Classics 322: Advanced Topics--Hellenistic genres (Pastoral,
Romance, New Comedy). Block 5 2001
The course considers a middle-to-highbrow original Hellenistic genre
(Pastoral), a low- to-middlebrow anti-genre with traditional roots and
a big future in the Modern period (Romance), and the Hellenistic take on
a classical Athenian form (New Comedy). Textbooks are:
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For Pastoral: K. J. Dover’s reprinted Macmillan ed. of Theocritus
(1969; repr. Bolchazy 1985). (There’s also R. L. Hunter’s Cambridge green-and-yellow
(1999) selection at PA4442.A5 H86 1999, but I miss poems 2 and 15 and take
the BMCR review - http://omega.cohums.ohio-state.edu:8080/hyper-lists/bmcr-l/1999/0263.html
– seriously.)
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For Romance: the Loeb (J. M. Edmonds) Daphnis and Chloe
(1916, with some revisions to the translation in 1978 by G. P. Goold).
No commentary, not really a critical text.
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For New Comedy: Mason Hammond’s ed. of the Miles Gloriosus
of Plautus (Harvard 1963).
Additional Theocritus items include:
T. G. Rosenmeyer, The Green Cabinet: Theocritus and the
European Pastoral Lyric, Berkeley 1969
David Halperin, Before Pastoral: Theocritus and the
Ancient Tradition of Bucolic Poetry, New Haven 1983
http://www.apaclassics.org/AnnualMeeting/98mtg/abstracts/walton.html
http://www.apaclassics.org/AnnualMeeting/98mtg/abstracts/berman.html
E.L. Bowie, `Theocritus' seventh Idyll, Philetas and
Longus', CQ 35 (1985) 67ff.
And a Hellenistic poetry syllabus at
http://www.classics.ox.ac.uk/lib/III4d.html
Longus items:
M. M. Bakhtin, The Dialogic Imagination: Four Essays,
Austin 1981
The translation and introduction in B. P. Reardon, Collected
Ancient Greek Novels, Berkeley 1989
Plautus items:
Erich Segal, Roman Laughter2, Oxford 1987
Diversions possible:
From Theocritus to Vergil’s Eclogues or the Odyssey
From Longus to Petronius or Fielding
From Plautus to Menander or Shakespeare
Possible Schedule
Week 1 Jan 22-26: Pastoral
M. General intro; sightread Theocritus 1
T. Theocritus 1 and 11 (side trip to Virgil and the Odyssey?)
W. Theocritus 7
Th. Theocritus 15
F. Conclusion, Virgil, etc.
Week 2 Jan. 29-Feb. 2: Romance
M. Longus book 1
T. Book 2
W. Book 3
Th. Book 4
F. Conclusion, Petronius, etc.
Week 3 Feb. 5-9: New Comedy
M. Intro. material: "Actus I", sightread the Prologue
T. ll. 155-595
W. (596-764), 765-812, (813-873), 874-1136
Th. 1137-1437
F. Conclusion, Menander, etc.
Week 4 Feb. 12-14: Papers to write, genre, historical and
other conclusions to draw.