CLASSICS 316 Sex and Power in Greek and Roman Literature - Course Outlines

Course Prescription

Many Greek and Roman literary works deal with sex and power. This course will explore a range of ancient literary representations of women, men, femininity, masculinity, sexual practices and sexual prejudices. Students will study how ancient authors were influenced by the socio-political context and the constraints of different literary genres. All texts will be read in translation.

Course Overview

The ancient society of Athens gave humanity democracy, theatre, philosophy; it also put slaves in chains and free women behind doors. The great civilisation of Rome brought the world aqueducts, underwater concrete and the alphabet you’re reading right now; Rome too sat on a foundation of social inequality.

In this course we study some of the greatest achievements of Greece and Rome – their literature – to understand how sex, gender and sexuality interconnected with power in the ancient world.

Literature played a key role in societies in antiquity just as it does now, in shaping minds, ideas and public debate about social problems and morality. Some writers, singers, playwrights, and poets of Greece and Rome used their writing to reinforce dominant ideologies about women’s weaknesses/roles and the corresponding rights of men. Other writers challenged mainstream ideas and questioned the existing power imbalances between men and women, free people and slaves, citizens and foreigners.

The texts in the course deal with war, justice, love, religion, murder, marriage, same-sex desire, slavery, and more. We will pay particular attention to how literature enables political and social interventions; how it can either uphold, shape, or challenge the status quo. We will examine the depiction of gender and sexuality across a wide range of genres (e.g. epic, tragedy, medical writing). We will consider how the constraints of genre shape what authors can say about a topic and what tools they can use to say it. We will read literature by both men and women and discuss the possible historical and literary values in gynocriticism (the study of women writers). And we will contextualise the study of women, gender, and sexuality in antiquity in the changing world of the academy, exploring how this field went from being marginal to accepted within our discipline(s).

As well as developing their understanding of the ancient world, students will consider how sex and/or power remain relevant to today’s world and their experiences now.

We will consider questions such as:

How did ancient authors depict gender identities, sexed bodies, and sexual practices?

To what extent were poets and writers bound by the conventions of their genres, or were they able to (and willing to) subvert existing norms?

To what extent do the ancient literary sources reflect realities of sex and power "on the ground"?

Which authors replicated existing social norms about gender, and why? Who challenged norms and what led/allowed them to do so?

What tools and techniques did writers and singers use to construct identities of “men” and “women”? How did writers think of and describe people whose gender identity fell outside the binary categories of “woman” or “man”?

How did factors such as class, ethnicity, access to language, and whether one was free or slave, intersect with gender and sexuality? How did authors depict these intersections?

(How) do male-authored and female-authored texts from antiquity depict different views on gender, sexuality, power, and society?

How did Greco-Roman ideas about gender and sex develop and change in antiquity, and how do the ideas from antiquity differ from (or relate to) our own?

All texts will be read in translation.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: 15 points at Stage II in Classical Studies, Ancient History, Classical Studies and Ancient History, Gender Studies, Greek, or Latin Restriction: CLASSICS 216

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Explain and critically evaluate the theoretical and methodological issues surrounding gynocriticsm. (Capability 1.1, 1.3 and 2.3)
Articulate and demonstrate an understanding of how and why gender and sexuality was depicted differently in particular Greek and Roman genres. (Capability 1.2 and 2.2)
Explain and critically evaluate how academic work on gender and sexuality in Greco-Roman antiquity has been shaped norms in later times (including our own), via assessment. (Capability 2.1 and 3.1)
Articulate and demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the ancient sources in formal academic English. (Capability 2.3 and 4.1)
Communicate effectively with peers to provide feedback on draft assessment work. (Capability 4.3 and 5.1)
Identify and articulate possible future directions for the study of gender in Greek and Roman antiquity. (Capability 3.2 and 6.3)

Assessments

Assessment Type	Percentage	Classification
Assignment	10%	Individual Coursework
Assignments	10%	Peer Coursework
Essay	30%	Individual Coursework
Final Exam	50%	Individual Examination
4 types	100%

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 2 hours of "lectures" (whole group classes) and a 1 hour tutorial (with your stage peers). You will also be expected to spend up to 7 hours per week reading and thinking about the content and assignments.

Digital Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website at http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page (https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894), which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter (https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html).

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.

Capability 1:	Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2:	Critical Thinking
Capability 3:	Solution Seeking
Capability 4:	Communication and Engagement
Capability 5:	Independence and Integrity
Capability 6:	Social and Environmental Responsibilities

CLASSICS 316 : Sex and Power in Greek and Roman Literature

Arts

2020 Semester Two (1205) (15 POINTS)