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Course Info for FYSM - 149 - 01, Fall 2025
Class number: 3506 Title: Thought World Ancient Greece Department: First Year Sem & Colloq
Career: Undergraduate Component: Seminar Session: Regular
Instructor's Permission Required: Yes Grading Basis: Graded Units: 1.00
Enrollment limited to 15 Current enrollment: 14 Available seats: 1
Start date: Tuesday, September 2, 2025 End date: Wednesday, December 17, 2025 Mode of Instruction: In Person
Schedule: MW: 1:30PM-2:45PM, LIB - 181 Instructor(s): Tomasso, Vincent
Prerequisite(s): Only first-year students are eligible to enroll in this class.
Distribution Requirement: Meets FirstYr Seminar Requirement
Course Description:
Students in this course will be introduced to the wide world of ancient Greek culture, primarily through its literature. We'll begin with the eighth-century B.C poet Hesiod's conceptions of the Greek gods in his epic poem Theogony, on the one hand, and his advice for mortals working the land in his epic poem Works and Days, on the other. Next, we'll consider Homer's depiction of a journey home in the Odyssey. After that, we'll explore the incredible intellectual explosion of fifth- and fourth-century B.C. Athens, including philosophers like Plato, playwrights like Euripides and Aristophanes, and historians like Herodotus. Throughout, we'll consider connections with the wider ancient Mediterranean, particularly through the Old and New Testaments.