CLAS 301A - The Literature of the Ancient Greeks: From Homer to the Novel

Classics 301A provides an introductory survey of Ancient Greek literature through English translations. The works to be studied include the earliest works of European literature and highlights from the subsequent millennium of Ancient Greek culture. We will read from a variety of genres, including epic and lyric poetry, tragedy, comedy, historiography, philosophy and the novel, and authors such as Homer, Sappho, Herodotus, Sophocles, Aristophanes, and Plato. Greek literature provides varied and fascinating perspectives on ancient Greek thought, history, and culture(s) and is also critical to appreciation of subsequent literatures and cultures in Europe and beyond.