Age of Caesar

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

Julius Caesar, general and poet, dictator and grammarian, historian and savior (or destroyer?) of the Roman Republic, has been a fascinating figure since his own day. This course considers his life and times: his rise to supreme power; his military campaigns at home and abroad; the vibrant artistic and cultural productions of Caesar's generation; the other impressive figures, like Pompey and Marc Antony, with whom he shared the world stage; the pressing public issues of the late Roman Republic with which Caesar grappled; and the relationship of Caesar's achievements to the birth of the Roman Empire. The course will also briefly consider the place of Caesar in later thought. Primary readings will be taken from the histories of Plutarch, Suetonius, and Caesar himself; the oratory, philosophy, and letters of Cicero; the poetry of Lucretius, Catullus, and Shakespeare; and others.