Key - General Education Requirements, Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences

Key - Basic Skills Requirements, Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences

I   Workshop in Composition
A  Algebra

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CLASS Courses 2131

This course will survey the major achievements of ancient Greek civilization. Arranged on a roughly chronological basis, the readings and lectures will move from the epic poetry of Greece's heroic Bronze Age, through the great intellectual innovations of the Archaic Age, to the Classical era dominated by the contrasting contributions of Sparta and Athens. Although the social and economic background will not be neglected, the chief emphasis will be placed on those aspects of Greek civilization that have retained a perennial significance for Western societies— its literature, its politics, its historical writing, its philosophy, its art and architecture.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

This course will survey the major achievements of ancient Greek civilization. Arranged on a roughly chronological basis, the readings and lectures will move from the epic poetry of Greece's heroic Bronze Age, through the great intellectual innovations of the Archaic Age, to the Classical era dominated by the contrasting contributions of Sparta and Athens. Although the social and economic background will not be neglected, the chief emphasis will be placed on those aspects of Greek civilization that have retained a perennial significance for Western societies— its literature, its politics, its historical writing, its philosophy, its art and architecture. This is a Self–Paced course. Workshop attendance is strongly advised. Workshop dates: 9/8, 10/13, 11/10/2012 .

Prerequisite(s): none

Check with the department on how often this course is offered.

Beginning as a small farming settlement situated alongside the Tiber river, Rome rose to become one of the greatest civilizations in human history, which spread its influence over much of the western world. In addition to careful investigation into the social, political, military, and economic organization of Rome as it developed from a monarchy through a republic and into an empire, the class will examine the art, architecture, literature, religion, culture, and daily life of the city across the spectrum of social classes. The class will utilize the large body of surviving Roman literature, including histories, poetry, and personal letters (in translation), as well as visual aids, such as slides and films, to create a living picture of whom the Romans were. Class time will be used for lectures as well as student lead discussion.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

Our subject will be the traditional stories--myths, legends, and folktales--of the Greeks and Romans. Traditional stories are ones that, by virtue of some compelling attraction, manage to survive from generation to generation, so our main task will be to discover just what that 'compelling attraction' was. The creation of the universe, the first woman Pandora, the Twelve Gods and Goddesses, the theft of fire by Prometheus, Helen and the Trojan War, the foundation of Rome by Aeneas, and Ovid's fanciful metamorphoses are examples of the stories from our modern illustrated reader Classical Myth by Barry B. Powell. By way of providing a context for our stories, the instructor will also devote much attention to such topics as popular belief and superstition, cult rituals, sanctuaries of the gods, oracles and prophets, the conceptualization of male and female, sexuality, and the social and cultural basis of myth in general. Throughout, we shall examine the many theories about the meaning of traditional stories from antiquity down to our own day.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

Helen of Troy, Sappho, Pericles' lover Aspasia, and Cleopatra, Achilles, Pericles himself, Plato, and Alexander the Great. These are names familiar to many of us, but to what extent was these individuals' gender an element of their achievement and fame? This course attempts to answer this question by examining the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations from the perspective of male and female. We shall proceed by topic, focusing on legal status and citizenship, marriage, the family, the citizen life course, public roles, education, sexuality, religion, popular attitudes, and the views and conceptualizations of ancient social and political theory. Throughout we shall isolate and discuss factors determining or conditioning the peculiar features of the gender roles before us and especially those that seemed to have prompted departures from the prevailing norms. Readings will include a historical narrative, a reader of excerpts from primary sources arranged by topic, and a selection of Athenian comedies and tragedies. The course material will be illustrated by films.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

Writing students will fulfill the requirements of the College Writing Board by submitting a paper in draft form, to be revised and resubmitted in line with its evaluation by the instructor.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

Is there a pattern of human behavior? Would man pursue his extravagant projects if he foresaw the price he must pay for them? Personal vendetta or lawcourt justice? Which limits must the state observe towards the individual and vice versa? These are central questions in early European literature. The course starts out with the conflict between King Agamemnon and his strongest warrior, Achilles, during the siege of Troy (Homer's Iliad), then moves on, via lyric poetry, to Aeschylus' quest for justice in the Oresteia. After next considering man's place in history (Thucydides), the course turns to the philosopher who confronts his community: Socrates, depicted by his student Plato (Apology, Crito, Phaedo). Plautus' popular comedy Menaechmi contrasts with Vergil's Aeneid (literature serving political authority). The Elegies of Propertius show the deserted lover as well as the individual suffering under the claim of the state. Horace's Odes round out the readings from Roman authors. The masterpieces of Greek and Roman literature attract their readers not only by competently depicting the human situation, but also by their perfect form. Analyzing the formal element is a major objective of this introductory course. Students will acquire basic skills necessary for reading both ancient and later literatures, and will develop concepts helpful for clarifying and expressing their own outlook. Greek and Roman authors are read in English translations. Before registering for a UHC course, student must obtain special permission from the University Honors College. Classics undergraduates in good standing please contact the instructor.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

UHC-designated courses: Students below a 3.25 GPA must go to the Honors College for permission. 

How can we understand our world? In western culture, science dominates all our answers to this question. But there are other ways. They can be found in the mythologies of ancient and modern peoples. This course will compare the scientific and mythological ways of seeing the world and their more subtle connections. In particular, we will turn to the remarkable events in Ancient Greece of 800-400 B.C. and discover how the scientific approach actually grew slowly out of mythological thought itself.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

How can we understand our world? In western culture, science dominates all our answers to this question. But there are other ways. They can be found in the mythologies of ancient and modern peoples. This course will compare the scientific and mythological ways of seeing the world and their more subtle connections. In particular, we will turn to the remarkable events in Ancient Greece of 800-400 B.C. and discover how the scientific approach actually grew slowly out of mythological thought itself.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

The Mediterranean Sea is a lake and its shores have produced many important cultures and artistic traditions. The course will survey the artistic and cultural traditions of the Near East (Mesopotamia, Egypt, Turkey, Iran) and the Aegean, from the Neolithic to the Persian Empire. Special attention will be paid to: 1) the relationship between the artistic traditions of these areas and the societies which produced them, and 2) the way in which influences from one culture were transformed by another.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

This course introduces students to the use of computational modeling and programming to conduct text-based research in the humanities. Course goals include 1) learning how to identify research questions in the humanities that are amenable to computational analysis and processing and 2) designing and implementing XML-based computational systems to explore those questions. No prior programming experience or knowledge of foreign languages required.

This class is cross listed with the following class sections: RELGST 1780 (24010), LING 1050 (23923), GER 1550 (23772), INFSCI 0013 (24059), ENGLIT 1600 (28726), SLAV 1050 (23773), HIST 1030 (25110)

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered infrequently.

UHC-designated courses: Students below a 3.25 GPA must go to the Honors College for permission. 

This course will be taught essentially as a literature course; that is to say, attention will be focused on how various authors of classical (chiefly Greek) antiquity used the traditional figures and stories of their culture's mythology in order to say things of lasting value about the conditions and problems of human life. We shall begin with the emergence of the cosmos as recounted in Hesiod's Theogony and then take up each of the major Olympian dieties in turn, studying the ways in which they are depicted in other works of Greek literature, including the Homeric Hymns, various plays by Aeschylus and Euripides, and Homer's Odyssey.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

This course will survey the history of ancient Greece from the Minoan civilization in the second millennium BC to the end of the Classical Period in the 4th century BC. We will investigate the major political, intellectual, economic and social factors that contributed to the nature and development of Greek history. We will pay particular attention to the Golden Age of Athens in the 5th century BC and its relations with the Persian Empire, Sparta and the other Greek city-states. Also, we will look at the many political and cultural institutions that combined to make this age unique. Finally, the course will close with the Greek's efforts to cope with the rising power of Macedon.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

The aim of this course is to introduce students to Aristotle's philosophy by focusing on three central topics. (1) Substance: What is the world made up of at the most fundamental level? (2) Ethics: What is the good life for a human being? How is life to be guided by such a conception? and (3) What is the nature of reasoning and argument? What is the purpose of different kinds of argument, e.g., proof? Are there different kinds of reasoning and argument appropriate for different kinds of subject matter? We will read parts of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, Categories, Metaphysics, Prior and Posterior Analytics and Topics.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

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Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

UHC-designated courses: Students below a 3.25 GPA must go to the Honors College for permission. 

This course presents an historical-critical investigation of Christian origins. Special attention is paid to varieties of 1st century Hellenistic and Palestinian Judaism within the Greco-Roman world. Primary readings include selected Biblical passages and apocrypha, 1st century historians and philosophers (Josephus, Tacitus, Suetonius, and Philo), the New Testament corpus (including Paul and the Pastorals), and selected readings from the Dead Sea Scrolls. In addition there will be assignments from various modern New Testament critics, historians, and theologians.

Prerequisite(s): none

Check with the department on how often this course is offered.

This course presents an historical-critical investigation of Christian origins. Special attention is paid to varieties of 1st century Hellenistic and Palestinian Judaism within the Greco-Roman world. Primary readings include selected Biblical passages and apocrypha, 1st century historians and philosophers (Josephus, Tacitus, Suetonius, and Philo), the New Testament corpus (including Paul and the Pastorals), and selected readings from the Dead Sea Scrolls. In addition there will be assignments from various modern New Testament critics, historians, and theologians.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

This course covers the development of Classical Judaism from the Second Temple Period--beginning with the end of the Babylonian Exile in the 6th century BCE--and continues up through the emergence of Rabbinic Judaism, culminating with the redaction of the Babylonian Talmud in the 6th century CE. We will be covering both the major historical trends as well as the major religious developments. The course will also introduce students to the major Jewish texts of both the Second Temple Period and the Rabbinic Period, emphasizing close readings of primary texts.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

Roman Art is the art of a civilization much like our own -- cosmopolitan and multi-cultural. The course will trace the development of Roman Art from the formation of Rome’s empire in the 2nd c. BC to the empire at its broadest geographical extent, in the 2nd c. AD., examining both the public art (architecture and sculpture) sponsored by the central and local governments, and the decorative art of the Roman consumer.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

Sanskrit is the classical language of India. This course can serve as either a one-term introduction to Sanskrit, or (preferably) as a foundation for further work in the language. We will begin with the devanagari writing system and Sanskrit pronunciation. This will be followed by a survey of the essentials of Sanskrit grammar, including noun, pronoun, and verb paradigms, rules of combining sounds when words are joined to one another (sandhi), word order, and use of particles. There will not be so much focus on developing an extensive vocabulary in the first term of study; however, the course will be directed toward eventually reading material from Sanskrit texts such as the Mahabharata and Hitopadesa in second-year Sanskrit. A comprehensive beginning text such as Egenes, Introduction to Sanskrit, Part 1 will be covered in the Fall term.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered at least once a year.

This course is a continuation of Sanskrit 2, with a focus on reading, probably from Lanman's Sanskrit Reader. Interested students should consult with the instructor as soon as possible, so as to discuss their potential needs in the course.

Prerequisite(s): PREQ: CLASS 1720

This course is offered at least once a year.

The Aristotelian Mechanics is the earliest known theoretical treatment of machines and as such it is of great significance for our knowledge about the history of ancient mechanics. The text consists of 35 mechanical problems, some of which still influenced scholars in early modern Europe, like Galileo. In this seminar we will start with a careful reading of the text of the Mechanics and discuss the mechanical questions in the context of their Byzantine and Renaissance reception. In the second part of the seminar we will focus on the manuscript tradition of the Mechanics, since many modern interpretations and commentaries are based on wrong assumptions about the transmission of the text. Of especial importance are the so far unnoticed diagrams that are contained in the manuscripts of the treatise. By analyzing the diagrams in the authentic Greek manuscripts, we will examine how the mechanical principles were visualized at the time of their production.

Prerequisite(s): none

This course is offered infrequently.

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