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Greek and Roman Narrative

Module description

This module explores Greek and Roman epic poems within their literary cultural and social contexts: the Homeric epics Iliad and Odyssey, and selections from Apollonius’ Hellenistic work The Argonautica and Roman ‘epic’, including Catullus 64, Virgil’s Aeneid and Ovid's experimental Metamorphoses.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module is based on Greek and Latin texts read entirely in translation, and its aim is to trace the development of the narrative genre from the earliest heroic epics through to Imperial Rome. It looks at the assumptions the texts make about man and the world, at how changes in society are reflected in literature and in the role of literature in society, and how attitudes and preconceptions influence the author’s treatment of his subject.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate a detailed knowledge of a wide range of the major literary works of the Greeks and Romans, and the way they reflected changes in ancient society and perceptions
• 2. Demonstrate a knowledge of how the genre of epic poetry developed from the Archaic period to the early Principate
• 3. Demonstrate an understanding of relevant literary-critical theories, such as intertextuality, hypertextuality, and narratology, and apply these critically in the analysis of ancient texts

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Analyse and critically evaluate ancient texts
• 5. Develop academic and library skills
• 6. Develop a critical engagement with modern scholarly literature

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 7. Demonstrate independent study skills in the research and presentation of findings
• 8. Select, organise, analyse and synthesise relevant material
• 9. Present a strong argument in oral and written form
• 10. Develop confidence and clarity in oral communication
• 11. Work and discuss issues in a peer group in a constructive and responsive way
• 12. Develop as critical readers of literature in general

Syllabus plan

Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that it will cover some or all of the following topics:

Greek Epic: Homer’s Iliad, Homer, Odyssey 

Hellenistic into Roman Epic: selections from Apollonius’ Argonautica, Catullus 64, Virgil’s Aeneid, Ovid's Metamorphoses

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Basic reading:

Greek Epic:

• Edwards, M., Homer, Poet of the Iliad (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 1987). 
• Finley, M. I., The World of Odysseus 2nd ed. (Chatto, 1977). 
• Fowler, R., The Cambridge Companion to Homer (Cambridge, 2005). 
• Goldhill, S., The poet’s voice: essays on poetics and Greek literature (Cambridge, 1991). 
• Griffin, J., Homer (NY and Oxford, 1980).
• Katz, M. Penelope's Renown: Meaning and Indeterminacy in the Odyssey (Princeton, 1991). 
• Kirk, G., Homer and the Epic (Cambridge, 1965). 
• McAuslan, I. (ed.), Homer, Greece and Rome Studies, Volume 4 (1998). 
• Nagy, G., The Best of the Achaeans: Concepts of the Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 1979). 
• Page, D., The Homeric Odyssey (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1955). 
• Powell, B. and Morris, I. (edd.), A New Companion to Homer (Mnemosyne, Bibliotheca Classica Batava, Supplementum 163 (1997). 
• Schein, S., (ed.) Reading the Odyssey (Princeton: PUP, 1995). 
• Schein, S., The Mortal Hero: An Introduction To Homer's Iliad (Berleley/LosAngeles U Cal., 1985). 
• Segal, C., Singers, heroes and gods in the Odyssey (Ithaca, 1995). 

Roman Epic:

• Barchiesi, A., The Poet and the Prince: Ovid and Augustan Discourse (University of California Press, 1997). 
• Barchiesi, A., Speaking Volumes:  Narrative and Intertext in Ovid and Other Latin Poets (London, 2001). 
• Boyle, A. J. (ed.), Roman Epic (London and New York, 1993). 
• Bramble, J.C. ‘Structure and ambiguity in Catullus 64’, Proceedings Cambridge Philological Society 16 (1970) 22-41.
• Braund, S., Latin Literature (London and New York, 2002).
• Clare, R. (1996) 'Catullus and the Argonautica of Apollonius Rhodius: allusion and exemplarity', PCPhS 42:60:88.
• Conte, G.B. The Rhetoric of Imitation. Genre and Poetic Memory in Virgil and other Latin Poets (Ithaca, N.Y. 1986).
• Conte, G.B., Latin Literature: A History (Baltimore and London, 1994).
• Galinsky, G. K., Ovid’s Metamorphoses: an Introduction to the Basic Aspects (Oxford, 1975). 
• Gold, B.K., Literary and Artistic Patronage in Ancient Rome (Austin, 1982). 
• Hardie, P.R. Virgil. (Greece and Rome New Surveys in the Classics No. 28) (Oxford 1998).
• Hardie, P.R. Virgil’s Aeneid. Cosmos and Imperium (Oxford 1986).
• Hardie, P.R., (ed.), Cambridge Companion to Ovid (Cambridge, 2002). 
• Hardie, P.R., Ovid’s Poetics of Illusion (Cambridge, 2002). 
• Hinds, S. Allusion and Intertext. Dynamics of Appropriation in Roman Poetry (Cambridge 1998).
• Myers, K.S., Ovid’s Causes: Cosmogony and Aetiology in the Metamorphoses (Michigan, 1994). 
• Nelis, D.P. Virgil’s Aeneid and the Argonautica of Apollonius Rhodius (Leeds 2001).
• Powell, A. (ed.), Roman Poetry and Propaganda in the Age of Augustus (London: Bristol Classical Press, 1992). 
• Solodow, J.B., The world of Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Chapel Hill, 1988).

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=430

The module description, lecture materials, additional reading materials, useful web links and a discussion forum will be available via the Exeter Learning Environment.

Key words search

Classics, Greek, Roman, Latin, Narrative, Epic