Detailed Information

GRC20040 - Greek Tragedy (Audit)* - 2017

Greek tragedy has had profound influence on Western culture, and many of the 32 surviving plays are still regularly performed. This module will examine the social and theatrical context of the original performances in 5th-century Athens, and study a selection of plays in detail. We shall focus in particular on Aeschylus' great trilogy The Oresteia (458 B.C.), which deals with fundamental issues of revenge, justice, and the role of women in the state. We shall also be reading Sophocles' Electra and Euripides' Electra (both c. 420 B.C.), which deal with the same part of the myth as Aeschylus' Libation Bearers, the central play of The Oresteia, and give a good opportunity to compare the styles of the three main Greek tragedians. The final play in the module is Euripides' Medea (431 B.C.). The module does not require any prior knowledge of Greek tragedy, and all the plays are studied in translation.

On completion of this module students should be able to:* synthesize information about the social and theatrical context of the prescribed plays;* demonstrate critical understanding of the prescribed plays as works of literature;* evaluate modern interpretations of the prescribed plays;* answer questions on specific points in the prescribed plays;* construct relevant and analytical essays on the prescribed plays.

Tutor Dates Time Venue/Location Fee €
Professor Michael Lloyd 11 Sep 2017 to 27 Nov 2017 15:00 Belfield

350.00



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Semester 1

Level 2

Lectures:  Tuesday 12:00 - 13:00, beginning 11 September, 2018
Tutorials:  To be selected

 

If you are taking this module for credit, please take note of the dates below:

 

Term dates for revision:  Saturday, 1 December - Sunday, 9 December

Term dates for exams:    Monday, 10 December - Friday, 21 December

Open Learning Fee (audit only) €350 per module

Open Learning Fee (with assessment) €500 per 5 credit module

 

Upgrading from audit to credit:  You may upgrade from being an audit student to a credit student up to three weeks into term.  Please note, however, that you can't change back to being an audit student - if you decide not to complete the assignments and/or sit the exams, this will appear on your academic record.

 

Concessions
There are no concessions available for Open Learning modules.

 

Refunds
Refunds may in some instances be available for extenuating circumstances, such as serious illness, within two weeks of the start of the module.  Requests for refunds must be submitted in writing, with supporting docments where appropriate.

Prof Michael Lloyd


Professor Lloyd’s main research area is Euripides, about whom he has written some articles as well as two books: The Agon in Euripides (Oxford University Press, 1992) and an edition of his play Andromache (Aris and Phillips, 1994). He has also worked on the other two great tragedians of the 5th C. BC, Sophocles and Aeschylus. A book on Sophocles' Electra appeared in 2005, and he edited an anthology of articles on Aeschylus in the Oxford Readings series published by Oxford University Press (2007). He is also interested in politeness theory, a branch of sociolinguistics which studies the linguistic strategies which people use to avoid giving offence, and has published an article on Achilles in Homer's Iliad from this point of view.