CLAS E-116/W
Concepts of The Hero in Classical Greek Civilization
Fall 2011
What does it mean, to be human? Th is course takes a close look at the huma n co nd it i o n, as viewed
throu g h the lens of classical Greek civilizatio n; and the basic orga n izi n g princ iple is an objective
study of a model of huma n ity, the Hero. Concepts of the hero dom i nate two of the core forms of
classical Greek literature, epic and tragedy. I n th is course, there are two epics to be read, wh ic h
are the Homeric Il iad and Odyssey, and seven tragedies, wh ic h are Aeschylus’ Oresteia Trilo gy,
Sophocles’ two Oedipus dramas, and Euripides’ Hippolytus and The Bacch ic Women. Also included
are selectio ns from the d ialo g ue On Heroes by an emi nent thi nker in the “second soph istic”
movement, Philostratus (early th ird century C.E.).
These classical concepts are linked to two h istorical realities in the anc ient Greek world: (1)
heroes were worsh ipped in cult, and (2) the focal po i nt of th is worsh ip was the venerati o n of the
hero’s body at the site of h is or her tomb. The “word” of Socratic d ialo g ue fi g ures as a rad ical
alternative to the venerated body of the cult hero. Also, for the sake of comparin g the ancient
sense of “hero” w ith reinterpretatio ns in the post-anc ient era, other alternatives to the classical
hero w ill be explored, centerin g o n a short story from the German “romantic” author E. T. A.
Hoffman n, “The Sandman”.
By the time the course comes to an end, students will have learned that there are different
defi n it i o ns of the “hero” in d ifferent h istorical times and places. In the end tho u g h the one true
“hero” of th is course w ill be the lo g os or “word” of log i cal reason i n g, as activated by the Socrati c
d ialo g ue. The lo g os of dialo g ue in th is course will requ ire careful thi nk i n g, realized i n close
read i n g and reflective writin g. The “last word” abo ut th is lo g os comes from Plato’s memories of
w ords spoken i n d ialo g ue by Socrates durin g the last days of h is life, wh i c h w ill be read to wards
the very end of the course. Such a “last word”, shaped by a deep understandi n g of the concept of
the hero i n all its varieties throu g h o ut the history of Greek civilizati o n, will become the “latest
w ord” for students wh o earnestly en ga ge i n d ialo g ue, by way of writin g as well as readi n g, w it h
hero ic expressio ns of the human co nd it i o n.
This course is driven by a sequence of dialo g ues that lead to such an en ga gement, gu id i n g the
attentive reader throu g h many of the major works of the anc ient Greek Classics. The recorded
d ialo g ues and supplementary prosemi nar sessio ns stem from the Harvard Faculty of Arts and
Sciences co urse, Culture & Belief 22.
(In this course, all readi n gs are translated into contemporary English and supplemented by
selectio ns from the anc ient visual arts.)
Prof. Gregory Nagy (e-mail: [email protected]). Classics Department, Boylston Hall, 2nd floor.
Dr. Kevin McGrath (e-mail: [email protected]). Classics Dept. Office hour, 3:00 - 4:00, on
Thursday, in Boylston Hall 228; or by telephone at 617.495.1941.
Course Web Page: http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k82408&pageid=icb.page445788
Required Reading: Sourcebook. The Sourcebook is available as a PDF file on the Website; this is in
two volumes. You can read this electronically or have the PDF printed and bound at the
Harvard Book Shop or simply print out the texts which you wish to read.
Recommended Reading: For further background on and interpretation of the required reading, two
books by G. Nagy are available on the website, The Best of the Achaeans: Concepts of the
Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry; and, Pindar's Homer. These books supply background for
some, but hardly all, of the topics to be presented in the course.
Components of the Course: two weekly one-hour recorded Dialogues; one weekly recorded
Proseminar; and one weekly live Section. Engagement with all these components is required. The
Section is streamed ‘live’ as well as in recorded form.
Components of Course Grade: Two 3-page essays, 15% & 35%; final 8-page paper, 50%.
This is Writing Intensive Course.
IMPORTANT D ATES:
September 22: Draft of first paper due in class.
October 6: First paper due in class.
October 27: Draft of second paper due in class.
November 10: Second paper due in class.
December 1: One page abstract of final paper due in class.
December 13: Third paper due by 4:00 pm by Electronic Submission.
You are responsible for meeting these requirements. If you know that you are going to be absent,
submit the material at an earlier date to the Classics Dept., mailbox of Kevin McGrath. There are
No Extensions given for papers. Distance Students Must prefix each page of any paper submitted
with their name and e-mail address. Distance Papers are to be submitted on the due day by SIX
p.m., American EST, via e-mail in PDF format. Late Papers are NOT accepted.
SCHEDULE OF DIALOGUES AND READINGS
Beginning with the second week, you should complete the assigned reading BEFORE Thursday's
Section.
Week 1
Reading: Reading: “Introduction 1: Facts about the ‘Heroes’ course.” “Introduction 2: Relevant facts
about ancient Greek history." (Available on the website.) “Introduction 3: The Epic Hero
(Sourcebook.)
Sept./1 Dialogues 1 and 2
Week 2
Reading: “Introduction 4: The Epic Hero.” (On the website.) E.T.A. Hoffman, “The Sandman.”
(Sourcebook.)
9/8 Dialogue 3
Week 3
Reading: Iliad, Scrolls I-VIII; and, selections from Alcman and Sappho; also, Nagy, “Lyric And
Greek Myth”, and “Did Sappho And Alcaeus Ever Meet?” (On the website.)
9/15 Dialogues 3 and 4
Week 4
Reading: Iliad, Scrolls IX-XVII; also, Nagy, “Homer And Greek Myth”.
9/22 Dialogues 5 and 6
Draft of First Paper due in class.
Week 5
Reading: Iliad, Scrolls XVIII-XXIV;
9/29 Dialogues 7 and 8
[Draft of First Paper returned.]
Week 6
Reading: Begin reading Homeric Odyssey, Scrolls i-xii; Proclus, Summaries of the Epic Cycle
(Sourcebook); and, also review second half of Nagy, “Homer And Greek Myth” about the Odyssey.
(On the website.)
Oct./6 Dialogues 9 and 10
First Paper due in class (Iliad paper).
Week 7
Reading: Odyssey, Scrolls xiii-xvi.
10/13 Dialogue 11
Week 8
Reading: Odyssey, Scrolls xvi-xxiv. Selections from Philostratus, 1.1-16.6; 25.1-25.16; and 44.5-54.1.
Herodotus, Histories: 1.1-91.
10/20 Dialogues 12 and 13
Week 9
Reading: Selections from Hesiod and Herodotus and reread “The Epic Hero”. (On the website).
(Hesiod, Theogony: lines 1-115; Works & Days, lines 1-286.) (Herodotus, Histories: 9.114-122.)
10/27 Dialogues 14 and 15
Draft of Second Paper due in class.
Week 10
Reading: Aeschylus, Oresteia: Agamemnon, Libation-Bearers, Eumenides;
Nov./3 Dialogues 16 and 17
[Draft of Second Paper returned.]
Week 11
Reading: Pindar, Pythian 8, and, “Key Passages Relevant to the Poetics of Pindar”. (Sourcebook.)
Sophocles, Oidipus At Colonus; Oidipus Tyrannus.
11/10 Dialogues 18 and 19
Second Paper due in class (Drama/Lyric paper).
Week 12
Reading: Euripides, Hippolytus; Bacchae.
11/17 Dialogues 20 and 21
Week 13
Reading: Plato, Apology.
11/24 Dialogue 22
No Section this week: Thanksgiving.
Week 14
Reading: Plato, Phaedo. The Hero as Savior.
Dec./1 Dialogues 23 and 24
Abstract of Third Paper due in class.
Week 15
12/8 Final Section & Review.
12/13 Third Paper due by 2:00 pm by Electronic Submission.
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