CCI 321, 01

CCI 321, 01 - The Archaic Age

Fall 1998 Syllabus

CCI 321, 01
TR 9:30-10:45
232 McIver Bldg.

Prof. Susan Shelmerdine
Office: 236 McIver Building
Office Hours: M 11, T 3:30 or by appointment
Phone: 334-5214; E-mail: shelmerd@hamlet.uncg.edu

Course Description:

In this course we will focus on the literature of the Archaic Age with particular attention to its cultural and historical context. The Archaic Age, from roughly 700-480 B.C., saw the development of the Greek alphabet and the use of writing for literary as well as political purposes, the expansion of the Greek world, the development of the polis, and the beginnings of early philosophical and scientific thought.

Student Learning Goals:

By the end of the course you should be able to

identify and explain differences among literary genres alive in this period
demonstrate an understanding of the major historical, cultural and political contexts of archaic Greek literature

Required Texts:

S. Lombardo, Hesiod, Works and Days, Theogony (Hackett 1993)
S.C. Shelmerdine, Homeric Hymns (Focus Press 1995)
A. Miller, Greek Lyric (Hackett 1996)
Coursepack - available from COPY POSTAL ONE, 801 W. Lee St.

Schedule of Assignments:

Tuesday, August 18:	Introduction; Historical Background Mycenaean Age, Dark Ages
Thursday, August 20:	Age of Heroes read: Homer, Iliad I (handout)
Tuesday, August 25:	The epic tradition and oral poetry read: Hesiod, Theogony and Early Poetic Fragments (in coursepack)
Thursday, August 27:	Age of Expansion read: read: Hesiod, Works and Days
Tuesday, September 1:	Post-Homeric hexameter read: Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite#5
Thursday, September 3:	Literary and Archaeological Evidence read: Homeric Hymn to Demeter#2
Tuesday, September 8:	Cult and Religion read: Homeric Hymn to Apollo#3
Thursday, September 10:	The Archaic Mind read: Homeric Hymn to Hermes#4
Tuesday, September 15:	Artistic expressions of myth; Archaic Vase Painting read: Shorter Hymns (as assigned in class)
Thursday, September 17:	*FIRST EXAMINATION*
Tuesday, September 22:	Ancient Manuscripts read: Archilochus poem (handout)
Thursday, September 24:	The Rise of the Individual; Blame Poetry read: Archilochus, Hipponax
Tuesday, September 29:	Blame Poetry (cont.) read: Archilochus (cont.), Semonides
Thursday, October 1:	Elegy; Choral Lyric read: Tyrtaeus, Callinus, Mimnermus
Tuesday, October 6:	Choral Lyric (cont.); Women in the Archaic World read: Alcman, Sappho, Corinna
Thursday, October 8:	Sappho and Her World read: Sappho; *and begin The Praise Singer*
Tuesday, October 13:	Fall Break
Thursday, October 15:	The Uses of the Past read: Alcaeus (#4, 10, 11)
Tuesday, October 20:	Life in the Archaic Age read: The Praise Singer
Thursday, October 22:	*SECOND EXAMINATION*
Tuesday, October 27:	Life in the Archaic Age read: The Praise Singer
Thursday, October 29:	Life in the Archaic Age read: The Praise Singer
Tuesday, November 3:	Rise of the Tyrants read: Alcaeus (#1, 5-9, 18), Solon (#5-6)
Thursday, November 5:	Poet and Polis read: Alcaeus (#3, 13-17, 20-22), Solon, Theognis
Tuesday, November 10:	Lyric Themes read: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Anacreon
Thursday, November 12:	Political Life read: Anacreon
Tuesday, November 17:	The Beginnings of Philosophy and Science read: Xenophanes, Heraclitus, others (in coursepack)
Thursday, November 19:	The New Poetry read: Simonides
Tuesday, November 24:	Poetry of Praise read: Pindar
Thursday, November 26:	Thanksgiving Break
Tuesday, December 1:	Poetry of Praise (cont.) read: Pindar, Bacchylides
Thursday, December 3:	The Dawn of the Classical Age read: Bacchylides

The final exam will be Thursday, December 10, from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. in 232 McIver Bldg.

Course Requirements:

All readings should be done before the class for which they are listed above. Regular attendance and participation in class is expected and I will take attendance every day. More than three absences during the semester may result in the lowering of your grade; if you have excessive absences you may be dropped from the class.

There will be two in-class exams, a final, one short report (on a piece of modern scholarship), and a project for this course. If you are ill on an exam day, please get someone to call and let me know that - otherwise no make-up work will be allowed.

Grading Procedures:

The following is a rough formula for your final grade, but may be altered in individual cases, e.g. if you show particular improvement (or the reverse!) during the term.

Class participation & Report - 10%
Project - 15%
In-class Exams - 40%
Final Exam - 35%

Reports:

Because this is a 300-level course, you will be expected to deal not only with original material (in English translation), but also to learn something about the existing scholarship on the Archaic Age. Each member of the class will therefore read a short article or book chapter and report on it to the class as a whole. These reports will be presented orally and should be no longer than 10 minutes, with an additional 5 minutes reserved for questions and discussion. The dates for these reports will vary depending on the topic you are presenting. Check the report link from the class web page for the schedule as we set it up.

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