CLAS 106 - Rome and America (GEKH) An investigation into problems and pressures comparing the people and culture of ancient Rome and modern America, considering individual hopes and ideals, religious beliefs and ideas about death, government, morality, love and sex. Team taught by a member of the English Department and a classicist. These courses must be taken concurrently and satisfy two literature requirements..
Credit Hours: 6 hrs Grade Mode: Normal (A-F)
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This course introduces students to the humanities disciplines of the study of American literature and of ancient Roman literature. By its strong emphasis on comparative analysis, the course facilitates a clear understanding of the literary concept of genre (e.g., satire, epic, lyric, novel, etc.). Besides issues of literary theory, the course also encourages the appreciation of continuity in major themes, such as the definition of “heroism” or of the “successful” life, the gender system of the relevant cultures, and social class distinctions, as well as the techniques (e.g., parody, irony, allegory, symbolism, etc.) common to the literatures of classical Roman antiquity and present-day American. By examining literary works from two cultures remote in time and place from each other, students learn to grasp and evaluate what is traditional and what is innovative in each.
Notes - See honors humanities courses
Last Updated: Links 04/2011
Winter 2025 Course Sections
Fall 2024 Course Sections
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