Submit your erga by posting them to the course webpage. There are five opportunities to submit an ergon this semester, although even the highest grade (4.0) only requires you to complete four.
Ordinarily, you can’t do the same ergon twice; if you have an idea for an ergon you’ve already completed that would be substantially different from your first effort, you are welcome to ask for my permission to do it.
The deadlines are for erga submissions are
- 9/21
- 10/12
- 11/2
- 11/21
- 12/14
Erga are always due before the start of class on the due date. Extensions may be possible, but since there are more deadlines than required assignments, you should probably just plan to shift your work to the next deadline if you can’t make your original planned deadline. At the same time, I would encourage you to aim to complete erga for the first few deadlines to give yourself the most flexibility later in the semester.
Most erga require a roughly 600-word reflection or other piece of writing. This is the equivalent of about 2 double spaced pages. Please don’t submit acta that are substantially above or below this limit (or whatever word limit is specified below). If you have questions about these instructions, please contact me before you begin working.
Literary Analysis
Find a Greek work of your choice and conduct a close reading of it.
Choose a short poem or an excerpt of a longer work of poetry or prose. It should either be by one of the authors we’re focusing on this semester (Herodotus, Lucian), or connect to the theme of “worlds of wonder.” It can be something we’re reading for an assignment if you like.
In your close reading, pay attention to details of meter, sense, style, theme, imagery, tone, atmosphere, etc. Write a 600 word analysis of the passage based on your detailed observations.
Research, Reflect, Connect
Find an academic journal article or book chapter that connects with the themes of the course, and write an evaluation of it.
To find a peer-reviewed article or a chapter in a scholarly book, click here to search JStor’s selection of Classics journals, or here to search the database of publications in classics called “L’Année Philologique” (“The Philological Year”). Try using the names of authors we’re reading, together with a keyword like a theme or title of a work you’re interested in learning more about.
After reading it carefully, reflect on the argument, analysis, or information given in the article, and write 600 words in which you draw connections between the article and any of the themes, imagery, or contexts that have come up in our class so far.
Cutting-Edge Classics
Attend a session of the weekly Bryn Mawr Classics Colloquium, and reflect on your experience.
Each Friday afternoon at 4:30pm during the semester, the BiCo hosts a professor from another college or university to give a talk about their research in Classics, Archaeology, or other related fields. You’re always warmly invited to attend!
For this activity, attend one of these talks; you can find the full schedule here. Take notes during the talk about aspects of the person’s research that interest or inspire you, and note down questions you have about their work. If you feel comfortable, consider asking a question during the question-and-answer period after the talk! This isn’t required for the assignment, but it can be a fun way to engage with faculty outside the BiCo.
Afterwards, write a 600-word reflection about the talk. Begin with a very brief (1-2 sentences) summary of the talk, before considering some of the following:
- What question did you ask or would you have liked to ask the speaker about their research?
- What did you learn that surprised, interested, amused, or otherwise provoked a meaningful reaction from you?
- How did the talk intersect with things we’re learning in this class or other classes?
Reading for Context
Read a substantial work by one of our authors (Herodotus, Lucian) in translation and write a short summary of it.
Select one of the following:
- Herodotus: Read one complete book other than Book 1
- Lucian: Read a substantial complete work by Lucian that is not one of the super short ones; most works by Lucian will be fine, but if what you’re reading is just a few paragraphs long, consider combinining with other similar short texts
Find a translation in English or another language you’re comfortable reading. If you need help finding a good translation or selecting a work, let mek now! Once you’ve read it, write a 600-word summary and analysis of what you’ve read. Don’t just summarize the content: tell us what you thought! (for example, whether you found the argument of a philosophical dialogue persuasive, or a passage of a poem that you enjoyed).
Comparative Translation Analysis
Compare a set of translations of one of the texts we’re reading this semester.
Choose one day’s reading assignment from this semester, and find two translations of it into the same language (English or another language you’re comfortable with). Write a 600-word reflection in which you compare the translations with one another as well as the Greek version.
Consider some of the following questions: What choices have the translators made? How do they reflect the time in which they were written or their intended audience? How do they handle difficult passages differently? How does each balance fidelity to the Greek with fluency and eloquence in the new language? Is one translation more successful in capturing the tone, meter, sound effects, themes, imagery, or style of the Latin?
Artistic Translation
Create a polished, artistic translation of a text from the course.
Choose one day’s reading assignment from this semester, and create a polished, creative, thoughtful, interpretive translation of it into English.
Then, write a 300 word reflection on the ways your translation attempts to convey specific aspects of the Greek that struck you as particularly interesting, important, or poetically complex. What aspects of the Latin did you seek to convey? What difficult choices did you face? How did you balance fidelity to the Latin with the desire to write well in English?
Creative Oration
Record yourself performing a text from the class.
Choose one day’s reading assignment from this semester. Practice reading it repeatedly. Work to convey not only the sound and rhythm of the words, but also a fluent expression of the way the language conveys particular meanings. Practice reciting it until you can tell a story not only with your words but with your vocal expression and delivery. Work to read the passage with accurate pronunciation and realistic, dynamic phrasing; convey your meaning with your use of your voice, so that your classmates might meaningfully follow the sense of the passage if they heard you deliver it. This will very likely take some practice before you are ready to record!
Once you are ready, use Zoom or other software to record a video of yourself reading your text. Contact me to discuss how you’d like to share the video with the class (do not just post it to the course website). Then write and post a a 100-word reflection on your experience of and approach to your oration.
Creative Adaptation
Produce an artistic interpretation of a reading from the class.
Choose one day’s reading assignment from this semester. Use any medium besides Greek-English translation to create a thoughtful, creative, and interpretive adaptation of the work. This may be a piece of visual art, music, theater, textile art, fan fiction, or any other form of creative adaptation that interests you. Find a way to post it or an aspect of it to the course webpage, and contextualize it with a 200 word reflection on the ways your adaptation interacts with specific aspects of the work that struck you as particularly interesting, important, thematic, or aesthetically engaging.
Curriculum Research & Reflection
Do some reading and thinking to help improve this course and others like it.
Choose any two articles that interest you from Eidolon’s “Pedagogy” section, or another professional Classics pedagogy publication (such as the journal Classical World‘s pedagogy section, or a chapter on teaching from a Classics-focused Handbook or Companion). Read them, then write a 600-word reflection in which you consider some of the following questions:
- What should professors and students do to make Classics or Greek in the BiCo a more inclusive and attractive experience for students whose identities have been traditionally marginalized from the field?
- What do you think faculty should do in the next iteration of this course to make it more accessible, engaging, and meaningful to a broader group of students at the BiCo?
- What might you do as a student and member of the classroom community to work toward a more inclusive learning community in this class, the Classics departments, or the Bi-Co?
Ergon Kainon
Invent your own activity, and complete it.
Do you have an idea for an ergon that doesn’t fit into one of the assignments above? Get in touch with me and we’ll discuss it. I’ll be happy to let you undertake your own ideas if they seem manageable and suitable; and if it’s an ergonthat other people in the course might be able to do as well, I may even add it to the official list!
