Middlebury

LITS 0151

The Golden Age of Athens

The Golden Age of Athens: History and Literature
In this course we will trace the unprecedented intellectual innovation that begins with Greece’s triumph over the Persian invasions in 490 and 480-479 BC, continues through the emergence of radical democracy and imperialism at Athens, and culminates in the Peloponnesian War and Athens’ defeat in 404 BC by her former ally, Sparta. Through intensive study of selected works of historiography (Herodotus, Thucydides), tragedy (Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides), comedy (Aristophanes), and philosophy (Plato), we will explore the central concerns of 5th-century Athenians: freedom and power, knowledge and virtue, law and nature, and the place of the divine in the human world. 3 hr. lect., 1 hr. disc
Subject:
Literary Studies
Department:
Program in Literary Studies
Division:
Literature
Requirements Fulfilled:
EUR HIS LIT
Equivalent Courses:
CLAS 0151 *

Sections in Fall 2006, School Abroad Russia (Moscow)