Write a brief essay (~400-500 words) on the topic of your choice pertaining to the course material on epic poetry of Greece and Rome. You may discuss a character (or compare two or more characters); a theme; a poetic technique; a typical epic motif, etc. Give specific examples and quote additional sources (3 references expected). Upload your essay to Bb. Term paper: A term paper on the topics of student’s choice, 5-10 pages long, is to be submitted by the last week of the course. General requirements for the term paper: Paper must have the title; the name of its author; an indication of the course, semester and year. Pages must be numbered. A minimum of three bibliographic entries must accompany the discussion. Type your bibliography on the last page of your paper. Suggested bibliography format: Give the alphabetical list of the quoted classical authors first. (Author; Work; Translator; Editor; Year.) Give the alphabetical list of the quoted modern authors. (Last name; First name/ initial; Title of the book/ article; Publisher/ journal; Year of publication. Throughout the text of your paper, refer to authors quoted: Modern authors/ researchers: Last name, Year of publication, Page quoted. Classical authors: Name, Title of the work, Standard numerical identification of the line, if poetry; chapter/ paragraph, if prose quoted. General features of epic poetry, including its: Metrics Major sub-genres Common themes and types. Stylistic properties Historic developments, etc. The nature and origin of the Iliad and the Odyssey (the “Homeric Question”). The poetic techniques; structure; artistic appeal and intrinsic value of the Homeric poems. The epic cycles; the Trojan cycle as the context of the Homeric poems. Other major epic poems of Greek literature. Roman epic poetry. Virgil’s Aeneid – the monumental declaration of the Roman spirit. Ovid’s Metamorphoses – the panorama of classical mythic stories based on the theme of love and transformation. The impact of Greek and Roman epic on the Western literary tradition.
