Syllabus

GREK 101: Introduction to Greek Literature (Worlds of Wonder)

Course Description

This course will explore the “worlds of wonder” our knowledge of Ancient Greek opens up for us. We’ll focus on two central texts: the Syrian sophist Lucian’s True History, a fantastical tale of a flying ship that takes its heroes from the House of Hades to the moon; and Herodotus’ Histories, a sweeping portrait of the world of the Mediterranean in the fifth century BCE and the many peoples who inhabited it. We’ll advance our fluency in reading Greek, but we’ll also discover the ways our Greek enables us to ask resonant questions of these ancient authors around topics like race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, humor and storytelling. I hope you’ll join me for this trip to the worlds of ancient wonder!

Instructor

Prof. Farmer

Hi! I’m Prof. Matt Farmer (he/him/his pronouns), and I’ll be your instructor this semester. I prefer to be called “Prof. Farmer” or “Dr. Farmer”. You can read all about my research and teaching here, if you’re curious. If you ever have any questions about this course or just want to chat and get to know each other better, you can email me by clicking here, or you can click here to schedule an appointment with me.

Plan for the Semester

This semester we’ll advance our fluency in reading Greek with daily readings, review and discussion of grammar topics, and a variety of assignments that let you connect your Greek learning to topics of personal interest.

We’ll begin by easing back into reading Greek with a contemporary ancient Greek novella, Ἑρμῆς Πάντα Κλέπτει (“Hermes Steals Everything”). We’ll then read selections from book 1 of Herodotus’ Histories, focused on the story of Croesus, King of Lydia, and his struggles with the deceptive nature of Greek oracles. Finally, we’ll read all of Book 1 of Lucian’s True History, from his wanderings in the Atlantic Ocean up through his journey to the moon, his involvement in a war with the sun, and his return to earth, where he is swallowed by a whale.

For the full details of our schedule this semester, click here.

Books

You do not need to purchase books for this course; I will provide scans of all our readings for you. If you prefer to own your own copies of books, we’ll be relying primarily on the following:

Assignments and Grading

Specifications Grading

This course utilizes specifications grading. This means that there are a variety of assignments available for you to do throughout the semester, and it’s up to you to decide what grade you want to earn and to do the requisite number of assignments for that grade. Individual assignments will not receive a score or grade: if you fulfill the instructions and the high standard we will set together for our work, you will receive credit.

The goal of this method is to increase transparency around grading and to provide students more agency in determining how they’d like to participate in the course; it can be a little complicated, however, so if this is the first specifications course you’ve taken, make sure you understand how the system works early in the semester. In the first weeks of the term, you’ll be asked to complete a plan for the course that will help us both have a clear sense of your intentions and expectations for the semester.

Assignments

Your final grade this semester will be based on the following:

  • Course Contribution: Throughout the semester, you’ll be expected to contribute to the course by attending class, doing the reading, participating in class activities and conversations, asking questions, and otherwise engaging with our communal work. Every two weeks, you’ll submit an online form to assign yourself a contribution score based on these activities. You’ll earn 2 points if you came to class each day, fully prepared; if you weren’t able to do so, you’ll have opportunities to contribute in other ways.
  • Quizzes: Every other week, we’ll take a quiz during class on Thursday. These quizzes are intended to be diagnostic: they’ll help you, and me, see what you’ve learned, and what you still need to work on. Typically to earn credit, I’ll ask you to make some small revisions and return the quiz to me, although sometimes your initial quiz might be so perfect you have nothing to revise.
  • Erga: In Greek, ἔργα means “deeds” or “accomplishments.” In this class, erga (singular ergon) are small, optional, often fun or creative assignments that you’ll have many opportunities to complete during the semester. There are specific due dates through the term, but you can choose which ergon you’ll complete for each due date. You can check out the full list here.
  • Apodeixis: Once during the semester, each student will share something interesting that connects with our course material. In Greek, ἀποδείξις means “demonstration” or “sharing”; Herodotus begins his histories with the statement, Ἥροδότου Ἁλικαρνησσέος ἱστορίης ἀπόδεξις ἥδε, “This is the demonstration of the investigation by Herodotus of Halicarnassus.” For your Apodeixis assignment, you’ll talk or lead conversation for just about 10 minutes at the start of class. You might tell us about an aspect of Greek culture or history, share a piece of writing by one of our authors that we aren’t reading, share a polished translation of a bit of text, tell us about an article you read, or even just a piece of pop culture or news that connects to the ancient Mediterranean in some way. You can also use this as an opportunity to share something you did for one of your erga.
  • Final Reflection: At the end of the semester, you’ll look back over the work you’ve done, and be invited to reflect on your progress. I’ll ask you to think a little about what it means to study an ancient language today, and what your hopes for Greek are in your future.

Your final grade in the course will be based on how many and what kinds of assignments you completed. These represent minimum benchmarks; to earn the indicated grade, you need to complete the required number of each type of assignment.

Final Grade:1.02.03.03.33.74.0
Contribution
(Points)		3/126/129/1210/1211/1212/12
Quizzes
(Passed & Revised)		1/62/63/64/65/66/6
Erga012344
Apodeixis000111
Final Reflection001111

Flexibility

The grading system outlined above is designed to give you some flexibility to make your own choices during the semester. For example, even if you are aiming for a 3.7, you could choose not to revise one quiz. If you are starting to feel concerned that you are not on track to earn the grade you would like in the course, please share those concerns with us as early as possible. The grading scheme of this course is designed to give you different options, but we might need to tailor that to fit the circumstances each of us face this semester, and that’s alright.

There are two key aspects of this course flexibility that we want to draw your attention to. The first is self-assessed contribution. I won’t be tracking attendance or participation in class ourselves; instead, every two weeks you’ll submit a contribution self-assessment, where you’ll consider whether you were able to do things like attend class regularly, do the reading, and participate in class activities. If you’re unable to contribute in the expected ways, I’ll invite you in your self-assessment to be creative in suggesting other ways you found to contribute, such as meeting with the me, studying with other students outside of class, or otherwise finding ways to contribute.

The second is the opportunity to revise. When you submit work in this class, if you have made a good faith effort to follow the instructions but have not achieved the high standard we’ll set for each other, you’ll be offered the opportunity to revise your work and submit it again for credit. I’ll be very specific about what revision will entail. Unless otherwise specified, revisions are always due one week after the original assignment.

Important Statements and Policies

Accommodations

I am committed to partnering with you on your academic and intellectual journey.  I also recognize that your ability to thrive academically can be impacted by your personal well-being and that stressors may impact you over the course of the semester.  If the stressors are academic, I welcome the opportunity to discuss and address those stressors with you in order to find solutions together.  If you are experiencing challenges or questions related to emotional health, finances, physical health, relationships, learning strategies or differences, or other potential stressors, I hope you will consider reaching out to the many resources available on campus. These resources include CAPS (free and unlimited counseling is available), the Office of Academic Resources, Health Services, Professional Health Advocate, Religious and Spiritual Life, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the GRASE Center, and the Dean’s Office.  Additional information can be found at https://www.haverford.edu/deans-office-student-life/offices-resources.

Additionally, Haverford College is committed to creating a learning environment that meets the needs of its diverse student body and providing equal access to students with a disability. If you have (or think you have) a learning difference or disability – including mental health, medical, or physical impairment – please contact the Office of Access and Disability Services (ADS) at hc-ads@haverford.edu. The Director will confidentially discuss the process to establish reasonable accommodations.  It is never too late to request accommodations – our bodies and circumstances are continuously changing. 

Students who have already been approved to receive academic accommodations and want to use their accommodations in this course should share their accommodation letter and make arrangements to meet with me as soon as possible to discuss how their accommodations will be implemented in this course. Please note that accommodations are not retroactive and require advance notice in order to successfully implement.

If, at any point in the semester, a disability or personal circumstances affect your learning in this course, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. I want to be sure you are aware of the full range of resources and options available to you.

It is a state law in Pennsylvania that individuals must be given advance notice that they may be recorded. Therefore, any student who has a disability-related need to audio record this class must first be approved for this accommodation from the Director of Access and Disability Services and then must speak to me. Other class members need to be aware that this class may be recorded.

Academic Integrity

In a community that thrives on relationships between students and faculty that are based on trust and respect, it is crucial that students understand a professor’s expectations and what it means to do academic work with integrity. Plagiarism and cheating, even if unintentional, undermine the values of the Honor Code and the ability of all students to benefit from the academic freedom and relationships of trust the Code facilitates. Plagiarism is using someone else’s work or ideas and presenting them as your own without attribution. Plagiarism can also occur in more subtle forms, such as inadequate paraphrasing, failure to cite another person’s idea even if not directly quoted, failure to attribute the synthesis of various sources in a review article to that author, or accidental incorporation of another’s words into your own paper as a result of careless note-taking. Cheating is another form of academic dishonesty, and it includes not only copying, but also inappropriate collaboration, exceeding the time allowed, and discussion of the form, content, or degree of difficulty of an exam. Please be conscientious about your work, and check with me if anything is unclear.

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