Courses in Classical Humanities (190)

Note:  Courses in classical humanities (190) are open to students with or without a knowledge of the Greek or Latin language.  Some pre-requisites apply, see below.

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01:190:101 Word Power (3) Systematic study of the basic Greek and Latin derivatives in English. Emphasis is on Greek and Latin elements in current scientific and literary use.

01:190:102 Medical Terminology (3) Systematic study of scientific terminology based on ancient Greek and Latin elements, with emphasis on the field of medicine. May be taken concurrently with 01:190:101.

01:190:201 Ancient Greece (3) Civilization of the eastern Mediterranean world in ancient times, with emphasis on the origins of Western civilization and the Greek contribution to Western culture. Credit not given for both this course and 01:510:201.

01:190:205 Greek Civilization (3) Survey of Greek thought and literature. Readings include Homer, the lyric poets, the Athenian dramatists, and selected readings from historians and philosophers. Artistic material may be included.

01:190:206 Roman Civilization (3) Surveys Roman thought and literature. Readings include Virgil, Ovid, Livy, Cicero, Tacitus, and Petronius. Artistic material may be included.

01:190:207 Greek and Roman Mythology (3) Examination of the nature, meaning, and continued vitality of the principal classical myths through reading, lectures, and slide presentations.

01:190:208 Philosophy of the Greeks (3) Introduction to the major philosophical thinkers of the ancient Greek world with special emphasis on Plato and Aristotle. Credit not given for both this course and 01:730:208.

01:190:209 Ancient Rome (3) The Roman Republic and the empire, with emphasis on the rise and decline of a Mediterranean world civilization under Roman leadership. Credit not given for both this course and 01:510:202.

01:190:211 Greek and Roman Religion (3) Study of pagan gods and goddesses, and cults and practices of the classical Greek world, Roman Republic, and Roman Empire.

01:190:212 Classical World in Film (3) Survey of film depictions of the classical world of Greece and Rome, with readings from literary, historical, and critical sources. Topics include "sword and sandals" genre and its history; parallels between America and Greece/Rome; spectacle and empire; and the uses of history in popular historical films.

01:190:213 Science and Technology in Ancient Greece and Rome (3) Explores the nature and development of science and technology in ancient Greece and Rome, focusing on medicine, physics, mathematics and engineering.

01:190:214 Sexuality in Ancient Greece and Rome (3) Investigates how the ancient Greeks and Romans categorized, depicted, and reacted to different sexual behaviors and identities through the study of visual and literary sources ranging from Homeric Greece to Imperial Rome.

01:190:215 Intro to Greek and Roman Archaeology (3)  This course is an introductory survey of the archaeology, architecture and material culture of the Mediterranean world from the Bronze Age throughout the transformation of the Roman Empire following the reign of Constantine. While we consider chronological developments, we will also place Greek and Roman artistic production into its social and cultural settings. Along the way we will think about approaches and methodologies for the study of Classical Art, and how these may tell us more about ourselves than the ancient Greeks and Romans.

01:190:300 Greek and Roman Slavery (3) Social, economic, legal, and political aspects of slavery in ancient Greece and Rome. The sources and numbers of slaves, forms of servitude, manumission, and slave labor.

01:190:301 Food and Drink in the Ancient World (3) Social history of the ancient Mediterranean world through an exploration of the production, preparation and consumption of food and drink and (re)presentations of them in word and image.

01:190:303 Hellenistic World (3) Expansion and development of Greek culture from Alexander through the successor kingdoms in Greece, Egypt, Syria-Palestine, and Asia Minor. Credit not given for both this course and 01:510:303.

01:190:306 Roman Empire (3) Political, social, and intellectual developments of the imperial period until the age of Constantine, with emphasis on the first two centuries AD. Credit not given for both this course and 01:510:306.

01:190:309 Greek and Roman Athletics (3) Examines the ideology and cultural context of ancient athletic competition. Topics include the Olympic and other Panhellenic games, Roman chariot racing and gladiator combat, and women athletes. Credit not given for both this course and the corresponding course under subject number 510.

01:190:310 Augustan Rome (3) Study of the history and culture of the Augustan period (44 BC-AD 14) including historical and numismatic sources; the poetry of Virgil, Horace, Propertius and Ovid; Augustus' building program and artistic trends. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:580:310. Students wishing to earn language credit in Latin should enroll in 01:580:310. Credit not given for both this course and 01:580:310.

01:190:312 The Search for the Historical Socrates (3) Portraits of Socrates in Plato, Xenophon, Aeschines of Sphettus, and Aristophanes. Birth of the philosophical dialogue and other genres; life and thought of Socrates; and later Socratic movements. Prerequisite: One course in ancient Greek history, culture, or philosophy; or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:490:312. Students wishing to earn language credit in Greek should enroll in 01:490:312. Credit not given for both this course and 01:490:312.

01:190:315 Latin Poets in English (3) Selections from the Augustan poets Horace, Virgil, and Propertius. Translations by Dryden, Ezra Pound, and others, with close reference to the Latin original. Theories of translation.

01:190:31 Ancient Painting (3) This interdisciplinary course is a holistic survey of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman painting from the eighth century BC through the (so-called) fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. The foci of the course will be the development of style in the different areas of the Mediterranean and the cultural significance of painted images in different social contexts. Painted items and artifacts (pottery, panels, frescoes, etc.) were created for a purpose; our guiding questions will focus on who created them, for what purpose, what informed their choices, and what impact did this material have on those who viewed them. To answer these questions we will also engage with the people who created these materials, and thus we will also study the histories, religious beliefs, and daily lives of the Greeks and the Romans to contextualize the painted materials that created and defined their worlds.

01:190:318 Cleopatra (3) Examines the historical Cleopatra and the reception of her image from antiquity to the present in literature, art, and film. Issues considered include female power in a man's world, East versus West, and politics and propaganda. Credit not given for this course and 01:510:312.

01:190:320 Women in Antiquity (3) Women in the ancient societies of Greece and Rome. Their roles and images in the social, legal, political, domestic, philosophical, and artistic spheres examined using primary sources. Credit not given for both this course and 01:510:251.

01:190:321 Classical Rhetoric (3) Origins and development of rhetorical theory: persuasive argument, emotional appeal, good style, and delivery.

01:190:323 Criminals and Saints: Power in Greek Political Life and Imagination (3) Unlimited power, tyranny, democracy. Explores the ancient Greeks' ambivalent conceptions and perceptions of autocratic versus collective power through time. Prerequisite: 01:190:205 or permission of instructor.

01:190:324 Race and Ethnicity: Examination of ancient Greek and Roman understanding of physically different and geographically alien individuals. Consideration of the origins of our culture's beliefs about race, ethnicity and human difference in the classical world's views of strangers, foreigners, barbarians and how our ideas about race and difference have evolved. Prerequisite: 01:355:101 Expository Writing

01:190:325 Cults, Magic, and Witchcraft (3) Magic and witchcraft in the everyday life of antiquity, from pagan to Christian times; how individuals tried to control the unknown. Literary and material sources.

01:190:328 Ancient Law in Action (3) Explores Greek and Roman constitutions and legal systems in their social contexts. Illustrates procedural elements of ancient criminal and civil law through mock trials.

01:190:350 Greek Society (3) Social and economic life of the Greeks from the Mycenaean period through the Hellenistic age. Written and material evidence employed. Recommended: 01:510:201. Credit not given for both this course and 01:510:350.

01:190:352 Plato (3) Philosophy of Plato through close reading of selected dialogues, supplemented by relevant readings on other ancient and contemporary philosophers. Prerequisite: One course in ancient Greek history, culture, or philosophy; or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:490:352. Students wishing to earn language credit in Greek should enroll in 01:490:352. Credit not given for both this course and 01:490:352 or 01:730:352.

01:190:353 Aristotle (3) Philosophy of Aristotle through his selected works, supplemented by relevant readings in Plato and in modern philosophers. Prerequisite: One course in ancient Greek history, culture, or philosophy; or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:490:353. Students wishing to earn language credit in Greek should enroll in 01:490:353. Credit not given for both this course and 01:490:353.

01:190:355 Ancient Mythology and Society (3) Social history and practical utilization of ancient myth (with emphasis on Greek myths), applying historical, religious, sociological, and literary-critical perspectives.

01:190:356 Oedipus: A Survey of the Myth from Antiquity to Freud (3) Survey of the Oedipus myth in earliest, pre-Sophoclean evidence; in Greek and Roman tragedy; in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance; and in the 19th and 20th centuries (with special emphasis on Oedipus in art and music).

01:190:358 Odysseus in Literature, Drama & Film (3) This course explores the evolving images of the legendary figure Odysseus from ancient literature  through medieval poetry and modern novels, plays, and films. Particular focus on the significance of Odysseus  as an enduring literary and media icon, from antiquity into modern times. 

01:190:372 Cities of the Classical World (3) Study of urban development in antiquity, focusing on Athens and Rome, and synthesizing the evidence of literary, historical, and archaeological sources. Credit not given for both this course and 01:512:311.

01:190:373 Pompeii: The Life and Death of a Roman Town (3) Destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 79 AD, Pompeii has fascinated generations of scholars, travelers, filmmakers, and archaeology lovers. This course is a close examination of the archaeological remains of Pompeii. We will look at roads, sewers, public markets, temples, burial monuments, houses, brothels, bathhouses and political buildings. We will focus on the archaeological remains, but we will explore them through the study of specific themes of social and political life in antiquity. We will also challenge some long held assumptions about this site.  Pompeii is traditionally viewed as the quintessential example of a Roman town; yet, as a very famous Roman historian once said, “it is at once the most studied and the least understood of sites.” 

01:190:375 Masterpieces of Greek and Roman Art (3) Analyses of selected monuments of architecture, sculpture, and painting from 800 BC to AD 500. Emphasis on the development of style and the cultural significance of the monuments. Field trips to museums in the New York area.

01:190:377 The Hero in Ancient Greece and Rome (3) Explores the ancient Greek and Roman hero from literary, religious, mythical, and comparative narrative points of view. Readings drawn mostly from ancient sources.

01:190:381 Greek Drama in Translation (3) Readings in English of the major Greek tragedies and comedies; emphasis on the dramatic structure, literary analysis, and the theatrical conventions of the ancient stage.

01:190:391 Roman Drama in Translation (3) Readings in English of the comedies of Plautus and Terence and the tragedies of Seneca to emphasize the contributions of Latin authors to the dramatic genre and their influence on European and English drama.

01:190:393 Greek and Roman Satire (3) Readings in English of classical satire from its origins in the Greek world through the fourth century AD. Emphasis on the significance of ancient satire for comedy and satire in Western culture.

01:190:395 Transgression in Ancient Greek Society and Culture (3) Violence. Obscenity. Gender roles. Punishment. Violations of cultural norm in ancient Greek practical, civic, religious, and intellectual life, through close critical analysis of their myths, literature, laws, and rituals. Prerequisite: One course in Greek history or culture, Greek or ancient art, or permission of instructor.

01:190:397 The Ancient Novel (3) Readings from Greek and Roman novels of the Imperial period, with attention to their place in the literary and cultural history of the ancient world.

01:190:421 Indo-European Origins of the Classical Languages (3) Comparative survey of Latin and Greek grammar, with historical analysis of those features that the two languages share due to their common origin as Indo-European languages. Reference to the major characteristics of Indo-European languages in general. Open only to advanced undergraduates in classics and linguistics and to graduate students with some knowledge of Latin and/or Greek.

01:190:431 Sanskrit I (4) Introduction to the grammatical system of the classical Sanskrit language; survey of basic features of Indo-European grammar, as manifested in Sanskrit. Open only to upper-level undergraduate and graduate students. Credit not given for both this course and 01:013:180.

01:190:432 Sanskrit II (4) Continuation of 01:190:431; extensive practice in translation and interpretation of texts from various genres and various periods of Old Indic literature. Open only to upper-level undergraduate and graduate students. Credit not given for both this course and 01:013:181.

01:190:491,492 Independent Study in Classics (3,3) Directed reading and research on an assigned topic in classics under the supervision of a member of the department. An extensive essay required, reflecting in-depth research on the assigned topic. Open only to juniors and seniors majoring in classics. Permission of the undergraduate director required.

01:190:493,494 Special Topics Seminar (3,3)
Advanced study of a problem, topic, or theme in Greek and Roman Studies.
Open only to junior or senior majors in Classics or by permission of instructor.

01:190:495,496 Honors Project (4,4) Independent or team projects resulting in a written paper, a performance, or some other appropriate form of public presentation such as drama, poetry, narrative prose, or museum excavation materials. Open only to honors students in one of the fields in classics.

Classical Humanities Courses in Other Departments

01:082:301 Ancient Architecture (3)

01:082:306 Roman Art (3)

01:082:314 Etruscan Art (3)

01:082:342 Early Greek Art (3)

01:082:343 Later Greek Art (3)

01:510:201 Ancient Greece (3)

01:510:202 Ancient Rome (3)

01:510:205 Byzantium: The Imperial Age (3)

01:510:207 Byzantium: The Last Centuries (3)

01:510:301 Early Greece (3)

01:510:302 Classical Greece (3)

01:510:303 Hellenistic World (3)

01:510:304 Roman Republic (3)

01:510:305 The Crisis of the Roman Republic (3)

01:510:306 Roman Empire (3)

01:510:307 The Roman World in Late Antiquity (3)

01:510:320 Women in Antiquity (3)

01:510:350 Greek Society (3)

01:510:403 Ancient Warfare and Diplomacy (3)

01:730:208 Philosophy of the Greeks (3)

01:730:301 Socrates and Plato (3)

01:730:302 Plato and Aristotle (3)

01:730:352 Plato (3)

01:730:401 Plato (3)

01:730:402 Aristotle (3)

01:730:403 Ancient Philosophy after Aristotle (3)

Courses in Greek, Ancient (490)

01:490:101 Elementary Greek I (4) Intensive study of Greek grammar in conjunction with readings in simple Greek prose.

01:490:102 Elementary Greek II (4) Continued study of Greek grammar in conjunction with readings. Prerequisite: 01:490:101 or permission of instructor.

01:490:207 Classical Greek Prose (3) Advanced review of Greek grammar through the reading of a work of Plato or several speeches of Lysias. Prerequisite: 01:490:102 or permission of instructor.

01:490:208 Euripides (3) Study of fifth-century Athenian drama through the reading of a play of Euripides. Prerequisite: 01:490:102 or permission of instructor.

01:490:211 Introduction to New Testament Greek (3) Introduction to grammar and syntax of Greek in conjunction with readings from the Gospels, Acts, or Epistles. Prerequisite: 01:490:102 or permission of instructor.

01:490:304 Aristophanes (3) Reading of Clouds and one other comedy; comparison of the Aristophanic with the Platonic Socrates; study of relation of Old Comedy to Athenian life. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

01:490:305 Greek Drama (3) Readings in the works of fifth-century Greek dramatists with special emphasis on Sophocles. Prerequisite: 01:490:207 or 208 or permission of instructor.

01:490:306 From Athens to Alexandria (3) Major works of the literature of Greece from the fourth century BC into the Hellenistic Age. Prerequisite: 01:490:207 or 305 or permission of instructor.

01:490:308 Greek Historical Writings (3) Readings of selected narratives in Herodotus and of main speeches, excursuses, and parts of books six and seven of Thucydides. Comparative study of historical method. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

01:490:309 Lyric Poetry (3) Survey of the main poets of the "lyric age" of Greece (Alcman, Sappho, Alcaeus, Archilochus, Solon, Theognis, and Anacreon); reading of an ode of Pindar. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

01:490:310 Greek Heroic Poetry (3) Studies in the poetry and culture of Homeric Greece. Selections from the Iliad or Odyssey. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

01:490:311 New Testament Greek (3) Selections from the Gospels, Acts, and Epistles, supplemented by a review of grammar and syntax.

01:490:312 Socratic Literature (3) Portraits of Socrates in Plato, Xenophon, Aeschines of Sphettus, and Aristophanes, with emphasis on the reading, in Greek, of selections from the writings of these authors. Prerequisite: 01:490:207 or 208 or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:190:312. Students wishing to earn language credit in Greek should enroll in 01:490:312. Credit not given for both this course and 01:190:312.

01:490:315 Menander (3) Study of Dyskolos and Samia as examples of New Comedy; their relation to Athenian life at the end of the fourth century. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

01:490:335 Greek Prose Composition (3) Review of syntax, composition in Greek, and translation from English to Greek of continuous passages adapted from classical authors. Prerequisite: 01:490:207 or 208.

01:490:352 Readings in Plato (3) Reading of one or more Platonic dialogues (or thematically related selections from several) in the original Greek. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:190:352; separate meetings for readings in Greek. Credit not given for both this course and 01:190:352 or 01:730:352.

01:490:353 Readings in Aristotle (3) Reading of one or more treatises by Aristotle (or thematically related selections from several) in the original Greek. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:190:353; separate meetings for readings in Greek. Credit not given for both this course and 01:190:353.

01:490:391 Readings in Greek Prose (3) Readings in selected ancient Greek prose authors or genres. Prerequisites: 01:490:305, 306, or permission of instructor.

01:490:392 Readings in Greek Poetry (3) Readings in the works of selected Greek poets or poetic genres. Prerequisites: 01:490:305, 306, or permission of instructor.

01:490:400 Demosthenes (3) Reading of one public and one private oration; study of Demosthenes as orator; as source for Athenian law, commerce, and private life; and as statesman. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

01:490:402 Plato and Aristotle (3) Reading of one Platonic dialogue followed by selected portions of an Aristotelian treatise. Attention to prose style and also to common problems and diverging solutions. Prerequisites: 01:490:207, 208, or permission of instructor.

Courses in Latin (580)

01:580:101 Elementary Latin I (4) Beginning course in Latin, introducing the Latin language and its grammar and syntax.

01:580:102 Elementary Latin II (4) Continued beginning instruction in Latin, introducing Latin language, grammar, and syntax. Prerequisite: 01:580:101 or permission of instructor.

01:580:203 Intermediate Latin Prose (3) Selections from prose authors of the late Republican and/or early empire, e.g., Caesar, Cicero, Livy; development of skill in reading continuous passages of Latin prose. Prerequisite: 01:580:102 or permission of instructor.

01:580:204 Intermediate Latin Poetry (3) Representative poems of Catullus, Horace, and Ovid, read and studied with a view to their style, imagery, and topicality. Introduction to Latin metrics. Prerequisite: 01:580:102 or permission of instructor.

01:580:302 Medieval Latin (3) Readings in major Latin writings and documents of the Middle Ages. Prerequisite: 01:580:203 or 204 or permission of instructor.

01:580:303 Cicero: Philosophical Writings (3) Selected philosophical dialogues and rhetorical treatises of Cicero. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:304 Cicero: Orations (3) Selected orations of Cicero, with emphasis on the development of Cicero's style and the significance of historical and biographical background. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:310 Prose and Poetry in the Age of Augustus (3) The cultural renaissance under Augustus (44 BC-AD 14), with emphasis on the reading, in Latin, of selections from the writings of Virgil, Horace, Livy, Ovid, and the elegiac poets. Prerequisite: 01:580:203 or 204 or permission of instructor. May be jointly taught (in part) with 01:190:310. Students wishing to earn language credit in Latin should enroll in 01:580:310. Credit not given for both this course and 01:190:310.

01:580:321 Roman Comedy (3) Study of the principal meters, the theater, and the staging of plays through the reading of plays of Plautus and Terence. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:323 Lucretius (3) Readings from Lucretius' De Rerum Natura with analysis of its place within the literary and philosophical traditions of Rome and Greece. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:324 Sallust (3) Readings from Sallust's Jugurthine War, Histories, and Catiline, with a study of selected problems from the historical periods relevant to those works. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:325 The History of Livy (3) Readings from Livy's Ab Urbe Condita with a study of selected problems in Roman Republican history. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:327 Latin Elegy (3) Survey of Latin poetry written in elegiac meter, with selections from Catullus, Tibullus, Sulpicia, Propertius, and/or Ovid. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:328 Roman Satire (3) Selected poems of Horace, Martial, and Juvenal and a study of their interrelationship. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:329 Tacitus (3) Reading of a minor work of Tacitus and/or selections from the Annals of Tacitus with an investigation of their value as sources for Imperial history in the first century AD. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:335 Latin Prose Composition (3) Review of syntax and prose style; composition in Latin and translation into Latin of continuous passages of prose. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:369,370 The Seminar in Latin (3,3) Extensive and rapid reading in Latin literature from the early Roman Republic to the empire. Primarily for juniors and seniors majoring in classical humanities; open to others with permission of instructor. SP'18: A close reading of selections from Ovid's Heroides with special attention to the influence of the poets of ancient Alexandria on Ovid.

01:580:401 Advanced Study of the Poetry of Ovid (3) Readings and interpretation of selected works of Ovid. A study of the poet's contribution to Roman literature and his importance in the Western literary tradition. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:402 Advanced Study of Vergil's Aeneid (3) Readings of Vergil's Aeneid with an analysis of selected problems in its interpretation. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:403 Readings in Latin Literature I: Literature of the Republic (3) Prose and poetry of Rome from its beginnings in the third century BC to the end of the republic in the first century BC. Extensive selections from epic, drama, lyric, elegy, pastoral, and other poetry and from history, rhetoric, and oratory. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:404 Readings in Latin Literature II: Literature of the Empire (3) Prose and poetry of imperial Rome. Extensive selections from epic, history, satire, the novel, and other genres, with emphasis on writers of the Augustan and Neronian ages. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.

01:580:407 Advanced Study of the Poetry of Horace (3) Intensive reading of Horace's poems with emphasis on the variety of style and content. Prerequisites: 01:580:203, 204.