READ: introduction on The Ancient World (Bedford 1-15), The Epic of Gilgamesh (Bedford 42-60, sections 1-2); EXPLORE the resources at the Invitation to World Literature website.
Come to class with five questions about anything you have read for today. No question is too big or too small.
Fri., 8/26
READ Gilgamesh (Bedford 60-72, sections 3-4); WRITE: First online journal entry (300 words minimum) is due today on your wiki page. Reflect on anything we have read or discussed this week.
WEEK 2
Mon., 8/29
READ Gilgamesh (Bedford 72-77, sections 5-7) and Genesis, Ch. 6-9 (Bedford 92-96)
Questions we will consider in class discussion: What does Gilgamesh learn about death? What parallels are there between the two flood stories? Is the motivation for the flood the same in each? Is the result the same? Do you think the stories give different interpretations of the same event?
Wed., 8/31
READ introduction on The Ancient World (pp. 20-27) and The Odyssey (pp. 173-185). Read The Odyssey, Books 1-2 (pp. 185-209)
READ The Odyssey, Books 14-17
WRITE responses to two of your classmates' reading responses. Respond to the person above you and the person below you in the list. Use the discussion feature on their page for your response.
READ Plato, "The Allegory of the Cave" (715-719, 742-747)
Fri., 10/21
READ Plato, "Apology" (720-738)
WRITE: Midterm self and course evaluation/reflection letter. (How would you assess your effort and learning so far? What is going well in the course? What would you change? How well are you [as a learner] and we [considering the structure and acivities of the class] meeting the class goals?) You can post this letter to your journals page on the wiki or turn in a hard copy. You might want to refer back to the course goals that we discussed during the first week of class.
WEEK 10
Mon., 10/24
READ Bhagavad Gita (922-951)
Wed., 10/26
PRESENTATION 5: The Good Life
READ "The Good Life" (952-961)
READ "Chang Tzu: Basic Writings" (785-792) Questions to consider while reading: How does Chuang Tzu add to or alter your understanding of Taoism? What are the various ways that Chuang Tzu expresses wuwei, or "doing nothing"? For comparison: How does the personal God of the Hebrews differ from the idea of following the Tao? How is following the Tao similar to or different from the idea of acting in accordance with one's sacred duty (dharma) as expressed in Bhagavad Gita?
Fri., 11/4
READ The Analects by Confucius (567-575)
What differences do you notice between Daoism and the philosophy of Confucius? What does Confucius value?
WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 12
Mon., 11/7
READ The Aeneid, Books 1-2 (802-841)
We will start by comparing The Aeneid with The Odyssey and Aeneas with Odysseus. What might Virgil be saying by means of their similarities and differences? What role do the gods play in The Aeneid? In Book 2, Aeneas has to flee Troy even though the heroic code would have him go down fighting instead. How is his flight made to seem necessary?
Wed., 11/9
READ The Aeneid, Book 4 (841-859)
What does Aeneas really think of Dido? Does he love her? Consider Dido as a counterpart to Aeneas? What is the relevance of her personal biography before meeting Aeneas? How are their similarities important for understanding their love affair? Are there any ethical issues at stake in Book 4?
Meet at the BSU Museum of Art for a tour on mythology in art.
WEEK 14
Mon., 11/28
There is no homework for today. In class, we will probably have a debriefing about the essay. This week we will continue our exploration of visual art.
In class: Three Periods of Greek Sculpture: Representing the Human Body
Wed., 11/30
In class: Three Periods of Greek Sculpture: Representing the Human Body
Fri., 12/2
DUE: Essay due for in-class peer review. Bring 2 copies.
WRITE: The journal response this week is a response to a peer's draft. We will exchange papers in class.
WEEK 15
Mon., 12/5
The New Testament (1021-1041)
Wed., 12/7
Bring your laptop. We will take class time to do course evaluations. Also, be prepared to give a 1-2 minute summary of what you learned while researching your essay.
DUE: Critical Essay
Schedule of Readings and Assignments
WEEK 1
Mon., 8/22
Introductions.Wed., 8/24
READ: introduction on The Ancient World (Bedford 1-15), The Epic of Gilgamesh (Bedford 42-60, sections 1-2); EXPLORE the resources at the Invitation to World Literature website.Come to class with five questions about anything you have read for today. No question is too big or too small.
Fri., 8/26
READ Gilgamesh (Bedford 60-72, sections 3-4); WRITE: First online journal entry (300 words minimum) is due today on your wiki page. Reflect on anything we have read or discussed this week.WEEK 2
Mon., 8/29
READ Gilgamesh (Bedford 72-77, sections 5-7) and Genesis, Ch. 6-9 (Bedford 92-96)Questions we will consider in class discussion: What does Gilgamesh learn about death? What parallels are there between the two flood stories? Is the motivation for the flood the same in each? Is the result the same? Do you think the stories give different interpretations of the same event?
Wed., 8/31
READ introduction on The Ancient World (pp. 20-27) and The Odyssey (pp. 173-185). Read The Odyssey, Books 1-2 (pp. 185-209)Fri., 9/2
READ The Odyssey, Books 3-6 (pp. 209-267). WRITE: Online journal entryWEEK 3
Mon., 9/5
LABOR DAYWed., 9/7
READ The Odyssey, Books 7-10. Can you put the events of Books 1-10 in chronological order? Refer to the map on p. 189.Fri., 9/9
READ The Odyssey, Books 11-13. WRITE: Online journal entryWEEK 4
Mon., 9/12
READ The Odyssey, Books 14-17WRITE responses to two of your classmates' reading responses. Respond to the person above you and the person below you in the list. Use the discussion feature on their page for your response.
Wed., 9/14
READ The Odyssey, Books 18-20Fri., 9/16
READ The Odyssey, Books 21-24.WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 5
Mon., 9/19
READ Sappho, poems (560-567)Wed., 9/21
READ Myths of Creation (139-172)PRESENTATION 1: Creation Myths
Fri., 9/23
READ introduction on the ancient world (15-20), introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures (78-87), Genesis 1-4 (88-92)WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 6
Mon. 9/26
READ Genesis and Exodus.Wed., 9/28
READ Job, Psalms, and Song of Songs.Fri., 9/30
TBAWRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 7
Mon., 10/3
READ Agamemnon (575-634)Wed., 10/5
PRESENTATION 2: Heroes and AdventureREAD 533-535, 549-558
Fri., 10/7
PRESENTATION 3: Heroes and AdventureREAD 536-549
WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 8
Mon., 10/10
DUE: Parody EssayParody sharing day.
Wed., 10/12
READ Antigone (635-691)What are the crisis points in Antigone? What values are in conflict? What poll questions would you pose for this play?
Fri., 10/14
PRESENTATION 4: Rulers and CitizensREAD 692-714
WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 9
Mon., 10/17
FALL BREAKWed., 10/19
READ Plato, "The Allegory of the Cave" (715-719, 742-747)Fri., 10/21
READ Plato, "Apology" (720-738)WRITE: Midterm self and course evaluation/reflection letter. (How would you assess your effort and learning so far? What is going well in the course? What would you change? How well are you [as a learner] and we [considering the structure and acivities of the class] meeting the class goals?) You can post this letter to your journals page on the wiki or turn in a hard copy. You might want to refer back to the course goals that we discussed during the first week of class.
WEEK 10
Mon., 10/24
READ Bhagavad Gita (922-951)Wed., 10/26
PRESENTATION 5: The Good LifeREAD "The Good Life" (952-961)
Fri., 10/28
PRESENTATION 6: The Good LifeREAD "The Good Life" (962-971)
WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 11
Mon., 10/31
READ "Tao Te Ching" (772-782)Wed., 11/2
READ "Chang Tzu: Basic Writings" (785-792)Questions to consider while reading: How does Chuang Tzu add to or alter your understanding of Taoism? What are the various ways that Chuang Tzu expresses wuwei, or "doing nothing"? For comparison: How does the personal God of the Hebrews differ from the idea of following the Tao? How is following the Tao similar to or different from the idea of acting in accordance with one's sacred duty (dharma) as expressed in Bhagavad Gita?
Fri., 11/4
READ The Analects by Confucius (567-575)What differences do you notice between Daoism and the philosophy of Confucius? What does Confucius value?
WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 12
Mon., 11/7
READ The Aeneid, Books 1-2 (802-841)We will start by comparing The Aeneid with The Odyssey and Aeneas with Odysseus. What might Virgil be saying by means of their similarities and differences? What role do the gods play in The Aeneid? In Book 2, Aeneas has to flee Troy even though the heroic code would have him go down fighting instead. How is his flight made to seem necessary?
Wed., 11/9
READ The Aeneid, Book 4 (841-859)What does Aeneas really think of Dido? Does he love her? Consider Dido as a counterpart to Aeneas? What is the relevance of her personal biography before meeting Aeneas? How are their similarities important for understanding their love affair? Are there any ethical issues at stake in Book 4?
Fri., 11/11
READ The Aeneid, Book 6 (859-884)WRITE: Online journal entry
WEEK 13
Mon., 11/14
READ the following.Wed., 11/16
READ "Death and the Underworld" (894-921)
PRESENTATION 7: Death and the Underworld
Fri., 11/18
No class meeting. (I will be at a conference in Chicago.) Visit the Ball State Museum of Art on your own.
WRITE: Online journal entry about your visit to the museum - click for questions for your response
THANKSGIVING WEEK
Mon., 11/21
Meet at the BSU Museum of Art for a tour on mythology in art.WEEK 14
Mon., 11/28
There is no homework for today. In class, we will probably have a debriefing about the essay. This week we will continue our exploration of visual art.In class: Three Periods of Greek Sculpture: Representing the Human Body
Wed., 11/30
In class: Three Periods of Greek Sculpture: Representing the Human BodyFri., 12/2
DUE: Essay due for in-class peer review. Bring 2 copies.WRITE: The journal response this week is a response to a peer's draft. We will exchange papers in class.
WEEK 15
Mon., 12/5
The New Testament (1021-1041)Wed., 12/7
Bring your laptop. We will take class time to do course evaluations. Also, be prepared to give a 1-2 minute summary of what you learned while researching your essay.DUE: Critical Essay
Fri., 12/9
The Koran (1052-1077)WRITE: Online journal entry
FINALS WEEK
Mon., 12/12
In class, we will go over the final exam, which will be take home.Fri., 12/16
Final Exam meeting, 7:30 - 9:30 a.m.