Sweet Briar College

Sweet Briar Collegedevised by women in response to those stereotypes.Attitudes toward marriage and the family,homosexuality, and fertility control will also betreated. Emphasis will be on interpretation ofancient texts, literary, legal and documentary (allin English translation), and current scholarship.Topic and time period will vary. Offered alternateyears. May be counted as a core course towardthe minor in gender studies. V.5.Prerequisites: CLAS 211, CLAS 307, or HIST223; first-year students and sophomores withpermission. This course looks at the RomanEmpire from the third through the fifth century,the time of “decline and fall” which saw thetriumph of Christianity and the disintegrationof the western half of the Empire into regional,“barbarian” states. Emphasis will be on the socialand religious changes the Roman world saw, andreadings will include selections from the legalsources and Christian writings that survive fromthis period. Offered alternate years. III.W, V.1.Prerequisite: First-year students and sophomoreswith permission; at least one course inclassical civilization is strongly recommended.This course investigates themes and issues inclassical civilization, drawing from a wide varietyof sources including literary, philosophical, andhistorical writings, inscriptions, papyri and artisticmodes of production (e.g., vase paintings,sculpture, etc.). Topics will vary, with futuretopics including the paradoxical status of gladiatorsin imperial Rome; Greek conceptions of thegrotesque; and ideas of death, commemoration,and the afterlife.Prerequisites: 100-level CLAS course and permissionof the instructor. The study of an intermediatelevel topic by an individual student orby a small group of students under the immediatesupervision of a faculty member.Prerequisites: Three credits in CLAS and permissionof instructor, department chair, anddean. This course is graded P/CR/NC only.Prerequisite: Non-majors by permission. Thedepartmental senior exercise, required of allclassics majors and open to other qualifiedstudents by permission. It involves intensivestudy of an author, period, genre, or topic notcovered, or only partially covered, by regularcourse offerings. Topics will vary from year toyear. III.O, III.W.Prerequisites: One 100-level CLAS course, one200-level CLAS course, and permission of theinstructor. Pursuit of an upper level researchproject determined in advance by the student inconsultation with a faculty member who will actas the sponsor.Fundamentals of the classical Greek languagein preparation for reading literary works, withwritten exercises and translation. Offered alternateyears.Prerequisite: GREK 101. Fundamentals of theclassical Greek language in preparation for readingliterary works, with written exercises andtranslation. Offered alternate years.Prerequisite: GREK 102 or placement.Continuing emphasis on developing facility inreading and grammatical skills. Offered alternateyears.Prerequisite: GREK 201. Readings fromHomer’s Odyssey. Offered alternate years. V.3.Prerequisites: One GREK course and permissionof the instructor. The study of introductorylevel material by an individual student or by asmall group of students under the immediatesupervision of a faculty member.Prerequisite: GREK 202. This course exploresthe world of archaic Greek epic poetry and will