Fall 2008
Lectures
Wednesday 11.35–12.25
Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium (53 Wall Street)
Fall 08 Lecture Schedule
Spring 09 Lecture Schedule
Section Meetings
1) MW 2:30–03:45 Kathryn Slanski
2) MW 9:00–10:15 Norma Thompson
3) TTh 9:00–10:15 Charles Hill
4) TTh 9:00–10:15 Stuart Semmel
5) MW 2:30–03:45 Justin Zaremby
6) MW 2:30–03:45 Daniel Steinkokin
7) TTh 2:30–03:45 Emily Levine
Books are available at Labyrinth Books, 290 York Street
Herodotus, The History, trans. David Grene (University of Chicago, 1987)
Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, trans. Rex Warner (Penguin, 1954)
Plato, Plato: Complete Works, ed. John Cooper (Hackett, 1997)
Aristotle, The Politics and the Constitution of Athens, ed. Steven Everson (Cambridge, 1996)
Livy, The Rise of Rome: Books 1–5, trans. T.J. Luce (Oxford, 1998)
Polybius, The Rise of the Roman Empire, trans. Ian Scott-Kilvert (Penguin, 1980)
Tacitus, The Annals of Imperial Rome, trans. Michael Grant (Penguin, 1956)
Augustine, City of God, trans. Henry Bettenson (Penguin, 2004)
Aquinas, Political Writings, ed. R.W. Dyson (Cambridge, 2002)
Lectures and Reading Assignments
Lectures provide historical and intellectual context to help frame the week’s readings and discussions. Where noted, (a) and (b) indicate suggested reading assignments for the first and second discussion meeting of that week. Unless page numbers are provided, assignments are written in the format: “Book number. Chapter number.”
Week 1
Discussions: Sept. 3–4
Reading: Herodotus, History 1.1-91; 3.27–38, 3.61-89
Lecture (Wed., Sept. 3): on Herodotus’ History (K. Slanski)
Week 2
Discussions: Sept. 8–11
Reading: Herodotus, History
(a) 6.94–140; 7.1–60, 7.99–124
(b) 7.133–152, 7.172–175, 7.201–239; 8.1–26, 8.50–125, 8.140–144
Lecture (Wed., Sept. 10): on Herodotus’ History (C. Hill)
Week 3
Discussions: Sept. 15–18
Reading: Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War
(a) 1 (entire)
(b) 2.7–65
Lecture (Wed., Sept. 17): on Thucydides’ Peloponnesian War (E. Levine)
Week 4
Discussions: Sept. 22–25
Reading: Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War
(a) 3.1–28, 3.36–50, 3.69–85; 4.1–23, 4.34–41; 5.84–116
(b) 6.1, 6.8–52, 6.60–61, 6.94–105; 7 (entire)
Lecture (Wed., Sept. 24): on Thucydides’ Peloponnesian War
(D. Steinkokin)
Week 5
Discussions: Sept. 29–Oct. 2
Readings: Plato, The Republic
(a) Book I
(b) Books II–IV
Lecture (Wed., October 1): on Plato’s Republic (D. Steinkokin)
Week 6
Discussions: Oct. 6–9
Reading: Plato, The Republic
(a) Books V–VII
(b) Books VIII–X
Lecture (Wed., Oct. 8): on Plato’s Republic (N. Thompson)
Week 7
Discussions: Oct. 13–16
Reading: Aristotle, The Politics
(a) Book I (entire); II.1–9
(b) Book III (entire)
Lecture (Wed., Oct. 15): on Aristotle’s Politics (B. Garsten)
Week 8
Discussions: Oct. 20–23
Reading: Aristotle, Politics
(a) IV.1–13; V.1–5, 8–9
(b) VI.1–3; VII.1–15
Lecture (Wed., Oct. 22): on Aristotle’s Politics (K. Mantena)
Week 9
Discussions: Oct. 27–30
Reading: Livy, The Rise of Rome
(a) (author’s) Preface; I.1–21, 46–60; II.1–13, 23–40, 54–61; III.19–29; 64–9
(b) IV.1–7, 58–61; V (entire)
Lecture (Wed., Oct. 29): on Livy (J. Zaremby)
Discussions: Nov. 3–6
Reading: Polybius, Rise of the Roman Empire
(a) I.1–6; III (entire)
(b) VI (entire); IX.1–2, 12 (“On Generalship”), 22–26 (“The Character of Hannibal”); X.2–3 (“The Character of Scipio”); XV.6–8
Lecture (Wed., November 5): on Polybius (N. Thompson)
Week (11) of November 10
Discussions: Nov. 10–13
Reading: Tacitus, Annals of Imperial Rome
(a)Pp. 31–128; 157–197
(b)Pp. 284–344; 360–381
Lecture (Wed., November 12): on Tacitus (S. Smith)
Week (12) of November 17
Discussions: Nov. 17–20
Reading: Augustine, City of God
(a) I.4, 14–35; II.4–7; IV.3–4; V.1–26; VIII.3–13; XI.1; XII.1–14, 21–23; XIII.21
(b) XIV.1–6, 11–28; XV.1–6; XVIII.49–53; XIX (entire)
Lecture (Wed., November 19): on Augustine (TBA)
—Thanksgiving Break—
Week (13) of December 1
Discussions: Dec. 1–4
Reading: Thomas Aquinas, selections on Law from Summa theologiae
Lecture (Wed., December 3): “Paris in the 13th c and St. Thomas Aquinas” (M. Menocal)
Spring 2009
Coming Soon