CL
122/EN222 Greek Tragedy in English Translation
spring 2009
An
intensive study in translation of the surviving works of Aeschylus, Sophocles
and Euripides. (No knowledge of Greek is
required.)
Premise and things you should know:
Classical
Greek tragedy was one of the most brilliant productions of fifth-century BC
Athens, the heart of what we think of as the Golden Age of Greece. It is also a body of literature that has had
a lasting influence on the artistic and intellectual traditions of western
Europe. The goal of this course is to
familiarize you with this body of literature in its entirety.
Thirty-two
Greek tragedies have survived, seven each by Aeschylus and Sophocles, and
eighteen by Euripides. This is a diverse
corpus but nonetheless a manageable one that we will be able to read in its
entirety in the course of this semester.
We will typically read three tragedies a week. Most of these plays will also be discussed in
class, but because of time restraints some will not.
Greek
tragedy is drama; it was performed before an audience. While this course will consider the plays
from a variety of points of view there will be a special emphasis on their
dramatic aspects.
This
course assumes no prior knowledge of Classical mythology. All readings will be done in English
translation; no knowledge of Greek or Latin is required.
There
is no textbook for this course. All
readings will be available on line and linked through the class website. You may also use other translations of the
assigned readings if you choose.
The schedule of readings is on the class web site
The question:
For
all of our readings the key question is “What is Greek
tragedy?” Whatever you are
reading, keep this question in mind.
The work of the
course:
I.
There will be a reading assignment for most class sessions. Assignments and
study questions will be linked to the Course Schedule on the class
website. As part of most class sessions
you will be asked to write a one-page essay on a topic related to the reading
assignment for that day. The remainder
of the class session will be devoted to discussion of the reading assignment
and, when necessary, introduction of the next assignment.
II.
Small groups of students will prepare dramatic readings of select scenes from
the plays.
III.
The final exam will be a comprehensive eight- to ten-page paper on the nature
of Greek tragedy.
I.
The average of the weekly essays will count for 50% of
your semester grade. In calculating this
average I will drop your two lowest grades.
II. The group project will count for 20%
of your semester grade.
III. The final paper
will count for 30% of your semester grade.
There is no grade for
classroom discussion as such, but in your final grade you will be penalized if
you do not participate regularly in the discussions.
Housekeeping:
The
website for this course is http://faculty.fairfield.edu/rosivach/cl122.
DMH
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Office hours will be posted on the class
website during the second week of classes.
E-mail:
If you have any questions on any topic related to class, e-mail me and I will
answer your question as soon as I am able.
My e-mail address is:
If
you have to communicate with me for any reason, I would prefer that you use
e-mail, not voice mail. If you do use voice mail, I will answer by
e-mail to your campus stagweb account if an answer is required.
A note on the essays:
There
will be no make-ups for missed essays, but remember that your two lowest grades
will be dropped in calculating your final grade.
All electronic devices are to be turned off and out of sight while you are writing your
essays; if you do not comply with this rule your essay will be graded F. (back)
A note on the final paper:
You will be asked to append an honesty statement to your
final paper. Even the slightest
violation of this statement will lead to a failing grade for the paper. If the violation is serious enough you will
fail the course. (back)