Lucretius' Best Moments (Intermediate-Advanced)
Instructor:
Description:
It seems like everyone has bones to pick with Lucretius, even his mostly-fans. Cicero was lukewarm (or was he? His judgment is famously cryptic). Early Modern Christian readers lambasted his ""atheism"" and its pernicious threat, while here and there imitating his poetry. Modern scientists know his physics of atoms doesn't hold up, though he still gets some credit for being ahead of his time. Rumor has it many Classics grad students these days would rather not see him on their reading lists: too alien, weird idiom, too much thinky philosophy.
In this course, we will bravely dip our toes into the De Rerum Natura to judge Lucretius for ourselves--and enjoy him! We'll survey key passages from throughout his poem that highlight its range of themes and poetic modes, including the puzzling but lyrical opening hymn to Venus, sections that retell Greek myths vividly just to criticize the traditional religion underlying them, and descriptions of Epicurus's hardly-dull atoms, wacky ideas about the origins of life, and compact analysis of human cultural evolution. Throughout our sessions, we will focus on understanding the poet's philosophical ideas and appreciating the philosopher's poetry, seeing first-hand how inseparable the two are.
Selections will be drawn from the LLPSI series' Lucretius reader, which gives us significant help understanding the text together tantum Latine and can support students' (strictly optional!) independent encounters with Lucretius outside of class.
Sessions will take place via Zoom and are capped at 8 participants to ensure a personalized learning environment.
Schedule:
8 1-hour sessions over 8 weeks
Wednesdays, 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm EST*
15 January, 2025 - 05 March, 2025
*The course will observe US time and will change according to daylight savings time.
Major US federal holidays are observed. If a participant misses a session due to their observance of a religious holiday, they can arrange a separate session with the instructor.
Cost: USD 200 ($25/ session)
What you’ll need:
• LLPSI Lucretius reader (Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Lucretius-Rerum-Natura-Vv-Aa/dp/8895611284)
• Zoom
• Decent internet
• Earphones
• Microphone
• Webcam (preferred but optional)
• A quiet space for classes
All classes will be recorded in case students must miss a segment and folks can sign up for the classes if they can’t make the time and still receive all recordings and materials.
Instructor:
Description:
It seems like everyone has bones to pick with Lucretius, even his mostly-fans. Cicero was lukewarm (or was he? His judgment is famously cryptic). Early Modern Christian readers lambasted his ""atheism"" and its pernicious threat, while here and there imitating his poetry. Modern scientists know his physics of atoms doesn't hold up, though he still gets some credit for being ahead of his time. Rumor has it many Classics grad students these days would rather not see him on their reading lists: too alien, weird idiom, too much thinky philosophy.
In this course, we will bravely dip our toes into the De Rerum Natura to judge Lucretius for ourselves--and enjoy him! We'll survey key passages from throughout his poem that highlight its range of themes and poetic modes, including the puzzling but lyrical opening hymn to Venus, sections that retell Greek myths vividly just to criticize the traditional religion underlying them, and descriptions of Epicurus's hardly-dull atoms, wacky ideas about the origins of life, and compact analysis of human cultural evolution. Throughout our sessions, we will focus on understanding the poet's philosophical ideas and appreciating the philosopher's poetry, seeing first-hand how inseparable the two are.
Selections will be drawn from the LLPSI series' Lucretius reader, which gives us significant help understanding the text together tantum Latine and can support students' (strictly optional!) independent encounters with Lucretius outside of class.
Sessions will take place via Zoom and are capped at 8 participants to ensure a personalized learning environment.
Schedule:
8 1-hour sessions over 8 weeks
Wednesdays, 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm EST*
15 January, 2025 - 05 March, 2025
*The course will observe US time and will change according to daylight savings time.
Major US federal holidays are observed. If a participant misses a session due to their observance of a religious holiday, they can arrange a separate session with the instructor.
Cost: USD 200 ($25/ session)
What you’ll need:
• LLPSI Lucretius reader (Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Lucretius-Rerum-Natura-Vv-Aa/dp/8895611284)
• Zoom
• Decent internet
• Earphones
• Microphone
• Webcam (preferred but optional)
• A quiet space for classes
All classes will be recorded in case students must miss a segment and folks can sign up for the classes if they can’t make the time and still receive all recordings and materials.
Instructor:
Description:
It seems like everyone has bones to pick with Lucretius, even his mostly-fans. Cicero was lukewarm (or was he? His judgment is famously cryptic). Early Modern Christian readers lambasted his ""atheism"" and its pernicious threat, while here and there imitating his poetry. Modern scientists know his physics of atoms doesn't hold up, though he still gets some credit for being ahead of his time. Rumor has it many Classics grad students these days would rather not see him on their reading lists: too alien, weird idiom, too much thinky philosophy.
In this course, we will bravely dip our toes into the De Rerum Natura to judge Lucretius for ourselves--and enjoy him! We'll survey key passages from throughout his poem that highlight its range of themes and poetic modes, including the puzzling but lyrical opening hymn to Venus, sections that retell Greek myths vividly just to criticize the traditional religion underlying them, and descriptions of Epicurus's hardly-dull atoms, wacky ideas about the origins of life, and compact analysis of human cultural evolution. Throughout our sessions, we will focus on understanding the poet's philosophical ideas and appreciating the philosopher's poetry, seeing first-hand how inseparable the two are.
Selections will be drawn from the LLPSI series' Lucretius reader, which gives us significant help understanding the text together tantum Latine and can support students' (strictly optional!) independent encounters with Lucretius outside of class.
Sessions will take place via Zoom and are capped at 8 participants to ensure a personalized learning environment.
Schedule:
8 1-hour sessions over 8 weeks
Wednesdays, 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm EST*
15 January, 2025 - 05 March, 2025
*The course will observe US time and will change according to daylight savings time.
Major US federal holidays are observed. If a participant misses a session due to their observance of a religious holiday, they can arrange a separate session with the instructor.
Cost: USD 200 ($25/ session)
What you’ll need:
• LLPSI Lucretius reader (Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Lucretius-Rerum-Natura-Vv-Aa/dp/8895611284)
• Zoom
• Decent internet
• Earphones
• Microphone
• Webcam (preferred but optional)
• A quiet space for classes
All classes will be recorded in case students must miss a segment and folks can sign up for the classes if they can’t make the time and still receive all recordings and materials.
NOTA BENE: Classes require a minimum number of participants to run although they may run with fewer participants, at the instructor’s discretion.
Refund policy:
More than 2 days prior to the start of the course: 100% refund
After 2 days prior to the start of the course: credit to use for another course hosted on LAC