Course Description
This course provides an introduction to Greek and Roman mythology through reading and analysis of major literary and artistic works. In addition to close reading of Greek and Latin texts (in translation), the course will introduce students to the cultures which produced these myths, contextualizing readings with art and socio-historical overview. Over the semester, we will supplement our focus on primary (i.e., original) sources with discussion of how these stories have been interpreted and reimagined from antiquity to the present, especially in modern media and culture. Ultimately, we will focus on myths as the products of storytelling and how they reflect ideas about the world around us and our place in it.
Student Learning Outcomes
By completing this course successfully, you will learn:
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The major figures, events, stories, and locales from Greek and Roman mythology.
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The major authors and genres of ancient literature which provide this information.
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The theoretical frameworks within which we discuss myth and its impact on society.
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The fluidity and cultural malleability of mythological stories within different cultures.
Required Texts and Other Course Materials
The following books are required and will be available at the University Supply Store in physical and (when available) digital form. If you already have access to a version of one or more of these works, you may use it, but make sure to reconcile line numbers so you’re reading the right parts. And be careful with online translations – the reason they’re free and online is because they’re out of copyright; and the reason they’re out of copyright is because they’re very old; and that means that this material, which can already be challenging to read and understand, will be made even more difficult because of the 100-plus-year-old English.
I will also do my best to make these all available at the US library on Course Reserve (limited check out window). For those unaware, the main practical benefit of Course Reserve is that you can use the university’s FREE scanners to make a pdf for yourself (and your classmates).
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Fagles, R. 1977. Aeschylus: The Oresteia (Penguin)
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Fagles, R. 2000. Sophocles: The Three Theban Plays (Penguin)
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Kovacs, M.G. 1989. The Epic of Gilgamesh (Stanford UP)
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Lombardo, S. 1993. Hesiod: Works & Days and Theogony. (Hackett)
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Lombardo, S. 1997. Homer: Iliad. (Hackett)
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Lombardo, S. 2005. Virgil: Aeneid. (Hackett)
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Lombardo, S. 2010. Ovid: Metamorphoses (Hackett)
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Svarlien, D.A. 2008. Euripides: Medea (Hackett)
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Wilson, E. 2020. The Odyssey (Norton)
* Readings and resources not found on this list will be made available on Blackboard.
Suggested Texts
These texts are in no way required of you – just think of this as a “Further Reading” list!
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Powell, Barry B. 2020. Classical Myth. (Longman)
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A traditional myth textbook. For those who want something more textbook-y.
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Graves, Robert. 2012. The Greek Myths. (Penguin)
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Essentially an encyclopedia for ancient myth. All the variant traditions are included, all the sources are cited, the footnotes are as long as the chapters they annotate. If you’re looking for comprehensive, this is what you want.
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If you’d like a copy of any of the ancient texts we read, I would be very happy to recommend a translation! There are a lot out there, the quality varies wildly, and I have very strong opinions about them.
Outline of Topics
This course is divided into 3 sections:
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Unit I: The Gods
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This unit focuses on myths of creation as well as the major gods of the Greek pantheon: Zeus, Hera, Hestia, Demeter, Persephone, Hades, Poseidon, Athena, Hephaestus, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Aphrodite, Ares, and Dionysus.
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Major texts: Hesiod’s Theogony and Works & Days, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, the Homeric Hymns
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Unit II: The Humans
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This unit concentrates on some of the major human-centered stories of classical myth: Gilgamesh, Perseus, Theseus, Heracles, Bellerophon, Jason, Orpheus, Medea, The House of Atreus, the Amazons, Antigone, and Oedipus.
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Major texts: Gilgamesh, Sophocles’ Theban Plays, Euripides’ Medea, Aeschylus’ Oresteia, Ovid’s Metamorphoses (again), and Apollodorus’ Library.
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Unit III: The Epics
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Our final unit will revolve around close reading and discussion of three major works of epic poetry from ancient Greece and Rome.
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Major texts: the Iliad, the Odyssey and the Aeneid.
See the Course Schedule handout (available on Blackboard) for a (tentative) day-by-day breakdown of materials to be covered.
Grade Breakdown
Students’ course grades will be composed of the following components:
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Attendance and Participation (15%)
Your attendance will be recorded by answering an in-class question on Blackboard. It won’t have anything to do with the readings (because then you could just answer correctly without coming to class), and it will have a very short window during which it can be answered. Make sure you bring a device (laptop, phone, Pip-Boy, etc.) that you can answer the question with! I will drop three (3) missed questions as allowed absences. Any missed questions beyond this limit cannot be made up.
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Weekly Online Quizzes (25%)
Once a week, unless otherwise noted, there will be a short, multiple-choice quiz on Blackboard covering assigned readings from that week. Quizzes will be posted Thursdays immediately after class and due the next day (Friday) by midnight. You will have 10 minutes to complete the quizzes (1 minute per question). There will be NO make-up quizzes. However, I will drop your three (3) lowest quiz grades, including any zeroes from missed quizzes (though, of course, you’d be better served using these on quizzes you did poorly on, rather than ones you’d voluntarily skipped).
The combined quizzes count for slightly more than an entire exam, so make sure to take them seriously!
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Exams (60%)
There will be three exams, which will cover the following materials and comprise 20% of your final grade each:
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Exam 1: Unit 1 – The Gods (26 September)
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Exam 2: Unit 2 – The Humans (29 October)
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Exam 3: Unit 3 – The Epics (11 December, 1:30pm)
The exams will be composed of simple multiple-choice questions, which will test your ability to recall the materials we have read and discussed over the course of the semester – material from both readings and from lecture will be fair game for appearing on exams. These exams will not be cumulative, with a caveat: because these stories are all intertwined to one degree or another, it will be difficult to keep the material entirely separate from each other; I will, to the best of my ability, write questions which focus on the material from the exam’s associated unit.
Grading Policy
Letter grades will be determined on the following scale:
A+ 100-97 | A 96-94 | A- 93-90
B+ 89-87 | B 86-84 | B- 83-80
C+ 79-77 | C 76-74 | C- 73-70
D+ 69-67 | D 66-64 | D- 63-60
F 59 and below
I will, without any exceptions, round final grades to the nearest whole percentage point. That means that, e.g., an 89.5 will earn an A- while an 89.4 will receive a B+. I won’t discuss grade changes unless there has been a demonstrable error in the calculation of the grade.
Extra Credit Assignment
I will be offering an extra credit assignment. I’ll distribute a fuller description of the assignment some time later, but for the time being suffice it to say that it will be a five-page paper on a modern reception of classical mythology (i.e., a use of classical mythological material in a modern work). You will need to get my approval for your topic, or it will not be accepted. A perfect score will get you a 5% increase on your final grade – however, because this assignment is extra credit, I will grade it more harshly than I would grade a normal assignment.
Policy on Missed Exams & Coursework
As noted above, there are no make-up assignments, though three (3) missed in-class questions and three (3) quiz grades, which includes those that were missed, will be dropped automatically. Late work will not be accepted unless the late work resulted from an excused absence.
There will be no make-up exams except in the case of an emergency or illness (with documentation). If you have an unavoidable, planned absence that conflicts with an exam, notify me as early as possible in advance of the test, so that we can make arrangements for a make-up. Make-up exams must be taken no more than seven (7) business days after the original exam, and you will take a newly-written exam, different from the one taken by the rest of the class. There will be no make-ups for the final exam.
Attendance Policy
Attendance in this course is essential to your success. I will be covering material in lecture which goes beyond the assigned readings, and material from the conversations we have in lecture are just as likely to show up on the exams as the material from the reading itself. So if you don’t show up to lecture, you will miss out on exam material which you have no other way to access.
As noted above, attendance will form an important part of your grade and any more than three (3) unexcused absences will result in a direct deduction from your final grade. An excused absence includes such situations as illness, religious observances, pre-approved activities relating to the university (e.g., athletic or academic teams), or major emergencies. As a rule, these situations should be brought to my attention (with proper documentation) as early as possible. Do not schedule non-emergency medical appointments on the date of an examination without speaking to me first.
Notification of Changes
I will make every effort to follow the guidelines of this syllabus as listed. However, I reserve the right to alter this document as circumstances require. In such instances, I will notify students in class and/or via email and will make my best effort to provide reasonable time for students to adjust to any changes.
Classroom Policies & Expectations
Etiquette: I expect you to attend class every day, prepared to participate and ready to maintain a polite, respectful and professional manner. Please don’t hesitate to ask questions, and always come see me if you are having any trouble or apprehensions about course material. Remember, nobody is an expert on their first day or their thousandth day, and we can all use a little help.
Email Policy: I will regularly be emailing or messaging the class on Blackboard, so it is your responsibility to make sure you stay on top of your email/notifications and make sure the university has the most up-to-date address.
The best way to contact me (besides just talking to me) is via email. I’ll do my best to respond to your emails within a 24-hour period. I typically won’t return an email after 5:00pm on weekdays or during the weekends, unless the matter is urgent. I’ll still check email during those times, though, so if something needs my immediate attention, please don’t hesitate to contact me and I will take care of it.
Content: All adult content in this course is discussed in an academic, educational, and professional manner. If something said or done in the classroom, by either myself or others, causes offence or discomfort, please let me know immediately. Likewise, please contact me if something outside of class is preventing you from fully engaging with the course. If you have questions or concerns, it is likely you are not alone. By speaking up (either in class, privately, or anonymously) you are potentially helping your classmates. If you do not feel comfortable discussing the issue with me, please notify your advisor, a trusted faculty member, or a peer. I encourage you to advocate for an inclusive experience at the University of Alabama.
Materials: Should you need assistance in acquiring or accessing course materials (technology and books, for example) contact me as soon as possible. I am happy to provide assistance so that all students have access to required materials.
Office Hours: You are welcome and encouraged to come to office hours if you’re having any problems grasping the course material (I really do enjoy having people come to office hours). If you can’t make it to my regular office hours but would like to meet with me, please let me know and we can schedule another time to meet. It is always best to seek out help as soon as you’re beginning to have difficulties with the material, rather than waiting until the day before an exam or the end of the semester when your difficulties have piled up and there’s not enough time to fix them.
