Society and Politics in Ancient Greece
May 26-June 23, 2010
Prof. Helen Gaudette, History, Queens College, CUNY
Helen.Gaudette@qc.cuny.edu
During this course in Athens, we will study the society and politics of Ancient Greece.
With its extraordinary artistic, intellectual and cultural heritage, Athens is the perfect
location to study society and politics during this important period in the history of
Western Civilization. The museums at the Acropolis and the ancient Agora, as well as the
National Archaeological Museum, the Cycladic Museum, and the Benaki collections are
within minutes of the facilities of our host the University of Indianapolis, Athens
Campus. We will also take a cruise to one of the magnificent Saronic Gulf islands –
Aegina, and a three-day trip to visit the ancient sites of: Apollo’s sanctuary at Delphi,
Olympia, the birthplace of the Olympics, Mycenae, and Epidavros.
During the last week, we will focus on the history of 5th-century Athens during the
Peloponnesian War up to and including the Trial of Socrates, with the pedagogy “reacting
to the past.”
“Reacting” is an innovative way of learning through role-playing and elaborate games.
In the Athens game, The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 BCE, by Mark C.
Carnes and Josiah Ober, students will be assigned roles as historical figures meeting as
members of the Athenian Assembly and jurors in the trial of Socrates with a “game
objective.” At the heart of the Athens game, is animated discussion and debating; you
must persuade others that “your” views make more sense than those of your opponents.
The debates will be informed by Plato’s Republic, as well as by excerpts from
Thucydides, Xenophon, and other contemporary sources. By examining democracy at its
threshold, the game provides the perspective to consider its subsequent evolution.
You will have two ways of expressing your views: orally and in writing, and both will be
graded and contribute toward your final grade. Writing assignments will include journal
notes and a final research project.
Required Reading: please purchase before we leave for Athens to bring along with you
Carnes, Mark C and Josiah Ober. The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 B.C.,
Third Edition. Longman Publishers, 2005. “Reacting to the Past” Series. ISBN:
0321333039.
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Martin, Thomas R. Ancient Greece: From Prehistoric to Hellenistic Times. New Haven:
Yale University Press, 2000.
Plato. The Republic. Trans. Desmond Lee. Second Edition. London: Penguin Books,
2003. ISBN: 0140449140.
Course Requirements:
Participation: (30%) The heart and soul of this course as well as in the Athens game is
participation so it is a crucial component of your grade. During the game, in your
assigned role, you will seek to achieve your “game objectives” by expressing your views
in the classroom as a member of a particular team (faction) or alone as an indeterminate.
Journal/Notebook/Scrapbook: (20%) The journal will consist of hand-written notes,
thoughts, comments, strategies, arguments, postcards, museum receipts, etc. Think of it
as a written and visual record of all that you do, see, and learn about Ancient Athens
while in Greece. The journal should also include your game outlines and notes with
arguments and counter arguments to each of the major questions concerning the
Assembly in 403 BCE and the Trial of Socrates that will come up in the debates. You
can and should refer to your outlines and arguments during the debates.
Special Project with Research Project: (30%) This 8-10-page typed research project
about Athenian society (with a component to be researched in Athens during the course)
will be due a few weeks after we get back home from Greece.
Final Exam: (20%) The final exam will be held on the last day of classes in Athens.
Schedule: Classes at 10.00a.m. -12.30pm, Room GRA
Wed
May 26
Depart on flight for Athens
Thurs
May 27
Arrive in the morning - brief onsite orientation in the
afternoon, time TBA, Ipitou 9
Fri
May 28
Class: Introduction to the course, “reacting to the past,”
and the Mycenaeans to the Dark Age
Reading: Martin pp. 1-50
Sat
Sun
May 29
May 30
Day off
Day off
2
Mon
May 31
Class: From the Archaic Age to Oligarchy, Tyranny, and
Democracy
Reading: Martin pp. 51-93
Fieldtrip: after lunch, visit the National Archaeological
Museum
Tues
June 1
Class: Persian Wars, Athenian Empire, and Culture and
Society in Classical Athens
Reading: Martin pp. 94-146
Fieldtrip: Keramikos, the ancient cemetery and museum in
Athens
Wed
June 2
Class: The Peloponnesian War and its Aftermath
Reading: Martin pp. 147-173, and “Funeral Oration of
Pericles,” “Athenagoras, Alcibiades, and Thucydides’
History in Carnes and Ober pp. 59- 66, 101-102
Thurs
June 3
Class: Athens in the fifth century up to the year 403BCE,
the Athens game, and the documents. Roles distributed.
Reading: Carnes and Ober pp. 1-58, and Appendix D pp.
103-118
Fieldtrip: after lunch visit the Acropolis/Agora/Theatre of
Dionysus
Fri
June 4
Class: Socrates and Plato
Reading: Xenophon’s Oeconomicus in Carnes and Ober
pp. 73-100, and Plato’s Republic, Books I-III
Fieldtrip: after lunch, visit the new Acropolis Museum
Sat
Sun
June 5
June 6
Day off
Day off
Mon
June 7
Class: Socrates and Plato
Reading: Plato’s Republic, Books IV-VI
Tuesday
June 8
Class: Daily Life in Ancient Greece
Reading: Flaceliere Ch 1, 5-8
Fieldtrip: after lunch, visit the Pnyx
Wed
June 9
Class: Daily Life in Ancient Greece
Reading: Flaceliere Ch 1, 5-8
Fieldtrip: after lunch, visit the Pnyx
Thursday
June 10
Class: Athens Game begins/Faction Meetings/
Reconciliation Agreement
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Reading: Selections from Xenophon and Lysias, Laws,
in Carnes and Ober 67-72
Friday
Sat
Sun
June 11
June 12
June 13
3-day class trip to Delphi and other ancient sites
3-day trip
3-day trip
Mon
June 14
Class: Athens Game Government Agency/Social Welfare
Reading: Flaceliere Ch 9
Tuesday
June 15
Class: Athens Game Defining the Electorate
Reading: Flaceliere Ch 2, 3
Wed
June 16
Class: Athens Game Restoration of the Athenian Empire/
Maintenance of core traditional Athenian values
Reading: Flaceliere Ch 4, 10
Thurs
June 17
Class: Athens Game Trial of Socrates
Fri
June 18
Class: Athens Game Post-mortem discussion
Reading: Martin pp. 147-221, Flaceliere pp. 272-278
Celebration class dinner in the evening, location TBA
Sat
Sun
June 19
June 20
Day off
Day off
Mon
June 21
One-day class trip to the island of Aegina
Tues
June 22
Last class- Final Exam
Wed
June 23
DEPARTURE-Return home to New York
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