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CLA 9-364-2001
Instructor: Cindy Benton, cbenton@cornellcollege.edu
Office: 312 College Hall; x4126
Office Hours: M W 11:00 - 12 and by appointment.
Class Meetings: M& W 12-3; T& Th 9-11 & 1-3; F 9-12
Required Texts:
- Greek Tragedies, Vol. 1, Grene & Lattimore eds. (GRTR1)
- Greek Tragedies, Vol. 3, Grene & Lattimore eds. (GRTR3)
- The Complete Plays of Aristophanes (CPA)
- Seneca: Four Tragedies and Octavia (FTO)
- Shakespeare, Titus Andronicus
- Xeroxed Reader
- Several Articles on Reserve
Course Goals: This course will examine some of the most important
tragic texts of the Greek and Roman tradition as well as their influence
on subsequent drama. Topics to be considered include: the nature of tragedy,
conditions of performance in antiquity, adaptations and performances of
ancient tragedy in our culture, tragic heroism, drama and society, visual
politics and violent spectacle.
Course Requirements:
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Response Papers: 2 page discussions of your
reactions to the assigned readings. These papers are designed to
help you prepare for class discussions and to give you practice
in analyzing primary sources before you have to tackle the final
essay.. They will be graded on the depth to which you actively engage
the readings and the level of thought you put into your reflections.
Due every Monday and Wednesday.
- Oral Reports: Twice this term I will ask you to give a presentation
on a specific aspect of ancient drama (actors, audience, masks, costumes,
theatrical space, etc.): one on Athenian tragedy and the other on Senecan
tragedy. These reports will be graded on the depth and breadth of your
knowledge of the subject as well as the way you present the information.
Visual aids are strongly encouraged - there will be a computer with
a projector set up so you can create powerpoint presentations or show
images off the web. Several images can be found among the links on the
course link page.
- Essay: This will be a 5-7 page essay due at the end of term.
I will present a list of possible topics or you may create a topic of
your own after discussion with me.
- Final Project/Performances: Since this is a course on drama,
throughout the term we will be thinking about the ways tragedys were
and could be staged. There will be several opportunities for acting
out scenes in class as a means of discussing interpretation. Additionally,
the final project will require that you work together to perform of
a scene of your choosing with costumes, music, props, etc.
- Class Participation: This includes coming to class prepared
and participating actively in discussion. This will be a seminar course,
and thus requires you to not only to do the reading before class, but
to contribute actively to discussion. Do not be shy. The success of
the discusisons will depend on each person contributing thoughtfully
to the class. By the same token, we all bring different backgrounds
and perspectives to the course - this is what makes class interesting.
It is, therefore, crucial to the success ofthe course that everyone
show respect and courtesy to everyone else in the class, and a willingness
to help each other learn and approach the material from new perspectives.
Grading:
- 15% response papers
- 25% essay
- 25% oral reports
- 25% final project/performances
- 10% class participation
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