CLAS2881: Myths of Transformation in Ovid's Metamorphoses

• CLAS1301 or CLAS1701 or equivalent degree-level study within English, History, History of Art or Philosophy.

• None

• None

• To develop critical thinking in interpreting Ovid's myths of transformations in their cultural context.
• To understand and interpret how Ovid's epic engages with different genres and media (e.g. epic, drama, painting).
• To study the diverse approaches to metamorphic myths in literature, art, and philosophy.

• By studying a representative number of episodes from Ovid's Metamorphoses (in translation), we shall investigate the concepts, functions, and criticism of transformation in the Greco-Roman world. Ovid's epic will be our point of reference and point of departure in exploring the contexts in which these tales were told in antiquity and the ways in which they could be manipulated to serve new purposes. We shall engage with literary versions and visual representations of metamorphosis, study the role of transformative myths in philosophy, religion, art, science, theatre, and politics, and explore the enduring popularity of this material. While the primary focus is on the classical sources and contexts, the various interests and disciplinary backgrounds that members of the class may bring to the subject will be integral to the module.

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• Detailed knowledge of a selection of Roman primary sources.
• Knowledge of the range of current scholarship on metamorphosis in Greco-Roman literature and culture.
• An understanding of the significance of literary and historical developments in Ovid's Metamorphoses.
• An understanding of the ways in which different literary genres and media are involved in Ovid's narratives of change.

Subject-specific Skills:

• An ability to analyse and draw conclusions from a broad range of primary sources from the Greco-Roman world.
• An ability to evaluate and synthesise critical insights of literary theory in interpreting Latin literature.
• A capacity to form compelling and original interpretations of primary sources.

Key Skills:

• The ability to assess and compare a range of different arguments and methodologies.
• The ability to use diverse types of evidence to build up a cumulative picture.
• The capacity to produce tight, well-evidenced and clearly expressed arguments in both oral and in written form.
• A capacity to produce independent and convincing interpretations of literary texts.

• Lectures introduce texts, major topics, and approaches in the analysis of myths of transformations in Ovid and beyond.
• The formative essay will require students to develop arguments at greater length.
• The examination will assess the students' familiarity with the evidence and the sophistication of their analyses.
• The summative essay will test student's ability to focus on relevant issues and organise knowledge and arguments appropriate to questions raised.

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