Undergraduate Course: Greek Comedy (GREE10011)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Comedy is one of the oldest established literary genres, and like epic and tragedy, it is a legacy from the Greeks. The course will focus upon a close reading, in the original, of two plays, selected to provide a good basis for the discussion of the qualities of comedy and its historical development. Beyond regular translation of and commentary on the Greek, the course will concentrate upon the historical and social contexts of the plays, and illustrate their significant differences. Full attention will be paid to literary questions such as the "seriousness" (or otherwise) of Greek Comedy, its relationship with other genres, language and form. |
| Course description |
Not entered
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
Students MUST have passed:
Greek 2A (GREE08007) AND
Greek 2B (GREE08008)
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | 2 set texts |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Advanced-level ability in Greek language and literature, equivalent to two years' study at the University of Edinburgh (if uncertain, consult the course organiser).
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Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the course, students will have covered:-
- further consolidation of the student's grasp of the Greek language, in particular forms of colloquial Attic Greek, not excluding obscenity (!);
- study of Comedy as a dramatic literary genre, the development of that genre from Aristophanes to Menander, and its relation to other literary genres and to humour in general;
- the social dimension of Greek Comedy, especially its festival setting and its relation to gender issues and politics;
- some attention to the staging and production of ancient drama;
- some knowledge of Greek or Athenian history, and social history;
- bibliographical and research skills to enable students to pursue their more specific interests arising from the plays.
The course objectives overlap in part with the lectures on Comedy in the Classics in translation for sub-honours, but the relation is rather complementary, that of introduction versus intermediate or advanced level of study: where the Classics in translation lectures are part of a broad introductory survey, this course studies much more closely a smaller section of material in the original Greek, with much greater attention to detail. Otherwise, there is no overlap with any other courses on offer, but it does complement the objectives of Greek History, Tragedy, and Roman Comedy.
Transferable skills:-
- general writing skills (most of the work involves translation);
- ability to generate critical and analytic summaries;
- memorisation;
- independent research and reflection on a topic of the student's choosing.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Special Arrangements |
In order for a student from outwith Classics to be enrolled on this course, contact must be made with a Course Secretary on 50 3580 / 50 3582 in order for approval to be obtained. |
| Keywords | Greek Comedy |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Stephanie Winder
Tel: (0131 6)50 3583
Email: |
Course secretary | Ms Elaine Hutchison
Tel: (0131 6)50 3582
Email: |
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