The Epics of Greece and Rome

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2008:

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject focuses on the epics of Homer (the Iliad and the Odyssey), Virgil and Ovid, and the cultural context in which they were created. Myth and history, war and love, the human and the divine are all intertwined in these works to produce complex explorations of their contemporary society and the psyche of the individual. This subject enables students to place these literary texts within their sociopolitical context and identify the insights they provide into the dynamics of Greek and Roman culture. Students, on completion of the subject, should have acquired an understanding of what constitutes the epic genre in its ancient literary context; have an appreciation of Greek and Roman epic through the reading of primary texts; have developed an understanding of the principal critical approaches and cultural contexts of ancient epic.

• be skilled in critical thinking and analysis;

• possess effective written communication skills;

• have an understanding of social, ethical and cultural context.

This subject may be included in a major in English.