| Unit name | Greek Language Level B2 |
|---|---|
| Unit code | CLAS12316 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Michelakis |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites | |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | Department of Classics & Ancient History |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Plato's Symposium is a literary masterpiece set at a high-society dinner in 5th-century Athens. As the wine flows, each member of the party gives a speech on the nature of eros. We are treated to an intimate glimpse of Athenian super-stars at leisure: the comedian Aristophanes, tragedian Agathon, physician Eryximachus, and-of course!-philosopher Socrates each present their vision of eros. Socrates' speech seems to cap a crescendo of interpretations, but just as he finishes, the enfant terrible Alcibiades bursts in and gives his own speech. Dressed like the god of wine himself, he narrates how he could not conform to Socrates' theory...and Socrates could not accept his passions... This conflict is all the more poignant in that Plato sets the dialogue near the time of Alcibiades' violent death. Socrates himself would be executed not long after. Who was right about erotic love?
Aims:
To develop students’ knowledge of the Greek language through the reading of classical Greek poetry; to introduce students to techniques of independent reading of Greek, such as use of dictionaries and commentaries; to introduce students to issues of translation and interpretation of Greek literature.
On successful completion of this unit students should:
• have improved their ability to read and interpret ancient Greek texts.
• have reinforced the capacity to identify, analyse and translate complex Greek syntactical structures which they attained in B1 Greek.
• have acquired a knowledge of scansion and metre, and the ability to scan lines of set text.
• have developed an acquaintance with some current approaches to reading ancient literature.
• have had the opportunity to develop communication skills in both oral and written presentations, discussions and written assignments have improved their skill at using secondary literature, in particular dictionaries and academic commentaries, so as to produce independent interpretations of the texts under study.
Lectures, seminars and reading classes.
• 1 assessment exercise in practical criticism on a chosen piece of text 35-40 lines in length, with guidance questions from unit director. 1,500-2,000 words. Weighted at 50%.
• 1 class test (45 minutes) on sight translation (80% of test mark) and grammatical/syntactical knowledge (20% of test mark), on two pieces of text amounting to a total of 15 lines in length. Use of a dictionary will be allowed in this test. Weighted at 25%.
1 class test (45 minutes) on prepared text translation (10-12 lines, 40% of test mark) and context/interpretation knowledge (60% of test mark), with guidance questions from unit director, on one piece of text 20 lines in length. No reference texts will be allowed in this test
J.R. Cheadle, 2002. Basic Greek Vocabulary, Nelson
Dover K.J.ed.1980 Plato’s Symposium, Cambridge
Liddell, H. G.and R. Scott. 1963. Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon, Oxford
Morwood, J. 2001. Oxford Grammar of Classical Greek, Oxford
Set Texts:
Set Greek passages: 700 lines TBA
Students should also read all of Plato’s Symposium in English
