Harris & Platzner, Classical Mythology: Images & Insights, 4th edition
Sophocles, Complete Plays, tr. Roche
Homer, Odyssey, tr. Fitzgerald
Miller, Greek Lyric: An Anthology in Translation
Grant, Myths of the Greeks and Romans
Readings are more or less evenly divided between (1) summary and interpretation (mainly in Harris & Platzner and Grant) and (2) original literary texts (in translation). Overall, though, the emphasis is on original literary texts and the question of what a "text" is. (Original texts are indicated below with underlining.)
Aug. 30 - Sept. 1: H&P, ch. 1, pp. 3-35. Citation from Pindar, Nemean 6, H&P, p. 21, and Grant, p. 45. Introductory note on Pindar, Miller, 125. Pindar, Pythian 8, lines 95-98 ("Beings ... kindly"), Miller, p. 162. Discussion of different effects of citation.
Sept. 3: H&P, ch. 2, pp. 36-55. Xenophanes in Miller, frs. 1, 5-13 (nos. are Miller's, pp. 107-108, 110-111). Contrast of Miller's translations of Xenophanes with Barnstone's (H&P, p. 37).
Sept. 6: LABOR DAY - no class.
Sept. 8: H&P, ch. 3, pp. 59-84, 100-102 (Hesiod, Theogony, lines 666-742 [H&P numbering, note that the line numbers used by H&P are often different from those in all or most other editions]). H&P, ch. 4, pp. 104-126.
Sept. 10: H&P, ch. 12, pp. 357-376. Homer, Iliad, Book 1, H&P, pp. 377-393. Grant, ch. 1, sect. 1, pp. 23-27. H&P summaries of rest of Iliad, Books 2-24 (bold-face material in brackets, pp. 393-394, 396, 400, 403, 405, 414-415, 417, 421, 424, 429, 438 ,442, 448.)
Sept. 13: H&P, ch. 13, pp. 450-468. Homer, Odyssey, Book 1 (Fitzgerald, pp. 1-15 [page numbering is different in some editions of Fitzgerald's translation]).
Sept. 15: Discussion of writing systems: Linear B, alphabetic Greek, development of the text of Homer.
Sept. 17-20: Homer, Odyssey, Books 2-4. (Fitzgerald, pp. 17-78.)
Sept. 22-24: Homer, Odyssey, Books 5-8. (Fitzgerald, pp. 79-142.) Cf. H&P's treatment of "Loves of Ares and Aphrodite", pp. 211-213, with the original setting in Odyssey, Book 8 (Fitzgerald, pp. 132-136).
An interesting on-line recitation of this section of the Odyssey in Greek, with more or less the original pronunciation and some attempt at reproducing the original musical accompaniment, is available.
Sept. 27: Homer, Odyssey, Books 9-12. (Fitzgerald, pp. 143-225.)
Sept. 29: H&P, ch. 9, pp. 283-300. Xenophanes, fr.3 (7a), Miller, 109.
Oct. 1-4: Catch-up and Review, etc.
Wednesday, Oct. 6: TEST. Specific information concerning test will be provided around the third week of September; also, cf. the information concerning previous offerings of this course, available near the end of the instructor's homepage. Perhaps most relevant as giving some idea of the specific format of this test is the information concerning the Feb. 11, 2004 test. The test will consist of about 9 questions and/or passages for identification. Each of these 9 or so items will require a paragraph or so of discussion.
Oct. 8: Homer, Odyssey, Books 13-16. (Fitzgerald, pp. 227-305).
Oct. 11: Homer, Odyssey, Books 17-20. (Fitzgerald, pp. 307-387).
Oct. 13: Fitzgerald's "Postscript", part 2, sects. iv-vi, pp. 496-509.
Oct. 15: Homer, Odyssey, Books 21-24. (Fitzgerald, pp. 389-462).
Oct. 18: Tennyson, Ulysses. (H&P, pp. 1033-1034). Sappho in Miller, introductory note and frs. 1, 4, 6 , 8, 12 (Miller's nos.), pp. 51-52, 54-56, 58. Discussion of priamel and ring-composition, cf. Miller, bottom of p. 19 and bottom of p. 54. (Miller refers to "ring-form", rather than "ring-composition".)
Oct. 20: Pindar, Olympian 1 in Miller, pp. 125-131. Xenophanes, frs. 2, 4 (Miller, pp. 108-109, 110).
Oct. 22-25: Catch-up and Review, etc.
Wednesday, Oct. 27: TEST.
Oct. 29: H&P, chs. 14-15, pp. 529-560. Discussion of structure of Greek tragedy. Definition of the term "trilogy", discussion of the way in which dialogue and choral sections are combined, etc.
Nov. 1-3: Aeschylus, Oresteia, H&P, pp. 561-626; emphasis will probably be on Agamemnon (H&P, pp. 561-591).
Nov. 5 : H&P, ch. 16, pp. 630-648. Riddle of Sphinx, in Grant, top of p. 106 (six lines); cf. the version given by H&P, p. 637. Reread H&P on Greek humanism, pp. 20-22, and read several pages in Grant on "the Qualities of a Hero", pp. 44-50.
Nov. 8: Sophocles, Oedipus Rex, H&P, pp. 649-687. (Cf. Roche, pp. 213-263.)
Nov. 10: Thucydides (handout will be provided).
Nov. 12-15: Sophocles, Antigone, Roche, 343-387. (Cf. H&P, pp. 698-736.) Grant, chs. 7-8, pp. 190-221. Discussion of different translations of Antigone's speech, Roche, p. 358 = H&P, p. 710, lines 307-325. Discussion of Antigone's speech, Roche, pp. 372-373 = H&P, p. 723, lines 666-678 (much of this speech is omitted in the Fitts & Fitzgerald translation, which H&P use; for brief discussion of this particular textual point, see Roche, p. 394, note on "Texts of the Oedipus Plays".)
Nov. 17: OUTLINE or PROPOSAL or SUMMARY (one-page) for term paper DUE. Lecture on Near Eastern and Indo-European background of Greek mythology. H&P on Pandora and Eve, pp. 108-114. H&P on flood, pp. 125-126. H&P on Gilgamesh epic, pp. 114-115, 304-307.
Nov. 19: Pindar, Olympian 2 in Miller, pp. 131-136.
Nov. 22: Pindar, Pythian 3 in Miller, pp. 153-159. Also, H&P on Asclepius, p. 242. Herodotus (handout will be provided) and Bacchylides, Ode 3 in Miller, pp. 201-205.
Nov. 25: THANKSGIVING - No class on Wednesday or Friday.
Nov. 29: H&P, chs. 18-19, pp. 857-890. Beginning of Vergil, Aeneid, H&P, 891-892 (to "It was so hard to found the race of Rome").
Dec. 1: H&P, chs. 20, 21, pp. 954-961, 997-1022.
Dec. 3: H&P, selections from Dante, Yeats, Auden (pp. 1023-1025, 1035-1038).
Dec. 6: Material concerning Nonnus; handout will be provided. (Some information concerning Nonnos is available at Tony Prost's website.) H&P, on parallels between the worship of Dionysos and Christianity, pp. 271-276, and p. 300 (next to last paragraph).
Dec. 8: Catch-up and Review. TERM PAPER (1500-2500 words, i.e., about 6 to 8 pages) DUE. Papers which are handed in late, without an excellent excuse, will be accepted; however, they will be graded down. Papers which are no more than 24 hours late will be graded down by a half step, e.g., from B+ to B/B+ or B-/C+ to C+. Papers which are between 24 hours and 48 hours late will be graded down by one step, e.g., from B+ to B. Papers which are more than 48 hours late will be graded down by one and a half steps; e.g., from B+ to B/B-.
Dec. 10: Review.
Thursday, December 16 12:00-1:50 PM - EXAM. Except in the most unusual circumstances, you should plan to take the exam at the scheduled time, rather than at some other time.
Two tests and term paper, 20% each; final exam, 40%
OR
two tests, term paper, and final exam, 25% each.