HOWARD UNIVERSITY



FULL SYLLABUS

SP 19

Love in Antiquity CLAS 114 01

CRN18350 10:10-11 AM, LKH 202

3 credit hours*

FINAL EXAM Wed May 1, 2-4 PM in Classroom

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Ascoli_Satriano_Painter_-_Red-Figure_Plate_with_Eros_-_Walters_482765.jpg

Instructor: Professor Molly Levine

Email: myerowitz@ (preferred)

Telephone: x6725 (messages); x4159 (312, my office)

Office Hours: MWF 9-10AM and by appt.

Office: Locke 312

Classics Lounge/Library: Locke 254

* This course operates on Blackboard; you must be properly registered/validated to participate. This course satisfies Division A Credit

Course Description and Objectives

This course, interdisciplinary both in its sources and methods, looks at a broad array of ancient texts on love from a wide variety of perspectives. Chronologically, the texts we read range from the 12th century BCE to the 12th century CE, a span of almost 2500 years; geographically, the readings trace a circuit around the Mediterranean basin: Egypt, Israel, Ionia, Greece, Rome, and North Africa. Genres are equally catholic: lyric poetry, novel, drama, heroic and didactic epic, philosophical dialogue, the Old and New Testaments, and love letters. Methodologically, we shall apply several different approaches to each text that we read. Since most of the texts are literary, we shall consider formal questions such as language, composition, structure, function, voice, and setting. At the same time, we shall look at specific historic and social contexts so that we can understand these texts as cultural expressions of the erotic, which both influence and are influenced by human experience. At a further step removed, we will study these literary treatments of love for what we might call the metaphysics of love: their particular conceptualizations of the relation between love and human existence. Finally, sub specie aeternitatis, we shall try to understand these cultural constructions of the erotic from the perspective of evolutionary psychology as an integral part of nature’s grand scheme for genetic survival.

Secondary readings emphasize evolutionary psychology as well as recent scholarly studies on other theoretical conceptions of love and sexuality in antiquity. Prerequisites for the course are an open mind and the ability to delight in seeing “how things fit together, interestingly.”

Course Learning Outcomes

After successfully completing this course, you will have learned to

1. recognize, contextualize, and analyze seminal prose and poetic texts on the theme of love from ancient Egypt, Israel, Ionia, Greece, Rome, North Africa and Medieval France;

2. apply literary critical terms and concepts to the analysis of poetic and prose texts;

3. identify and define a wide range of ancient literary genres: lyric poetry, epic, novel, drama, philosophic dialogue and essay, love letters, OT and NT texts;

4. trace and compare recurring themes and motifs in erotic texts from several ancient cultures through contemporary culture;

5. integrate ancient representations of love with current philosophical, theological, and evolutionary theories of love;

6. formulate your own definitions of the role of love in human existence.

Required Texts Ordered for HU Book Store

Be sure to buy the required books immediately. You will need these specific texts and translations for class discussion and exam identification questions. The book store returns unsold books after about a month. Note that asterisked (*) items will not be assigned on the Spring 2019 syllabus due to the shortened semester.

1. Ronald McCall, trans. Longus, Daphnis and Chloe (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback). Oxford University Press 2009. ISBN-10: 0199554951; ISBN-13: 978-0199554959.

• See also William Blake Tyrrell online translation of Longus: Daphnis and Chloe

2. Ariel Bloch and Chana Bloch, trans. The Song of Songs: The World's First Great Love Poem (Modern Library Classics) (Paperback) Modern Library (2006). ISBN-10: 0812976207; ISBN-13: 978-0812976205.

• Online as downloadable ebook:

3. Avi Sharon, trans., Plato: Symposium. (Focus Philosophical Library (Paperback - Oct 1, 1997) Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Company (October 1, 1997).ISBN-10: 0941051560; ISBN-13: 978-0941051569.

Online Texts:

1. A.S. Kline,trans., The Love Poems. Ovid ( 2001. | ISBN-10: 1507893221; ISBN-13: 878-1507893227)downloadable Kline online translation of Ovid’s Art of Love and Cures for Love

2. *A.S. Kline, trans., Virgil, Georgics, Book IV 387-558

3. A.S. Kline, trans. Virgil, Aeneid Book I



4. A.S. Kline, trans.. Virgil, Aeneid, Book IV



Recommended Films:

1. Hitch,

2. Think Like a Man

3. Pride and Prejudice

4. *Black Orpheus directed by Marcel Camus



5. The End of the Affair (1999) Ralph Fiennes, Julianne Moore Director: Neil Jordan, 102 minutes. Christian vs. Romantic Love.

6. Fill the Void



PDF’s for course listed in order of readings, all posted on Blackboard

1. Robin Dunbar, “Now We Are One,” Ch. 1 in The Science of Love and Betrayal (London 2012) 1-30.

2. “Triangular Theory of Love,” Wikipedia article (link on BB)

3. Molly Myerowitz Levine “Ovid’s Evolution” 252-275 in The Art of Love:Bimillennial Essays on Ovid's Ars Amatoria and Remedia Amoris, edited by Roy Gibson, Stephen Green, and Alison Sharrock (OUP 2007).

4. Robin Dunbar “Through a Glass Darkly,” Ch. 4 in The Science of Love and Betrayal (London 2012) 84-113. PDF in two parts.

5.Robin Dunbar, “Saving Face,” Ch. 5 in The Science of Love and Betrayal (London 2012) 114-132.

6. Geoffrey Miller, “Cyrano and Scheherazade (Ch. 10)” in The Mating Mind: How Sexual Choice Shaped the Evolution of Human Nature ( Anchor; reprint edition 2001).

7. Barbara Hughes Fowler, trans. Love Lyrics of Ancient Egypt. University

of North Carolina Press,1994. ISBN-10: 0807844683; ISBN-13: 978-

0807844687.

8. Stephen Bertman, Erotic Love Poems of Greece and Rome. New

American Library. 2005. ISBN-10: 0451214803; ISBN-13: 978-0451214805 2 PDFs (1 for Greece, 1 for Rome).

9. Ovid on Salmacis and Hermaphroditus (Met. 4.274-388, the perils of merging).

10. Ovid on Echo and Narcissus (Met. 3.339-510, the self and the other).

11. Ovid on Pygmalion (Met.10.243-297).

12. *Apuleius, “Cupid and Psyche” Books 4-6 of The Golden Ass, condensation by Bullfinch.

13. *Virgil, “Orpheus and Eurydice” Georgics IV. 387-558

14. *M. M. Levine, Supplementary Readings on Hippolytus: ”The Tale of the Two Brothers,” ”Outline of Action” with “Potiphar’s Wife” and “Discussion Questions.”

15. Virgil. Doomed Love (=excerpts from Virgil’s Aeneid) (Penguin Great Loves) Paperback. Penguin. 2007. ISBN-10 0141034785; ISBN-13 978-0141034782. Translation of Books 1 & 4 posted on BB

16. T. Gould, Platonic Love. Ch.1 (Praeger; New edition [October 27, 1981]).

17. Lucretius (excerpts from De Rerum Natura) on love.

18. Cicero on love (excerpts from Tusculan Disputations).

19. Anders Nygren, “Agape and Eros.” Excerpt from  First Edition (April 1982).

20. Alain Badiou with Nicolas Truong. In Praise of Love. Trans. Peter Bush ( London 2012) 12-52.

21. Denis De Rougement, “Crisis in Modern Marriage” excerpt from Love in the Western World;

revised edition (Princeton University Press 1982).

22 Kate Bolick, “All the Single Ladies.”

23. Term sheets will be posted for each work read.

Recommended optional readings are listed after most topics on the syllabus.

grading and REQUireMENtS

(a) Quizzes on Readings (20%)

Readings are due on the day of the lecture on any given topic on the syllabus. You are expected to have read the material before each class and to come prepared to discuss the day's assignment. It is mandatory that texts under discussion be brought to class. To encourage active participation and to help improve your oral expression, students may be assigned to be discussion leaders for texts under discussion.

At the start of many classes, there often will be a 2-point, brief quiz/writing exercise to check both attendance and homework preparation. Latecomers will not be allowed to make up a quiz or to receive credit for attendance. Some, but not all, quizzes will be announced ahead of time. Occasionally, these quizzes will take the form of take-home writing assignments to be turned in at the next class. (These must be typed.)

Every effort will be made not to administer quizzes on days that conflict with athletic or other required absences (scholarly conferences, etc). Please note that a system for making up at least 2-3 missed quizzes is built into the quiz schedule described below.

A total of 10 quizzes counts toward the quiz component of your grade; 2 pts. per quiz to a maximum of 20 pts. The first and last required written definitions of love each count for 2 points as quiz grades. After the first week of class, quizzes cannot be made up. However, two or three extra quizzes will be given during the semester that can serve either to make up for any missed quizzes or as extra credit points (if you have taken more than the 10 required quizzes).

(b) 2 Midterm Exams (20%+20%=40%) and Final Exam (20%).

The format of exams will be varied, e.g., essay, short answer, identifications of terms and quotations, multiple choice, etc. Discussion and essay topics listed on the syllabus may reappear on exams as essay questions. The final exam will be cumulative but with emphasis on the material studied since the midterms.

On make up policy for Midterm Exams see (f) below. Students who are graduating seniors (in the current term) and require special ‘senior exams’ must identify themselves to me during the first week of the course (see (h) below).

Students requiring midterm or final exams administered by Special Student Services must inform me and present the required paperwork no later than a week before the scheduled exam (see [i] below).

(c) ONE Required written or audiocast Report (10%)

As a rule, one week of the course will be devoted to 10-minute class presentations by students, singly or in groups These presentations will require you to trace themes of ancient love lyrics that reappear in the lyrics of modern songs; when the semester is shorter than 15 weeks, this assignment must be submitted in writing or as an audiocast. See instructions on syllabus under Week 7.

(d) ONE Essay: (10%)

You are required to submit ONE 3-4 page (750-1000 word) essay on a topic and date of your choice from a list of 8 (Eight) essay prompts.* Essay prompts appear after most weekly assignments and are marked with a symbol. These prompts will also serve as topics for class discussion and/or discussion questions on exams. It is up to you to choose your topic and submit your paper by the listed due date for the respective topic. As a rule, essays are due on the Friday of the week under which the essay prompt appears (unless otherwise announced). No essays will be accepted as email attachments except under extraordinary circumstances and with the permission of the instructor. No late essays are accepted; simply choose the next topic if you miss a due date. NO ESSAYS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER FRIDAY, April 12.

Students have the option of rewriting an essay for a possible higher grade (no higher than B+); rewritten essays must be submitted together with the corrected original essay clipped to it no later than a calendar week after the original essay has been returned (and in any case no later than Friday, April 12). See “Rewrite Policy for Essays” on requirements for resubmission. (BB)

*A word to the wise: Essay topics tend to get slightly more challenging as the semester progresses. Turn in your essay early!

Essays will be graded as follows:

A+=98 A=95 A-=90

B+= 88 B=85 B-=80

C+=78 C=75 C-=70

D+=68 D=65 D-=60 F=0

In grading written work, attention will be paid to the mechanics of English expression (spelling, grammar, diction, organization, clarity) as well as to the content of your essays.* Essays must be submitted in class, typed, double spaced with wide margins to receive full credit. See my specific instructions on citations under each writing assignment and my “Essay Grading Form” at the end of the full syllabus on BB. Directions for citing ancient primary sources are given in each assignment as appropriate.

Essays must be original work. For the CETLA student guide to plagiarism and Howard’s Code on plagiarism, go to



Any work that is plagiarized will automatically result in a grade of 0 and may result in expulsion from the course. When in doubt, cite your source.

• Cetla Statement on Writing Matters: Writing is an essential tool for thinking and communicating in virtually every profession. Therefore, in this course I expect you to produce writing that is not only thoughtful and accurate, but also organized, clear, and consistent with the rules of Standard English. If your writing does not meet these standards, I may deduct points or ask you to revise. For assistance with your writing, go to the student section of the Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) website

•

(e) Extra Credit

• 2 quiz points for any correct quiz taken over the required 10 quizzes (see above a).

• 4 quiz points for extra credit essay on Aristotle’s Nichomachean Ethics; see topic and due date listed under assignment for Week 11 .

• 2 quiz points for turning in your receipt for course online evaluation no later than Wednesday, April. 24. PG students must turn this in by Friday, April 12.

(f) Make-Up Policy: No make-ups for missed quizzes after the first week of class. No late essays are accepted; simply choose the next topic if you miss a due date. Midterm exams may be made up provided that (a) the instructor or department is notified BEFORE the test is to take place; (b) the student on his/her return to class presents a written medical or religious excuse for the missed test; (c) the missed unit test is made up no later than two class periods after the student’s return.

(g) Portfolios: Please save all corrected work (quizzes, essay, midterms) for possible submission during Week 13 of the course.

(h) Graduating Seniors: Seniors who are graduating in the current semester and require special ‘senior exams’ must identify themselves to me by email during the first week of the course.

Possible Exemption from senior final for PG students: Seniors who are graduating in MAY, 2019 will be evaluated during Week 12 of the course; those who have submitted all work (including final redefinition of love (quiz) and course evaluation) except for the final exam and have accrued an average of 72/80 pts, or better will be exempted from the senior final exam) and receive an A for the course. For those with an average below 90%, a senior final will be administered during the last week of class on a date and time TBA.

For all others, the date of the final exam is fixed at Wed May 1, 2-4 PM in classroom.

(i) Special Student Services. Students requiring midterm or final exams administered by Special Student Services must inform me in writing during the first two weeks of class and present the required paperwork no later than a week before each scheduled exam. For information see (202-238-2420),

(j)Classroom Etiquette. Learning is a human experience that takes place among people: you, your classmates, and me, your teacher. In no way can cell phones substitute for sustained cognitive thinking, inductive and deductive reasoning, or detailed analysis and problem solving. With this in mind, please turn off and stow away your cell phones during my class. Failure to do so may result in a request to leave the classroom. (

(k) Problems: If any problem affecting your studies should arise, please notify me at the time of the problem, not retroactively at the end of the semester. Use my office hours and feel free to contact me by email (preferred: myerowitz@). I check my gmail daily and will always respond.

SCHEDULE OF TOPICS & HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS

Dates below are subject to change; you are responsible for finding out about any revisions in the schedule. Readings should be done in the order in which they are listed and split (if necessary) among the days allotted to a lecture topic. All assigned PDFs will be posted on Blackboard (indicated by BB on syllabus). Due to this semester’s shortened calendar, some of the pdf’s listed on the pdf list will not be assigned.

I. Thinking about Love: Is Coutship Natural/Instinctive or Cultural/Learned? Artful or Artless?

WEEK 1: Introduction, Ovid’s Art of Love (Ars Amatoria)

Monday, January 14: Introductions; Love Poems: Song of Songs, Bruno Mars, Shakespeare Sonnets 138 and 130 on illusion and reality in love, (printed at the end of this syllabus and on BB under “Love Poems: Song of Songs, Shakespeare, and Bruno Mars”)

TO DO:

• Buy your books NOW!

• Register for this class on Blackboard.

• Read through your full syllabus posted on BB.

• Take home quiz #1 (submit in class, Wed., January 16): Your definition of love; Are you or do you expect to be “in love”? Do you expect to marry for love? How did you learn about what love is? Did you ever think about love seriously and on your own? Do you think that the humanities can help you think about love? (=2 quiz points)

• Recommended Reading (optional): For some enlightenment, read:

▪ Robin Dunbar, The Science of Love and Betrayal (London 2012) Ch. 1: “Now We Are One.” (PDF on Blackboard);

▪ “Triangular Theory of Love,” Wikipedia article (link on BB).



Wednesday, January 16: Ovid, Art of Love (Ars Amatoria) Book 1

• Book 1 of the Art of Love

(in print= A.S. Kline, trans. The Love Poems by Ovid, pgs 121-155.)

• Art of Love Term List [BB]

• Ovid’s Life and Works [BB]

• Outline of Book 1 of the Art of Love [BB]

• Submit take home quiz #1 (see above, Mon. Jan. 14 for topic)

o Note: The Art of Love is commonly referred to as the Ars Amatoria (in Latin); ancient writings are divided into “books” which are equivalent in length to a modern chapter.

Friday, January 18: Art of Love, Book 2

• Ovid, Art of Love, Book 2 in Kline translation,

(in print version=Kline, pgs. 157-192);

• Handout on Book 2(BB); article: “Good Lovers Lie” NYT [BB]

• Essay #1 Prompt; essay due in class Wednesday, January 23

Translate some of the Ovidian ‘mating strategies’ from the Ars Amatoria into behaviors observed among your own contemporaries on campus. Be specific, citing at least 5 significant or interesting parallels between the praeceptor’s instructions on how to woo and the actions or behaviors characteristic of you (or your peers) when “mating.” How can you explain the similar behavior patterns? What might be the implications for the question of the heritability not only of the (natural) urge to mate but of the (cultural) mating strategies used to accomplish this goal, i.e. how/where did you and your peers learn what works in the mating game or do you just instinctively know what to do?

• [When referencing The Art of Love, cite book and section number in your Kline translation.]

• Recommended Films of modern Praeceptores:

“Think Like a Man, [BB]”

“Hitch” [BB]” (you can think of others, I’m sure).

WEEK 2: Ovid, Ars Amatoria Book 3; Cures for Love (Remedia Amoris)

Mon. Jan. 21. No lecture, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday

Read:

• Ars Amatoria Book 3 in Kline translation (= Kline, pp. 193-229);

• Handout on Ovid, Ars Amatoria (Art of Love), Book 3 (BB)

Wed. Jan. 23:

• Ovid, Cures for Love (Remedia Amoris) in Kline translation

(=Kline, pp. 231-266”)

• Handout on Cures for Love(Remedia Amoris): Outline, Themes,Test Prep (BB)

• Turn in Essay #1 if you have chosen to do it

Fri. Jan. 25:

• Review content, metaphors, and mythological exempla of Art of Love 2&3; Cures for Love

• “Discussion Questions on Ars (AA) and Remedia (RA) for Week 2” [BB]; quiz 2

WEEK 3: Ovid and Evolutionary Psychology

Mon. Jan.28: Ovid and Evolutionary Psychology.

• Levine “Ovid’s Evolution” (BB)

• Optional: “Pride and Prejudice” (Film of Jane Austen novel) (BB)

• Take home quiz to submit in class on Wed. Jan. 30: Write a personal advertisement, describing yourself and listing the qualities that you desire in a mate. (=2 quiz pts)

• Essay Prompt #2, essay due in class Fri. February 1 Do Ovid’s Art of Love and Cures for Love present courtship/mating as learned or instinctive or a combination of the two? Give at least three concrete examples from these poems to back up your position. Factor in what you have learned from your readings on evolution.

Wed. Jan. 30: Ovid and Evolutionary Psychology: In what sense are Ovid’s poems about love (more than you might want to think)?

• Dunbar, Ch. 4 “Through a Glass Darkly” 84-113 (BB, 2 parts)

• Dunbar Ch. 5 “Saving Face” 114-132 (BB)

• Evolutionary Terms for Week 3 [BB]

• Why women are more attracted to men who make them laugh [BB]

• Men and the manufacturing decline [BB]

• Submit take home quiz (typed)

Fri. Feb.1: Evolution and courtship

• Review Dunbar, Chs. 4 & 5 (BB)

• Turn in Essay #2 if you have chosen to do it

Watch online

• Why Sex (pbs) [BB]

Read online: Why Sex? (follow links)

• The Evolution of Sex (pbs) [BB]

Optional

• Helen Fisher, Ted Talk “The Brain in Love” [BB]



• Fisher, “Why We Love, Why We Cheat” [BB]



WEEK 4: Daphnis and Chloe

Mon. Feb. 4: Daphnis and Chloe.

• Longus, Daphnis and Chloe, Introduction & Bk 1, in McCall translation;

• “Daphnis and Chloe updated term list” (BB)

• (Also available) Online translation of Daphnis and Chloe by William Blake Tyrrell [BB]:

Wed. Feb. 6: Daphnis and Chloe

• Daphnis and Chloe 2 & 3 in McCall Translation

• Levine, “Notes on background and content of Daphnis and Chloe” (BB)

• D&C Quotes and Discussion Questions (BB)

• Quiz

Fri. Feb. 8: Daphnis and Chloe

• Daphnis and Chloe, Bk. 4

o Optional Readings: Chagall Illustrations of Daphnis and Chloe [BB]



o Ravel’s music for Daphnis and Chloe [BB]

• Essay #3 Prompt, due Mon., Feb. 11: Is love instinctive (natural) or taught (cultural) in Daphnis and Chloe, or a combination of the two? In other words, is love enough for a relationship in Daphnis & Chloe or is there a need for instruction? Your discussion may want to consider the Edenic setting of the novel; parallels between the seasons and the maturation of the lovers; and the extent to which teaching, socialization, or society plays a role in the love story, especially in the way that the story ends. Cite references to Daphnis and Chloe by page numbers in your Oxford translation.

or

• Create a multimedia project combining the text of Longus, Daphnis and Chloe, Ravel’s music for Daphnis and Chloe ballet, and Chagall’s illustrations of the story of Daphnis and Chloe. Post to You Tube. You may work in pairs if you wish. See handout with directions on BB.

• If you choose to create a multimedia project, your due date will be Monday, Feb.25.

II. Interlude: The Psychology of Love; Evolution, Language, And Poetry

WEEK 5: The Psychology of Love

Mon. Feb.11: MIDTERM 1 covers weeks 1-4

• Essay #3 (if you chose to do it) is due in class.

• Essay #4 (due in class Fri. Feb 15) Prompt: Your interpretation of Ovid’s “Echo and Narcissus,”Salmacis and Hermaphroditus”and Pygmalion. What happens to the “self” in these love stories? Does 1+1=2 or 1? Is two better than one? Are these love stories? (cf. Badiou pdf, optional, BB)

Wed. Feb.13 Ovid’s tales from the Metamorphoses

Read:

• Salmacis and Hermaphroditus (BB);

• Pygmalion (BB);

• Echo and Narcissus (BB)

• Lecture Notes on Ovid’s Tales (BB)

Fri. Feb.15: Sexual Selection and The Mating Mind

Read:

• Miller, “Cyrano and Scheherazade” (Ch. 10, 341-391; PDF on BB in 3 parts, Miller 10.1,10.2,10.3);

• “Evolution Term List“ (BB)

• Essay #4 due in class, if you have chosen to do it.

• OPTIONAL: Miller, “Evolution of Music Through Sexual Selection” BB

• OPTIONAL: Stephen Pinker, The Language Instinct

• Essay #5 Prompt: essay is due in class on Wednesday Feb. 20 if you have chosen to do it: What according to Miller is the connection between evolution, talking, and poetry? According to Miller (Ch.10) why does your girlfriend talk so much (for males)? Why doesn’t your boyfriend communicate (for females)? (May be a future exam question!)

• Note that any multimedia projects on Daphnis and Chloe (see above, essay #3) are due on Monday, Feb.25.

III. Recurring Themes of Ancient and Modern Love Songs

WEEK 6: Love Lyrics of Ancient Egypt

Mon. Feb.18: No Class, Presidents’ Day

Read:

• Love Lyrics of Ancient Egypt, trans. Barbara Hughes Fowler with introduction and notes PDF in 2 parts-BB;

• “General themes in ancient love songs” BB;

• “Notes and Terms for Egyptian love poetry” BB

Wed. Feb.20 : Ancient Egyptian Love lyrics

• Essay #5 due in class if you have chosen to do it

Review:

• Love Lyrics of Ancient Egypt, trans. Barbara Hughes Fowler with introduction and notes PDF in 2 parts-BB;

• “General themes in ancient love songs” BB;

• “Notes and Terms for Egyptian love poetry” BB

Fri. Feb.22 : Love Lyrics of Ancient Egypt.

Review assignment on Love lyrics of ancient Egypt.

• Optional:

o DVD: Sex in the Ancient World: Egypt (History Channel, 2010) BB



WEEK 7: Ancient Hebrew Love Poetry:

Mon. Feb, 25: The Song of Songs

Read:

• The Song of Songs: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, Ariel Block and Chana Bloch; read with introductory material, use notes as helpful;

• “term list” (BB)

Wed. Feb. 27: The Song of Songs

• Review: The Song of Songs text and term list

• Read: Levine, “Notes on the Song of Songs.” [BB]

Fri. March 1: No Lecture. Charter Day. Classes suspended from 10 AM to 1 PM

• Required report on recurring themes in ancient and modern love songs is due no later than Friday March 8; plan ahead and submit early if necessary.

Directions for written reports/or collaborative podcast/audiocast on recurring themes (10 pts of your total grade).

Do a close reading of the lyrics of your favorite love song(s). Include a copy of the modern song lyrics in your written submission or play segments of your chosen song in a podcast/audiocast). (1) Isolate and describe at least 3 different themes that recur in both ancient (Egyptian, Hebrew, Greek, or Latin) and modern lyrics. (2) Point out any interesting similarities or differences between the use of these themes in lyrics of your favorite song and the ancient lyrics and (3) try to explain any differences by the respectively different cultural contexts. Your analysis can be presented in a chart, bullet points, or conventional essay, whichever is clearer. You probably will need to use more than one poem, passage or song (modern and/or ancient) to do this well.

Up to 3 people can collaborate on a podcast/audiocast; reports should be no longer than 10 minutes or 3 pages. You are required to cite references to ancient poetry in the assigned translations, i.e. cite Egyptian love poetry by both page and poem numbers in Flower translation; cite references to the Song of Songs by page numbers in the Bloch translation; cite references to Greek or Roman lyrics by “title” and page number in the Bertman translation.

WEEK 8: Greek and Roman love lyric; Sappho and the Greek alphabet. Catullus and Horace Required report on recurring themes.

Mon. March 4 :

Read:

• Snyder, Sappho of Lesbos

• Greek poets: Mimnermus, Archilochus, Sappho, Theognis; (pdf –BB) from Stephen Bertman, Erotic Love Poems of Greece and Rome;

• Time Line(BB)

• Glossary (BB)

• term list (BB)

Optional podcast: Alastair Blanchard on ancient Greek sexuality:

o

Optional Readings:

o Edith Hall, “Sensual Sappho” BB

o Tim Whitmarsh “Sexing the Text” BB

o Jeffrey Henderson,” Greek Attitudes Toward Sex;”

o R.O.A.M. Lyne, “Traditional Attitudes to Love, the Moral and Social Background,” 1-18 in The Latin Love Poets from Catullus to Horace (Oxford: Clarendon Press 1980).

o Optional video: Alastair Blanchard on ancient Roman sexuality BB

o Tift Merritt, “Love soldiers on” BB

Wed. March 6: Roman love lyric

Read:

• Catullus and Horace (Roman erotic poems from Bertman-included in Bertman packet of Greek and Roman poems) BB

• Note: take home quiz due Friday, report on recurring themes due Friday.

Fri. March 8:

• Review Catullus and Horace

• Submit take home quiz: Your analysis of Horace Odes 1.25 (page 88 of Bertman) as both a paraclausithyron and invective

• Submit written report on recurring themes in ancient and modern love songs.

• March 8: Midterm Grades Due. If you have not taken any quizzes or submitted your required report on recurring themes by this date and/or received a failing grade on your first midterm, you will receive an automatic U.

Mar. 9-17 Spring Break

IV.Tragic Love: Love vs Family and State

WEEK 9: Vergil’s Aeneid: The Individual and the State

Mon. March 18 The Augustan Age: Background on Vergil’s Aeneid;.

• Read Virgil’s Aeneid, Book 1, pages 1-34 in Doomed Love; chapters posted on BB

Or online

• Aeneid term list BB

• Quiz on Aeneid Bk I

• read web sites on the Augustan Age and the Aeneid (see below)

o Note: Doomed Love is simply the modern title that Penguin gave to this translation; please refer to the epic by its proper title: the Aeneid. Online translations are available, but the version in the Penguin Doomed Love and posted on BB will be quoted on exams.

o For background on Augustus and the Augustan age, go to:

The Roman Empire in the First Century: Augustus BB

o

o Map of Roman Empire in the 1stcentury CE. BB

o Optional: Spark Notes on the Aeneid (BB)



o Optional: Historical and Philosophical Background to Vergil’s Aeneid BB

o For those who want to read the whole poem, see Barry Powell, trans. Vergil, The Aeneid. Oxford: 2016

Wed. March 20 Aeneid Bk 4

• Read: Vergil. Aeneid, Book 4 in Doomed Love, pp. 100-130. (BB) or online at

• Horace 1.37: Cleopatra Ode [BB]

• Quiz on Aeneid Bk 4

Fri. March 22 Aeneid continued

• Essay #6 due in class

• Essay #6 Prompt on Aeneid; due in class on Fri. March 22 What is the attitude toward personal love in the Aeneid? According to Virgil, what is the effect of an individual’s passionate romantic love on the welfare and future of the group, community, or state? Do the female and male differ in attitudes toward passionate love? If so, can you account for the difference between the attitudes of the two genders? Be sure to cite passages from the epic that back up your points and to cover all these questions in a coherent and well organized essay.

Cite references to Vergil’s Aeneid by page numbers in Doomed Love or by book and line numbers in online translation.

V. Philosophic and Religious Love: Leaving the body behind

WEEK 10 Midterm #2; Plato’s Symposium

Mon. March 25: Midterm #2 (covers material from weeks 5-9)

Wed. March 27 : Symposium

Read:

• Avi Sharon translation of Plato’s Symposium with introduction and notes (Focus Classical Library;

• Introductory Questions, Terms, and Lecture Notes on Plato’s Symposium (BB)

• Origin of Love: Hedwig and the Angry Inch (BB)

• Optional: Plato FAQ

• In class: 5 break-out groups on first 5 speeches

Fri. March 29: Symposium continued

• Quiz

• Essay #7 Prompt on Symposium; due in class Monday April 1 : Pretend that you are a guest at the symposium and are now asked to speak about Socrates’ speech on the nature of love in relation to knowledge. Write your speech, referring to other speeches as needed.

• Cite references to the Symposium by both Stephanus number and page number in Sharon translation. What’s a Stephanus number? See: BB

WEEK 11: Plato, Epicurians, Stoics

Mon. April 1: : Plato, Symposium; Essay #7 due in class. Quiz

• Reread the speeches of Socrates and Alcibiades;

• Read T. Gould, Platonic Love Ch.1 BB

• Notes on Gould (MML) BB

• Exam/Review questions on Plato, Symposium BB

• Submit Essay #7 if you chose to do i.t

Wed. April 3: Epicurian Love

Read:

• Lucretius, On the Nature of Things on Epicurian Love BB;

• Levine, Notes on Lucretius and Cicero BB

Fri. April 5: Stoic Love

Read:

• Cicero, Tusculan Disputations on Stoic Love BB

• Lucretius and Cicero: Exam review and study questions BB

o OPTIONAL: “How the Stoic Sage Loves” (BB)

[Extra credit essay (+4) on Aristotle.

• Read Aristotle Nichomachean Ethics, Book 8 on Friendship (BB)

(online at: )

• Discuss: According to Aristotle, can friendship exist between unequals?

• Submit essay in class on Friday April 12. (typed)

WEEK 12: Christian love

Mon. April 8 Christian Love; Essay #8 (last essay prompt) due on Friday, April 12.

• Lev. 19:18 (note the place of “the stranger” in Lev. 19.33)

• Deut. 6:5

• Matt. 5.43-48, 22:34-40

• Luke 6.32-36, 10:25-28

• 1 John, esp. 4.7-21

Wed. April 10: Eros and Agape: Christian vs. Platonic Theories of Love.

• Review Gould (BB) on Christian vs. Platonic Love.

• Levine, “Notes on Gould: Platonic distinguished from other theories of love” BB

• [Optional; read with Gould’s strictures] Anders Nygren, “Agape and Eros” (BB)

Fri. April 12

• Turn in essay #8, if you chose to do it. This is your last possible essay submission.

• PG seniors: Turn in

• Revised definition of love=quiz 10 (2 quiz pts);

• Evaluation receipt (2 quiz pts).

• No late submissions will be accepted.

• Essay #8 prompt. Essay is due in class on Fri. April 12. This is the last essay prompt. No essays (or rewritten essays) will be accepted after this date.

Summarize Gould’s discussion of contrasts and overlaps between the Platonic and Christian views of love. Be sure to cover a minimum of 3 clear contrasts or overlaps between Platonic and Christian theories of love.

o Optional Film: “The End of the Affair”, (1999) Ralph Fiennes, Julianne Moore Director: Neil Jordan, 102 minutes. Christian vs. Romantic Love.

o Optional Film: “Stealing Heaven” (1989) Love story of Heloise and Abelard. In medieval Paris, a young religious scholar and the beautiful niece of a local patrician fall madly in love and consummate their passion for each other. In the religious uproar that follows, they are condemned and brutally punished.

V.ROMANTIC LOVE AND MODERN MARRIAGE

SUMMARY AND OVERVIEW

WEEK 13: Romantic Love

Mon. April 15: Exemptions from senior finals to be announced.

• Review Gould (BB) on Romantic vs. Christian Love/ Platonic Love

• Read: Alain Badiou with Nicolas Truong. In Praise of Love. Trans. Peter Bush BB

Wed. April 17: What’s the connection (if any) between romantic love and modern marriage?

• Denis De Rougement, “Crisis in Modern Marriage” (excerpt) BB

• online: Kate Bolick, “All the Single Ladies,” BB

• Optional: “Why you will marry the wrong person” BB

• Optional film : FILM: Fill the Void



• Further reading: Stephanie Coontz, Marriage, A History (Penguin 2005) BB

Fri. April 19: (no lecture?)

WEEK 14: Modern Love; Review for final exam

Mon. April 22:

Review: De Rougement and Bollick

Senior Exams (Time and place TBA); Time and Place TBA. Senior Final Exam ONLY for seniors graduating in May, 2018. Graduating Seniors who have maintained an A average in the course work so far (72 out of a possible 80 pts) will be exempt from the senior final. Senior final will cover readings from Week 10-13.

Wed. April 24 (Re)definition of Love; Review questions; final exam information.

• See Final Exam Study Guide on BB

• Do paper course evaluations

• Last day for required writing topic for non PG students, due in class (not an essay topic; a quiz 10 grade=2 pts). Rewrite your initial definition of love. Did anything you read, wrote, or thought in this course affect your rewritten definition? If so what and how? Be specific about which works, if any, made you rethink your definition.

• Online course evaluations; Extra credit (2pts) toward participation grade: turn in receipt for course evaluation

Fri. April 26 Review Questions, continued.

Grades for PG Students are due.

FINAL EXAM: Wed May 1, 2-4 PM in Classroom

Readings for first/last meeting-Love Poems Song of Songs, Shakespeare, Bruno Mars

Song of Songs 4.10-12 (NSRV)

10 How sweet is your love, my sister, my bride!

    how much better is your love than wine,

    and the fragrance of your oils than any spice!

11 Your lips distill nectar, my bride;

    honey and milk are under your tongue;

    the scent of your garments is like the scent of Lebanon.

12 A garden locked is my sister, my bride,

    a garden locked, a fountain sealed.

Shakespeare Sonnet CXXXVIII.



When my love swears that she is made of truth


I do believe her, though I know she lies,


That she might think me some untutor'd youth,


Unlearned in the world's false subtleties.


Thus vainly thinking that she thinks me young,


Although she knows my days are past the best,


Simply I credit her false speaking tongue:


On both sides thus is simple truth suppress'd.


But wherefore says she not she is unjust?


And wherefore say not I that I am old?


O, love's best habit is in seeming trust,


And age in love loves not to have years told:


Therefore I lie with her and she with me,


And in our faults by lies we flatter'd be.

Shakespeare Sonnet CXXX.


My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;


Coral is far more red than her lips' red;


If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;

If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.


I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,


But no such roses see I in her cheeks;


And in some perfumes is there more delight


Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.


I love to hear her speak, yet well I know


That music hath a far more pleasing sound;


I grant I never saw a goddess go;


My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:


And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare


As any she belied with false compare.

14. As any she belied = as any woman who is belied; belied = (who is) falsely portrayed. OED.2 defines belie as 'to tell lies about, to calumniate with false statements'

false compare = false and deceptive comparisons, insincerities. compare could also hint at 'compeer', one who is comparable, on an equal footing.

Bruno Mars Just the Way You Are (2010)



Oh, her eyes, her eyes make the stars look like they're not shining

Her hair, her hair falls perfectly without her trying

She's so beautiful

And I tell her everyday.

And when you smile

The whole world stops and stares for a while

'Cause girl, you're amazing

Just the way you are1

Her lips, her lips, I could kiss them all day if she'd let me

Her laugh her laugh, she hates but I think it's so sexy

She's so beautiful

And I tell her everyday

Essay Grading Form

A+/100: Wonderful

A /95 Excellent

A- /9: Well above average

B+/88 Above average

B/85: Average

B-/8-: Slightly below average

C/75: Below average

D/65: Very weak

F/50 and below: Unacceptable

Essay Grade is determined by the following:

1. Content Accuracy/Depth of Analysis/Serious Engagement with the Text

Essay reflects solid understanding of reading; originality of ideas

2. Structure/Organization

You followed directions regarding the assigned topic; essay has a clear and logical structure using logical transition words.

3. Style/Clarity

Note my edits for any awkward points; clarity, flow, transitions,

4. Diction

This means using the right word for the idea you are trying to express

5. Syntax, Grammar, Punctuation, PROOFREADING

You must not turn in a first draft! You should edit a hard copy of your writing before turning in your final draft. Watch grammar, sentence structure, paragraphing.

6. Formatting

Follow directions on syllabus for citation of translations of ancient texts. For example, the Iliad should be italicized; citations should be made by book and line number, e.g., Il. 2.34-35 and put into parentheses after the citation. Justify your margins. Number your pages. Double space so I have room for comments. Justify margins. Proofread to remove typos. Don’t forget a title.

Rewrite policy for essays

Any paper may be rewritten upon satisfying the following requirements:

1. The original paper was submitted on time.

2. The student meets with the instructor to go over the paper.

3. The paper is completely rewritten from scratch and not just edited.

4. The rewritten paper is resubmitted no later than one week after the original was returned in class. 

The highest grade that a rewritten essay may receive is a B+ (88). 

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