CLAS3811: Sing Me o Muse: Poetic Initiation, Inspiration and Heroism

• CLAS2151

• None

• None

• To study scenes of poetic initiation and inspiration as a key to understanding the rationale of literary genres in such different areas as epic, lyric, theatre and philosophy
• To develop skills in critical thinking about authorship and inspiration, with an emphasis on the specificity of Greek oral literature
• To gain knowledge of key debates in scholarship about the phenomenon of inspiration in its literary, religious and anthropological dimension.

• The lectures explore initiation and inspiration scenes with an emphasis on the development of literary genres and on the mindset that made the Muses integral to classical literature
• Seminars provide a forum for closer analysis of different texts and an opportunity to discuss and evaluate the relevant scholarship.
• Tutorials offer feedback on formative work and aid planning and preparation for the summative coursework assignments.

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• Detailed knowledge of a selection of Greek works depicting initiation scenes, and an understanding of differences between genres in terms of performance, ideology and contents.
• An awareness of the multi-faceted ways in which the Muses inspiration distinguishes Greek epic from its near-eastern counterparts and colours most poetic genres in the Greek and Roman world.
• An understanding of contemporary debates in the study of Greek and Roman notions of inspiration in a comparative perspective.

Subject-specific Skills:

• An ability to analyse and compare inspiration scenes in classical literature with a view to exploring how they express defining features of each genre against the background of epic poetry.

Key Skills:

• An ability to analyse a wide range of primary sources and to evaluate the arguments of contemporary scholarship; a capacity to produce clear, well-structured arguments in written form and to develop independent interpretations of the texts; development of oral presentation skills in seminars.

• Lectures introduce texts, topics and approaches in the analysis of a range of works belonging to different genres.
• Seminars allow students to develop and test their ideas orally and to articulate their views in front of their peers.
• Tutorials offer group discussion of formative work which connects directly to the planning and preparation for the two summative essays.
• Summative essay 1 consists of a detailed study of an initiation scene (2,500 words).
• Summative essay 2 is an essay on one inspiration-related topic raised in lectures and seminars (3,500 words).

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