Semester General Education Courses - Ohio University

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Semester General Education Courses
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Course Description
CLAS 2530 Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic World 2HL 3 0 Focuses first on Alexander himself, a man who became a myth even before
his death. Next examines the Hellenistic world, the world that Alexander
created out of his conquests. Alexander's conquests helped spread Greek
civilization over the whole of the eastern Mediterranean. Many of the issues
that people living in this world confronted are still relevant today: the nature of
celebrity, for Alexander was arguably the first celebrity; the challenges of
emigration, of living in a society that was culturally and ethnically diverse, of
assimilating a foreign culture, and living under an autocracy.
CLAS 2540 Rome Under the Caesars 2HL 3 0 Looks at life and thought in ancient Rome from Augustus through Marcus
Aurelius (27 B.C.- A.D.180) based on archaeological, historical, and literary
sources. Examines across cultural boundaries the issue of what it means to
be human. Focuses primarily on the inhabitants of Rome, how they lived and
what they thought about fundamental issues such as: How should the
demands of the common good be balanced with individual needs and
desires? What is the role of religion in society? of education? of art? How
does one deal with death? What ultimately make life worth living for an
individual in Roman society? Issues then compared with our own attitudes in
modern America. Studies the use of political propaganda in society, the rituals
of daily life in ancient Rome, and the art and architecture that made up the
environment in which these people lived.
CLAS 2550 Pagan to Christian in Late Antiquity 2HL 3 0 Interdisciplinary approach to the dramatic changes that occur in ways of
looking at the individual and one's place in the world during the 4th through
6th centuries of our era as paganism is replaced by Christianity as the
dominant religious view. Geographical foci are Rome and Constantinople.
Sources are textual, artistic, and archaeological.
CLWR 1810 Introduction to the Study of Religion 2HL 3 0 What is religion and how do we study it? These seemingly simple questions
have bedeviled generations of very smart people. Using case studies explores
various religious groups and movements such as snake-handling Christians in
Appalachia, Vodou practitioners in Brooklyn, and Islamist activists in Egypt.
Through discussions of these cases, examines how religious practices and
traditions interact with class, gender, ethnicity, politics, and others dimensions
of social experience. Reflects on the ethical and methodological problems that
arise when one studies groups other than one's own.
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November 17, 2011