Office hours: MW 2:30-3:30

Syllabus

Course Description: This course will explore the developments of Greek narrative prose in the early Roman empire, starting with the revolutionary Acts of the Apostles, proceeding to the innovative Martyrdom of Polycarp, and finishing with the classicizing Life of Apollonius of Tyana. The goal will be to consolidate, and strengthen through practice, the various grammatical, lexical and syntactical lessons learned in the first three semesters of Greek. While the Greek language will be the focus, we will not avoid discussing the cultural developments swirling around the production of these distinctive narratives: the effect that Greek's position as world language had on usage (development of "common"/koine Greek), the "melting pot" that invited Judaic narratives into the Greek language, the innovations of early Christian authors, and the reaction sent forth from the imperial court (Philostratus' Apollonius). The goal will be to achieve insight into some of the most influential texts the Greek language has left to us.

Course Requirements: For daily reading, students will be required to read the assigned passage carefully enough to be able to:

• pass a short pop quiz on the vocabulary and basic meaning and structure
• discuss the grammatical and stylistic structures in class
• write a 5 page essay on a particular point of interest in the Greek readings
• complete a midterm and final exam showing a subtle understanding of the poetry

Grading:

• Class participation 20%
• Quizzes/Sight Readings 20%
• Compositions 20%
• Midterm 20%
• Final 20%

Texts:

Nestle-Aland, Novum Testamentum Graece.

Instructor will provide other texts.

[N.B. The instructor does not allow make up tests under any circumstances, nor does he accept late work.]

Attendance: Since class participation is a significant graded percentage of this course, each class a student misses will detract from this grade. Several absences will not do permanent damage, but more than 8 (out of 42 meetings -- i.e. almost 20%) will be serious.

Honor Policy: Like any academic work at UR all work done for this course falls under the honor code. If you have any doubt what constitutes "unauthorized assistance," please come and talk to the instructor before trying it.

last modified 1-6-2015