An analysis of what it meant to be alone in the Roman world. The course examines the literature on solitary experience and explores spaces of solitude in ancient built environments. Coursework prompts students to reflect on contemporary ideas about loneliness and isolation from a historical perspective.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students: Graduate students will be required to write a detailed research paper on a chosen topic or theme that will demonstrate advanced research skills and engagement with the primary and secondary source material (ancient and modern).
Athena Title
Solitude in Ancient Rome
Prerequisite
CLAS 1000 or CLAS 1000E or CLAS 1000H or CLAS 1010 or CLAS 1010E or CLAS 1010H or CLAS 1020 or CLAS 1020E or CLAS 1020H or CLAS 3000 or CLAS 3010 or CLAS(ANTH) 3015 or CLAS(ANTH) 3015E or CLAS 3030 or CLAS 3040 or CLAS3050 or permission of department
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student learning Outcomes
By the end of the semester students will be able to interpret sources relating to solitude from ancient Rome and the classical tradition, including letters, poetry, philosophy and material culture.
By the end of the semester students will be able to compare and contrast the relationship between solitude and society in different historical contexts (including but not limited to the Roman empire, the European Romantic period and the Mexican revolution).
By the end of the semester students will be able to appraise the role of solitude in the creation of literary canons and assemble their own canons based on a topic of their choosing.
Topical Outline
Unit 1: Genres of Solitude
I. Lonely Letter Writers, Ancient and Modern
II. Poetic Solitaries in the Long Virgilian Age
III. Novels and Their Reclusive Readers
IV. Learning to Be Alone, Philosophically
V. Isolation and the Textual Tradition
Unit 2: Spaces of Solitude
VI. Alone in the City
VII. Alone in the Countryside
VIII. Alone at Home
Unit 3: Politics of Solitude
IX. Exile before Ovid
X. Ovid’s Exile
XI. Exile after Ovid
XII. Voluntary Exile and Religion
Unit 4: En-Gendering Solitude
XIII. Among Women
XIV. Queering Solitude
XV. We are Alone: Solitude and Solidarity
Institutional Competencies Learning Outcomes
Critical Thinking
The ability to pursue and comprehensively evaluate information before accepting or establishing a conclusion, decision, or action.
