Most of the Greek and Roman myths you read in high school were re-tellings of stories from Ovid's Metamorphoses. Choose your favorite myth and read Ovid's version of that myth. Read also one of the Ovid myths that you *hadn't* read before. Cite one example for each myth that shows particularly well Ovid's "insight into the human condition."
For Tuesday, October 24, please read this summary of Virgil's Aeneid. Then read as much as you can of Book I and Book II. Skimming through Book I is sufficient. Please read Book II with a bit more care.
Suetonius' Lives of the Caesars is one of the most important sources for the early days of the Principate. Suetonius includes all sorts of fascinating biographical details about the men he describes--along with plenty of sometimes unverifiable gossip and rumor.One of the best ways to understand Augustus Caesar is to to look a the The Res Gestae Divi Augusti, his own summary of his achievements.
What kinds of things is Augustus proud of? What particularly impresses you? What insights do you get into Augustus' personality? Are there any suggestions of tragedy here?
Please read this abridged edition of Plutarch's Life of Antony. Pick out a line or several lines that seem to you particularly good examples of action, drama, romance, or "game show" in the story of the 2nd Triumvirate. Explain your choice. How do these lines show action, drama, romance--or the game show atmosphere?
If you prefer, you can read the abridged edition of Plutarch's Life of Marcus Brutus. Again, you can talk about elements of actions, drama, romance or the "game show" atmosphere of the 2nd Triumvirate.
Two years after his death, the Roman Senate declared Caesar a god. This gave Roman biographers the unusual task of recounting the life of a man who was, by official proclamation, a divine being. By the time the biographer Suetonius writes his Life of the Deified Julius, the Roman people has worshiped Caesar as a god for more than 150 years. Please read through Divus Julius, and pick out a line that shows especially well why the Roman people might have accepted Caesar as divine or a line that shows that regarding Caesar as a god was more than a little strange. Explain your choice.
Please skim through Plutarch's Life of Caesar. Pick out a section that particularly well shows Caesar's ability and his versatility or a section that shows particularly well why Caesar is such a controversial figure. Explain your choice.
You may have come across the recent discussion of how often men think about Rome. Here's a chance for you to weigh in. How often do you think about Rome? Why?
