The triumviral period, between the death of Julius Caesar and Octavian's final victory, was characterized by war, political instability, and great cultural change in Rome, and through it all, the defining poet of the time was thinking about farming. In this class we will read Vergil's Georgics, the didactic poem about agriculture he wrote during this tumultuous period. Is it a nostalgic look back on Rome's agrarian roots? A hope for peace? A metaphorical representation of the human desire for control over the world at a time when everything was in chaos? We will focus our study on how Vergil adapts his Greek and Roman models, and especially the many various ways agriculture and myth are used in the poem to think about contemporary Rome. We will also learn how to save the bees. Please note, L10 494 is intended for undergraduate students only; graduate students may enroll in L10 5940. PREREQUISITES: LATIN 3171 and LATIN 3181 (OR EQUIVALENT) AND SOPHOMORE STANDING OR ABOVE.
Course Attributes: EN H; AS HUM; AS LCD; AS LS; FA HUM
