Patristic and Byzantine Greek

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

The Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire holds a crucial place in the history of Greek literature. Not only did Byzantine scribes forge the vital link between antiquity and modernity, but Byzantine mystics, poets, philosophers, and statesmen have left behind a vast and varied corpus of texts expressing the diverse discourses contributing to the formation of Byzantium. In this course, students will engage this corpus through a survey of texts composed in different historical and geographical contexts and encompassing a variety of genres (including historiography, hagiography, mystical literature, and poetry). In this course, students will encounter the writings of John Chrysostom, Gregory of Nazianzus, Romanos Melodos, the nun Kassia, Michael Psellos, Anna Komnene, and others. Prerequisite: At least three semesters of classical or Koine Greek.