The Classics

Faculty of the Department of the Classics

Gregory Nagy, Francis Jones Professor of Classical Greek Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature (Chair)
Margaret Alexiou, George Seferis Professor of Modern Greek Studies and Professor of Comparative Literature (on leave spring term)
Kathleen M. Coleman, Professor of Latin
John Duffy, Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Byzantine Philology and Literature (Director of Graduate Studies)
Albert Henrichs, Eliot Professor of Greek Literature
Christopher P. Jones, George Martin Lane Professor of the Classics and of History
Ivy Livingston, Assistant Professor of the Classics (Director of Undergraduate Studies)
Nino Luraghi, Assistant Professor of the Classics, Assistant Professor in the Classics
David Gordon Mitten, James Loeb Professor of Classical Art and Archaeology
Gloria Ferrari Pinney, Professor of Classical Archaeology and Art (on leave spring term)
Eric W. Robinson, Assistant Professor of the Classics and of History
Panagiotis Roilos, Visiting Assistant Professor in Modern Greek
Mark Schiefsky, Assistant Professor of the Classics (on leave fall term)
Charles P. Segal, Walter C. Klein Professor of the Classics
Sarolta Takács, Associate Professor of the Classics
R. J. Tarrant, Harvard College Professor and Pope Professor of the Latin Language and Literature
Richard F. Thomas, Professor of Greek and Latin
Calvert Watkins, Victor S. Thomas Professor of Linguistics and the Classics
Jan Ziolkowski, Professor of Medieval Latin and Comparative Literature

Other Faculty Offering Instruction in the Department of the Classics

Ioli Kalavrezou, Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Byzantine Art (on leave fall term)
John E. Murdoch, Professor of the History of Science

Information about requirements for undergraduate and graduate degrees, honors, prizes, and scholarships may be obtained at the office of the Department, Boylston Hall 204. Graduate students in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences may enroll in certain foreign language courses for the grade of Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory. Students should consult with course heads or the department’s website (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~classics) to determine if a course is offered on that basis.

Classics

Primarily for Undergraduates

*Classics 93r. Advanced Tutorial for Credit
Catalog Number: 0511
Ivy Livingston and members of the Department
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Tutorial instruction for course credit open to candidates for honors who are qualified to do special reading projects in Greek and/or Latin.
Note: May be counted for concentration.

*Classics 97r. Tutorial — Sophomore Year
Catalog Number: 5175
Ivy Livingston and assistants
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Weekly meetings of small groups of students with a tutor for the detailed reading and translation of selected texts; in addition, monthly colloquia, on the various disciplines within the field of Classics.
Note: May be counted for concentration.

*Classics 98r. Tutorial — Junior Year
Catalog Number: 6100
Ivy Livingston and members of the Department
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Fall: Tu., 1–4. Spring: Th., 1–4. EXAM GROUP: Spring: 15, 16, 17
Tutorial instruction for course credit (in addition to ordinary tutorial instruction) is open to concentrators in their junior year whose applications for such instruction have been approved by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Note: May be counted for concentration.

*Classics 99. Tutorial — Senior Year
Catalog Number: 2350
Ivy Livingston and members of the Department
Full course. Hours to be arranged.
Tutorial instruction for course credit (in addition to ordinary tutorial instruction) is open only to candidates for honors writing a thesis in their senior year whose applications for such instruction have been approved by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Note: May be counted for concentration. Divisible only with permission of the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Cross-listed Courses

[Celtic 205r. Readings in Early Irish Prose]
Classics 140. The Fall of the Roman Republic
[*Comparative Literature 207. Theory and Methods in Comparative Oral Traditions: Seminar]
*Comparative Literature 287r. Selected Topics in Poetics and Rhetoric: Seminar
[History 1063. Intolerance and Persecution in the Roman Empire: Conference Course]
[History 1064. The 3rd Century: Texts and Problems: Conference Course]
History 1071. Introduction to Greek History
History 1085. The Roman Empire, Augustus to Constantine
[History 1088. The Mediterranean, Alexander to Antony]
[Literature and Arts A-68. Poets and Poetry in the Celtic Literary Tradition]
Literature and Arts B-21. The Images of Alexander the Great
Literature and Arts C-14. The Concept of the Hero in Greek Civilization
Literature and Arts C-22. European Culture in the Latin Middle Ages
Literature and Arts C-61. The Rome of Augustus
Medieval Studies 101 (formerly History 2277). The Auxiliary Disciplines of Medieval History: Proseminar
[Medieval Studies 105. Production of Manuscripts and Printed Books Before 1600]
[Medieval Studies 117. Constitutional and Legal History of Medieval England]
Medieval Studies 119. Constitutional and Legal History of Medieval Continental Europe
Philosophy 102. Aristotle
*Philosophy 107. Plato’s Republic: Proseminar
*Philosophy 201. Plato on Falsehood and Not-Being: Seminar

For Undergraduates and Graduates

Classics 140. The Fall of the Roman Republic
Catalog Number: 9989
Eric W. Robinson
Half course (fall term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
A chronological study of the most significant events of the late Republican era, including the reform efforts of the Gracchi, the rise of Marius and Sulla, Cicero and Catiline, the first triumvirate, and ultimately the wars waged by Caesar for control of Rome and his subsequent assassination.

Classics 142. The Western Greeks
Catalog Number: 9356
Nino Luraghi
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 13
The history and culture of the Greek cities in Sicily and Southern Italy (Magna Graecia) from their origins to the Roman conquest. Particular emphasis on the use of archaeological excavations and monuments as sources for cultural, social and economic history.

Classics 145. Ancient Greek Tyranny
Catalog Number: 2008
Nino Luraghi
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 13
The origins and development of monarchical power in the world of the Greek polis. The course will discuss tyranny from the point of view of political history as well as mentality. Written sources will be read in translation.
Note: Additional reading section offered for students with knowledge of ancient Greek.

Classics 155. Roman Games
Catalog Number: 2490
Kathleen M. Coleman
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 9. EXAM GROUP: 2
Examines the evidence for gladiatorial combat, wild-beast fights, executions, and aquatic displays in the Roman world, exploring the social and political context in which they developed. The evidence to be studied includes literary sources, inscriptions, coins, mosaics, pottery, and selected archaeological sites where the spectacles were performed. A translation is supplied for source-material in Greek and Latin.

[Classics 163. Virgil and His Reception]
Catalog Number: 8346
Richard F. Thomas
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Study of the Virgil tradition from antiquity through the 20th century. Lectures and discussion on the Eclogues, Georgics, and Aeneid, and on a variety of points of reception: post-Virgilian epic (Ovid, Lucan, Statius), the ancient and medieval commentary tradition (Servius and Donatus), Christian reception; impact on European vernacular traditions (Dido romance to Dante, Ariosto, Tasso, Spenser and Milton); humanistic response (Maffeo Vegio to Petrarch); translation as hermeneutics (Gavin Douglas to Dryden and beyond); Virgilian reception in art and music.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. May be counted as a language course for Classics concentrators.

Classics 165. Ancient Greek Medicine
Catalog Number: 6835
Mark Schiefsky
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., at 12. EXAM GROUP: 14
Theory and practice of ancient Greek, especially Hippocratic, medicine, with particular attention to the interactions between “rational” medicine, ancient philosophy and religious healing.

Classics 170. Euripides’ Bakkhai and the Modern Dionysos
Catalog Number: 0850
Albert Henrichs
Half course (spring term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Diachronic readings of Euripides’ Bakkhai and its representation of Dionysos and the Dionysiac, with focus on the play’s role in the formation of modern approaches to the god from Nietzsche and Pater to the present.

[Classics 190. Approaches to Classical and Indo-European Poetics]
Catalog Number: 0712
Calvert Watkins
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 12
Basic principles of poetics, and of linguistic approaches to archaic forms of literature in early Indo-European societies. Close readings of selected texts in Greek, Latin, and other languages.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. Open without prerequisite to students of the Classics, and also to students of other ancient or medieval Indo-European languages.

Greek


Students who have studied classical Greek previously should register at the Department of the Classics, Boylston Hall 204, to take the Harvard placement test in Greek during Freshman Week. Further information on placement in Greek and on the language requirement is available from the Director of Undergraduate Studies (Boylston Hall 214).

Primarily for Undergraduates

Greek A. Beginning Greek
Catalog Number: 0129
Gregory Nagy and assistants
Half course (fall term). Sections I and II, M., W., F., at 9; Section III, M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 10
Elements of the Greek language and introductory readings.

Greek Aab. Beginning Greek (Intensive)
Catalog Number: 0714
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Full course (spring term). M., through F., at 9; M., at 1. EXAM GROUP: 2, 6, 11
For students with little or no previous instruction in Greek who are seriously interested in making quick progress in the language. Covers all basic grammar and considerable practice in reading prose. Students are prepared for Greek 3 or 4.

Greek B. Beginning Greek
Catalog Number: 0457
---------- and assistants
Half course (spring term). Section I: M., W., F., at 9; Section II: M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 10
Continuation of Greek A. Extensive reading in Attic prose.
Prerequisite: Greek A or equivalent.

Greek 3. Introduction to Attic Prose
Catalog Number: 4696
Albert Henrichs and assistant
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 1. EXAM GROUP: 6
Selections from several authors, mainly of narrative and dialogue, to be read both as an introduction to the variety of Greek styles and for practice in translation and review of grammar.
Prerequisite: Greek B or equivalent.

Greek 4. Selections from Homer’s Iliad
Catalog Number: 3361
Gregory Nagy and assistant
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 4
An introduction to Homeric poetry: language, meter, formulae, and type scenes.
Prerequisite: Greek 3 or equivalent.

For Undergraduates and Graduates

Greek H. Introductory Greek Prose Composition
Catalog Number: 6323
---------- and assistant
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 9. EXAM GROUP: 2
Practice in the translation of sentences and connected prose passages into Attic Greek; review of forms and syntax; readings of selections from prose authors.
Prerequisite: Greek 3 or equivalent.

[Greek K. Advanced Greek Prose Composition]
Catalog Number: 4171
---------
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
A study of Greek style. Written compositions in various styles, chiefly those of Demosthenes and Plato, with selected reading representing the development of classical prose. Translations and original essays.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.
Prerequisite: Greek H or equivalent.

[Greek 102. Attic Orators]
Catalog Number: 3103
Albert Henrichs
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Extensive reading in Lysias, Isocrates, and Demosthenes, with emphasis on style, rhetorical devices, and political background. Selections based on undergraduate and graduate reading lists.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Greek 104. Herodotus
Catalog Number: 6340
Nino Luraghi
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 12. EXAM GROUP: 5
An introduction to Herodotus’ dialect and style, concept of history, authorial voice and narrative strategies, and his representation of non-Greek cultures. Selections from the entire Histories read in English.

Greek 105. Aristophanes
Catalog Number: 1969
Albert Henrichs
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 4
Readings of Akharnians, Clouds, and Frogs, with an emphasis on genre, the polis, and the role of the chorus.

[Greek 106. Greek Tragedy]
Catalog Number: 6274
Gregory Nagy
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 14
Introduction to Attic tragedy, with attention to dramatic character, divine agency, and the role of the chorus. Reading of Aeschylus’ Agamemnon and Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Greek 107. Thucydides
Catalog Number: 8281
Eric W. Robinson
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 1. EXAM GROUP: 6
An introduction, combining detailed study of Thucydides’ style and rhetorical technique with attention to his sources and methods of composition. The entire History read in English; selections in Greek from the prefatory material, the speeches in Books I–III, the debates over Mytilene and Melos, and the narrative of the Sicilian disaster.
Note: Expected to be omitted in 2000–01.

Greek 110r. Plato’s Phaedrus
Catalog Number: 6229
Mark Schiefsky
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
Close reading of the Phaedrus with particular attention to Plato’s use of the techne model and the parallels between medicine, rhetoric and philosophy.

[Greek 111. Euripides]
Catalog Number: 0919
Gregory Nagy
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., at 12. EXAM GROUP: 14
A close reading of the Bacchae and the Hippolytus.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Greek 112a. History of Greek Literature I
Catalog Number: 3052
Gregory Nagy
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 11, and a one-hour section to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 4
This course offers a survey of Greek literature from Homer to the beginnings of tragedy, with special attention to literary structure and form, social context, and oral poetics. Readings will include selections from Iliad, Odyssey, Hesiod, Homeric hymns, Greek lyric poets, Pindar, Bacchylides, and the tragedians. The course will be conducted through informal lectures, with close attention to the Greek texts as time permits.

Greek 112b. History of Greek Literature II
Catalog Number: 6889
Charles P. Segal
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 12, and a one-hour section to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 5
The 5th century and beyond, Comedy, Historiography, and Oratory.

[Greek 115. Homer: The Odyssey]
Catalog Number: 3036
Charles P. Segal
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 12
Reading of several books of The Odyssey, emphasizing oral tradition and its application to Homer.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

[Greek 116r. Greek Lyric Poetry]
Catalog Number: 4575
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Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 14
Selections from the lyric and elegiac poets (in D. A. Campbell) from Archilochos to Simonides, with choral selections from Pindar and Bacchylides.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Greek 118. Hesiod and the Homeric Hymns
Catalog Number: 8353
Charles P. Segal
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 1. EXAM GROUP: 6
Reading of large portions of Hesiod’s Theogony, selections from the Works and Days, and the longer Homeric Hymns. Particular attention to narrative techniques, poetics, myth, and connections with the Iliad and Odyssey.

Greek 134. The Language of Homer
Catalog Number: 5139
Calvert Watkins
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 12
Essentials of Greek comparative and historical grammar, and a close reading of Iliad 1 and 3. Diachronic aspects of Homeric grammar and diction.

Latin


Students who have studied Latin previously and have not taken the Advanced Placement Test should register at the Office of Instructional Research and Evaluation (20 Garden Street) to take the Harvard Latin Placement Test during Freshman Week. No one who has studied one year or more of Latin will be admitted to Latin A without taking the placement test. Further information on placement in Latin and the language requirement is available from the Director of Graduate Studies in Classics (Boylston Hall 214), or the Freshman Dean’s Office.

Primarily for Undergraduates

Latin A. Beginning Latin
Catalog Number: 4759
Richard F. Thomas and assistants
Half course (fall term). Section I: M., W., F., at 9; Section II: M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 10
Intended for students who wish to learn, or reacquaint themselves with, the basic elements of the Latin language. Reading of sentences and very brief passages from Latin authors.

Latin Aab. Beginning Latin (Intensive)
Catalog Number: 7111
Kathleen M. Coleman
Full course (fall term; repeated spring term). M., through F., at 10; M., at 1. EXAM GROUP: 3
For students with little or no previous instruction in Latin who are seriously interested in making quick progress in the language. Covers all basic grammar and considerable practice in reading prose. Students are prepared for Latin 4.

Latin B. Beginning Latin
Catalog Number: 2101
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Half course (spring term). Section I: M., W., F., at 9; Section II, M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 10
Continuation of Latin A. Completion of basic grammar and introduction to reading of connected texts.

Latin 3. Latin Prose Selections (Classical)
Catalog Number: 2344
R. J. Tarrant and assistant
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
This course is a bridge between the study of Latin grammar and the reading of prose authors. The readings are short selections from a variety of genres by authors such as Cicero, Pliny, Nepos, Sallust, and Petronius.
Note: Latin 3 and Latin 3m are intended to be equivalent in difficulty and to require identical background (Latin A and B or the equivalent). Students may take either 3 or 3m for degree credit; they are not allowed to take both courses simultaneously or consecutively.

Latin 3m. Latin Prose Selections (Medieval)
Catalog Number: 7123
Jan Ziolkowski and assistant
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
Begins with a review of fundamentals. Aims at increased facility in reading Latin, through a study of selected post-classical prose texts: Vulgate Bible, Augustine’s Confessions, and Abelard’s writings.
Note: Latin 3 and Latin 3m are intended to be equivalent in difficulty and to require identical background (Latin A and B or the equivalent). Students may take either 3 or 3m for degree credit; they are not allowed to take both courses simultaneously or consecutively.

Latin 4. Introduction to Latin Poetry
Catalog Number: 2488
Ivy Livingston and assistants
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
Selections mainly from Ovid and Virgil.

For Undergraduates and Graduates

Latin H. Introductory Latin Prose Composition
Catalog Number: 3814
Sarolta Takács and assistant
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 12. EXAM GROUP: 5
Practice in the translation of sentences and connected prose passages into Latin. Study of idiom and practice in translation for those who wish to acquire an accurate knowledge of Latin expression and construction.
Prerequisite: Latin 3 or equivalent.

Latin K. Advanced Latin Prose Composition
Catalog Number: 5018
Richard F. Thomas
Half course (spring term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
A study of the development of Latin prose style. Written compositions in various styles, combined with close reading and discussion of passages in Cato, Cicero, Sallust, Livy, Tacitus, and others.

Latin 102a. Catullus and Horace
Catalog Number: 7558
Charles P. Segal
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
Reading and analysis of the poems of Catullus and Horace.
Note: Open to advanced first-year undergraduates.

[Latin 103. Latin Elegy]
Catalog Number: 5435
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Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Selections from Propertius, Tibullus, and Ovid’s Amores.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

[Latin 104. Ovid: Metamorphoses]
Catalog Number: 5994
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Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Ovid’s storytelling and techniques: language, links between scenes, and use of myth.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Latin 105. The Letters of Cicero and Pliny
Catalog Number: 0939
Kathleen M. Coleman
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 12
Selections from the letters of Cicero and Pliny. Topics to be considered include the social and historical background, epistolography as a form of self-presentation, and its relation to other literary types such as autobiography.

[Latin 106a. Virgil: Eclogues and Georgics]
Catalog Number: 1456
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Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Latin 106b. Virgil: Aeneid
Catalog Number: 7069
Richard F. Thomas
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
Reading and discussion of Virgil’s Aeneid, with attention to its place in the epic tradition and its status as a work of Augustan literature.

[Latin 108. Cicero and Sallust on Catiline]
Catalog Number: 5015
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Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Readings of Cicero’s Catilinarian Orations and Sallust’s Catilinarian Conspiracy with attention to the style, oratorical and historiographical techniques, and differences in the two accounts.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

[Latin 111a. Horace: Satires and Epistles]
Catalog Number: 3348
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Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Latin 112a. History of Latin Literature I
Catalog Number: 7099
Richard F. Thomas
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 10, and a one-hour section to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 3
The literature of the Republic and early Augustan period. Reading of extensive selections from the major authors, with lectures and discussion on the evolution and development of Latin prose and poetry. The couse focuses on a variety of issues: Latin individuality through manipulation of inherited Greek forms, metrical and stylistic developments, evolving poetics, intertextuality and genre renewal, dynamic effects of social and political contexts.

Latin 112b. History of Latin Literature II
Catalog Number: 7643
R. J. Tarrant
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 11, and a one-hour section to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 4
The literature of the Empire. Reading of selections from major authors, with lectures on the changing traditions and the background of Latin poetry and prose in the period.

Latin 115. Tacitus
Catalog Number: 7536
Christopher P. Jones
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 4
An introduction to the life and works of Cornelius Tacitus, with emphasis on style and historiographical method. Readings mainly from the Histories Books I and II.

Latin 117. Livy
Catalog Number: 1279
Nino Luraghi
Half course (spring term). M., W., F., at 12. EXAM GROUP: 5
An introduction to Livy’s style and historical methods, with attention to Livy’s place in the tradition of Roman historiography. Readings mainly from the narrative of early Rome and the war with Hannibal.

[Latin 124. The Roman Novel]
Catalog Number: 2684
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Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
An introduction to the Roman novel and its place in the larger context of Latin literature and culture. Readings from Petronius’ Satyricon, Apuleius’ Metamorphoses, Historia Apollonii regis Tyri, and, in translation, Lucius, or The Ass, Xenophon’s Ephesiaca, and Longus’ Daphnis and Chloe.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

[Latin 134. Archaic Latin]
Catalog Number: 1327
Ivy Livingston
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Essentials of Latin comparative and historical grammar, with readings of early Latin inscriptions, legal texts, and selections from Livius Andronicus, Plautus, Ennius, and Cato.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

[Latin 160. Roman Comedy]
Catalog Number: 5520
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Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Reading and discussion of Plautus’ Menaechmi and Terence’s Adelphoe, with particular attention to the language of the plays.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Classics for Graduates

200-Level Seminars

Classics 245. Mythology
Catalog Number: 7599
Sarolta Takács
Half course (spring term). F., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
This course will focus on ancient and modern conceptions of myth and mythology. Questions of methodology (comparative mythology, psychoanalysis, structuralism, Rome’s Istituto di Studi storico-religiosi, Vernant, Vidal Naquet, Detienne, Burkert, Versnel) as well as the intersections of myth and religion and myth and rituals will be addressed. Issues of curricular development will form an integral part of each week’s session. Primary sources will include: Hesiod’s Theogony, Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Fasti, as well as archaeological, iconographic, numismatic, and epigraphic evidence.

Classics 248. Greek Choral Lyric Poetry
Catalog Number: 1907
Gregory Nagy
Half course (spring term). Tu., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
An intensive study of the language and conventions of the genres and sub-genres, with special attention to the choral lyric poetry of Pindar, Bacchylides, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes.

Classics 256. Autobiography: Representations of the Self in Greek and Roman Antiquity
Catalog Number: 6915
Albert Henrichs
Half course (fall term). Tu., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
Why did Greeks and Romans reflect on their own lives? How did they construct their own identity? Was there a genre ‘autobiography’? Narrative, religious and cultural aspects of first-person life stories of fictional and historical characters: Odysseus and Oedipus; Sokrates in Plato’s Apology; Augustus, Res Gestae and Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book I; the life of Mani, the founder of Manichaeism, and Augustine’s Confessions.

Classics 260. Early Latin Poetry
Catalog Number: 3695
Ivy Livingston
Half course (fall term). Th., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
The fragments of Livius, Naevius, Ennius and others will be studied in their social and literary historical context, with attention to the development of genre in Latin literature, as well as to the linguistic, stylistic, and metrical features of the texts.

Classics 270. Greek Views of Rome
Catalog Number: 3084
Christopher P. Jones
Half course (spring term). Th., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
Studies Greek authors, both prose and verse, who discuss relations between Rome and Greece, and reveal Greek attitudes to Roman power, between the second century BCE and the second century CE. Works to be considered include Melinno, Hymn to Rome; Plutarch, Life of Flamininus; selections from the Greek Anthology; and Aelius Aristides, To Rome.

Classics 287. Augustan Questions
Catalog Number: 7722
R. J. Tarrant
Half course (fall term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Selected topics in the historiography, literature, and art of the Augustan principate.

Graduate Courses of Reading and Research

*Classics 300. Direction of Doctoral Dissertations
Catalog Number: 4543
Margaret Alexiou 1214 (on leave spring term), Kathleen M. Coleman 2289, John Duffy 1352, Albert Henrichs 4085, Christopher P. Jones 3204, Ivy Livingston 2293, Nino Luraghi 2408, David Gordon Mitten 1290, Gregory Nagy 1423, Gloria Ferrari Pinney 1384 (on leave spring term), Eric W. Robinson 2724, Panagiotis Roilos 1982, Mark Schiefsky 2354 (on leave fall term), Charles P. Segal 2596, Sarolta Takács 3474, R. J. Tarrant 7503, Richard F. Thomas 1630, Calvert Watkins 2553, and Jan Ziolkowski 7275

*Classics 301. Reading or Topics Course
Catalog Number: 3457
Margaret Alexiou 1214 (on leave spring term), Kathleen M. Coleman 2289, John Duffy 1352, Albert Henrichs 4085, Christopher P. Jones 3204, Ivy Livingston 2293, Nino Luraghi 2408, David Gordon Mitten 1290, Gregory Nagy 1423, Gloria Ferrari Pinney 1384 (on leave spring term), Eric W. Robinson 2724, Panagiotis Roilos 1982, Mark Schiefsky 2354 (on leave fall term), Charles P. Segal 2596, Sarolta Takács 3474, R. J. Tarrant 7503, Richard F. Thomas 1630, Calvert Watkins 2553, and Jan Ziolkowski 7275
Note: For graduate students whose individual needs are not met by the formal courses offered.

*Classics 302. Special Examinations Direction
Catalog Number: 2686
Margaret Alexiou 1214 (on leave spring term), Kathleen M. Coleman 2289, John Duffy 1352, Albert Henrichs 4085, Christopher P. Jones 3204, Ivy Livingston 2293, Nino Luraghi 2408, David Gordon Mitten 1290, Gregory Nagy 1423, Gloria Ferrari Pinney 1384 (on leave spring term), Eric W. Robinson 2724, Panagiotis Roilos 1982, Mark Schiefsky 2354 (on leave fall term), Charles P. Segal 2596, Sarolta Takács 3474, R. J. Tarrant 7503, Richard F. Thomas 1630, Calvert Watkins 2553, and Jan Ziolkowski 7275

*Classics 350. Classical Philology: Proseminar
Catalog Number: 4026
John Duffy 1352 and Gregory Nagy 1423
Half course (fall term). M., 1–3.
Designed to introduce graduate students in Classical Philology to the essential fields, tools, and methodologies of the discipline.
Note: For first-year students working toward the Ph.D. in Classical Philology. Open to other students by permission of instructor.

Cross-listed Courses

[*Comparative Literature 207. Theory and Methods in Comparative Oral Traditions: Seminar]

Medieval Greek


For Medieval Greek history see History 1211a and 1211b.

For Undergraduates and Graduates

Medieval Greek 115ar. Introduction to Byzantine Greek
Catalog Number: 7682
John Duffy
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 13
Introduces the student to medieval Greek language and literature and, through selected readings, to important elements of Byzantine culture and society. Texts chosen from different genres and periods to reflect the great diversity of Byzantine life and letters. Types of literature will include: devotional reading, biographies, chronicles, sacred and secular poetry, letters, ecphraseis, scholarly writings, and histories. Choice of readings will correspond in part to the specific interests and needs of the participants.
Prerequisite: Greek A and B or equivalent.

[Medieval Greek 120. Readings in the Cappadocian Fathers]
Catalog Number: 3786
John Duffy
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Close reading of selections from the Christian “classics” of the fourth century: Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzos, and Gregory of Nyssa. A guiding motif will be Hellenic paideia and Christian culture.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.
Prerequisite: Greek A and B or equivalent.

Medieval Greek 175. The Byzantine Chronographic Tradition
Catalog Number: 0659
John Duffy
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., at 1. EXAM GROUP: 15
Readings in Greek from the Byzantine chronographic tradition as represented by authors ranging from John Malalas (6th c.) to George the Monk (9th c.) The chronicle considered as distinct genre of literature, vehicle of information, and form of narrative entertainment.

Cross-listed Courses

Medieval Studies 101 (formerly History 2277). The Auxiliary Disciplines of Medieval History: Proseminar

Primarily for Graduates

Medieval Greek 274. Early Byzantine Hagiography
Catalog Number: 5117
John Duffy
Half course (spring term). Tu., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 18
The development of the genre of Christian biography and comparison with its antique counterpart. Reading and analyzing representative lives of holy men and women from the 4th to the 7th century, in both urban and remote settings.

[Medieval Greek 284. Saints’ Lives of the 8th to 10th Century]
Catalog Number: 5892
John Duffy
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Medieval Latin

For Undergraduates and Graduates

[Medieval Latin 115. Medieval Latin Lyric Poetry]
Catalog Number: 1010
Jan Ziolkowski
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 6
Surveys Latin lyric poems, both religious and secular, written in the Middle Ages. Examines selected hymns (from Ambrose through Abelard to the Stabat Mater and Dies Irae). Considers collections of secular lyrics (the Cambridge Songs and Carmina Burana, among others). Special issues include formation of songbooks, performance situations, and music.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.
Prerequisite: Completion of Latin 4 or other preparation in Latin satisfactory to the instructor.

[Medieval Latin 116. Medieval Latin Epic and Romance]
Catalog Number: 4122
Jan Ziolkowski
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Considers reception of Classical Latin epics (such as allegorizing, centoization, and mock epic), creation of Christian epic forms (Bible epic, personification allegory, and development of distinctly medieval genres (Germanic heroic epic, romance, beast epic).
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.
Prerequisite: Completion of Latin 4 or other preparation in Latin satisfactory to the instructor.

Medieval Latin 117. Fairy Tales and their Tellers in the Middle Ages
Catalog Number: 3179
Jan Ziolkowski
Half course (spring term). M., 1–3. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7
Examines folktales preserved in Medieval Latin and compares them with versions in Grimm, Andersen, and other 19th-century collections. Considers storytellers (old women, peasants, travelers, and professionals), their audiences, and their messages.
Prerequisite: Completion of Latin 4 or other preparation in Latin satisfactory to the instructor.

[Medieval Latin 120. Wisdom and Learning]
Catalog Number: 4019
Jan Ziolkowski
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7
Examines literature in which earthly wisdom and book learning are contrasted or conflated. Explores interaction among biblical, classical, and native (especially Germanic and Celtic) traditions of wisdom. Works include Solomon and Marcolf, mirrors for princes, proverbs, and question-and-answer dialogues.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. No prior experience with Medieval Latin necessary.

[Medieval Latin 150. Abelard and Heloise]
Catalog Number: 3240
Jan Ziolkowski
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7
Studies a twelfth-century couple whose lives and writings left lasting marks on European culture. Besides selections from personal correspondence, examines parts of the Sic et non and Abelard’s ethical writings, hymns, and lament poems. Close reading of Abelard’s letters to correspondents other than Heloise. Considers reputation of Abelard and Heloise in later centuries.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. No prior experience with Medieval Latin necessary.

Cross-listed Courses

*Comparative Literature 280. Literary Theory and Criticism in the Middle Ages: Seminar
Latin 3m. Latin Prose Selections (Medieval)
Literature and Arts C-22. European Culture in the Latin Middle Ages

Classical Archaeology

For Undergraduates and Graduates

[Classical Archaeology 131. Introduction to Greek Art and Archaeology, ca. 1200–300 BCE]
Catalog Number: 0835
David Gordon Mitten
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 5
The origins and development of Greek architecture, sculpture, and painting; the growth of cities and sanctuaries; religious mythological and narrative art, including monumental painting, mosaics, and vase painting. The development of archaeological research in Greek lands; current problems, such as the nature of Greek relationships with non-Greek peoples, and the Macedonian tombs. Readings, short papers on original works of art in Boston area museums, and a research paper.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Classical Archaeology 136. Archaeology of the Agean Bronze Age
Catalog Number: 7582
David Gordon Mitten
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., 11–12:30. EXAM GROUP: 13, 14
The beginnings of civilization in Greece and the Aegean islands; palaces and towns of Crete and Greece; wall paintings, pottery, ivory- and metal-work; trade with Egypt and the East, burial customs, religion, writing (Linear B); the Trojan War and the Homeric tradition.

[Classical Archaeology 140. The Parthenon]
Catalog Number: 8973
Gloria Ferrari Pinney
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 13
From their construction to their recent evocation in Nashville, the Parthenon and the colossal statue of Athena it housed have held a special place in the history of Western civilization, where they have come to symbolize fundamental cultural ideals. This course offers a view into the making of the myth by restoring the temple to the specific historical and political circumstances of its creation. As much as the surviving evidence allows, we trace planning, financing, and construction; we examine how the temple functioned as the site of cult and civic display; and we discuss the themes that make up its sculptural decoration in relationship to contemporary Athenian ideology.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

[Classical Archaeology 145. The Representation of Women in Ancient Greece]
Catalog Number: 8969
Gloria Ferrari Pinney
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 15
The materials of this course are archaic and classical painted vases and sculptures and selected literary texts (in translation). Through both visual and literary imagery basic notions about female gender in ancient Greece will be explored, such as the nature of female beauty, categories of age, the importance of modesty, the conception of marriage.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Classical Archaeology 150. Archaic Greece
Catalog Number: 9899
Gloria Ferrari Pinney
Half course (fall term). M., W., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 4
“The remarkable developments of the eighth century in Greec...seem almost all to be centered round an abstract idea: the new conception of the state”, writes Snodgrass in Archaic Greece. This course will focus selectively on major visual aspects of this new conception -- the sanctuary, the grave, and figural, narrative representations. Emphasis will be placed on particular moments, with the aim to locate them within the cultural structure that produced them, and to explore the way in which they articulate notions about the past, and definitions of national identity and of citizenship.

Classical Archaeology 160. Vase-painting and Iconography
Catalog Number: 7289
Gloria Ferrari Pinney
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 13
The painted vases constitute a rich body of evidence for the study of the history, art, and culture of ancient Greece. Historians and archaeologists rely on ceramics to establish dates and to chart contacts in the Mediterranean. For the art historian the vases open a bright window, albeit a narrow one, on the development of the visual arts. Most importantly, they preserve thousands of figural representations, which are invaluable sources of knowledge for the conceptual universe of the society that produced them. Introduction to this specialized field, with emphasis on typology as well as issues of method and interpretation. The material considered spans the centuries from the Early Iron Age to the end of the fifth century BCE.

Classical Archaeology 180. Coinage, Politics, and Economy in the Greek World
Catalog Number: 1746
David Gordon Mitten
Half course (spring term). M., 3–5. EXAM GROUP: 8, 9
The development and use of Greek coinage surveyed in connection with its impact upon the political, social, and economic life of the Greek states down to the consolidation of Roman rule in the eastern Mediterranean region. The importance of Greek coins as evidence for historical, religious, artistic, social, and archaeological problems in Greek civilization is emphasized. As circumstances permit, coins from the Fogg Art Museum collection will serve as research material.
Note: Open to qualified undergraduates as well as to students of the Harvard Divinity School.
Prerequisite: Some previous work in classical literature or archaeology or ancient history.

Primarily for Graduates

[Classical Archaeology 240. Archaic Mythological Narrative: The François Vase]
Catalog Number: 6187
David Gordon Mitten
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
The Athenian black-figure volute krater called the François Vase, made in Athens ca. 570 B.C.E. and found in Chiusi, Italy, with its network of narrative problems in archaic Greek art history and culture: relation of text to image, patronage, development of iconographic programs, function related to elite social institutions such as the symposium (men’s drinking party), and relation of myth, cult, and ritual.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. Qualified undergraduates welcome.

[Classical Archaeology 241. Narrative in Ancient Greek Art]
Catalog Number: 4461
Gloria Ferrari Pinney
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 15, 16
In the history of ancient art, major issues concerning the structure of visual narrative and their relationship to the structure of texts were exposed in a landmark study by Carl Robert in 1881. With few, albeit important exceptions, discussions of this important subject since then have largely remained within the parameters set by Robert. This seminar will re-examine that tradition of scholarly inquiry and move on to explore what theories of narrative that have shaped literary and art historical studies may contribute to the interpretation of ancient Greek modes of visual narrative.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Cross-listed Courses

[Religion 2348ab. Archaeology and the World of the New Testament: Seminar]

Modern Greek

For Undergraduates and Graduates

Modern Greek A. Elementary Modern Greek
Catalog Number: 8604
Panagiotis Roilos and assistant
Full course. M., W., F., at 10, and a fourth hour for conversation. Laboratory, both terms. EXAM GROUP: 3
For students with no knowledge of modern Greek. Basic oral expression, listening comprehension, grammar, reading, and writing. Language instruction is supplemented by reading of simple literary passages and other texts.

Modern Greek B. Intermediate Modern Greek: Language and Civilization
Catalog Number: 8187
Panagiotis Roilos and assistant
Full course. M., W., F., at 11. EXAM GROUP: 4
For students with an elementary knowledge of modern Greek (equivalent to that acquired in Modern Greek A). Aims at further development of skills in speaking, comprehension, reading, and writing. Selected readings in prose (literary and journalistic), poetry, folksongs, modern music, and theatre serve as an introduction to aspects of modern Greek literature and culture. The second semester is conducted in Greek and focuses on topics selected by the instructor and the students in the first term. Grammar is reviewed in the context of readings.

Modern Greek C. Advanced Modern Greek: Supervised Readings
Catalog Number: 8487
Panagiotis Roilos
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Advanced reading in topics agreed upon by instructor and students.
Note: Students must have completed Modern Greek B or equivalent and must have permission of the instructor. No Pass/Fail.

[Modern Greek 116. Greek Songs and European Ballads]
Catalog Number: 1239
Margaret Alexiou
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
A comparative approach to narrative songs, with particular on their relation to mythology and the other world. How are stories told in song? Why do Greek (and other Balkan) songs play on paradox and parody, whereas Scottish, English and other classic ballads seem more tragic/romantic? In what different ways has the ballad interacted with literary prose and poetry (select examples)? And what about the music? These and other questions will be explored, with reference to available archival materials as well as to the major collections. We shall also survey the development of folklore studies in relation to modern nation state formation.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. All texts are available in English; no prior knowledge of Greek (or musical expertise) will be assumed. Intended primarily for undergraduates and graduates in Anthropology, Folklore and Mythology, Classics, Comparative Literature, Literature Concentration. Celticists particularly welcome.

Modern Greek 117. Laments
Catalog Number: 2754
Margaret Alexiou
Half course (fall term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
The lament as a ritual performance has virtually disappeared from modern civilization. The Greek-speaking world, with its living folk traditions and 3000-year-old recorded history, can help us to explore: the diverse forms of the genre, expressed primarily by women since time immemorial; the interactions between orality and literacy, ritual and poetry; and the dynamics for social protest. Sources will include literature (e.g. epic, tragedy, lyric), iconography, and musical performances (folk songs, field recordings), drawn diachronically from Greek and other cultures. Comparative and anthropological perspectives will be applied throughout.
Note: All materials will be available in English translation, although students will be encouraged to read in the originals where possible.

[Modern Greek 119. Dreams and Literature]
Catalog Number: 4170
Margaret Alexiou
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Against the dual background of ancient and medieval commentaries on the one hand, and modern psychoanalytic and ethnographic studies on the other, diverse literary texts will be explored. The major focus will be on modern Greek literature and oral culture, but examples from ancient and Byzantine literature will also be considered, alongside comparative examples from other literatures and cultures (including film). Major topics: typology of dreams; dreams as narratives; religious dimensions. Theoretical readings to include: Aristotle, Aelius Aristides, Artemidoros, Synesios; Freud, Jung, Levi-Strauss, Turner, Foucault, Lyotard.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01. Key texts available in translation; graduate students to do extra readings in the original Greek.

Modern Greek 124. Imagining the Ancients: The Classical Tradition in Modern Greek Literature
Catalog Number: 5296
Panagiotis Roilos
Half course (spring term). Tu., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
Ancient Greece has always exerted an “anxiety of influence” on Modern Greek cultural and political life. Examples drawn mainly from Koraes, Papadiamantes, Palamas, Cavafy, Sikelianos, Seferis, Elytis will illustrate the ways in which the classical tradition has been manipulated in 19th and 20th century-Greek literature; parallels from other literatures and examples from folklore material (songs, traditions, folktales) will also be discussed.
Note: All texts will be available in English.

Primarily for Graduates

[Modern Greek 200. Modern Greek Literature: Open Forum]
Catalog Number: 7714
Margaret Alexiou
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 9
Graduates in Modern Greek will present topics for debate and analysis, as appropriate to te current stage of their research. There is no fixed syllabus, but important questions will be addressed. Harvard and outside faculty will be invited to contribute to an ongoing debate on specific issues.
Note: Expected to be given in 2000–01.

Modern Greek 201. The Modern Novel
Catalog Number: 2162
Margaret Alexiou
Half course (fall term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Starting from late antiquity, we shall study Greek novelistic genres to illuminate how their diverse forms and functions have contributed to the making of the modern novel, and may continue to shape present directions. Recurring themes, such as sex and violence, crime and punishment, love and marriage, will be considered in the context of changing social and religious structures. Particular attention will be paid to dreams, imagery, and ekphrasis as modes of representation. Comparative examples will be drawn from modern European and African-Amercian literatures.
Note: Most texts will be available in English translation, but students of Greek will be expected to read as much as possible in the original. In Fall 1999, Greek Perspectives on the Modern Novel will continue with a study of oral traditional tales.