Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2022 - HUM 102W D100

Classical Mythology (3)

Class Number: 7195

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 10 – Apr 11, 2022: Tue, 12:30–2:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Exam Times + Location:

    Apr 13, 2022
    Wed, 12:00–3:00 p.m.
    Burnaby

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

An introduction to the central myths of the Greeks and Romans. The course will investigate the nature, function, and meaning of myths in the classical world and their considerable influence on western civilization. Students with credit for HUM 102 may not take this course for further credit. Writing/Breadth-Humanities.

COURSE DETAILS:

This course will focus on the stories the people of the ancient Greek and Roman worlds told: to entertain each other, to explain the nature of their world and its institutions, to reflect on current challenges, and to preserve a memory of their distant past.  Their mythology was a pervasive vehicle for communication, a sort of language.  Because classical mythology is also so thoroughly anthropomorphic, it also raises questions about the nature of the human condition.  These questions have led people to return to its stories continually since antiquity.  While keeping aware of our own, modern perspective, our goal in this course is to begin to master and appreciate these stories and the role they played in the Greek and Roman cultures that produced them.  We shall read the stories in the great literary forms of the ancient Greek world, epic and tragedy, and seek an appreciation of them as storytelling forms.

Grading

  • 4 Short Papers 55%
  • Midterm 15%
  • Tutorial Participation 10%
  • Final Exam 20%

REQUIREMENTS:

For every class, students will be expected to have done the required readings and to be able to participate in written tutorial discussion about the assigned topics.  Grades for participation rely on the following factors: participation in short, weekly zoom meetings with three other students, and in synchronous written discussions on Canvas.  (On Canvas, discussion must shed some light on the texts by discussing specific passages and by reacting to others’ discussion of passages.)  Each student must hand in four 450-500-word prepared papers. The papers must address the topics each week and be submitted the day the material is being discussed on Canvas (keep a copy for yourself). Both the mid-term and final (90 minutes) will have both multiple-choice essay questions based on the readings and lectures. 

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

Homer (trans. Fagles), The Iliad.           Penguin Classics, ISBN 9780140445923

Homer (trans. Wilson), The Odyssey.     Norton. ISBN 0393356256

Ovid, Metamorphoses.        Oxford World’s Classics. ISBN 019283472X

Sophocles I                       University of Chicago Press. ISBN: 9780226311517

Euripides III                      University of Chicago Press. ISBN: 9780226308821.


Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating.  Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community.  Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

TEACHING AT SFU IN SPRING 2022

Teaching at SFU in spring 2022 will involve primarily in-person instruction, with safety plans in place.  Some courses will still be offered through remote methods, and if so, this will be clearly identified in the schedule of classes.  You will also know at enrollment whether remote course components will be “live” (synchronous) or at your own pace (asynchronous).

Enrolling in a course acknowledges that you are able to attend in whatever format is required.  You should not enroll in a course that is in-person if you are not able to return to campus, and should be aware that remote study may entail different modes of learning, interaction with your instructor, and ways of getting feedback on your work than may be the case for in-person classes.

Students with hidden or visible disabilities who may need class or exam accommodations, including in the context of remote learning, are advised to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (caladmin@sfu.ca or 778-782-3112) as early as possible in order to prepare for the spring 2022 term.