). Students should be aware that if they can pursue their preferred course of study under the rubric of Classics, it would be to their advantage.

Candidates for the fellowship require nomination by the director of undergraduate studies by the end of the Spring Quarter for a rising fourth-year student. The Department of Classics may only nominate one student, and therefore requests that interested students submit the following materials byFridayof eighth weekin the Spring Quarter of their third year:

A current copy of your transcript
One paragraph on why you would like to be nominated for the Pearson Fellowship, briefly suggesting what you might like to do with it. This should include which university or universities you are interested in attending, with whom you would like to work, and what kind of topic you would like to research and/or why you think a year doing so in the UK would be especially beneficial for you.

See more information athttps://classicalstudies.org/awards-and-fellowships/lionel-pearson-fellowship.

Classical Civilization Courses

CLCV20122. Heaven, Hell, and Life After Death. 100 Units.

What happens after people die? Nothing at all? Does the same thing happen to everyone after death, or is there some form of postmortem reward and punishment? If heaven exists, what is heaven like? How do beliefs about life after death influence behavior in this life? This course engages with these questions as we explore the development and diversity of afterlife beliefs in Judaism and Christianity, from antiquity to the present day. We will pay special attention to the various functions of afterlife beliefs at different points in history, including in our contemporary society. Is Marx correct that belief in heaven and eternal life legitimizes the social order and contributes to oppression on earth? Conversely, does the idea of postmortem rewards and punishments actually contribute to a more just society by motivating individuals to strive to live virtuously? By the end of the course, students will not only be familiar with Jewish and Christian conceptions of the afterlife, but also conversant in perspectives on postmortem existence found in classical philosophy that continue to inform how we think about death in the contemporary world. There are no prerequisites.

Instructor(s): Christine R. TrotterTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 20113, JWSC 20113

CLCV20222. Greek and Near Eastern Creation Stories. 100 Units.

This course will offer a comparative view of Greek traditions about the origin of the world (cosmogony) and the origin of the gods (theogony), and the multiple layers on which they were entangled with Near Eastern narratives. On the Greek side, we will focus on Hesiod, Homer, and the Orphic poems. Near Eastern sources will include Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Hittite, Phoenician, and Hebrew texts. The reading of primary sources will be done in translation (though students are always encouraged to check the texts in the original language for closer reading and discussion, if training allows). We will engage with secondary bibliography, especially works that take a comparative approach or discuss the comparative method. We will discuss the methodological challenges and advantages of comparative mythology and the phenomenon of cultural exchange, as revealed in these mythical and literary connection.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-RuizTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 20210, RLST 20210

CLCV20700-20800-20900. Ancient Mediterranean World I-II-III.

Available as a three-quarter sequence (Autumn-Winter-Spring) or as a two-quarter sequence (Autumn-Winter or Winter-Spring). This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies. This sequence surveys the social, economic, and political history of Greece to the death of Alexander the Great (323 BC), the Roman Republic (509 to 27 BC), and late antiquity (27 BC to the fifth century AD).

CLCV20700. Ancient Mediterranean World I: Greece. 100 Units.

This course surveys the social, economic, and political history of Greece from prehistory to the Hellenistic period. The main topics considered include the development of the institutions of the Greek city-state, the Persian Wars and the rivalry of Athens and Sparta, the social and economic consequences of the Peloponnesian War, and the eclipse and defeat of the city-states by the Macedonians.

Instructor(s): J. HallTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 16700

CLCV20800. Ancient Mediterranean World II: Rome. 100 Units.

Part II surveys the social, economic, and political history of Rome, from its prehistoric beginnings in the twelfth century BCE to the end of the Severan dynasty in 235 CE. Throughout, the focus will be upon the dynamism and adaptability of Roman society, as it moved from a monarchy to a republic to an empire. The course will also cover the questions of social organization (free and unfree people, foreigners), gender relations, religion, and specific forms of the way of life of the Romans. It will be based both on lectures and on discussions of textual or archaeological documents in smaller discussion groups.

Instructor(s): C. AndoTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 16800

CLCV20900. Ancient Mediterranean World III: Late Antiquity. 100 Units.

Part III examines late antiquity, a period of paradox. The later Roman emperors established the most intensive, pervasive state structures of the ancient Mediterranean, yet yielded their northern and western territories to Goths, Huns, Vandals, and, ultimately, their Middle Eastern core to the Arab Muslims. Imperial Christianity united the populations of the Roman Mediterranean in the service of one God, but simultaneously divided them into competing sectarian factions. A novel culture of Christian asceticism coexisted with the consolidation of an aristocratic ruling class notable for its insatiable appetite for gold. The course will address these apparent contradictions while charting the profound transformations of the cultures, societies, economies, and political orders of the Mediterranean from the conversion of Constantine to the rise of Islam.

Instructor(s): R. PayneTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 16900, HIST 16900

CLCV21123. Horses and Humans across Cultures. 100 Units.

Without the tractive force and accelerated motion afforded by horses much of what humans have achieved, for good or ill, would have been impossible. The horse has also been a steady economic, military, artistic, and literary reference, and linguists and historians have even begun accounts of human civilization with the horse. The course will trace the various forms of "symbiosis" that have united humans and horses since their first fateful linkage in Central Asia some 4,000 years ago, down to the rapid and almost complete de-coupling of the past 100 years.

Instructor(s): M. AllenTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 31123

CLCV21700. Archaeology for Ancient Historians. 100 Units.

This course is intended to act not as an introduction to Classical archæology but as a methods course illuminating the potential contribution of material cultural evidence to ancient historians while at the same time alerting them to the possible misapplications. Theoretical reflections on the relationship between history and archaeology will be interspersed with specific case studies from the Græco-Roman world.

Instructor(s): J. HallTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 20901, ANCM 31700, CLAS 31700, HIST 39800

CLCV21722. Ancient Empires IV. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to the Achaemenid Empire, also known as the First Persian Empire (ca. 550-330 BCE). We will be examining the political history and cultural accomplishments of the Achaemenids who, from their homeland in modern-day Iran, quickly rose to become one of the largest empires of the ancient world, ruling from North Africa to North India at their height. We will also be examining the history of Greek-Persian encounters and the image of the Achaemenids in Greek and Biblical literature. The students will visit the Oriental Institutes' archive and object collection to learn more about the University of Chicago's unique position in the exploration, excavation, and restoration of the Persian Empire's royal architecture and administrative system through the Persian Expedition carried out in the 1930s.

Instructor(s): Mehrnoush SoroushTerms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 25602, NEHC 20014

CLCV21922. Broken Mirrors: Writing the Other from Herodotus to the Jewish/Christian. 100 Units.

How are Others represented in Greco-Roman, Jewish, and Christian canons? Is the Other purely a mirror of the self who represents it? Or do self and Other interact? Can we trace and compare patterns of representation and taxonomies for human difference across cultures, genres, regions, periods, and sciences? How can we develop new critical frameworks and concepts for this task, if we refuse to take for granted the categories and conventions of today's academic disciplines? What might this new approach to the Other help us to learn, or unlearn, about the making of "the West"?In order to answer those questions, our course will survey the most influential literary models of the Other, from Herodotus to the early medieval "Life of Jesus" polemic tradition. Beyond developing a new framework for exploring and connecting these diverse sources, it has three historical aims. First, to interrogate the limits of modern anthropology as the institutionalized site for writing and knowing the Other. Second, to reveal the centrality of the figure of the Jew in the prehistory of anthropology, where it plays a neglected but crucial role in the European history of human difference in general. Finally, to expose the premodern roots of "scientific" categories-"primitive," "civilized," "Oriental," "Aryan," "Semite," etc.-where racial, linguistic, religious, and cultural differences still intersect today.

Instructor(s): James Adam RedfieldTerms Offered: Spring
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 27652, CMLT 37652, CLAS 31922, JWSC 26603, HREL 37652, HIJD 37652

CLCV22123. Digital Humanities for the Ancient World. 100 Units.

This course offers a hands-on introduction to the field of digital humanities with a special focus on ancient Greek and Roman antiquity. We will explore concepts and methods such as digital presentation of text with markup languages, text analysis with programmatic manipulation, map visualization, 3D modeling, and network analysis. Throughout the course, we will take a critical view of the existing online digital resources for Greek and Roman antiquity. The course will include weekly readings and assignments and conclude with a final research project.No advanced computer skills are required. However, students are required to bring their own laptops to class.

Instructor(s): G. TsolakisTerms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 32123

(Video) How to Talk about Your Classics Major: to prospective employers

CLCV22216. Italian Renaissance: Petrarch, Machiavelli, and the Wars of Popes and Kings. 100 Units.

Florence, Rome, and the Italian city-states in the age of plagues and cathedrals, Petrarch and Machiavelli, Medici and Borgia (1250-1600), with a focus on literature, philosophy, primary sources, the revival of antiquity, and the papacy's entanglement with pan-European politics. We will examine humanism, patronage, politics, corruption, assassination, feuds, art, music, magic, censorship, education, science, heresy, and the roots of the Reformation. Writing assignments focus on higher level writing skills, with a creative writing component linked to our in-class role-played reenactment of a Renaissance papal election (LARP). First-year students and non-History majors welcome.

Instructor(s): A. PalmerTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Graduate students by consent only; register for the course as HIST 90000 Reading and Research: History.
Note(s): Assignments: short papers, alternative projects.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 22203, HIST 12203, SIGN 26034, FNDL 22204, KNOW 12203, ITAL 16000, MDVL 12203

CLCV22322. Phoenician Religion (In Their Own Words And Those of Their Neighbors) 100 Units.

The Phoenicians were a Canaanite people who maintained their language, religion, and culture until Roman times. One of the main challenges facing the study of the Phoenician religion (and culture in general) is that most of their literature is lost. This course gathers together a variety of emic sources in the Phoenicians' own language or stemming from the Phoenician realm but written in Greek or Latin, as well as sources written by others about the Phoenicians, with a special focus on cult and religious identity. The texts we will read and discuss range from royal, votive, and funerary inscriptions, to the views about the Phoenicians in the Hebrew Bible, and Greek and Roman writers. This course is partly a text-based, reading course, and partly a thematic, culture course.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-RuizTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Intermediate knowledge (2 years) of a Semitic language (e.g., Hebrew, Phoenician, Aramaic, Ugaritic, Arabic) OR of ancient Greek and/or Latin.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 22308, NEHC 42308, RLST 22308, HREL 42308, CLAS 32322

CLCV22323. The family in the Greek and Roman world. 100 Units.

This course examines how family was conceptualized and manifested in the Greek and Roman world. In this class, we will begin by examining key terms related to family (household, kinship, ancestors, descendants) and scholarly approaches to familial studies under the light of different theoretical perspectives. Through the examination of written sources (literary texts, inscriptions, and papyri) and archaeological evidence, we will adopt a thematic approach exploring the ways in which family intersected with several fields of public and domestic life, such as law, adoption, heirship, religion, rituals, education, politics, and public honors.

Instructor(s): G. Tsolakis. Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 32323

CLCV22700. History of Philosophy I: Ancient Philosophy. 100 Units.

An examination of ancient Greek philosophical texts that are foundational for Western philosophy, especially the work of Plato and Aristotle. Topics will include: the nature and possibility of knowledge and its role in human life; the nature of the soul; virtue; happiness and the human good.

Instructor(s): John ProiosTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Completion of the general education requirement in humanities.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 25000

CLCV23516. Environment and Society in the Ancient Mediterranean. 100 Units.

This seminar examines the interplay between social and environmental actors, practices, and changes across time in the Mediterranean basin, as well as explores the study and analysis of those interactions from the beginnings of classical scholarship to the present. Key themes include: environmental determinism, human and non-human interactions, interpretive approaches to space and place, the role of science in archaeological and historical practice, and the compartmentalization of "environment" and "landscape" as analytic focus. These themes loom large now - during what might be called the "environmental turn" spurred on by the controversial Anthropocene in the humanities and social sciences - and their intensifying resonance provides the basis for critical reflection of past and future trends in classics, history, archaeology, and anthropology.

Instructor(s): C. Kearns. Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CEGU 23516, CLAS 33516, ENST 23516

CLCV23712. Aquinas: On God, Being and Evil. 100 Units.

This course considers sections from Saint Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica. Among the topics considered are God's existence; the relationship between God and Being; and human nature.

Instructor(s): S. MeredithTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 20700, RLST 23605, MDVL 20700

CLCV23722. Epistemic Virtues. 100 Units.

Epistemic virtues are to the pursuit of scientific and scholarly truth what moral virtues are to the pursuit of the ethically good: personal qualities more likely (though never certain) to advance these goals and therefore ones instilled and praised by the communities dedicated to such pursuits. In both the contemporary humanities and the sciences, epistemic virtues include rigor, precision, objectivity, and productivity; in past epochs, certainty ranked high. As in the case of moral virtues, various epistemic virtues can not only coexist with or even support but also come into conflict with one another, raising the question: how to adjudicate their competing claims? Using historical and contemporary case studies, this seminar will explore a range of epistemic virtues in both the humanities and sciences. The aim is to reflect on commonalities and differences across the disciplines and on the ways in which ethics and epistemology converge. (Co-teaching with Lorraine Daston.)

Instructor(s): Glenn Most & Lorraine DastonTerms Offered: Spring. The course will be taught in Spring 2023
Prerequisite(s): All students require instructors’ permission.
Note(s): The seminar will take place on Monday/Wednesday, 09:30 a.m. – 12:20 p.m.*, during the first five weeks of the term (March 20 – April 19, 2023)
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 39505, CLAS 33722, PHIL 25994, CHSS 35994, PHIL 35994, HIPS 25994, SCTH 35994

CLCV23809. Pain, Truth, and Justice. 100 Units.

Why should the truth hurt? Does pain guarantee the truth told? Is pain the price of exposure to the truth? Does that make punishment just? In this course, we will take a historical and philosophical approach to examine the relations between pain, truth, and justice. In the premodern period, we will draw from Genesis, Sophocles' Oedipus, Augustine, Tertullian, martyrdom accounts, and public penance in medieval Christianity. To study the theme in the early modern nation-state spectacles of punishment, colonial contexts, and contemporary scenes of justice, we will turn to the writings of Foucault, Fanon, and others. Over the course of the historical and philosophical examinations, we will trace the themes of body, affect, and performance; truth, law, and ritual; power, religion, and the nation-state. In the end, we will turn a critical eye to contemporary cultural discourses and representations of pain, truth, and justice in the arts, law, literature, philosophy, and politics. No prerequisites.

Instructor(s): Maureen KellyTerms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 23809, GNSE 23809, RLST 23809

CLCV23820. Debating Christians and Other Adversaries: Greek and Syriac Dialogues in Late Antiquity. 100 Units.

This course will examine the composition and significance of dialogues for Christian polemic and identity formation. The quarter will begin with an overview of dialogues from Classical Antiquity before examining the new directions Christian writers followed as they staged debates with pagans, Jews, Manichaeans, and alleged "heretical" Christians. Reading these works in light of modern scholarship and with an eye to late antique rhetoric, students will gain insights into the ways theological development took place in the crucible of debate.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay WalshTerms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 33820, RLST 20360, BIBL 40360, HCHR 40360

CLCV23823. Suffering, Grief, and Consolation. 100 Units.

Why do people suffer and die? How can we find comfort? Should we hope for a better future, focus our energies on making peace with the present, or attempt to do both? How do we cultivate joy in the midst of adversity? Can pain be productive? The literature of ancient consolation engages these questions as it bears witness to the myriad ways in which ancient Greeks, Romans, Jews, and Christians attempted to comfort suffering people. The goal was not simply to defeat grief, but to replace grief with its opposite, joy. This course introduces students to ancient consolation literature, a genre composed of various literary forms (e.g., funeral orations, consolatory letters, apocalypses, prophecies) but united by a common store of vocabulary, expressions of sympathy, arguments against grief, and exhortations to admirable behavior amid hardship. We will read selections from Cicero, Seneca, Plutarch, the Bible, and various texts of early Judaism and Christianity. At the end of the course, we will bridge the horizons between ancient approaches to consolation and current debates about how to treat grief and facilitate human flourishing during hardship. While there are no prerequisites for the course, if there is sufficient student interest, the course may feature Languages Across the Curriculum (LxC) sessions in which students who have knowledge of Latin will be able to read select course texts (e.g., from Cicero and Seneca) in Latin. Participation in the LxC sessions is elective and s

Instructor(s): Christine R. TrotterTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 23808, RLST 23808

CLCV23921. Thucydides and Athenian Democracy at War. 100 Units.

In this course we will closely read the entirety of Thucydides' War of the Peloponnesians and the Athenians. Alongside Thucydides we will read selections from Plutarch's Lives as well as some of the tragedies and comedies of the war years. Our goal will be to read Thucydides' account in its political and cultural context in order to understand both the text and the event that have proved foundational to the western tradition of thinking on democracy, empire, and particularly international relations. Among the questions we will discuss: How did the Athenians' democratic politics and culture influence the course of the war? How did the pursuit of empire influence their practice of democracy? And how can we draw general lessons about war and the conduct of nations from a source so far removed from our own time? The course will conclude with a discussion of the realist tradition of international relations which draws from Thucydides and his account of the war, and of the problems posed by such readings.

Instructor(s): Robert StoneTerms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): SCTH 20677

CLCV24021. Partings, Encounters, and Entangled Histories: The Formation of Judaism and Christianity. 100 Units.

When did the fault lines between Judaism and Christianity emerge? This course explores this question by examining the formation of Judaism and Christianity within the world of the Ancient Mediterranean. What religious views, texts, and practices did Jews and Christians hold in common? How did early writers construct communal boundaries and project "ideal" belief and practice? What role did the changing political tides of the Roman and Persian empires play? We will explore continuities and growing distinctions between Jews and Christians in the areas of scriptural interpretation, ritual practices, and structures of authority. Special attention will be paid to debates around gender and sexuality, healing, and views of government and economics. We will approach these issues through material evidence and close readings of early literature in light of contemporary scholarship. Students interested in modern histories of Judaism and Christianity will gain a firm foundation in the pivotal debates, texts, and events that set the trajectories for later centuries.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay WalshTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): No prerequisite knowledge of the historical periods, literature, or religious traditions covered is expected.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 31600, RLST 27213, NEHC 37213, CLAS 34021, JWSC 27213, BIBL 37213, HCHR 37213, HIJD 37213, NEHC 27213

CLCV24519. Dreams in the Ancient World. 100 Units.

Dreams belong to the universals of human existence as human beings have always dreamt and will continue to dream across time and cultures. The questions where do dreams come from and how to unravel a dream have always preoccupied the human mind. In this course we will focus on dreams in the Greco-Roman and Greco-Egyptian cultural environments. We will cover dreams from three complementary perspectives: dreams as experience, dream interpretation and dream theory. The reading materials will include: (a) a selection of dream narratives from different sources, literary texts as well as documentary accounts of dreams; (b) texts which document the forms and contexts of dream interpretation in the Greco-Roman and Greco-Egyptian cultures and (c) texts which represent attempts to approach dreams from a more general perspective by among others explaining their genesis and defining dream-types.

Instructor(s): S. Torallas. Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 20613, ANCM 44519, CLAS 34519, RLST 24503, HREL 34519, NEHC 30613

CLCV24722. On Dialogue: Introduction to a Genre. 100 Units.

The figure of Socrates is famous for engaging Athenians in dialogue, but what was so important and effective about this mode of exchange? How did Socrates' dialogue work as a philosophical exercise? Why was the dialogue suited to mediate between gods, Socrates, and citizens? In this class, we will take a philosophical and historical approach to the genre of dialogue, analyzing key moments in the genre and related texts to trace the relationships between the mode of dialogue, the role of the divinity, the obligations of the citizen, and the formation of the subject. Starting from the dialogue of Socrates, we will read from classical antiquity into the Christian context, with attention to the creative transformations of the genre and the changing notions of subject, god, and citizen. In the final turn, we will return to two canonical texts of modern philosophy, the Dialogues by David Hume and Dialogues by Jean-Jacques Rousseau to examine how modern philosophical texts deploy the mode of dialogue, invoke the classical and Christian modes, and transform the genre again.

Instructor(s): Maureen KellyTerms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): This course counts as a general literature course or pre-20th century literature course for CRWR students.
Equivalent Course(s): CMLT 24715, RLST 24715

CLCV24723. Guardians of knowledge: scribes and books from Antiquity to the Middle Ages. 100 Units.

Books have been a fundamental part of the transmission of knowledge and more generally, human communication. They collect thoughts, experiences, feelings, knowledge and ideas into a material artifact that is distributed to an audience of readers. The work of scribes and scholars is the silent agent of this millennial enterprise. The process of book-production involves a large number of different skills from these artisans: material manufacture, preparation of writing surfaces and inks, writing skills, calligraphy, binding, distribution. In this course students will study the history of books, from Antiquity to the invention of the printing press, and their makers. The topics covered will include scribal training, book manufacture, circulation and trade of books, readership, and other such topics around the world of books and scholars. The course will focus on books as artifacts, as transmitters of knowledge and literary creativity.

Instructor(s): Sofía Torallas Tovar. Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 34723, NEHC 23723, CLAS 34723, RLST 22723, BIBL 34723

CLCV24821. Foucault and the Christians: On Ethics, Desire, and The History of Sexuality. 100 Units.

In this course, we will examine the importance of early Christianity in Foucault's History of Sexuality project, with attention to the grounds on which he contrasts sexual ethics in Greco-Roman Antiquity and early Christianity. The course will proceed through close readings of passages of Foucault's late work, in conversation with his interlocutors, and key texts by Plato, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, Tertullian, Cassian, and Augustine. Over the course of the readings, we will understand the question Foucault poses on sexual ethics in Antiquity, the nature of the shift in early Christianity, and the stakes of these distinctions for the genealogy of the modern subject. In our philosophical and historical investigation, we will address themes of body, sexuality, and desire; history, tradition, and religion; and the relationship between politics, ethics, and truth.

Instructor(s): Maureen KellyTerms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 21011, RLST 24802, GNSE 24802

CLCV24918. Early Traveling Writing: Pausanias in Roman Greece. 100 Units.

Through a close reading of Pausanias, who wrote his Description of Greece during the Roman imperial period, this course explores ancient forms of travel writing and associated interests in the places, peoples, myths, ruins, and material objects of the Mediterranean world. Moving from the apparent ethnographic lens of earlier Greek literature to Roman imperialist expeditions, readings and discussions will examine the sociopolitical contexts out of which Pausanias emerged as a literary author, and his legacies in and relationship to the wide array of genres of modern travel writing, from Lewis and Clark to John Steinbeck. Key topics will include: movement through space, tourism, nature, landscape, town and country, sites and spectacles, myth, ritual, and acts of remembering and forgetting.

Instructor(s): Catherine KearnsTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CEGU 24918, ENST 24918, CLAS 34918, FNDL 24918, ANCM 34918

CLCV24922. Language Contact: Greek and the World's Languages. 100 Units.

How do languages get into contact? How long do they stay in contact? What is contact-induced language change, and which are the mechanisms that govern it? What do arachnophobia, myalgia, geology, heterophagy mean?In this course we will study language contact and its outcomes, as well as the social and linguistic factors that regulate contact-induced changes. We will examine a wide range of language contact phenomena from both general linguistic and sociolinguistic perspectives, and survey current approaches to all of the major types of contact-induced change (e.g. borrowing). Having Greek (but also other languages) as an example, we will consider linguistic and social aspects of the contact context as well as look into how the particular language has shaped the savant vocabulary of science, philosophy, arts, etc.More precisely, we will offer a brief overview of the history of the Greek language with special emphasis on the Greek vocabulary that Greek language landed or borrowed at different stages of its history as a result of its linguistic contact with other nations and languages. We will start with the Pre-Hellenic phase of Greek and then we focus in Proto-Hellenic, Ancient Greek, Koine, Medieval Greek and finally Modern Greek.

Instructor(s): Zoi GavriilidouTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 39402, LING 29402, LING 39402, CLAS 34922, RLST 29402

CLCV25319. Gender and Sexuality in Late Antiquity: Precursors and Legacies. 100 Units.

In this course students will trace how gender was theorized and normative behavior was prescribed and enforced in the ancient world. We will begin with materials from the Greco-Roman world, Hebrew Bible, and the Second Temple Period. As the quarter progresses, we will turn our attention to early and late ancient Christian authors, focusing on the way asceticism and emergent ecclesial institutions shaped the lives of women and gender non-conforming individuals. Throughout the course students will learn to navigate the pitfalls and opportunities the study of gender affords for understanding the development of biblical interpretation, the transformation of classical Graeco-Roman culture, and the formation of Christian doctrine. How did Christianity challenge and preserve norms for female behavior? How did Rabbinic and early Christian authors approach questions of sexuality differently? Along the way we will bring 20th-century theorists of sexuality and gender into our conversations to illuminate pre-modern discourses of virginity, sexual experience, and identity. Primarily we will approach texts through a historical lens while paying attention to the theological and ethical issues involved. At the end of the course we will examine the legacy of late ancient debates, tracing how earlier teaching about gender and sexuality co-exists with, challenges, and informs modern secular worldviews.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay WalshTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): No languages are required, but there will be ample opportunity for students with skills in Greek, Latin, Syriac, and Hebrew to use them.
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 35319, RLST 22910, BIBL 42910, GNSE 42910, GNSE 22910

CLCV25322. #Blessed: The Prosperity Gospel, The Bible, and Economic Ethics. 100 Units.

Is wealth a sign of divine favor? What would Jesus do when it comes to money? How does the Bible inform contemporary views of charity, economic ethics, and material possessions? This class examines the multiple messages about material wealth contained within biblical literature and the diverse ways these passages have been interpreted. After a survey of shifting approaches to economic ethics among Christians over the centuries, students will turn to the phenomenon of the "Prosperity Gospel" within the modern period. The class will query the ways the Bible has been harnessed to an economic vision tied to capitalism and ostentatious displays of personal wealth. Previous knowledge of the Bible and the historical periods covered is not expected.

Instructor(s): Erin Walsh and William SchultzTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 25377, KNOW 25377

CLCV25417. Renaissance Book History: Censorship and the Print Revolution. 100 Units.

Collaborative research seminar on the history of censorship and information control, with a focus on the history of books and information technologies. The class will meet in Special Collections, and students will work with rare books and archival materials. Half the course will focus on censorship in early modern Europe, including the Inquisition, the spread of the printing press, and clandestine literature in the Renaissance and Enlightenment, with a special focus on the effects of censorship on classical literature, both newly rediscovered works like Lucretius and lost books of Plato, and authors like Pliny the Elder and Seneca who had been available in the Middle Ages but became newly controversial in the Renaissance. The other half of the course will look at modern and contemporary censorship issues, from wartime censorship, to the censorship of comic books, to digital-rights management, to free speech on our own campus.

Instructor(s): A. Palmer
Note(s): Assignments: short and long papers, alternative assignments
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 35421, HIST 25421, CHSS 35421, RLST 22121, CLAS 35417, KNOW 21403, HIPS 25421, HREL 34309, SIGN 26010, KNOW 31403

CLCV25516. Strabo's World: Early Geographic Traditions. 100 Units.

(Video) Mary Beard "A Piece of Cake" Lecture 1 of 3

This course traces the emergence of geographic thought in the Mediterranean world and the diachronic representations of space and place that became the foundations for the humanistic and social science of geography. Discussions will examine the practices that led to diverse modes and styles of spatial expression, travel and mapping, the tensions between the known world and the exotic imagined other, and the political, social, and cultural dimensions of geographic works and their historic contexts. Beyond our sustained focus on Strabo, writing under the Roman Empire, we will explore and interrogate both earlier and later traditions, from Hecataeus and Herodotus to Dionysius and Pausanias.

Instructor(s): C. KearnsTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 35516

CLCV25521. The Sublime. 100 Units.

The sublime has traditionally been thought to have had a merely marginal place in ancient Greek and Latin aesthetics and literary theory; but some scholars have recently argued that it was instead more central, and it is difficult not to apply this category to many ancient literary works. However the explicit category of the sublime did not become central to European aesthetics until the 17th century and then continued until the 19th century to play a central role in discussions not only of art and literature, but also of religion, politics, and other fields. By the middle of the 19th century the wave of interest in the sublime seems to have subsided, but in the past forty years this concept has returned to play an important role in aesthetic theories. The seminar will consider the odd history of the sublime, examining central texts from ancient (Longinus), early modern (Boileau), and modern aesthetics (certainly Burke, Kant, Schiller, and Hegel; perhaps also, depending on students' interest and preparation, Tieck, Schlegel, Schelling, Solger, and Jean Paul) as well as some more recent discussions (again depending on student preferences, Nietzsche, Lyotard, Adorno, Zizek). It will also ask whether the concept of the sublime can still play an important role today, or, if not, then what has taken its place. We will deal primarily with theories of the sublime but also to some extent with works of art. Open to undergraduates with consent.

Instructor(s): Glenn MostTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): SCTH 35993, CLAS 35521, CMLT 35993

CLCV25700-25800-25900. Ancient Empires I-II-III.

This sequence introduces three great empires of the ancient world. Each course in the sequence focuses on one empire, with attention to the similarities and differences among the empires being considered. By exploring the rich legacy of documents and monuments that these empires produced, students are introduced to ways of understanding imperialism and its cultural and societal effects—both on the imperial elites and on those they conquered. Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.

CLCV25700. Ancient Empires I: The Hittite Empire. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to the Hittite Empire of ancient Anatolia. In existence from roughly 1750-1200 BCE, and spanning across modern Turkey and beyond, the Hittite Empire is one of the oldest and largest empires of the ancient world. We will be examining their history and their political and cultural accomplishments through analysis of their written records - composed in Hittite, the world's first recorded Indo-European language - and their archaeological remains. In the process, we will also be examining the concept of "empire" itself: What is an empire, and how do anthropologists, archaeologists, and historians study this unique kind of political formation?

Instructor(s): James OsborneTerms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 15602, NEHC 20011

CLCV25800. Ancient Empires II. 100 Units.

The Ottomans ruled in Anatolia, the Middle East, South East Europe and North Africa for over six hundred years. The objective of this course is to understand the society and culture of this bygone Empire whose legacy continues, in one way or another, in some twenty-five contemporary successor states from the Balkans to the Arabian Peninsula. The course is designed as an introduction to the Ottoman World with a focus on the cultural history of the Ottoman society. It explores identities and mentalities, customs and rituals, status of minorities, mystical orders and religious establishments, literacy and the use of the public sphere.

Instructor(s): Hakan Karateke Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 15603, MDVL 20012, NEHC 20012

CLCV25900. Ancient Empires III. 100 Units.

For most of the duration of the New Kingdom (1550-1069 BC), the ancient Egyptians were able to establish a vast empire and becoming one of the key powers within the Near East. This course will investigate in detail the development of Egyptian foreign policies and military expansion which affected parts of the Near East and Nubia. We will examine and discuss topics such as ideology, imperial identity, political struggle and motivation for conquest and control of wider regions surrounding the Egyptian state as well as the relationship with other powers and their perspective on Egyptian rulers as for example described in the Amarna letters.

Instructor(s): Brian MuhsTerms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 15604, NEHC 20013

CLCV25722. Iterations of Oedipus. 100 Units.

Engaging themes of agency and freedom, criminality and guilt, self-knowledge and identity, reason and truth, consciousness and the unseen, the story of Oedipus is among the most reworked and reimagined in world literature. This course explores a wide range of versions of the story across a variety of artistic forms. In the first half of the course, as well as reading both of Sophocles' plays about Oedipus, we will explore the traces of the story as folktale and legend both before and after Sophocles. The second half of the course will be devoted to modern adaptations of the story. These will include dramatic versions from mid-twentieth-century Egypt; the Italian film director Pier Paolo Pasolini's autobiographical Edipo Re (1967), inflected with Freudian and Marxist themes; Philip Roth's bestselling novel The Human Stain (2000); and the contemporary Chicano playwright Luis Alfaro's Oedipus El Rey (2017), set between a California state prison and South Central Los Angeles. Students will be introduced to theories of adaptation and reception, and will have a creative option for the final assignment.

Instructor(s): Evelyn RichardsonTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CMLT 29887, FNDL 29887

CLCV25923. Image, Iconoclasm, Animation. 100 Units.

This course will explore the fantasies of the animation of images both ancient and early Christian, both secular and sacred, as the backdrop to examining the phenomenon of iconoclasm as an assault on the image from pre-Christian antiquity via Byzantium to the Protestant Reformation. It will tackle both texts and images, the archaeological context of image-assault and the conceptual (indeed theological) contexts within which such assault was both justified and condemned. These historical issues cannot be separated, in our scholarly approaches and responses, from a vibrant contemporary culture around question of virtuality, animation, image-worship and image-destruction in the current world. The course will provide space to reflect on the problems raised by this. The course will be taught over the first four and a half weeks in the Spring Quarter on an intensive schedule. It will be examined on the basis of a paper, due on a subject to be agreed and on a date to be agreed at the end of the Spring quarter.

Instructor(s): Jaś ElsnerTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): The course will be taught over the first 4 and a half weeks in the Spring Quarter on an intensive schedule.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 28311, CLAS 35923, ARTH 38311, ARTH 28311, RLVC 38311, KNOW 38311, RLST 28311

CLCV26020. The Gospel of John. 100 Units.

This is the third course in the Introductory Koine Greek Sequence of the Divinity School. This course will use what students have learned in terms of grammar, syntax, and vocabulary in the first two quarters and will apply these skills to the translation and exegesis of specific Biblical passages.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay WalshTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): One year of Koine Greek, or equivalent (BIBL 35100, 35300). Various levels can be accommodated; please feel free to consult with instructor.
Note(s): This is the introductory Koine Greek exegesis course.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 36020, CLAS 36020, RLST 22020

CLCV26119. Muses and Saints: Poetry and the Christian Imagination. 100 Units.

This course provides an introduction to the poetic traditions of early Christians and the intersection between poetic literature, theology, and biblical interpretation. Students will gain familiarity with the literary context of the formative centuries of Christianity with a special emphasis on Greek and Syriac Christians in the Eastern Mediterranean from the fourth through the sixth centuries. While theology is often taught through analytical prose, theological reflection in late antiquity and early Byzantium was frequently done in poetic genres. This course introduces students to the major composers and genres of these works as well as the various recurrent themes that occur within this literature. Through reading poetry from liturgical and monastic contexts, students will explore how the biblical imaginations of Christians were formed beyond the confines of canonical scripture. How is poetry a mode of "doing" theology? What habits of biblical interpretation and narration does one encounter in this poetry? This course exposes students to a variety of disciplinary frameworks for studying early Christian texts including history, religious studies, feminist and literary critique, as well as theology. Students will also analyze medieval and modern poetry with religious themes in light of earlier traditions to reflect on the poetry and the religious imagination more broadly.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay WalshTerms Offered: Spring
Note(s): Open to undergraduate and graduate students; Graduate students may choose to attend weekly translation group
Equivalent Course(s): HCHR 33000, ENGL 33809, GNSE 34104, CLAS 36119, RLVC 33000, GNSE 24104, MDVL 23000, BIBL 33000, RLST 23000

CLCV26123. Antigone and the Making of Theater. 100 Units.

This class on Sophocles' Antigone will be held in lockstep with the upcoming production of the play at the Court Theatre, which will allow us to think about the construction of the play and its performance, both in its original setting and each time it is adapted and staged. We will attend rehearsals and talk to the director, crew and performers of the play as the play takes shape. We will also attend the production. Readings will include Antigone by Sophocles, as well as adaptions and theory on the play. Greek is not required for the class, but those who have it will be asked to read some passages in the original language.

Instructor(s): Sarah NooterTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 36123

CLCV27023. Myth to Philosophy in Ancient Greece. 100 Units.

A big change occurred in Greek thought between the time of Homer and that of Socrates, or roughly between the eighth and fifth centuries BCE. This has been celebrated as a turn from myth to philosophy and science. It was also an attempt by humans to take charge of their lives. The course will focus on the leaders of this movement: the Pre-Socratics, the Sophists, and the legendary founder of scientific medicine, Hippocrates. The Presocratic devised new ways of explaining the world as a whole; the Sophists discovered ways in which humans could shape their lives in relation to one another; and the followers of Hippocrates sought to give humans control over their bodies. For the Pre-Socratics, we have only tantalizing fragments; and we will attempt to make sense of them. We will also read a tragedy, Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound, which shows a god tsking the side of humans; writings of the sophists and attacks on them; and the earliest Greek medical writings. The course will be taught in English translation. For those who know ancient Greek, optional reading classes will be offered.

Instructor(s): Elizabeth AsmisTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 37023

CLCV27320. Greek Archaeology in 20 Objects. 100 Units.

This course centers the objects of the ancient Greek world, from prehistory to the Hellenistic period, as avenues for exploring the practice, history, and motivations of the discipline of Greek archaeology. From the mundane to the spectacular, we will closely consider twenty things - pots, statues, coins, knives, bones, inscriptions, among others - whose compelling if fragmentary biographies reveal how archaeologists reconstruct and explain ancient social lives. Discussions will interrogate histories of object analysis, identification, and interpretation; schemes of periodization and categorization; theories of gender, class, economy, politics, and religion; developments in technologies and aesthetics; the intersections of artifact discovery and museum or market acquisitions; and the making of Greek archaeology within the wider discipline.

Instructor(s): C. KearnsTerms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 37320

CLCV27422. Politics and Philosophy: Leo Strauss' s "The City and Man" 100 Units.

The City and Man is a philosophical discussion of the complex relation between politics and philosophy. In chapter 1 (on Aristotle) politics is considered from the perspective of the citizen or statesman; in chapter 2 (on Plato's Republic) it is reflected on from the point of view of the philosopher; and in chapter 3 (on Thucydides' History) it is seen within the horizon of the prephilosophic political community. The center of the book is Strauss's dialogue with Plato's Republic. Strauss interprets "the broadest and deepest analysis of political idealism ever made" as a work of education. This education has a moderating effect on political ambition and leads its best readers to the philosophic life. The longest and perhaps most intriguing chapter, Strauss's discussion of Thucydides, focuses on the political life and leads up to the question "what is a god?"

Instructor(s): Heinrich MeierTerms Offered: Spring. The course will be taught in Spring 2023.
Prerequisite(s): Open to undergraduates with the instructor's consent.
Note(s): Monday / Wed, 9:30 am – 12:20 p.m.*, during the first five weeks of the term (March 20 – April 19, 2023)
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 27004, PHIL 27325, PHIL 37325, CLAS 37422, SCTH 37325

CLCV27522. Praising the Gods: Greek Hymnic Poetry and Its Context. 100 Units.

In this course we will read a broad range of Greek hymnic poetry, starting with Hesiod's invocation to the Muses in the Theogony, followed by a selection from the Homeric Hymns, the Orphic hymns, and later literary or philosophical hymns by Callimachus and Proclus. Close readings will explore matters of language, genre, and literary tropes, as well as the evolving religious and cultural context of the hymns through the long chronological span in which the genre was productive in Greek antiquity.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-RuizTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Two years of Greek.
Equivalent Course(s): HREL 47518, GREK 27122, RLST 27518, GREK 37122, CLAS 37522

CLCV27923. Textual Amulets in the Ancient Mediterranean. 100 Units.

Amulets with inscribed texts were used broadly by individuals and households and across ancient Mediterranean cultures for protection against evils, for curing disease, and for obtaining advantage over adversaries in all walks of life. In this course, we will survey a broad range of such amulets coming from the Levant, Mesopotamia, the Phoenician-Punic world, Greece and southern Italy, and inscribed on such varied materials as sheets of gold and silver, papyri, ostraca and gems, while scrutinizing their material aspects, their cultural context, and their shared and distinctive features.

Instructor(s): Carolina Lopez-Ruiz, Sofia Torallas-Tovar, Christopher FaraoneTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Classical or Near Eastern languages recommended but not required.
Note(s): THis course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 20130, CLAS 37923, NEHC 20130, NEHC 40130, HREL 40130

CLCV28322. Art and Religion from the Roman to the Christian Worlds. 100 Units.

This course will be an introduction to Roman and early Christian art from the early empire to late antiquity. It will explore the significance of the changes in visual production in relation to different attitudes to religion and society; its specific and conflictive historiography; the particular issues involved in the move to Christianity and a Christian visual culture. We shall veer between an empirical inductive approach, looking at lots of stuff and a more general account of theoretical overviews that have been offered for Roman and late art - overviews that have been influential in the broader historiography of art history as a discipline.

Instructor(s): Jaś ElsnerTerms Offered: Spring
Note(s): The course will be taught over 5 weeks in the Spring Quarter on an intensive schedule. This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 28330, ARTH 28330, RLVC 38330, ARTH 38330, CLAS 38322

CLCV28323. Art and Description in Antiquity and Byzantium. 100 Units.

This course explores the rich tradition of ekphrasis in Greco-Roman antiquity and Byzantium - as it ranges from vivid description in general to a specific engagement with works of art. While the prime focus will remain on texts from Greece, Rome and Byzantium - in order to establish what might be called the ancestry of a genre in the European tradition and especially its fascinating place between pagan polytheistic and Christian writing -- there will be opportunity in the final paper to range beyond this into questions of comparative literature, art (history) writing and ekphrasis in other periods or contexts, depending on students' interests and needs. A reading knowledge of Greek in particular could not be described as a disadvantage, but the course can be taken without knowing the ancient languages. The course will be taught over the first 4 and a half weeks in the Spring Quarter on an intensive schedule. It will be examined on the basis of a paper, due on a subject to be agreed and on a date to be agreed at the end of the Spring quarter.

Instructor(s): Jaś Elsner and Karin KrauseTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): The course will be taught over the first 4 and a half weeks in the Spring Quarter on an intensive schedule.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 28325, ARTH 28325, RLVC 38325, CLAS 38323, MDVL 28325, KNOW 38325, ARTH 38325

CLCV28422. How Did The Ancients Interpret Their Myths? 100 Units.

How did the ancient Greeks interpret their own narratives about the gods? How did their encounter with Near Eastern mythologies shape their own story-telling, and how did their understanding and use of myths evolve with time? In this course, we will explore the ancient interpretation of myth from the archaic Greek to the Roman periods. First, we will focus on the cross-cultural adaptations of Near Eastern traditions in Greek epic (Homer and Hesiod), as a form of interpretation itself. Then we will discuss how ancient poets and thinkers interpreted and reinterpreted divine narratives, paying attention to their philosophical, literary, and cultural strategies, from Orphism and Plato to the Stoics and later philosophical schools, including Euhemerism and its engagement with Phoenician mythology.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-RuizTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 38499, HREL 38499, RLST 28499, NEHC 28499, CLAS 38422

CLCV28622. Alexander and his Successors on the Silk Road: History and Reception. 100 Units.

In usual historiography, Alexander's campaigns from 336 to 323 BCE ushered in an age of intense cultural exchange between Hellenism and various eastern cultures that lasted until late antiquity. Applying the concept of the "Silk Road," this course will explore cultural exchanges between the Greco-Roman world and the East from the 4th century BCE to the 3rd century CE as well as how contemporary East Asian media products represent this age. Primary sources originally written in Greek, Latin, Iranian, Babylonian, and Chinese will be read in English translations.

Instructor(s): Yanxiao HeTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 20211, HIST 24120

CLCV29500. Senior Seminar. 100 Units.

Senior Seminar. The Senior Seminar takes place over two quarters (autumn and winter) and students register for it as a single course in one of those two quarters. The Senior Seminar is a requirement for all Classics majors, whether they are writing a BA paper or not.

Instructor(s): D. WrayTerms Offered: AutumnWinter

CLCV29700. Reading Course: Classical Civ. 100 Units.

No description available.Prerequisite(s): Consent of faculty sponsor and director of undergraduate studiesNote(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

Terms Offered: Autumn,Winter,Spring
Prerequisite(s): Consent of faculty sponsor and director of undergraduate studies
Note(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

Greek Courses

GREK10100-10200-10300. Introduction to Attic Greek I-II-III.

This sequence offers a comprehensive introduction to reading Ancient Greek. Course work involves reading practice, presentational writing, and formal study of grammar and vocabulary. Throughout the sequence, students will encounter authentic Ancient Greek text. Students who complete this sequence will be ready to move into the intermediate sequence (GREK 20100-20200-20300).

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GREK10100. Introduction to Attic Greek I. 100 Units.

Ancient Greek: for thousands of years, people have learned this language to go deeper into the thoughts and worlds of Plato, Homer, Sappho, and Early Christianity and more. In this course sequence, you too can begin to learn this language. GREK 101 introduces the study of Ancient Greek. Course work involves reading practice, writing individual sentences and coherent stories, formal study of grammar and vocabulary, and other linguistic skills as necessary. Throughout the course, students will encounter authentic Ancient Greek texts. Students who complete this course will be able to understand simple sentences and combine them into larger units of meaning. This course is appropriate for students who have never studied Greek before.

Instructor(s): Jonah RaddingTerms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Knowledge of Greek not required.

GREK10200. Introduction To Attic Greek II. 100 Units.

Ancient Greek: for thousands of years, people have learned this language to go deeper into the thoughts and worlds of Plato, Homer, Sappho, and Early Christianity and more. In this course sequence, you too can begin to learn this language. GREK 102 continues the study of basic Ancient Greek. Course work involves reading practice, writing individual sentences and coherent stories, formal study of grammar and vocabulary, and other linguistic skills as necessary. Throughout the course, students will encounter authentic Ancient Greek texts. Students who complete this course will be able to understand complex sentences and combine them into larger units of meaning. This course is appropriate for students who have completed GREK 101 or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): Jonah RaddingTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): GREK 10100

GREK10300. Introduction to Attic Greek III: Prose. 100 Units.

Ancient Greek: for thousands of years, people have learned this language to go deeper into the thoughts and worlds of Plato, Homer, Sappho, and Early Christianity and more. In this course sequence, you too can begin to learn this language. GREK 103 continues the study of basic Ancient Greek. Course work involves reading practice, writing individual sentences and coherent stories, formal study of grammar and vocabulary, and other linguistic skills as necessary. Throughout the course, students will encounter authentic Ancient Greek text. Students who complete this course will be able to track ideas across at least a paragraph of text and will be ready to move into the intermediate sequence (GREK 20100-20200-20300). This course is appropriate for students who have completed GREK 102 or equivalent

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): GREK 10200

GREK10123. Summer Intensive Introductory Ancient Greek. 300 Units.

Summer Introductory Ancient Greek comprises a thorough introduction to the Classical Greek language in eight weeks. Through a daily mixture of synchronous and asynchronous activities students learn new grammatical concepts and morphology, practice reading and translating increasingly complex Greek texts, and complete exercises in Greek to gain an active command of the language. In the latter half of the course, students will also read unadapted Greek from classical prose authors, including Plato and Xenophon. By the end of the 8 weeks, students will be thoroughly familiar with Classical Greek idiom and sentence structure, and will be able to proceed to reading courses in the language.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Summer

GREK20100-20200-20300. Intermediate Greek I-II-III.

This sequence is aimed at students who have completed one of the introductory sequences and at students entering university with extensive previous training, as evidenced by a placement exam. As a whole, it provides students with an overview of important genres and with the linguistic skills to read independently, and/or to proceed to advanced courses in the language.

GREK20100. Intermediate Greek I: 100 Units.

Immerse yourself in real writings from Ancient Greece. Readings this quarter concentrate on selections of Greek prose (for instance, by Plato), with an aim to improve reading skills, discuss key concepts in Greek history and culture, and expand knowledge of grammar and vocabulary as necessary. This course is usually appropriate for students who have completed GREK 103, or several years of high school Greek, or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): H. DikTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): GREK 10300 or equivalent

GREK20200. Intermediate Greek II: 100 Units.

Immerse yourself in real writings from Ancient Greece. Readings this quarter concentrate on selections of Greek poetry (for instance, by Euripides), with an aim to improve reading skills, discuss key concepts in Greek history and culture, and expand knowledge of grammar and vocabulary as necessary. This course is usually appropriate for students who have completed GREK 201, or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): H. DikTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): GREK 20100 or equivalent

GREK20300. Intermediate Greek III. 100 Units.

Immerse yourself in real writings from Ancient Greece, and the long subsequent tradition of Latin literature. This course involves reading selections from a major monument of Greek literature (for instance, The Iliad). There will be discussion of the relationship between language and literary art, the legacy of the work or works studied, and study of grammar and vocabulary as necessary. This course is appropriate for students who have completed GREK 201, or GREK 202, or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): GREK 20200 or equivalent

GREK20123. Summer Intensive Intermediate Ancient Greek. 300 Units.

Summer Intensive Intermediate Greek combines extensive reading of texts with a comprehensive review of Classical grammar and syntax; it prepares students for advanced courses in Greek and for the use of Greek texts in their research. Texts studied are taken from a variety of representative and important Classical authors, and typically include Plato and Herodotus, Demosthenes or Thucydides. The backbone of the review sessions is Mastronarde's Introduction to Ancient Greek combined with sight reading skill practice. The program combines daily synchronous and asynchronous activities. Students are responsible for considerable amounts of class preparation in the evenings, requiring a full-time commitment for the duration of the course. This course equips students to continue with advanced coursework or independent reading in Ancient Greek in all its varieties. Summer Intermediate Greek corresponds to a full year's worth of instruction at the University of Chicago.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Summer
Prerequisite(s): Successful completion of GREK 10300 or the equivalent placement.

GREK21500. Herodotus. 100 Units.

We read the text of the historian in Greek and contextualize his contribution to the classical period, with some discussion of his perspectives on the past, people, and artifacts he records.

Instructor(s): P. RankineTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Greek 20300
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 31500

GREK21600. Euripides. 100 Units.

We will read the entire play, focusing on syntax, religious ideas and scansion of the iambic trimeter.

Instructor(s): C. FaraoneTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Greek 20300
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 31600

GREK21700. Lyric and Epinician Poetry. 100 Units.

This course will examine instances of Greek lyric genres throughout the archaic, classical, and hellenistic periods, focusing on the structure, themes and sounds of the poetry and investigating their performative and historical contexts. Readings will include Alcman, Sappho, Alcaeus, Anacreon, Theognis, Alcaeus, Bacchylides, Pindar, and Anyte. In Greek.

Instructor(s): Caitlyn MillerTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): GREK 20300 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 31700

GREK23220. Hellenistic Imperial Literature. 100 Units.

This class will read selections from the poetry and or prose of the Hellenistic period, especially the hymns of Callimachus, the pastoral poetry of Theocritus, and the epic parody "The Battle of the Frogs and Mice." Alongside these Hellenistic texts we will read some of the poetic predecessors (Homer, Hesiod, the Homeric Hymns, choral and monadic lyric), with an eye to the Hellenistic poets; interest in poetic form, self-positioning, and play.

Terms Offered: TBD. Will be offered 2023-24
Prerequisite(s): PQ: GREK 20300 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 32320

GREK23223. Hellenistic Literature. 100 Units.

This course features selections from the poetry and/or prose of the Hellenistic periods. This year we will read selections from the poetry, with a particular focus on Theocritus and Callimachus.

Instructor(s): C. FaraoneTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): GREK 20300 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 33223

GREK24523. The Ecumenical Church Councils and the Making of Christian Doctrine. 100 Units.

The Church Councils of late antiquity (fourth-seventh centuries) were huge conferences of bishops, priests, monks, secular officials, and emperors, who met to decide on the rules that would govern the Church and the doctrines that all Christians had to believe. They combined philosophical debate, criminal trials, committee meetings, and Senate procedure. Some were rowdy and acrimonious, while others were meticulously organized in advance, usually by the court. Some remain obscure, while others are the most thoroughly documented events in all ancient history and reveal in detail how the later Roman government operated. In this course we will read, in Greek, a number of fascinating narratives and official acts stemming from the most important Councils, including Nicaea I (325), Ephesos I (431), and Chalcedon (451). We will also discuss the Councils from a historical perspective to understand the complex negotiations that gave rise to Christian doctrine and canon law.

Instructor(s): Anthony Kaldellis Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 34523, HCHR 34523, RLST 20523

GREK24600. Philo of Alexandria. 100 Units.

In this course we will read the Greek text of Philo's de opificio mundi, with other brief excerpts here and there in the Philonic corpus. Our aim will be to use this treatise to elucidate the thought and character of one of the most prolific theological writers of the first century. We will seek to understand Philo as a Greek author and the nature and origins of his style, Philo as a proponent of middle Platonism, and Philo as a Jew in the context of Alexandrian Judaism. We will also examine his use of the allegorical method as an exegetical tool, and its implications for pagan, Jewish and early Christian approaches to sacred texts.

Instructor(s): David MartinezTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): At least 2 years of Greek.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 44500, RLST 23314, GREK 34600, FNDL 22314

GREK24722. Sophocles, Philoctetes. 100 Units.

A close literary and philological analysis of one of the most remarkable of all Greek tragedies. This is the only play of Sophocles that does not include even one female character; it raises important and perplexing issues of gender, ethics, politics, suffering, the body, education, and trust, to name only a few. While the poetic text, in its many dimensions, including staging, will offer more than adequate material for classroom analysis and discussion, attention will also be directed to comparing what can be known about other versions of the story and to exploring the reception of this play.

Instructor(s): Glenn MostTerms Offered: Spring. This course will be taught in Spring 2023
Prerequisite(s): Knowledge of Ancient Greek or consent of instructor. Open to undergraduates with instructor’s consent.
Equivalent Course(s): SCTH 35995, GREK 44722

GREK24923. The Birth of the Gods: A Close Reading of Hesiod's Theogony. 100 Units.

In this course we will read in Greek the Theogony by Hesiod, one of the earliest preserved literary pieces in ancient Greek and a text that became a point of reference for cosmogonic literature and thought in later centuries. We will conduct a close reading, commenting on both poetic/literary aspects and mythical tropes, and will read (in English) comparative materials from other Greek and Near Eastern cosmogonies, as well as some interpretive essays. Exams will be based on translation work as well as engagement in discussions.

Instructor(s): Carolina Lopez-RuizTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Two years of Greek (intermediate level) required.
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): HREL 31880, GREK 34923, FNDL 21880, RLST 21880

GREK25123. Aristophanes and the Culture Wars. 100 Units.

Every culture has its wars, and Aristophanes' Athens was certainly no exception. In this course, we will read selections of several Aristophanic comedies in Greek (Acharnians, Knights, Clouds, Frogs), and consider how these plays engage with a number of issues that were cultural flashpoints: the workings and ideologies of Athenian democracy, contemporary intellectual movements and education, attitudes towards the Peloponnesian War, shifting notions of Athenian and class identity, and the manner in which dramatic poetry itself - from Euripidean tragedy to Aristophanes' own comedies - related to, or even exacerbated, these issues. Along the way, we will consider how contemporary comedians (e.g. Trevor Noah, Hari Kondabolu) continue to put to use the same techniques and dynamics that we see in Aristophanes' plays, and to what effect(s).

Instructor(s): J. Radding. Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 35123

GREK26723. The Greek Romance Novel: Longus' Daphnis and Chloe. 100 Units.

In this course, we will read one of the world's earliest known romance novels in its entirety in the original Greek-Daphnis and Chloe by Longus. Written in the Roman imperial period, Daphnis and Chloe tells of teenage love, sex, and self-discovery in a pastoral setting on the island of Lesbos. Through close readings of the text and an examination of its scholarship, we will explore questions related to gender, religion, characterization, and romance. We will also read selections from Longus' many intertexts, including Archaic lyric, Hellenistic and Imperial epigrams, and Homer, as we consider the place of the imperial novel in the history of ancient Greek literature. Assessments will include quizzes, a midterm and final exam, and two papers.

Instructor(s): J. Johansen. Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): GREK 36723

GREK27122. Praising the Gods: Greek Hymnic Poetry and Its Context. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-RuizTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Two years of Greek.
Equivalent Course(s): HREL 47518, RLST 27518, CLCV 27522, GREK 37122, CLAS 37522

GREK27123. The Corpus Hermeticum. 100 Units.

According to Clement of Alexandria Hermes Trismegistus authored 42 "fundamental books" on Egyptian religion. The writings under his name which are extant, dating between the first and third centuries AD, incorporate many styles and genres, including cosmogony, prophecy, gospel, popular philosophy, anthropology, magic, hymn, and apocalypse. The first treatise in the collection well represents the whole. It tells how the god Poimandres manifests to his follower a vision, revealing the origin of the kosmos and humanity, and how archetypal man descends to his fallen state and may be redeemed. We will begin with the Poimandres and then read other sections of this strange but absorbing body of material (we will read the following treatises in this order: 1, 3, 4, 7, 13, 10, 5, 11, 16).

Instructor(s): David MartinezTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): At least two years of ancient Greek.
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 49900, GREK 37123

GREK27423. The Acts of Paul and Thecla and the Pastoral Epistles. 100 Units.

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In the early second century there were bitter battles over the legacy of Paul and his preserved letters in terms of gender, sexuality, family life, asceticism, church administration, and theological vision. We can see these well by reading the narrative text The Acts of Paul and Thecla alongside the "Pastoral Epistles" (1 and 2 Timothy, Titus), the former championing a female, cross-dressing ascetic Christ-missionary and the latter, in pseudepigraphical epistolary texts written in the dead Paul's name, insisting on patriarchal family life and women's adherence to traditional roles. In this course we shall read both sets of texts carefully in Greek, noting points of similarity and contestation, and test various models of how these sources-each of which seeks to "fix" the Pauline legacy in its own way-are related to one another. Time allowing, we shall also look at the later reception of the cult of Saint Thecla and late antique interpretations of "the apostle," Paul, on these issues of sexuality and gender roles, and their perduring influence in contemporary debates.

Instructor(s): Margaret MitchellTerms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): At least one year of Greek, or equivalent.
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 42035, FNDL 22035, RLST 22035, BIBL 42035, HCHR 42035, GNSE 22035, GREK 37423

GREK29700. Reading Course: Greek. 100 Units.

No description available.Prerequisite(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: AutumnWinter
Prerequisite(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

Latin Courses

LATN10100-10200-10300. Introduction to Classical Latin I-II-III.

This sequence offers a comprehensive introduction to reading Latin. Course work involves reading practice, presentational writing, and formal study of grammar and vocabulary. Throughout the sequence, students will encounter authentic Latin text. Students who complete this sequence will be ready to move into the intermediate sequence (LATN 20100-20200-20300).

LATN10100. Introduction to Classical Latin I. 100 Units.

For centuries people have learned this language to go deeper into the thoughts and worlds of Ancient Rome, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. In this course sequence, you too can begin to learn this language. LATN 101 introduces the study of Latin. Course work involves reading Latin, writing individual sentences and coherent stories, formal study of grammar and vocabulary, and other linguistic skills as necessary. Throughout the course, students will encounter authentic Latin texts. Students who complete this course will be able to understand simple sentences and combine them into larger units of meaning. This course is appropriate for students who have never studied Latin before.

Instructor(s): C. SheltonTerms Offered: Autumn

LATN10200. Introduction to Classical Latin II. 100 Units.

For centuries people have learned this language to go deeper into the thoughts and worlds of Ancient Rome, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. In this course sequence, you too can begin to learn this language. LATN 102 continues the study of basic Latin. Course work involves reading Latin, writing individual sentences and coherent stories, formal study of grammar and vocabulary, and other linguistic skills as necessary. Throughout the course, students will encounter authentic Latin texts. Students who complete this course will be able to understand complex sentences and combine them into larger units of meaning. This course is appropriate for students who have completed LATN 101 or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): Colin SheltonTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): LATN 10100

LATN10300. Introduction to Classical Latin III. 100 Units.

For centuries people have learned this language to go deeper into the thoughts and worlds of Ancient Rome, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. In this course sequence, you too can begin to learn this language. LATN 103 continues the study of basic Latin. Course work involves reading Latin, writing individual sentences and coherent stories, formal study of grammar and vocabulary, and other linguistic skills as necessary. Throughout the course, students will encounter authentic Latin text. Students who complete this course will be able to track ideas across at least a paragraph of text and will be ready to move into the intermediate sequence (LATN 20100-20200-20300).This course is appropriate for students who have completed LATN 102 or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): LATN 10200

LATN10123. Summer Intensive Introductory Latin. 300 Units.

Summer Intensive Introductory Latin offers a comprehensive introduction to Classical Latin language in eight weeks. Through a daily mixture of synchronous and asynchronous activities, students learn new grammatical concepts and morphology, practice reading and translating increasingly complex Latin texts, and complete exercises in Latin to gain an active command of the language. Students will also read unadapted Latin from classical authors, including Caesar, Sallust, and Cicero. By the end of the summer Latin course, students will be thoroughly familiar with Latin idiom and sentence structure and will be able to proceed to reading courses in the language.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Summer

LATN11400. Latin for Post Beginners I. 100 Units.

This course is intended for students with some experience in Latin to quickly review what they know and upgrade their skills in reading and understanding Latin. In this course, students will expand their vocabulary, learn more advanced grammar, and practice extensive reading.

Instructor(s): Staff.Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): "Students who complete this course and its follow-up LATN 103 will be ready for the intermediate sequence (LATN 20100-20200-20300)."

LATN20100-20200-20300. Intermediate Latin I-II-III.

This sequence is aimed at students who have completed one of the introductory sequences and at entering students with extensive previous training, as evidenced by a placement exam. As a whole, it provides students with an overview of important genres and with the linguistic skills to read independently and/or to proceed to advanced courses in the language.

LATN20100. Intermediate Latin I. 100 Units.

Immerse yourself in real writings from Ancient Rome, and the long subsequent tradition of Latin literature. Readings this quarter concentrate on selections of Roman prose (for instance, by Cicero), with an aim to improve reading skills, discuss key concepts in Roman history and culture, and expand knowledge of grammar and vocabulary as necessary. This course is usually appropriate for students who have completed LATN 103, or several years of high school Latin, or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): Staff. Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): LATN 10300 or equivalent

LATN20200. Intermediate Latin II. 100 Units.

Immerse yourself in real writings from Ancient Rome, and the long subsequent tradition of Latin literature. Readings this quarter concentrate on selections of Roman poetry (for instance, by Ovid). The class involves discussion of poetic language, the literary and historical context of Roman poetry, and study of grammar and vocabulary as necessary. This course is appropriate for students who have completed LATN 201 or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): LATN 20100 or equivalent

LATN20300. Intermediate Latin III. 100 Units.

Immerse yourself in real writings from Ancient Rome, and the long subsequent tradition of Latin literature. This course involves reading selections from a major monument of Roman literature (for instance, Vergil's Aeneid). There will be discussion of the relationship between language and literary art, the legacy of the work or works studied, and study of grammar and vocabulary as necessary. This course is appropriate for students who have completed LATN 201, or LATN 202, or equivalent work.

Instructor(s): StaffTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): LATN 20200 or equivalent

LATN20123. Summer Intensive Intermediate Latin. 300 Units.

Summer Intermediate Latin combines extensive reading of texts with a comprehensive review of classical grammar and syntax; it prepares students for advanced courses in Latin and for the use of Latin texts in the course of their research. Texts studied are taken from one or more representative and important authors, which may include Cicero, Seneca, Pliny, and others. The course also includes sessions which combine intensive review of basic grammar with supplementary exercises in composition. The program includes synchronous meetings five days a week as well as daily asynchronous assignments. Students are responsible for considerable amounts of class preparation during the evenings, requiring a full-time commitment for the duration of the course. Summer Intermediate Latin equips students to continue with advanced coursework or independent reading in Latin in all its varieties. Summer Intermediate Latin corresponds to a full year's worth of instruction at the University of Chicago.

Terms Offered: Summer
Prerequisite(s): Successful completion of LATN 10300 or equivalent placement.

LATN20223. Later and Early Medieval Intermediate Latin. 100 Units.

The course continues to consolidate the foundations extended in theautumn course based on readings from Cicero. We shall cover a varietyof poetry and prose from Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages,including selections from Boethius, Bede, Lupus of Ferrières, Nithard,and others. The authors chosen will all be significant for theirefforts to reflect the highest classical standards.

Instructor(s): Michael AllenTerms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): LATN 20100 or equivalent

LATN20323. High and Later Medieval Intermediate Latin. 100 Units.

The course continues the work of grammatical extension andconsolidation. We shall cover a variety of poetry and prose by greatLatin stylists from the twelfth to the fourteenth century, includingBernard of Clairvaux, Peter of Blois, Petrarch, and Dante. The authorschosen will all be significant for their efforts to reflect the highestclassical standards.

Instructor(s): Michael AllenTerms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): LATN 202 or equivalent

LATN21223. Philosophical Prose: Cicero, Tusculan Disputations. 100 Units.

Several months after the death of his beloved daughter and just two years before his own death in 43 BC, Cicero composed a dialog with an imaginary interlocutor arguing that death, pain, grief, and other perturbations were an unimportant part of the big picture. A reading of this famous contribution to the genre of consolation literature (all of it to be read in English, selections in Latin) affords an opportunity to weigh his many examples and his arguments for ourselves.

Instructor(s): Peter WhiteTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): LATN 31223

LATN21500. Roman Satire. 100 Units.

Course readings include satires of Horace and Juvenal in Latin together with selections in English from the long tradition of their European reception history.

Instructor(s): D. WrayTerms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): LATN 31500

LATN22023. Apuleius. 100 Units.

We'll read some of the most interesting moments from Apuleius's hilarious, raunchy novel The Metamorphoses/ The Golden Ass as well as consult some of the secondary literature. If you think Latin is boring-check out what happens to the protagonist Lucius!

Instructor(s): S. Bartsch. Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LATN 32023

LATN22823. Livy Book II. 100 Units.

In this class we'll read through the fascination second book of Livy's history of Rome, the Ab Urbe Condita. Book 2 covers Rome directly after the fall of the kings, including the foundational Roman accounts of Horatius Cocles and Coriolanus.

Instructor(s): S. Bartsch. Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): LATN 32823

LATN26023. Dear Student: Read the epistles of Cicero, Ovid, Seneca, and others. 100 Units.

Through our reading of Cicero, Ovid, and Seneca, in this class we explore the lost art of letter writing. The genre of the epistle gives us a glimpse into daily life at Rome by capturing actual correspondence between elite Romans, such as we see in Cicero's letters; allows for playful and philosophical revisitations of myth, even revealing gendered voice, as with Ovid's letters between Penelope and Odysseus, or Dido and Aeneas; and is a crafted structure within which Seneca communicates the lessons of Stoicism to his fictive interlocutor. We will read these authors' letters in Latin and compare their style and content. As time allows, the letters of Pliny the Younger and the Emperor Julian round out the historical scope from Roman Republic to Empire. Latin proficiency and student interest will contribute to the shape and pace of our readings and discussions.Assessment is in the form of weekly quizzes on content and grammar and three translation exams.

Instructor(s): Patrice RankineTerms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): LATN 36023

LATN29700. Reading Course. 100 Units.

TBD

Terms Offered: AutumnSpringWinter
Prerequisite(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

Contacts

Undergraduate Primary Contact

Director of Undergraduate Studies
David Wray

Administrative Contact

Department Administrator
Kathleen M. Fox
Cl 116A
773.702.8514
Email

(Video) The Core Curriculum

FAQs

Is classical studies a good degree? ›

A classics degree also develops many valuable transferable skills, such as: the ability to research, collate and analyse materials, including written documentation and statistics. critical evaluation skills and the ability to interpret resources. effective oral and written communication skills.

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What is classical studies good for? ›

Students who study Classics will increase their analytical and critical thinking skills as they examine and analyze ancient cultures. They will improve their writing and oral communication abilities.

What major is classical studies? ›

Classical Studies is an interdisciplinary major, with specializations in ancient language, classical civilization, and teacher certification that offer students instruction in the history, literature, and culture of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

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What does classical studies fall under? ›

The major in Classics is primarily a liberal arts major, with enormous potential for the pursuit of interdisciplinary interests. Students attain proficiency in Greek and Latin, and are trained to develop powers of critical analysis in studying the important periods and major authors of Greek and Roman literature.

Is classics A Hard major? ›

Studying classics requires self-discipline, the ability to research and analyze and a strong eye for detail. The fact it also allows you to stay in bed until at least 10am every day doesn't mean your life's easier.

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How much do classics majors make? ›

As a classical and ancient studies major graduate in the U.S., you can expect to earn on average $46,158 per year or $22.19 per hour.

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What do classics professors do? ›

In short, Classics Professors focus on the Greek and Latin civilizations along with their literature, mythology, and societies. As a Classics Professor, you teach courses in your specialty, whether it's the study of ancient pottery or in-depth knowledge of Greek mythology.

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What is the difference between classics and classical studies? ›

Unlike the classics, major which requires that students learn two ancient languages, a student majoring in classical studies focuses on one ancient language but pursues a wider range of courses on the classical world (taught in English).

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What do you do in a classics degree? ›

Classics (Literae Humaniores) is a wide-ranging degree devoted to the study of the literature, history, philosophy, languages and archaeology of the ancient Greek and Roman worlds.

See Details ›

Can you get a PhD in Classical Studies? ›

The PhD in Classics program prepares candidates for a career in academics. Our Department focuses on major sub-disciplines in Classics, and has particular expertise in archaeology, with two active excavation projects. Many humanities graduates become professional chameleons of sorts.

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What are the three major classical? ›

The three major classical orders are Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The orders describe the form and decoration of Greek and later Roman columns, and continue to be widely used in architecture today.

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What is the difference between Classical Studies and classics Columbia? ›

Major Program. The department offers a major in classics and a major track in classical studies. The major in classics involves the intensive study of both Greek and Latin, as well as their cultural matrix; the track in classical studies offers a more interdisciplinary approach.

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What time period is classical studies? ›

The field focuses primarily on, but is not limited to, Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during classical antiquity, the era spanning from the late Bronze Age of Ancient Greece during the Minoan and Mycenaean periods (c. 1600–1100 BC) through the period known as Late Antiquity to the fall of the Western Roman Empire, c.

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What are examples of classical subjects? ›

Design technology.
Drama.
English.
Maths.
MFL.
Music.
Physics.

What is the hardest degree to major in? ›

Top 15 Hardest College Majors Table of Contents

Chemistry.
Environmental Economics and Policy.
Environmental Earth Science.
American Studies.
Nuclear Engineering.
Energy Engineering.
Astrophysics.
Applied Mathematics.

More items...

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What GPA do you need for classics grad school? ›

1) GPA: a 3.5 cumulative grade point average is the lowest that many schools will accept, or at least consider for funding. Most important are your grades in Latin and Greek, which should be over the 3.5 minimum, especially in the last two years of study.

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Are colleges looking for classics majors? ›

Classics is commonly one of the less sought-after fields and thus can catch an admission officialâ€™s eye when named as a prospective major. Some college catalogs and Web sites list a schoolâ€™s enrollment by major.

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Which major makes the most money? ›

10 college majors that make the most money

Accounting.
Biomedical engineering.
Mathematics or Statistics.
Finance.
Nursing.
Information technology.
Engineering.
Computer science.

More items...

Mar 10, 2023

Tell Me More ›

Is classics a popular major? ›

During the 2020-2021 academic year, University of California - Los Angeles handed out 19 bachelor's degrees in classical and ancient studies. Due to this, the school was ranked #1 in popularity out of all colleges and universities that offer this degree.

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What majors are best paid? ›

Chemical engineering majors topped both lists, earning a median starting salary of $75,000 per year and $120,000 by mid-career as of February 2023. Other engineering majors such as those in computer, aerospace, and electrical engineering all made high median mid-career wages as well — well over six figures.

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What do you call someone who studies classics? ›

Most classicists are either philologists (who primarily study the texts left to us by the ancient world: a philologist is, literally, one who loves language) or classical archaeologists (who primarily study material remains; archaeologists, literally, are those who study old things).

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How long is a classics PhD? ›

The PhD is a three-year research degree, examined by a dissertation of up to 80,000 words. The criteria for obtaining the degree are that the dissertation represents a 'substantial contribution to knowledge', and that it also represents a realistic amount of work for three years' study.

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Who studied classics at university? ›

Top 11 Most Famous People Who Studied the Classics

Thomas Jefferson. ...
J.R.R. Tolkien. ...
J.K. Rowling. ...
Boris Johnson. ...
Sigmund Freud. ...
Chris Martin. ...
James Garfield. ...
Jonathan Evans, Baron Evans of Weardale.

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Mar 11, 2019

Know More ›

Are classics harder to read? ›

Classics are hard to read because of the writing style, the historical settings, narrative structures, and symbolism. To improve understanding, read an annotated version and research a book's historical period. You can also read commentaries and watch a movie to grasp the concept.

Is classics a respected A level? ›

Classical Civilisation is listed on UCL's list of preferred A Level subjects and it is also listed on Trinity College, Cambridge's list of Generally Suitable Arts A Levels.

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How do I start studying classics? ›

A good place to start (in translation or in the original) are Homer's Iliad and/ or Odyssey, Virgil's Aeneid, Euripides, Medea and Ovid, The Art of Love/ Ars Amatoria (at the moment the first set text on the Latin side). In addition, try to get to know the different aspects of our field.

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How long is a classics degree? ›

Normally the Faculty will ask you to take the four-year course. If there are circumstances which make it appropriate for you to take the three-year degree, arrangements for the necessary Latin language teaching can be made within the Faculty.

Learn More ›

What is the hardest PhD degree? ›

PhD in Theoretical Physics: For you to emerge a doctor of Theoretical Physics, you must have background knowledge of Mathematics and Physics. A qualitative amount of focus is also required of you so as to be able to imagine the warping of gravitational waves and space-time due to the gravitational field.

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Can you get a PhD without a Masters Harvard? ›

Do I need a master's degree in order to apply to the program? No, we do not require applicants to have a master's degree.

What can I do with a PhD in classics? ›

If they finish their doctorate, they may be eligible for a position as a university professor. Classics professors have the opportunity to remain in their field, pursue their passion for Greek and Roman history and share it with their students.

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Who are the three B's classical composers? ›

The Three B's—Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms take center stage in this homage to some of classical music's most enduring composers.

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What are the four main classical theories? ›

' Understanding organizations comes from understanding management theory, and Kimani outlines four major management theories for the basis of organizations: bureaucratic theory, scientific management theory, behavioural management theory, and human relations theory.

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What are 3 things the Classical period is known for? ›

During the Classical Period , which is known as the Age of Enlightenment in world history, schools and Universities were established, the first encyclopedias and dictionaries were published. The piano was invented and became popular. The first concert halls were also built in the Classical Period.

Is Latin or Greek better for classics? ›

In terms of ways to choose between the two, if you've learned any Romance languages, it would be more beneficial to learn Classical Latin due to the similarities in grammar and vocabulary.

Is a classics degree good for law? ›

Classics majors commonly go on to become doctors, lawyers, teachers and administrators, members of the diplomatic service, engineers, computer programmers, clergy, businesswomen and men and entrepreneurs of all types.

Do you need Latin for classics degree? ›

If you want to study a classics degree, most universities expect you to have an A-level in Latin or ancient Greek, although there are some courses which allow you to start Latin and / or classical Greek from scratch.

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Why is it called classics? ›

The first known use of "classic" in this sense – a work so excellent that it is on the level of the "classics" (Greek and Latin authors) – is by the 18th-century scholar Rev. John Bowle. He applied the term to Don Quixote, of which Bowle prepared an innovative edition, such as he judged that a classic work needed.

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What is a classical studies class? ›

Classical Studies is an exciting, interdisciplinary field dedicated to better understanding all aspects of human existence, particularly through the lens of ancient cultures of Greece, Rome, and their contemporary societies.

View Details ›

What are the 7 classical arts? ›

Seven arts may refer to: The traditional subdivision of the arts, being Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, Literature, Music, Performing, and Film. The Seven Liberal Arts, being grammar, logic, rhetoric, arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy.

Get More Info Here ›

What does classical school teach? ›

Classical schools highlight history, literature, and language studies while embracing the concept of educating the entire child through truth and moral virtue. Classical schools are rooted in language, with lessons primarily taught through written and spoken words instead of images.

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What is classical studies in curriculum? ›

Classical studies is a multidisciplinary learning area in which students learn about the literature, art, history, and philosophy of the classical world. It involves the study of the civilisations of classical Greece and Rome without studying the classical languages, Greek and Latin.

Get More Info ›

What can I do after classical studies degree? ›

Career Options in Classical Studies and Classics

Archivist.
Author.
Archeologist.
Art Dealer.
Community Educator.
Ethics Board Director.
Event Planner.
Fundraising Coordinator.

More items...

Read On ›

What are the most difficult degrees to study? ›

What are the hardest degrees in the world? Ranked by Experts

Chartered Accountancy.
Astrophysics.
Quantum Mechanics.
Law.
Aerospace/ Aeronautical Studies, Engineering.
Biomedical Studies, Neurosciences, Biochemistry.
Nursing.
Dentistry, Medicine.

More items...

Dec 16, 2022

What is the most effective degree? ›

Here is a list of the most useful college majors based on post-graduate employment and median annual wage as noted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Physics. ...
Political science. ...
Business administration. ...
Nursing. ...
Meteorology. ...
General engineering. ...
Materials science. ...
Chemical engineering.

More items...

Mar 10, 2023

Can you get a PhD in classical studies? ›

Show Me More ›

What majors to pair with classics? ›

A Classics major complements STEM fields like Math or Biology, as well as English, History, Philosophy, Political Science, Religious Studies, Theater and Dance, and more.

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Can I go to law school with a classics degree? ›

Furthermore, according to Harvard Magazine, Classics majors (and math majors) have the highest success rates of any majors in law school. Believe it or not: political science, economics, and pre-law majors lag fairly far behind.

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What major has the highest dropout rate? ›

These Are the 10 Degrees With the Highest Dropout Rates

Computer Science: 9.8 percent.
Business: 8.6 percent.
Advertising: 8 percent.
Journalism: 7.6 percent.
Art: 7.3 percent.
Architecture: 7.2 percent.
Engineering: 7 percent.
Biology: 6.8 percent.

More items...

4 days ago

What is the #1 hardest major? ›

#1 Chemistry

According to the average Grade Point Average of students in the program, Chemistry wins the prize title hardest major. A Chemistry major overlaps somewhat with biology, but chemistry extends beyond living things.

Read The Full Story ›

What is the number one easiest degree to get? ›

As the most popular college major since 1980, business encompasses a variety of sub-disciplines, such as finance, accounting, and marketing. It's also considered to be one of the easiest college majors. With a business degree, you could also work in fields like healthcare, human resources, or public administration.

What are the least regretted majors? ›

The least regretted college majors, which graduates would choose all over again, are reportedly Computer and Information Sciences, Criminology, Engineering, Nursing, Health, Business Administration and Management, Finance, Psychology, Construction Trades, and Human Resources Management.

Keep Reading ›

What is the least employable degree? ›

It makes gloomy reading for those studying computer science and IT - they have the lowest employment rate for any area of study (see the data below).

What degree is actually worth it? ›

STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) degrees dominate the list of collegiate programs that lead to top-paying careers. While some bachelor's degrees in the humanities and social sciences don't typically offer high salaries, they can provide a foundation for a graduate degree and a more lucrative career.

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Classical Studies < University of Chicago Catalog (2023)

Programs of Study

Language and Literature Variant

Summary of Requirements: Language and Literature Variant

Language Intensive Variant

Summary of Requirements: Language Intensive Variant

Greek and Roman Cultures Variant

Summary of Requirements: Greek and Roman Cultures Variant

SeniorSeminar and BA Paper

Grading

Honors

Minor Program in Classical Studies

Prizes and Grants

Classical Civilization Courses

Greek Courses

Latin Courses

Contacts

Undergraduate Primary Contact

Administrative Contact

FAQs

Is classical studies a good degree? ›

What are the three major classical? ›

What do you call someone who studies classics? ›

Who are the three B's classical composers? ›

What is classical studies in curriculum? ›

What are the least regretted majors? ›

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