Handbook home
Euripides, Seneca, and Mythmaking (ANCW40001)
HonoursPoints: 12.5Not available in 2025
About this subject
Overview
Fees | Look up fees |
---|
Students will read, in English translation, selected plays by Euripides (the 5th century BCE Athenian playwright) and Seneca (the 1st century CE Roman writer and tutor of the Emperor Nero). The subject introduces students to methods of interpreting tragedy, in particular how Euripides and Seneca use Greek mythology to explore social issues relevant to their times. By invoking commonly known myths, reinterpreting them, and sometimes re-inventing them, the plays of Euripides and Seneca continue to resonate with modern audiences on issues of war and slavery, democracy and power, and especially ideologies of gender and the place of women in society. Students will be introduced to feminism, queer theory, structural linguistics, Jungian psychology, alterity, metatheatre, and theories of ancient drama in modern performance.
Intended learning outcomes
Students who successfully complete this subject should be able to:
- Outline the corpus of Euripidean and Senecan drama in translation
- Analyse the culture and social history of 5th century Athens and imperial Rome through the lens of theatre and its social commentary
- Explain modern theoretical approaches to the study of ancient theatre, both as texts and in performance
- Conduct independent research using catalogued sources and bibliographic indexes
Generic skills
Students who successfully complete this subject should be able to:
- Develop critical thinking skills to analyse and evaluate concepts, beliefs, considering multiple perspectives, and supporting evidence
- Communicate effectively in writing and synthesis an argument in cogent form
- Evaluate the impact of social, ethical, and cultural contexts
- Acquire greater confidence in tackling unfamiliar problems
- Reflect on the communication conventions of another culture
- Conduct independent research and effectively manage information.
Last updated: 8 November 2024