History 115, Fall 2009: The Heroic in the Western Tradition (with some villains and monsters, too)

Professor Richard Bodek 324 Maybank Hall

Phone: 953-8030 E-Mail

Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays 1:00 - 3:15 and by appointment

COURSE ORGANIZATION AND GOALS:

We will focus on real and archetypal heroes, monsters, and villains in the western tradition. The question of what is admirable and what is abhorrent is one of the keys to understanding a society’s culture and social norms. As we will see, the heroic and the villainous also have more than a few political ramifications

This course has several objectives:

1) To analyze issues fundamental to an understanding of history

a) How did notions of the heroic and abhorrent change over time and space?

b. How do these ideas and their changes inform us about who we are today?

2) To read and interpret both primary and secondary sources.

3) To learn how to write a research paper, using the Chicago Style.

DISCUSSION:

As you have probably noted, this class gives you the opportunity to consider some fascinating works. These include epics, poems, plays, and secondary works. Most of the lectures (and all the discussions) will assume that you have done the readings before class. There will be occasional unannounced quizzes to allow you to demonstrate that you are keeping up. The format will be as follows:

Beginning with the September 3 class, a student will be in charge of each reading.

S/he will prepare a 10-15 minute discussion of it to begin discussion.

All other students will bring at least three questions to discuss about the text. (I will collect these at the end of class)

There will be no discussion leader on those days when we listen to music or view a film.

RESEARCH PAPER:

The (5-10 page) essay for this class will interpret one important text within the social-cultural-intellectual context in which it was produced. Text is loosely defined here. Epics, plays, works of philosophy, paintings and operas are all acceptable. You must use at least four secondary sources in this paper, at least two of which come from journals.

Your paper will answer the following questions:

----What is the nature of the text you have chosen? What was it meant to accomplish?

----Why did the author write the text?

----What did the author need to know to write the text?

----What does this text tell us about the world in which it was written?

----How do you interpret the text?

EXAMINATIONS:

There will be a take-home midterm and a take-home final.

REQUIRED TEXTS:

RECOMMENDED TEXT:

Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses and Dissertations

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

The combined assignments equal 200 points, divided as follows:

Class Participation:

Overall Quality------20

Discussion Leading------20

Paper:

First Installment------20

Second Installment------30

Third Installment------40

Midterm------30

Final------40

You must complete all assignments. Failure to complete any assignment will result in an automatic failure for the class. Late papers will lose 10 points per day. Late papers will not be accepted without an excuse from the dean of undergraduate studies. Each unexcused absence after the second will lower your grade 10 points.

Grades are as follows:

A =187-200 points

A-=180-186

B+=173-179 points

B =167-172 points

B-=160-166

C+=153-159 points

C =147-152 points

C-=140-146

D =120-139 points

F =119 and fewer points

Plagiarism:

Plagiarism is committed any time a scholar or a student presents work as entirely his or her own, when it derives entirely or partially from another source (either literature or peers). All material taken from another source (even when the wording is paraphrased) must be acknowledged by use of a textnote, footnote or endnote. Direct statements taken from elsewhere must be attributed and marked by quotation marks. Should you have any questions about plagiarism, discuss them with me. I WILL REPORT ANY CASE OF SUSPECTED PLAGIARISM OR CHEATING TO THE HONOR BOARD. Anybody convicted of plagiarism or cheating will automatically fail the class.

The schedule and procedures described on this syllabus are subject to change in the event of extenuating circumstances

Date / Topic / Reading Assignment
Tues., Aug. 25 / Intro / None
The Ancient World
Thurs., Aug. 27 / Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Heroic Journey / The Epic of Gilgamesh
-1.  Hope Nash Wolff , Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Heroic Life (Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 89, No. 2 (Apr. - Jun., 1969), pp. 392-398) JStor
The Hebrews
Tues., Sept. 1 / Noah and the Flood / Genesis, Chapters 6-9
Discussion Question: Compare the floods in the two stories? What qualities does Gilgamesh show? What of Noah?
Thurs., Sept. 3 / Abraham / Genesis 11:26 to 25:10
-1.  Abraham, Isaac, and The Jewish Tradition: An Ethical Reappraisal
-1.  Ronald M. Green
The Journal of Religious Ethics, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Spring, 1982), pp. 1-21 (Jstor)
Discussion Question: Comparing Noah to Abraham, did Abraham act ethically? Was his obedience to God ‘heroic’? (compare with his bargaining re Sodom and Gemorrah)
Tues., Sept. 8 / David and Samson / First and Second Samuel
Book of Judges, chapters 13-16
Thurs., Sept. 10 / Job: The hero as stoic / The Book of Job
-1.  Nachmanides' Commentary on the Book of Job
-1.  Daniel Jeremy Silver
The Jewish Quarterly Review, New Series, Vol. 60, No. 1 (Jul., 1969), pp. 9-26 (JStor)
Discussion Question: Is Satan here the Satan of Christianity?
Greece and Rome
Tues., Sept. 15 / Heroics and the monstrous / Selections from the Odyssey
Thurs., Sept. 17 / The Tragic rethinking of the Ancient Tests / Euripides, “Heracles”
Tues., Sept. 22 / The Tragic rethinking of the Ancient Tests / Euripides, “Medea”
Thurs., Sept. 24 / The Philosopher as Hero / Plato, “The Trial of Socrates”
Tues., Sept. 29 / The Philosopher as Hero / Plato, “The Death of Socrates”
Thurs., Oct. 1 / Discussion: What were the qualities of Socraties that appeared to be so heroic to Plato?
Tues., Oct. 6 / The Warrior King / Plutarch, The Life of Alexander
Rome
Thurs., Oct. 8 / The Proper Roman / Plutarch, The Life of Fabius Maximus
Tues., Oct. 13 / Fall Break
Thurs., Oct. 15 / Proper Roman Comportment / The Aeneid (Selections)
Tues., Oct. 20 / Roman Hero or Villain / Plutarch, The Life of Caesar
Thurs., Oct. 22 / Caligula: Roman Virtue gone wrong / Tacitus, “Caligula”
Tues., Oct. 27 / Nero: Roman Virtue gone wrong / Tacitus, “Nero”
Christianity
Thurs., Oct. 29 / Jesus and Judas / Selections from the Gospels
Tues., Nov. 3 / Early Christian Religious Heroes / Gregory of Nyssa, “Life of St. Gregory Thaumaturgus”
Thurs., Nov. 5 / Early Christian Religious Heroes / St. Athanasius, “ The Life of St. Anthony”
The Medieval World
Tues., Nov. 10 / The Norse World / The Saga of the Volsungs
Thurs., Nov. 12 / The Norse World / The Saga of the Volsungs
Tues., Nov. 17 / The Norse World /

Beowulf

Thurs., Nov. 19 / The Norse World / JRR Tolkien, “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics,” pp. 103-30
SCHOLAR
Clare Lees, “Men and Beowulf,” in The Postmodern Beowulf, pp. 417-38
Tues., Nov. 24 / The Beginnings of Europe / Einhard, Life of Charlemagne (Selections)
Thurs., Nov. 22 / Thanksgiving Break
Tues., Dec. 1 / The Institutionalization of Heroism / The Song of Roland (Selections)
Dec. 3 / The Institutionalization of Heroism / Le Morte d’Arthur (Selections)