Classics

Designed to introduce the student to the Greek contribution to the philosophical and scientific ideas of the Western world through study of works of Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, and Lucretius in English translation. Topics in moral and political philosophy, as well as epistemology and metaphysics, will be included. Attention will be focused on the quality of the arguments presented by the philosophers. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The origins and nature of English vocabulary, from proto-Indo-European prehistory to current slang. Emphasis on the Greek and Latin component of English vocabulary, including technical terminology (medical/scientific, legal, and humanistic). Related topics: the alphabet and English spelling, slang and jargon, social and regional variation, vocabulary changes in progress, the "national language'' debate. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Stylish, seductive, surreptitious, and scorned, the ubiquitous art of persuasion will be the focus of this course. We will first approach rhetoric through the classical tradition, learning to recognize basic figures of speech and thought with an eye towards identifying what is persuasive and why. We will then consider how rhetoric continues to thrive, despite abundant moral and philosophical attacks, in public self-presentation, whether of household products, of politicians, or institutions such as Princeton.

A study of classical myths in their cultural context and in their wider application to abiding human concerns (such as creation, generation, sex and gender, identity, heroic experience, death, transformations, and transcendence). A variety of approaches for understanding the mythic imagination and symbol formation through literature, art, and film. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An introduction to Roman culture emphasizing tensions within Roman imperial ideology, the course explores attitudes toward issues such as gender and sexuality, conspicuous consumption, and ethnicity through the works of authors such as Petronius, Lucan, and Tacitus. It also considers the role of cinematic representations of ancient Rome in 20th-century America. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A formative episode in Western civilization: the Greeks from the rise of the city-state, through the conflict between Athens and Sparta, to the emergence of Macedon in the fourth century B.C. Emphasis on cultural history, political thought, and the development of techniques of historical interpretation through analysis of original sources (Herodotus, Thucydides, and others). Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The Greek experience from Alexander the Great through Cleopatra. An exploration of the dramatic expansion of the Greek world into the Near East brought about by the conquests and achievements of Alexander. Study of the profound political, social, and intellectual changes that stemmed from the interaction of the cultures, and the entrance of Greece into the sphere of Rome. Readings include history, biography, religious narrative, comedy, and epic poetry. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A study of the causes and unforeseen consequences of one small city-state's rise to world-empire, primarily through the analysis of ancient sources (including Livy, Polybius, Caesar, and Cicero) in translation. Emphasis on the development of Roman society and the evolution, triumph, and collapse of the republican government that it produced. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A study of the profound transformation of Rome by the multicultural empire it had conquered, ending with the triumph of Christianity. Emphasis on typical social and cultural institutions and on the legacies of Rome to us. Ancient sources in translation include documents, histories, letters, and novels. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A study of the fundamental questions of political theory as framed in context of the institutions and writings of ancient Greek and Roman thinkers from the classical period into late antiquity and the spread of Christianity in Rome. We will canvass the meaning of justice in Plato's "Republic", the definition of the citizen in Aristotle's "Politics", to Cicero's reflections on the purpose of a commonwealth, and Augustine's challenge to those reflections and to the primacy of political life at all in light of divine purposes. Through classic texts, we explore basic questions of constitutional ethics and politics. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The course will focus on the formation of new artistic traditions in the ancient Near East and late-period Egypt after 1000 B.C.E. and then investigate their interrelationships with early Greece and the controversial theories of modern scholars of the dependence of early Greece on the ancient Near East. For department majors, this course satisfies the Group 1 distribution requirement. Two 90-minute classes.

Aristotle's most important contributions in the areas of logic, scientific method, philosophy of nature, metaphysics, psychology, ethics, and politics. Several of his major works will be read in translation. Aristotle's successors in the Greco-Roman period will be studied briefly. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An examination of the culture and institutions of classical Athens, its buildings, monuments, and works of art, set against the historical background of the city's growth. Aspects of government, religious festivals, society, and daily life are investigated. The archaeological record is enriched by study of ancient historical sources in translation. For department majors, this course satisfies the Group 1 distribution requirement. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The subject of this course will be medieval Greek Romantic fiction. We will read translations of the four surviving novels written in twelfth-century Constantinople in a bid to answer questions about the link between eroticism and the novel, truth and invention in the middle ages, who read fiction and why, and what role, if any, did the medieval or Byzantine Romances have in the story of the European novel. Above all, we will seek to recover some of the pleasure felt by the medieval readers and audiences of these novels.

Designed to give students who are without knowledge of the Greek language the opportunity to read widely and deeply in the field of Greek drama, with particular emphasis on an intensive study of Greek tragedy, its origins and development, staging, structure, and meanings. Two 90-minute seminars.

Major classical historians, especially Herodotus and Thucydides, are studied in connection with the theory and practice of the art or science of history. Lectures and preceptorials treat the development of historical writing and its relationship to philosophy, politics, literature, and science, and problems such as that of fact and interpretation in historical writing. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The historical development of Roman law and its influence on modern legal systems. Particular attention is given to the fundamental principles of Roman private law, including the law of persons, property, inheritance, and contract; and there is a close analysis of courtroom procedure. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A period, problem, or theme in ancient history or religion with critical attention to the ancient sources and modern discussions. The topic and instructor vary from year to year. Format will change each time, depending on enrollment.

A period, problem, or theme in ancient history or religion with critical attention to the ancient sources and modern discussions. The topic and instructor vary from year to year. Format will change each time, depending on enrollment.

The theoretical and ideological bases of the Western attitudes toward sex and gender categories in their formative period in the Greco-Roman world through the study of myth and ritual, archaeology, art, literature, philosophy, science, medicine, law, economics, and historiography. Selected readings in classical and modern texts.

The development of Greek legal traditions, from Homer to the Hellenistic age. The course focuses on the relationship between ideas about justice, codes of law, and legal practice (courtroom trials, arbitration), and the development of legal theory. Two 90-minute seminars.

A special topic concerning the adaptation of one or more classical themes in contemporary culture through media such as literature, film, and music. Two 90-minute seminars.

A classical genre or literary theme will be studied as it was handed down and transformed in later ages, for example, the European epic; ancient prose fiction and the picaresque tradition; the didactic poem. Two 90-minute seminars.

This course will introduce concentrators to the study of classical antiquity. Students will become acquainted with different fields of study within the Department, including literature, ancient history, ancient culture, linguistics, and reception studies; gain experience in the methods of their chosen area(s) of study; and acquire an understanding of the history of the discipline and its place in the twenty-first century. Sessions will involve guest visits from members of the faculty. Particular attention will be paid to acquiring the skills necessary to pursue independent research and the selection of a topic for the spring Junior Paper.

A study of the emergence of a distinctive Western European civilization out of Christian, Greco-Roman, and Germanic institutions and ideas from the decline of the Roman Empire to about A.D. 1050. Two lectures, one preceptorial.