CLST 272-001: Heroes and Classical Epics

Fall Semester 2007

How did "epic" conflicts get their name? Is "heroism" just about men and physical prowess? What makes a leader? Why did ancient Greeks, for a millennium and more, keep turning back to Homer's Iliad and Odyssey in order to define who they were and why it mattered? How did Roman self-fashioning pick up this tradition, and what form did Vergil give it, for ever after, in his Aeneid? This Core Literature course will base itself in close reading and analysis of cornerstone texts of ancient Western literature, in order to explore storytelling, mythology, social relations and gender, war, travel, loss, victory, and human aspiration. Class meetings will center on collaborative discussion, with some forays into creative performance of our own.

Our work will pursue three main aims (plus the fourth, of having fun with all of them):

To gain familiarity with three monumental epic poems. They were applauded in their own days as great artistic works. They became definitional for the genre of epic poetry about heroic action, throughout the European tradition and beyond it.
To extend literary understanding by recognizing how techniques of representation and storytelling shape the three epics - and the ways the epics present traditional stories about mythological figures in their cultural contexts. What works for one piece of literature will also apply to others, and to other forms of discourse, across time.
To practice critical thinking by exploring the resonances of the three epics, how the poets and their audiences lived in their world, what they understood and believed about it and the values they thought important. Literature, legend, religion, history, and art operate all together, in Classical antiquity just as they do now. The skills of multidimensional inquiry and integrative analysis that Classical Studies foster offer value in every endeavor.

Monday - Wednesday - Friday, 10:25-11:15 AM
Dumbach Hall 235
Dr. Jacqueline Long

Office Hours:
MWF 11:30am-12:00noon, Piper Hall 210
TTh 9:45am-10:15am, Crown Center 553
or by appointment

Telecommunication:
773-508-3654
jlong1@luc.edu

Texts

Homer, Iliad, tr. Robert Fagles (Viking Penguin)
Homer, Odyssey, tr. Robert Fagles (Viking Penguin)
Vergil*, Aeneid, tr. Robert Fagles (Penguin Group)
* also known as "Virgil" - a medieval pun we can discuss later

Schedule of Reading Assignments and Topics

Policies and Assessment

Performances and Performance-Papers

Additional Resources

Guide to Writing Academic Papers: strategic checklist.
Guide to Beginning Research on Topics in Classical Studies: suggestions and resources.
Loyola's Writing Program's statement of Grading Standards; see too the statement of qualities and criteria for grading papers from the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning of Harvard University (copyright 2002-2006 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College).
Apostrophes: basic principles worthy of respect.

Perseus Project: an evolving digital library for the study of the Greek and Roman worlds.
Diotima: a clearing-house of resources on the Internet for the study of women and gender in the ancient world - including much that is relevant to heroes and Classical epic.
Lacus Curtius, a treasurehouse of on-line resources for just about everything conceivably relating to Roman archaeology, compiled by Bill Thayer.

Loyola Homepage

Classical Studies Department

Find Loyolans

Loyola Site Index

Revised 23 July 2007 by jlong1@luc.edu
http://www.luc.edu/classicalstudies/

CLST 272-001: Heroes and Classical Epics

Fall Semester 2007

Monday - Wednesday - Friday, 10:25-11:15 AM Dumbach Hall 235 Dr. Jacqueline Long

Texts

Additional Resources

Monday - Wednesday - Friday, 10:25-11:15 AM
Dumbach Hall 235
Dr. Jacqueline Long