Assignments due by beginning of class on indicated days. Schedule subject to change at instructor's discretion.
Why? | |
19-Aug | No assignment. Themes, materials, procedures. Why? |
Greek tragedy. Patterns, relevance and relatability | |
21-Aug | Sophocles: Antigone 1 = somewhat more than the first ½ of play, in the Penguin print edition, pp. 59-107.
In other words, start from the beginning and read through Antigone's speech where she says she's being dragged away to punishment ("Land of Thebes, . . . They drag me away, now, no more delay," right before the chorus starts talking about "Danaë, Danaë. . . ."
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26-Aug | Sophocles: Antigone 2 (finish). Review the Study Guide; do the rest as per 21-Aug assignment, only this time, it'll be the Antigone 2 Guiding Question. |
28-Aug | Readings in Honig Antigone, Interrupted. Access web readings, Guiding Question, etc. via Study Guide. |
2-Sep | No class (Monday classes meet) |
4-Sep | Greek Tragedy: origins, ancient practice, ancient theory. Access web readings, Guiding Question, etc. via Study Guide. |
9-Sep | Euripides: Bacchae 1 (Signet-Penguin, pp. 395-430 = Kindle location 7858 "PROLOGUE" to location 8528, just before "THIRD CHORAL LYRIC" — basically, first half of play). Study Guide. |
11-Sep | Euripides: Bacchae 2 (pp. 430-456, i.e., rest of play). Study Guide. |
16-Sep | Aeschylus: Persians (Oxford, all). Study Guide. |
18-Sep | Two things:
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23-Sep | No class (Rosh Hashanah) |
25-Sep | Aeschylus: Agamemnon 2. (Start Agamemnon's entrance, p. 132, chorus line "Come, my king." Read though to end of play.) Study Guide. |
30-Sep | Aeschylus: Libation Bearers (Penguin, all). Study Guide. |
2-Oct | No class (Yom Kippur) |
7-Oct | Aeschylus: Eumenides (Penguin, all). Study Guide. |
Are we prisoners of fate — is that what tragedy is? | |
9-Oct | Chapter 3, pages 12-16, in "Knowing and Not Knowing: How Oedipus Brings Down Fate," in: Critchley, Simon. 2019. Tragedy, the Greeks, and Us. New York: Pantheon Books. Text access via Study Guide (under preparation). |
14-Oct | Midterm exam on readings etc. through 7-Oct (not on the Critchley reading). Study Guide. |
16-Oct | Sophocles: Oedipus the King (Penguin, all). Study Guide. |
21-Oct | Sophocles: Oedipus at Colonus READ ALL. Study Guide. |
Euripides' tragedies — is it tragedy? | |
23-Oct | Euripides Medea (Signet, all). Study Guide. |
28-Oct | Euripides: Iphigenia at Aulis (Signet, all). Study Guide. |
30-Oct | Euripides: Hippolytus (Signet, all). Study Guide (in preparation). |
4-Nov | Euripides: Cyclops (Signet, all). Study Guide. |
6-Nov | Euripides: Alcestis (Signet, all). Study Guide. |
Does tragedy help? | |
11-Nov | Aristophanes: Frogs (print text, Focus/Hackett, all). Study Guide. |
Roman tragedy: more of the same and completely different | |
13-Nov | Seneca: Phaedra part 1 (Penguin). Pages 98-127. That's the beginning of play to partway through Act 2, just before the chorus that praises Hippolytus' beauty. Study Guide. |
18-Nov | Seneca: Phaedra part 2 (Penguin). Pages 127 (chorus on Hippolytus' beauty) to end. Study Guide. |
20-Nov | Seneca: Thyestes, all (Penguin). Study Guide. |
25-Nov | No class |
27-Nov | No class (Thanksgiving) |
2-Dec | Pseudo-Seneca: Octavia (Penguin, all). Study Guide. |
Course wrap-up: Is tragedy pointless? | |
4-Dec | Read the central chorus from Anouilh's Antigone, pp. 101-102. Be prepared to talk about the Guiding Question on the Study Guide, which includes text access and a guide to the final exam. |
?? | Final exam on readings, etc., 9-Oct through 4-Dec. Study Guide under preparation. |