Module description
Greek and Roman Literature and Thought: An Introduction is a first year module aiming to introduce freshers into the riches of Greek and Roman literature and philosophy. It is designed in such a way as to cater primarily for the immediate needs of students coming up to University without any background knowledge of ancient literature and philosophy and aims to offer a chronologically laid out, broad survey of periods, genres and best known authors and thinkers of Greek and Roman culture.
Although the broad conceptual categories of “socio-cultural context” and generic expectations define the overall intellectual tone of this module, judiciously chosen extracts from the texts themselves (all in English translation) will be strategically woven into lectures in order to whet the students' appetite to continue with further reading of their own.
Major thematic stops of this module (indicatively) include: early Greek epic and lyric poetry; fifth-century Athenian drama; classical historiography; fourth century oratory; Plato and Aristotle; Hellenistic poetry; imperial Greek literature; the literature of early and late Republican Rome; highlights from Augustan literature; Stoicism and Epicureanism in Roman literature and thought; early imperial literature and historiography; the Roman satirical tradition; the literature of the Late Empire.
No previous knowledge of ancient Greek / Roman literature, history and philosophy is assumed and all texts underpinning the teaching of this module can be studied in English translation.
Assessment details
2 x 2,000 word essays (50% each)
Teaching pattern
20 x 2-hour lecture (weekly); 20 x 1-hour seminar (weekly)
Suggested reading list
If you would like to familiarise yourselves with the broader scope of this module before coming up to university, here is a list of books you may want to browse.
All of them contain infinitely more information than you will ever need to use in the course of your degree, let alone in one first year module, but a preliminary look at a couple of these items, whichever you can easily lay hands on, will give you a good sense of direction and plenty of food for thought. Enjoy!
This is suggested reading and purchase of these books is not mandatory.
- T. Whitmarsh, Ancient Greek Literature (Cambridge 2004)
- P. E. Easterling and B. Knox (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature, vol. 1: Greek Literature (Cambridge 1989) - also published in separate paperback period specific volumes
- M. Hose and D.Schenker (eds), A Companion to Greek Literature (Blackwell, June 2013)
- S. M. Braund, Latin Literature (N. York and London 2002)
- G. B. Conte, Latin Literature (Baltimore 1994)
- E. Fantham, Roman Literary Culture from Cicero to Apuleius (Baltimore and London 1996).
- E. Kenney and W. Clausen, Cambridge History of Classical Literature, vol. 2: Latin Literature (Cambridge 1982) - also published in separate paperback period specific volumes
- S. Harrison (ed), A Companion to Latin Literature (Blackwell 2006)
- R. Rutherford, Classical Literature: A Concise History (Blackwell 2004)
- O. Taplin (ed.) Literature in the Greek and Roman World (Oxford 2000). NB. This invaluable book has also been published in two separate volumes, one for the Greek and one for the Roman period; these are in paperback, so easier to carry around.
The following two items are very general volumes on the Greek and Roman cultures and the numerous sub-disciplines (e.g. epigraphy, numismatics) associated with them. They are invaluable with respect to the breadth of their coverage, but go easy on them!
- G. Boys-Stones, B. Graziosi, and P. Vasunia (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Hellenic Studies (Oxford 2010)
- Barchiesi and W. Scheidel (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Roman Studies (Oxford 2010)