Undergraduate Course: Classical Literature: Greek and Roman Epic (CLTR08009)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course is an introduction to ancient epic. All readings are done in translation. |
| Course description |
The course is designed to present to students who already have some knowledge of the Greek and Roman world the opportunity to study in a more intensive and sustained fashion the work of some of the major poets of ancient Greek and Roman society, in translation. The focus is ancient epic poetry. The works studied may vary from year to year but the course is usually devoted to the study of three epics, studied in chronological order, e.g.
Homer, Iliad. Translation by R. Lattimore
Apollonius of Rhodes, Jason and the Golden Fleece, Translation by B.H. Fowler
Virgil, Aeneid. Translation by F. Ahl
The course consists of both lectures and tutorials. Lectures are designed to introduce students to the major themes to be covered in the course, while tutorials provide a forum for the discussion of more specific issues. Preparation and attendance at tutorials is compulsory.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | Students MUST NOT also be taking
Classical Literature 2: Greek and Roman Epic (CLTR08008)
|
Other requirements | A pass in any two of the following: Greek World 1A, Greek World 1B, Roman World 1A, Roman World 1B;
OR
a pass in any two of the following: Greek 1A, Greek 1B, Greek 1C, Greek 1D, Greek 2A;
OR
a pass in any two of the following: Latin 1A, Latin 1B, Latin 1C, Latin 1D, Latin 2A;
OR
a pass in Literary Studies 1A AND Literary Studies 1B (For students who took First Year courses prior to session 2021-22, a pass in English Literature 1 (ENLI08001) OR Scottish Literature 1 (ENLI08016) is an acceptable equivalent.);
OR
at discretion of course organiser |
| Additional Costs | Purchase of prescribed translations |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students must have at least 1 introductory level Classics course at grade B or above for entry to this course. We will only consider University/College level courses.
** as numbers are limited, visiting students should contact the Visiting Student Office directly for admission to this course ** |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2025/26, Available to all students (SV1)
|
Quota: 9 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 8,
Summative Assessment Hours 2,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
164 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
60 %,
Coursework
40 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Coursework:
1000 word Gobbet exercise (15%)
2500 word Essay (25%)
Exam:
1 two-hour paper (60%) |
| Feedback |
Students will receive written feedback on their coursework, and will have the opportunity to discuss that feedback further with the Course Organiser during their published office hours or by appointment. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- demonstrate an informed understanding of the set texts;
- understand the nature and development of the genre of ancient epic;
- understand the internal structure and unity of the individual epics studied;
- engage with the central critical approaches and scholarly theories concerning these works;
- demonstrate a general understanding of the different historical contexts which produced the works.
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Reading List
Iliad:
Cairns, D. L. (2001) (ed.), Oxford Readings in Homer's Iliad, Oxford.
Canevaro, L.G. (2018) Women of Substance in Homeric Epic: Objects, Gender, Agency, Oxford.
Ford, A. (1992) Homer: The Poetry of the Past. Ithaca: Cornell U. Press.
Graziosi, B. and Haubold, J. (2005) Homer: The Resonance of Epic, London.
West, M.L. (2010) The Making of the Iliad, Oxford.
Argonautica:
Fantuzzi, M. and Hunter, R.L. (2004), Tradition and Innovation in Hellenistic Poetry, Cambridge.
Harder, M.A. and Cuypers, M. (2005), eds, Beginning from Apollo: Studies in Apollonius Rhodius and the Argonautic Tradition, Leuven.
Hunter, R. L. (1993), The Argonautica of Apollonius. Literary Studies (Cambridge)
Mori, A. (2008), The Politics of Apollonius' Rhodius' Argonautica, Cambridge.
Papanghelis, T. and Rengakos, A. (eds.) A Companion to Apollonius Rhodius
(Leiden) 193-216
Aeneid:
Farrell, J. and M.C.J. Putnam, eds. (2010) A companion to Vergil's Aeneid and its tradition, Chichester
Farrell, J. (2021) Juno's Aeneid: A Battle for Heroic Identity, Princeton
Giusti, E. (2018) Carthage in Virgil's Aeneid, Cambridge.
Hardie, P.R. (1986) Virgil's Aeneid: Cosmos and Imperium, Oxford
Rogerson, A. (2017) Virgil's Ascanius: Imagining the Future in the Aeneid, Cambridge |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Students will also demonstrate a number of transferable skills, such as
- reading skills
- written and verbal communication skills
- analytical skills
- oral presentation and discussion skills
- an ability to deal independently with a wide-ranging body of information and to summarise that information
- an ability to understand the standard modern conventions concerning the presentation of scholarly work
- an ability to maintain complex information over a sustained period of time and to access this information as and when necessary. |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Lilah Canevaro
Tel:
Email: L.G.Canevaro@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | |
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