Roman Didactic Poetry

Subject 670-390 (2009)

Note: This is an archived Handbook entry from 2009. Search for this in the current handbook

Credit Points: 12.50
Level: 3 (Undergraduate)
Dates & Locations:

This subject is not offered in 2009.
Time Commitment: Contact Hours: Three hours per week
Total Time Commitment: Total of 8.5 hours per week.
Prerequisites: CLAS10010 (Intermediate Latin Language A) and 50 points of any other Intermediate Level Latin subjects, or an approved equivalent or admission to the postgraduate diploma or fourth-year honours in classics.
Corequisites: None
Recommended Background Knowledge: None
Non Allowed Subjects: None
Core Participation Requirements:

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

Contact

Parshia Lee-Stecum
Phone: 8344 5386
Subject Overview: This is a specialised reading subject, with analysis of Roman didactic poetry, focusing on a specific text such as Lucretius's De Rerum Natura, Virgil's Georgics, Horace's Ars Poetica or Ovid's Ars Amatoria. Advanced stylistic and thematic analysis of these texts will address issues such as the context of literary production; the range, nature and development of the genre and style of didactic in the Late Republican and Early Imperial periods; the seriousness of the didactic mission in these texts; the representation of the poet as praeceptor; and the possibilities of didactic as a vehicle for commentary on the poets' contemporary worlds. Students who complete the subject should have reached a high standard in reading and interpreting Latin texts, specifically Roman didcatic poetry.
Objectives:
  • be familiar with a major Latin didactic text;
  • be able to analyse the text in its cultural context and understand its place in the development of Latin literature;
  • recognise the peculiarities of Latin poetic style.
Assessment: For 3rd year: a 500-word class paper 15% (due during the semester), a 1750-word assessment test 43% (due in the final week of semester), and a 1750-word essay 42% (due in the examination period). For 4th year: a 1000-word practical criticism presentation 20% (due during the semester), a 1750-word assessment test 35% (due in the final week of semester), and a 2250-word essay 45% (due in the examination period).
Prescribed Texts:
  • R.F.Thomas (ed)   (Virgil, Georgics, Volume 1: Books I-II)  Cambridge University Press 1988
Breadth Options:

This subject potentially can be taken as a breadth subject component for the following courses:

You should visit learn more about breadth subjects and read the breadth requirements for your degree, and should discuss your choice with your student adviser, before deciding on your subjects.

Fees Information: Subject EFTSL, Level, Discipline & Census Date
Generic Skills:
  • be skilled in research;
  • possess advanced skills of critical thinking and analysis;
  • possess an ability to communicate knowledge intelligibly, economically and effectively;
  • have an understanding of social, ethical and cultural context.
Notes: Formerly available as 107-456 Advanced Latin C. Students who have completed 107-456 are not eligible to enrol in this subject.

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