Ms. Christine Albright

Park Hall 210; 542-2191
email: calbrigh@uga.edu

Welcome to Ms. Albright's section of CLAS 1020, Classical Mythology. This course strives for a general understanding of the mythology of ancient Greece and Rome. It
also strives to introduce students to ancient Greek and Roman culture. Because it is a 1000-level introductory course, it will survey a wide range of material; thus, there is a heavy reading load. Students should expect up to several hundred pages of reading per
week at times. In contrast to what many seem to believe, students should not interpret its 1000-level designation to mean that the work load is easier than in upper-level classes. The 1000-level designation simply indicates that the course covers a wide range of material rather than a specific author or particular literary genre. Do not leave long reading assignments for the night before they are due; plan ahead!

We will focus primarily on the literature of Greece and Rome, although our examination also will include art, archaeology, history, and religion. Because Roman authors adopted and adapted many of the Greek myths for their own literature, we will concentrate on Greek mythology, although we will look at some Roman material at the end of the semester.

Teaching Philosophy
I believe that the most effective learning occurs when students are active participants in their own education. I favor a course which is based on the traditional lecture system of American universities but which incorporates elements of the tutorial system of universities such as Oxford and Cambridge. In the tutorial system, students are reponsible for educating themsleves; the instructor acts as a director and guide for the student rather than as the primary means through which the student masters class material. I expect students to have a basic understanding of geography, history and western civilization. If you have no idea when the Roman Empire existed or where Greece is located, you should probably read a history book. THIS IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY. Although I do provide a short overview of Greek and Roman history and culture at the beginning of the course, this lecture will probably not suffice if you have no idea where Greece and Italy are located. If you come across a reference to the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi, for example, and you do not know anything about Delphi, it is your repsonsibility to research the subject until you achieve a basic understanding of it. Do not simply wait to ask about it in class. We cannot possibly cover everything about classical mythology in class, so students must work to educate themselves outside of class.

The nature of class meetings will vary. There will be lectures, class discussions, videos, and perhaps a few dramatic readings. I have ordered a basic mythology textbook, which should provide background and expexegetical material for our readings. In this text, you will find family trees, myths, photos of related artwork, descriptions of important festivals, etc. There is an excellent bibliography at the end of each chapter in this textbook; use these bibliographies for your papers. Many of these books, in fact, are on reserve at the main library and thus easy to find. We will not discuss specific readings from the textbook, although our discussions will frequently include material mentioned in this text. Most learning occurs outside the classroom, and our discussions should come about after everyone has educated themselves about the subject at hand. I have attempted to order texts which have explanatory notes whenever possible; you should use these notes. Please do not consume precious class time with questions which are easily answered by the textbook or easily found in the library.

I will collect e-mail addresses early in the term. I occasionally e-mail students about specific assignments, etc. It is your responsibility to check your e-mail account frequently and to notify the instructor of any changes to your e-mail account.

Things That Should Not Have To Be Said At All
This course assumes college-level skills in reading and writing, and all work will be graded according to both content and presentation. Students who do not feel that they are strong writers are encouraged to take advantage of the English Department’s Writing Center in the basement of Park Hall, although students who do visit the Writing Center should explain to their tutor that they are enrolled in a classics course, not an English course. Otherwise, students may be encouraged to document papers according to MLA style, which is used in English but not typically in classics. This course uses Turabian-style documentation. If you are not familiar with the Turabian style, it is your responsibility to become familiar with it. This course also assumes a basic understanding of geography, history and western civilization. If you have no idea where Greece is located on a map of the world, you should probably brush up on your geography, for example.

(Go to the UGA library Research Central for sample Turabian citations.)

Come to class on time and do not leave class early. Turn cellphones off. Bring the reading material assigned for each class to class with you. Everything covered in class, including videos, dramatizations, and all readings are fair game for exams. Students who miss class are responsible for material assigned during that class and for collecting notes, etc. Do not expect the instructor to provide you with copies of notes or handouts, and certainly do not expect private tutoring sessions after missing class. It is a good idea to get the phone numbers and email addresses of several fellow students in case you have to miss class. This class assumes familiarity with the University’s libraries, particularly with the main library. It is assumed, of course, that all students have active student IDs and may legitimately make use of UGA libraries and other University facilities.

I also have provided a list of helpful scholarly websites and reference works on the syllabus. You should familiarize yourself with both transliterated Greek and Latin proper names and be able to spell them correctly. If everyone understands these expectations, our discussions will be much more enjoyable and fruitful.