Spring 2026
I. CLASSICS: CLASSICS COURSES IN TRANSLATION.
CLAS 2020 | ROMAN CIVILIZATION
Mr. Hays (bgh2n)
DAY & TIME
MW 1200-1250 +FRIDAY DISCUSSIONS
This course satisfies Humanities and/or Historical Studies requirements.
DESCRIPTION
This course serves as a general introduction to the history, literature, social life, institutions, and ideology of ancient Rome, from its origins to the 2nd century AD. We will look especially at the ways in which the Romans constructed a collective cultural identity for themselves, with attention paid also to groups marginal to or excluded from that identity (enslaved people, women, Greeks and other foreigners). Readings will focus on ancient texts and sources, including the comedies of Plautus, historical writing by Sallust, Vergil’s epic poem The Aeneid, the love poetry of Ovid, letters by Seneca and Pliny, and Petronius’s raucous novel Satyrica. Requirements include a midterm and final exam and several short papers.
CLAS 2040 | GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Ms. Petrovic (ip3k)
DAY & TIME
MW 1000-1050 +Discussions
DESCRIPTION
Why was Achilles so angry? How did Medea handle her husband’s request for divorce? What trick did Aphrodite use to win a beauty contest? What is the real story behind ‘Kaos’ and how many children did Zeus really have? In this course, we’ll dive into the wild and wonderful world of Greek and Roman mythology, exploring epic, tragic, comic and sometimes downright silly tales of gods, heroes, and mortals. Along the way, we’ll see how these myths were told in antiquity, reimagined in art, and reshaped through the centuries up to today. From Chaos at the beginning of the universe to the Netflix series Kaos, Percy Jackson, The Song of Achilles, and Circe, we’ll trace the timeless stories that continue to fascinate and delight us.
Quizzes, short writing and creative assignments, midterm, final examination.
CLAS 3160 | ANCIENT ATHENIAN DEMOCRACY
Ms. Arthur-Montagne (hvk9jks)
DAY & TIME
TR 1530-1645
DESCRIPTION
This course brings ancient Athens to life through the study and reenactment of the world’s first democracy. Beginning with the rise and fall of the Athenian Empire, we will explore key texts and cultural practices that shaped civic life, from assemblies and law courts to festivals and philosophy. Students then step into history through the immersive role-playing game The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 BCE. In character as Athenians, they will debate citizenship, justice, and empire, confronting the same challenges that defined democratic politics in the ancient world – and still resonate in ours. This course will include a midterm, final, and two debate papers based on the arguments students present in class.
CLAS 3220 | RACE & ETHNICITY IN ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME
Ms. Kuin (ik6mg)
DAY & TIME
MW 1530-1645
DESCRIPTION
What does it mean to say that Cleopatra was black, or not? Ancient history comes up often in modern debates about race. We will investigate how people understood racial and ethnic differences in the ancient Greco-Roman Mediterranean, and how interpretations of antiquity historically have shaped modern concepts of race. We will study relevant art and literature from the 8th century BCE through the 3rd century CE, and modern responses to both.
CLAS 3350 | LANGUAGE & LITERATURE OF THE EARLY CELTS
Mr. George (chg4n)
DAY & TIME
MWF 1400-1450
DESCRIPTION
This introduction to the Celtic inhabitants of Gaul and the British Isles interweaves two approaches, one linguistic, one literary. First, we will explore how the Celtic languages work, focusing on the basics of Old Irish—which includes such exotic features as initial mutations and conjugated prepositions—but also finishing off with some Middle Welsh. Second, we will compare writings about the Celts found in Ancient Greek and Latin authors with readings of Celtic literature in translation, notably Ireland’s closest equivalent to the Iliad, the Táin Bó Cúailnge, whose Achilles-like hero Cú Chulainn undergoes a monstrous transformation (called the “warp-spasm” by one translator) when he fights: “He sucked one eye so deep into his head that a wild crane couldn’t probe it onto his cheek out of the depths of his skull; the other eye fell out along his cheek.”
CLAS 7031 | PROSEMINAR IN ANCIENT STUDIES
Mr. Lendon (jel4c)
DAY & TIME
M 1830-1945
DESCRIPTION
A course for first-year or second-year graduate students in ancient disciplines which acquaints them with various facets of the study of Greek and Roman antiquity; introduces them to a range of approaches to the ancient world; and introduces them to each other and to the affiliated faculty in Classics, History, Art and Religious Studies.
II. THE GREEKS:
Courses in Greek language and literature, and in Greek art, ideas, history, and other aspects of Greek civilization.
GREE 1020 | ELEMENTARY GREEK II
Mr. Dillery (jdd4n)
DAY & TIME
TR 1100-1215 +DISCUSSIONS
DESCRIPTION
In this course the students will be introduced to ancient Greek, one of the most fascinating languages of the world, the language of Plato, Aristotle, Sappho, and Homer. What’s not to love? We will learn the forms of verbs and nouns, the rules of syntax, and equip you with a beginning vocabulary (imagine: after a while you might discover that you are able to write in the style of Plato!). And when you continue with your Greek at the Intermediate and Advanced levels, you will be able to appreciate the brilliance of Homer and the pathos of Euripides as people did 2500 years ago, as well as to gain a much deeper understanding of the New Testament. There will be short readings, exercises in writing Greek, plenty of quizzes, a midterm and a final. It will not always be easy — really good things seldom are — but it will be a lot of fun (if you like coding, philosophy, math, or physics, it won’t be difficult either).
GREE 2020 | INTERMEDIATE GREEK II
Mr. Williams (ddk5ad)
DAY & TIME
MWF 1100-1150
DESCRIPTION
In the fourth semester of Greek, we venture forth beyond Attic prose for the first time. We begin with selections from the Histories of Herodotus, who pioneered historical and ethnographic inquiry in easy-going Ionic Greek. Afterwards, as an introduction to the language of Greek tragedy, we will read (most of) Euripides’ Medea, with its tense portrayal of a woman playing the part of a brilliant yet terrifying hero. Particular attention will be devoted to issues of grammar, syntax, meter, and style. Students will complete quizzes, exams featuring unseen passages, short composition assignments, and a final essay.
GREE 2240 | THE NEW TESTAMENT II
Ms. Kuin (ik6mg)
DAY & TIME
MW 1400-1450
DESCRIPTION
In this course we will consider the earliest beginnings of Christianity in their immediate cultural context. Readings include selections from the gospels of John, Luke, and Matthew, Paul’s Letters, Acts, and parts of Chariton’s novel Callirhoe, written around the same time. The course will include grammar review as necessary, and some Greek composition. Additionally, we will be reading some apocryphal texts, as well as secondary scholarship on the history of early Christianity and the literature and culture of the first and second centuries CE more broadly.
GREE 3040 | ADVANCED READING IN GREEK
Mr. Williams (ddk5ad)
DAY & TIME
MW 1400-1515
DESCRIPTION
In this course we will read a selection of Books from Homer’s Odyssey. We will pay particular attention to language and dialect, poetic technique and style, and archaic society and history. Assignments will include quizzes, exams, and a final paper
GREE 5559| ALEXANDER THE GREAT IN FACT AND FICTION
Mr. Dillery(jdd4n)
DAY & TIME
TR 1530-1645
DESCRIPTION
In this course we will read substantial sections of Arrian, Plutarch's Life of Alexander, and the Alexander Romance. There will be a Midterm and a Final exam, as well as a final paper.
GREE 5559 | RELIGIOUS THINKERS IN ANTIQUITY
Ms. Petrovic (ip3k) & Ms. Spittler (jes9cu)
DAY & TIME
WF 1530-1645
DESCRIPTION
For a religion without a dogma or sacred books, as every Handbook of Greek Religion asserts, Ancient Greece did produce a bewildering amount of profound religious thinkers. Starting with Hesiod and his Big Brother version of theodicy, we will investigate why Empedocles was against animal sacrifice, how your upright posture serves as the proof that the gods care for you according to Socrates, why gods can never be persuaded to overlook human injustice according to Plato, and what was the great promise and attraction of the Orphic rituals. We will learn about the way Cleanthes’ Stoic Zeus arranges the world and how oracles work according to Plutarch. Turning to Jewish and Christian authors, we will go beyond notions of "influence" and "context," instead reading Philo, Paul, Tatian, Origen, and the anonymous authors of Christian narratives as further representatives of Greek religious thought. How does Philo understand the creation and arrangement of the world? How does Paul’s crucified God offer salvation to human beings? When apologists like Tatian explicitly compare Christianity to "pagan" ideas and practices, what elements of each do they emphasize? When, in turn, authors like Porphyry critique Christianity, what aspects do they take up? Finally, we will consider where so-called "gnostic" thinkers fit within this landscape.
We will read the texts in the original Greek. There will be a course booklet with all primary texts available for purchase. Assignments will include quizzes, a midterm exam, discussion moderations, short presentations, and a final paper.
III. THE ROMANS:
Courses in the Latin language and Roman literature, and in Roman art, ideas, history, and other aspects of Roman civilization.
LATI 1020 | ELEMENTARY LATIN II
Mr. Corbeill (apc3m)
DAY & TIME
TR 1230-1345 + Discussions
DESCRIPTION
This course is a continuation of Latin 1010. We shall finish covering the basic principles of Latin grammar and syntax through elementary exercises in comprehension and composition. The course also includes frequently illustrated lectures highlighting various aspects of the literature and culture of ancient Rome. We conclude the semester by reading unadapted passages of Latin prose and poetry from Roman antiquity. The course prepares the student to enter Latin 2010.
LATI 2010 | INTERMEDIATE LATIN I
Ms. Kuin <ik6mg>
DAY & TIME
MWF 1100-1150
DESCRIPTION
Readings from Ovid’s poem Metamorphoses, including the stories of Daedalus and Icarus and Apollo and Daphne, and from Nepos’ biography of Hannibal the Carthaginian general. Grammar and vocabulary review as necessary. Students will complete quizzes, exams featuring unseen passages, and short composition assignments.
LATI 2020 | INTERMEDIATE LATIN II
Mr. Celotto (gc4fw)
DAY & TIME
MWF 1100-1150
MWF 1200-1250
MWF 1300-1350
DESCRIPTION
In this course you will continue your study of Latin through the translation of ancient authors in prose and poetry. This class will focus on reading the poems of Catullus and Cicero’s Pro Caelio. In addition to prepared readings, students will do in-class exercises to improve their understanding of Latin grammar, as well as short Latin compositions. Students in this course must have completed Intermediate Latin I (2010) with a minimum grade of D-. Successful completion of this course will complete the Intermediate Latin sequence and meet the language requirement for the College of Arts and Sciences.
Text editions:
Garrison, D.H. 2012. The Student’s Catullus (4th ed.). University of Oklahoma Press.
Englert, W.G. 1990. Cicero: Pro Caelio. Bryn Mawr College Commentaries. (Out of print, PDF will be supplied.)
LATI 3030 | CICERO
Mr. George (chg4n)
DAY & TIME
MWF 1100-1150
DESCRIPTION
Everyone remembers that Caesar was assassinated on the Ides of March, 44 BC. But what happened afterwards? In this class we’ll read two important speeches of Cicero’s, the first two Philippics, composed later that year when the orator was growing increasingly alarmed at the actions of Mark Antony in the aftermath of Caesar’s death. We’ll consider in the course how these works not only shed light on a historically crucial period, but also represent the pinnacle of Cicero’s oratorical prowess, as noted already by no less a critic than Juvenal.
LATI 3160 | LUCRETIUS
Mr. Celotto (gc4fw)
DAY & TIME
MWF 1500-1550
DESCRIPTION
This course is designed to introduce you to Lucretius’ De Rerum Natura. The goal of this didactic poem is to explain Epicurean philosophy to a Roman audience. Lucretius focuses on topics such as the principles of atomism, the nature of the soul, and the functioning of sensation. In this course we will engage in close reading of some of the most famous and significant passages of the poem. Particular attention will be devoted to issues of grammar, syntax, meter, and style.
LATI 4559 | ROMAN ELEGY
Ms.Myers (ksm8m)
DAY & TIME
TR 1530-1645
DESCRIPTION
This course will focus on the Latin Elegiac Poetry of Tibullus, Propertius, and Ovid. We shall aim to read selections from these poets very closely (translation and literary analysis). Intertextual connections between the three poets will be traced. We will explore the poets’ negotiations with the various ideologies and cultural discourses of Augustan Rome, literary, political, social, and sexual. There will be grammar review. Class time will be divided between translation and discussion. Students will be required to present short in-class reports on selected poems and secondary materials. There will be midterm exam and final exam (translation and scansion) and a final paper (c.7 pages).
The course satisfies the Second Writing and Cultures and Societies of the World Requirements.
LATI 5040 | ADVANCED LATIN PROSE COMPOSITION
Mr. Corbeill (apc3m)
DAY & TIME
TR 1400-1515
DESCRIPTION
This class will combine Latin prose composition exercises with close analysis of the style of Cicero, with the goal of actively recognizing, understanding, and using key characteristics of literary prose style from the Late Republic. We will work through exercises designed to make us comfortable in writing Latin, lectures on topics in Latin syntax, word order, and style, and culminate in the composition of extended passages of Latin prose. There will also be a brief foray into verse composition.
LATI 5559| LATIN DECLAMATION
Mr. Hays (bgh2n)
DAY & TIME
TR 1400-1515
DESCRIPTION
The construction of imaginary speeches (controversiae and suasoriae) was a staple of Roman education from the early empire on. Long an object of contempt, in recent years the genre has been reevaluated as an intellectual sandbox in which elite Romans could play with ideas ranging from freedom to fatherhood. This course will center on the surviving corpus of imperial declamations (Calpurnius Flaccus and the longer and shorter declamations ascribed to Quintilian) and the declamatory compilation of the elder Seneca. We will look at comparable exercises in Greek and follow the form into late antiquity with Ennodius and the verse declamations of Dracontius and the Latin Anthology. We will also examine the influence of declamation on other genres, including the poetry of Ovid, Lucan, Seneca, and Juvenal.
IV. COMPARATIVE COURSES:
Courses presenting Classical studies in relation to other subjects.
ARTH 2054 | ROMAN ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY
Ms. Kreindler (waf5tg)
DAY & TIME
TR 1100-1215
DESCRIPTION
Following an overview of Etruscan art, the course examines the development of Roman architecture, urbanism, sculpture and painting from the Republic to Constantine. A focus is Rome itself, but other archaeological sites, such as Pompeii, in Italy and throughout the empire are also considered. Themes, such as succession, the achievements of the emperor, the political and social role of art, and the dissolution of classical art, are traced.
ARTH 2055 | INTRODUCTION TO CLASSICAL ARCHAEOLOGY
Ms. Kreindler (waf5tg)
DAY & TIME
TR 1400-1515
DESCRIPTION
This course introduces the history, theory, and field techniques of classical archaeology. Major sites of the Bronze Age (Troy, Mycenae) as well as Greek and Roman cities and sanctuaries (e.g., Athens, Olympia, Pompeii) illustrate important themes in Greek and Roman culture and the nature of archaeological data.
HIEU 2041 | ROMAN REPUBLIC AND EMPIRE
Ms. Lendon (jel4c)
DAY & TIME
MW 1200-1250
DESCRIPTION
Surveys the political, social, and institutional growth of the Roman Republic, focusing on its downfall and replacement by an imperial form of government, the subsequent history of that government, and the social and economic life during the Roman Empire, up to its own decline and fall.
HIEU 4511/5011 | LATE ARCHAIC GREECE
Mr. Lendon (jel4c)
DAY & TIME
M 1500-1730
DESCRIPTION
Examines the history of Greece in the late archaic age down to the end of the Persian wars. Prerequisite: HIEU 2031 or equivalent.
V. SPECIAL PROGRAMS AND EVENTS
The Arthur F. Stocker Lectureship
The Arthur F. Stocker Endowment Fund for Classical Lectures was established in 1984 by the colleagues, friends, and former students of Arthur F. Stocker, a longtime member of the Department, in recognition of his contributions to the field of Classics. The Endowment supports an annual lecture by a distinguished visiting scholar on a topic related to Latin literature or culture.
The James S. Constantine Lectureship
The James S. Constantine annual lectureship was established in 1987 by the colleagues, friends, and former students of James S. Constantine, a longtime member of the Department, in recognition of his contributions to the teaching and study of the Classics. Every fall a distinguished visiting scholar delivers a lecture on a topic related to Greek literature or culture.
Margaret Lowe Annual Memorial Undergraduate Lecture
A memorial lecture series endowed by Drs. Sandy and Whitson Lowe honoring the memory of their daughter, Margaret Helen Lowe. Margaret died tragically and unexpectedly at the beginning of her fourth year of study as Greek Major in 2015. Having had enough credits in order to graduate, at the Final Exercises in 2016, Margaret was awarded her BA degree posthumously. This annual talk reminds us and our future Classics students of Margaret’s kind and generous spirit and her love for Classics.
The Classics Graduate Student Colloquium
Each year the graduate students of the Department of Classics sponsor a colloquium, at which graduate students from the University of Virginia and other universities, and a distinguished senior scholar, present papers on a selected theme.
Friday Luncheons
At Friday Luncheons during the academic year, students, faculty of the Classics Department, and other persons with classical interests hear and discuss papers relevant to the Classics. Those interested in attending should contact Inger Kuin (ik6mg@virginia.edu).
The Virginia Senior Classical League
The Virginia Senior Classical League is a statewide organization of college students who are interested in the ancient world. The VSCL assists the Virginia Junior Classical League at the VJCL Convention each fall. Each year the VSCL also runs two Certamina (academic competitions for high school Latin students) for the VJCL. Students interested in joining should consult the League website at http://www.vscl.org/
The Classics Club at UVA
The purpose of the Classics Club is to promote community both among Classics Majors and other interested undergraduates through the facilitation of educational, social, and service-related activities. For further information send an e-mail to: classicsclub@virginia.edu.
The Archaeological Institute of America
The Archaeological Institute of America is an educational and scientific society of archaeologists and others interested in archaeological study and research. There is a chapter of the AIA in Charlottesville, and those interested in joining should contact Professor Tyler Jo Smith (tjs6e@virginia.edu). The AIA sponsors a series of lectures, which are free and open to the public.