CLAS 3024 - Emotions in Antiquity

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2019

The course focuses upon the ways in which various extreme emotional states (anger, love, grief, ecstasy etc.) were expressed and explored in the poetry and prose of the Ancient Greek and Roman worlds. Beginning with the destructive power of anger in Homer's Iliad and ending with the ecstatic 'passions' of the martyrs in the poetry of the early Christian poet Prudentius, the course traverses a wide variety of emotional states and literary genres including Greek tragedy (which delves deeply into emotions such as anger, grief and fear), the passionate love lyrics of poets such as Sappho and the grief-stricken letters of Cicero on the death of his daughter. Throughout the course the following questions will be addressed; 1. How did people express and deal with extreme emotional states in the ancient world? 2. To what extent did ancient attitudes to various emotional states differ from modern attitudes? 3. To what extent was ancient poetry (as opposed to prose) an effective vehicle for expressing and exploring emotion? 4. How far were there set conventions and established methods of conveying these emotions in various ancient literary genres?

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code CLAS 3024
    Course Emotions in Antiquity
    Coordinating Unit Classics, Archaeology and Ancient History
    Term Semester 2
    Level Undergraduate
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 3 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Prerequisites At least 6 units of Level II undergraduate study
    Incompatible CLAS 2023
    Course Description The course focuses upon the ways in which various extreme emotional states (anger, love, grief, ecstasy etc.) were expressed and explored in the poetry and prose of the Ancient Greek and Roman worlds. Beginning with the destructive power of anger in Homer's Iliad and ending with the ecstatic 'passions' of the martyrs in the poetry of the early Christian poet Prudentius, the course traverses a wide variety of emotional states and literary genres including Greek tragedy (which delves deeply into emotions such as anger, grief and fear), the passionate love lyrics of poets such as Sappho and the grief-stricken letters of Cicero on the death of his daughter. Throughout the course the following questions will be addressed; 1. How did people express and deal with extreme emotional states in the ancient world? 2. To what extent did ancient attitudes to various emotional states differ from modern attitudes? 3. To what extent was ancient poetry (as opposed to prose) an effective vehicle for expressing and exploring emotion? 4. How far were there set conventions and established methods of conveying these emotions in various ancient literary genres?
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Jacqueline Clarke

    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    1. Analyse and explain how emotions functioned within the ancient societies of Greece and Rome
    2. Recognise and describe the main cultural differences between ancient and modern views of and ways of dealing with emotions
    3. Evaluate the effectiveness of various ancient literary genres (e.g. epic poetry, tragedy, lyric poetry, history, satire) as vehicles for expressing and exploring emotion
    4. Confidently engage in close reading of ancient texts across a variety of genres
    5. Explore, articulate and debate their views in small-group seminars and confidently lead a group discussion
    6. Deliver sustained and persuasive written arguments that exhibit a scholarly approach to analysis and presentation of ideas
    7. Undertake self-directed research to locate, evaluate and analyse additional primary and secondary source material on
    ancient emotions
    8. Employ learning technologies relevant to the University’s learning environment and technologies specific to research in Classics
    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    1, 3, 4
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    5, 6
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    5
    Intercultural and ethical competency
    • adept at operating in other cultures
    • comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
    • able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
    • demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
    2
    Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
    • a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
    • open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
    • able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
    2, 5, 7
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources

    Most texts and text excerpts (including the set translations of the Iliad and the Aeneid) are available either as ebooks through the library website or as a 'reading brick'; see further MyUni.

    Recommended Resources
    See MyUni
    Online Learning
    All the written assessment will be submitted online. For further details on online learning see MyUni
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    The lectures, which are primarily focused upon defining the various emotional states, placing them within their cultural contexts and
    introducing various literary genres, are designed to prepare the ground for the seminars in which the role of emotion within selected ancient texts will be explored in depth. Seminars will be largely student driven (for instance, by requiring each student to lead a group discussion).   



    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    1 x 1-hour lecture per week 12 hours
    1 x 2 hour seminar or equivalent per week 24 hours
    1 x 4 hours reading and seminar preparation per week 48 hours
    1x 3 hours research per week 36 hours
    1 x 3 hours assignment preparation per week 36 hours
    Total 156 hours per semester
    Learning Activities Summary
    Week 1 What is Emotion? Ancient and Modern Perspectives
    Week 2 Anger and Epic Poetry
    Week 3 Anger in Greek Tragedy
    Week 4 Lust in Lyric Poetry
    Week 5 Lust and Epic Poetry
    Week 6 Grief in Greek Society
    Week 7 Grief in Roman Society
    Week 8 Envy and Hatred
    Week 9 Fear and Loathing
    Week 10 Ecstasy
    Week 11 Emotions Retrospective
    Week 12 Consolidation and Conclusion
    Small Group Discovery Experience
    The small group discovery experience in this course will be based around the seminars. Most of the seminars during the semester will involve students separating into discussion groups to analyse key portions of text or deal with specific questions relating to the text. They will then report back on their findings to the class.



  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment Task        Task Type Weighting      Course Learning Outcomes
    1 x 1500 word seminar essay Formative and Summative 25% 1, 2, 3, 4,6
    Tutorial Summary OR Leading a group discussion Formative and Summative 10% 2, 4, 5
    A second 1500 word seminar essay OR a Primary source analysis Formative and Summative 25% 6, 7
    Research essay OR Academic journal Summative 40% 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7
    Assessment Detail

    In this course you have a choice of assessment options:

    Your choice may depend upon whether:

    1. You are doing this course as an elective rather than as part of a major and have little or no knowledge of Classics


    2. You are doing Classics as part of a major and have successfully completed other Classics subjects before this one


    3. You are completing an ordinary BA or a BA Advanced




    Assessment Task 1 (25% of total grade): A 1500 word seminar essay for everyone. This needs to be selected from one of the seminar topics in Weeks 3-8 of the course. It is recommended that students who are new to Classics do an essay from an earlier week to get feedback on their work at an early stage.



    Assessment Task 2 (25% of total grade): A second 1500 word seminar essay OR a 1000 word primary source analysis. It is recommended that students who are new to Classics or who are in the second year of their degree chose the second essay which needs to be selected from the seminar topics in weeks 10-12. 



    Assessment Task 3 (10% of total grade): Seminar contribution and/ or participation which will be assessed by



    One class presentation on the seminar essay that has been submitted which will take the form of leading off the discussion on the essay topic (for more information on this, see below).


    OR

    One 500 word seminar summary, to be submitted on one of the seminars from weeks 3 to 8. Needs to be submitted within 48 hours of the conclusion of the relevant seminar. For more information on the form of this summary, see below.




    It is recommended that students who are new to Classics choose the second option.


    Assessment Task 4 (40% of total grade): An Academic Journal or a Research Essay
    Submission
    All written assessment tasks are submitted via MyUni.
    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

  • Student Support
  • Policies & Guidelines
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