Classical Civilisation: Literature, Philosophy and Politics

Subject description

The Classical Civilisation: Literature, Philosophy & Politics subject introduces you to Ancient Greece and Rome, two fascinating ancient cultures. You’ll become familiar with Greek and Roman studies and explore critically how this ancient period in history influenced the development of Europe and the world.

It is an optional subject on the Undergraduate Preparatory Certificate for Humanities (UPCH) pathway.

On this subject, you’ll interact with a wide range of ancient sources. You’ll engage with written culture (such as poetry and philosophical dialogue) and material culture (such as ancient artefacts and works of art) and improve your skills in analysing sources.

You’ll explore ancient Greek and Roman cultures from a variety of perspectives. You’ll also consider the relationship between the ancient and the modern world.

The course will focus on (topics may change from year to year):

• ancient Greek epic poetry
• early Greek history and the development of direct democracy in fifth-century Athens
• Roman love poetry
• notions of love and the concept of philosophy in Platonic dialogues.

How we teach Classical Civilisation: Literature, Philosophy & Politics

You’ll learn through a mixture of lectures, small-group seminars and one-to-one tutorials. Trips and visits (for example, to relevant museum collections and the theatre) are also part of your learning experience. These learning methods will help you to engage quickly and effectively with Greek and Roman studies. They will also improve your critical thinking skills.

You’ll work on an independent research project on a topic of your choice (subject to agreement with the subject leader) relating to the ancient world. This project will be supervised by the subject tutors. Example topics include:

• the notion of the soul in ancient Greek philosophy
• persuasive techniques in Cicero’s legal speeches
• attitudes towards women in Roman drama

Intended learning outcomes

By the end of the subject, you should be able to:

• analyse extracts from ancient written sources and ancient material artefacts in detail, in relation to their historical and cultural contexts
• write clear, well-informed essays on topics relating to the ancient world, pursuing independent lines of argument
• participate in discussions and debates.
• show good general knowledge about the ancient Greco-Roman world, and in-depth knowledge and understanding of selected works by Greek and Roman authors in their intellectual and cultural context
• demonstrate the ability to pursue independent learning and critical thinking about the aspects of the ancient Mediterranean world, and its relationship to other ancient worlds, globally.
• develop some understanding of the relationship between European colonialism in the modern period and the study of ancient Greece and Rome as an academic subject.

Overview of Summative Assessment

Recommended reading

Recommended reading before the course:

• Homer (2023) The Iliad. Translated by Emily R. Wilson. New York, USA; London, UK: W. W. Norton & Co.
• Homer (2018), The Odyssey. Translated by Emily R. Wilson. New York, USA; London, UK: W. W. Norton & Co.

Additional costs

You’ll have to purchase copies of the set texts for the subject. The first of these is Homer ‘The Iliad’ (edition specified above). Two further set texts will be announced at the start of the academic year. You may also wish to purchase books for your Research Project. You will also need to cover the cost of food and travel within London for occasional field trips.