The Golden Age of Athens

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This unit explores the history and culture of Athens in the fifth century BCE. Students are introduced to the major cultural achievements of this period, ranging across literature (both prose and drama), architecture, scientific enquiry and philosophy, and are encouraged to understand these achievements within the broader political context of Athens?a context forged by the twin imperatives of radical democracy and empire. The unit focuses on the ancient sources, both material (for example, the archaeological remains) and literary (principally Thucydides, but also playwrights such as Aristophanes). Students are able to (1) demonstrate their understanding of the use of historical sources (both literary and material) from fifth-century Athens; (2) formulate arguments about the key cultural and political achievements of fifth-century Athens, and present these arguments in written form and in discussion with their peers; and (3) demonstrate acquaintance with a body of modern scholarship concerning fifth-century Athens.