Classics in Our World:
English Words from Ancient
Greece
Our classical past has enriched Western Culture, and many languages. Many of us are unaware of the classical background of English words we use today. Part of our exploration of ancient Greece this semester will be to expand our understanding of our own language via the etymologies of its vocabulary.
To this end, students in CLST 1003 will delight one another with explanations of CLASSICS IN OUR WORLD. Most of these words are to be found in a good English dictionary, and on the Internet in the “Words and Phrases Glossary” of Oxford’s “Classical Mythology” website: (http://www.oup.com/us/companion.websites/9780195397703/student/glossaries/main/?view=usa). If you don’t find what you want online, you should consult a
big English dictionary, and/or go to Mullins Library. There are several
works in Mullins Library that can give you the lowdown on all the mythology
you need. There are a bunch in Reference, and a bunch on the shelves. If
you want resources in Mullins Library, you can see them here: (http://www.uark.edu/campus-resources/dlevine/Bibliography.html).
A good online reference source for Greek myths, with illustrations, is theoi.com:
(http://www.theoi.com/).
Students will work in groups of two, and will receive their assignments in the first week of class.
Student presentations will involve:
1) Writing the word or phrase on the board in the Roman
alphabet immediately before class begins,
2) Writing the relevant original word(s) IN GREEK LETTERS (upper and lower case) on
the board immediately before class begins, and
3) BRIEFLY (in 2-3 minutes) explaining the classical figure,
concept, myth, god, or idea associated with the words.
4) [Please inform your professor at least two days before your presentation what
you have found.]
Note: In addition, students must bring an image to accompany their presentation. This may be online, on a memory storage device, or a hard-copy image. We will have a document camera to project from any paper image you bring.
Please check the list and note the days on which you will make your presentations. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE TO PREPARE YOUR PRESENTATION.
The professor encourages students to refer to our course
texts and other original sources whenever possible when giving reports,
so check out the indices of your texts when preparing your presentation.
For example, if you get the word AMAZON, you will find a cool story about
them in your Herodotus text, in book 4. Ditto on “rich as Croesus”
(book 1). If you get “Electra Complex”, you will do well to refer
to Aeschylus’ play LIBATION BEARERS, which is in our ORESTEIA text. If you get CloudCucooLand, be sure to refer to Aristophanes’ Birds. Show us how well-read you are!
GRADING: Grades will be based on:
1. Accuracy of Information (Be sure
to tell the truth);
2. Clarity and Concision of Presentation
(Make sure that your report is succinct and understandable),
3. Connection with the class (Be sure
that your voice is loud enough, that you make eye contact, and show that
you care about your subject),
4. Proper Greek spelling and letter forms (This is why I want you to check with me before your presentation — so I don’t have to correct your work in class).
5. (and most importantly) Contacting the Professor AT LEAST two days before class to let him know what you have found, so he can check your work before your presentation. Failure to do this will have a negative effect on the grade.
The Professor will make assignments during the first week
of class. When you get your assignments, LOOK THEM UP RIGHT AWAY. DO NOT
WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE. Many of you will have questions that
I can answer, but not if you contact me just before your report is due.
Illustration: Columbia University Library, with names of
Homer, Herodotus, Sophocles, Plato, Aristotle, Demosthenes, Cicero and
Vergil on the Ionic Frieze.
Students will check the following list
and note the days on which they will give presentations.
Tuesday January 20
Europa (astronomy), Europe : Adam Angel, Audrey Bauer
Nike : Kate Beasley, McKenna Belcher
Thursday January 22
titan, titanic : Candace Bolte, Schari Briggs
amazon : Bailey Brown, Brad Bush
Tuesday January 27
ambrosia, ambrosial: Joe Ferguson, Paige Carter
stygian : Aymee Chauvin, Linden Cheek
Thursday January 29
Athenaeum : Ryan Cleous, Austin Collins
apple of discord : Claire Davies, Austin Daniel
Tuesday February 3
nestor : Rylie Davis, Kristen Dietz
cassandra : Breyanna Dulaney, Sarah Dutton
Thursday February 5
boustrophedon : Lennon Dycus, Sierra Eubanks
chimera : Robert Evans, Austin Farrell
Tuesday February 10
chaos : Andrew Fondren, Carter Fox
demon : Jillian Fry, Matt Gal
Thursday February 12
The Socratic Method : Jay Gates, Russell Gordon
echo : Ayana Gray, Nina Greene
Tuesday February 17
Ganymede (astronomy): Jared Guinn, Jack Guo
gorgon, gorgonian, gorgonize : Caitlin Halpin, Thomas Helvick
Thursday February 19
hector (as a verb, as a noun) : Michael Haynie, Lindsey Hess
panic : William Hight, Brennan Hile
Tuesday February 24
Only Honors Students Meet.
Thursday February 26
In-Class Odyssey Essays.
Tuesday March 3
academe, academy : David Hill, Reed Hill
Electra complex : Nicole Hinman, Kennedy Holmes
Thursday March 5
solon : Braden Hughes, Jennifer Isaacs
nemesis : Tyron Jamison, Jeremy Jennings
Tuesday March 10
laconic : Jack Jones, Sarah Julian
lethe, lethargy, lethargic : Eric Kaufman, Tim Yeldell
Thursday March 12
mausoleum : Kylie Kramer, Maggie Langston
hymen, hymneal : Salvador Lopez, Noemi Martinez
Tuesday March 17
Only Honors Students Meet.
Thursday March 19
mentor : Shannon May, Matthew McGrath
Midas’ ass’s ears/Midas touch/the golden touch : Anna McKibben, Chad McCone
Tuesday March 24; Thursday March 26 SPRING BREAK
Tuesday March 31
psephology/psephologist : Moises Meir, Kaitlin Morelock
draconian : Sean Moser, Rachel Murray
Thursday April 2
symposium : Jessica Nelson, Quentin Nichols
narcissus, narcissism, narcissist : Caylee Nickell, Jerusha Nohre
Tuesday April 7
nympholepsy/nympholept : Bobby Norris, Nicholas Palmer
The motto of the United States Postal Service: “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” (Hint: Herodotus Histories 8.98) : Daniel Papineau, Alexandra Perreault
Thursday April 9
erotic, erotica, erotomania : Eliott Pruett, Megan Rasmussen
Io (astronomy) : Logan Ray, Joshua Reed
Tuesday April 14
In-Class Essays (Herodotus/Xerxes’ Invasion Diary)
Thursday April 16
harpy : McKenna Rhadigan, Taylor Robinson
protean: Tosha Russell, Connor Shackelford
Tuesday April 21
procrustean : Anthony Sharp, Alexander Shell
palladium (two meanings): Natalie Sherwood, Anna Shipman
Thursday April 23
hecatomb : Jessica Springer, Ben Yeldell
Aphrodisiac, anaphrodisiac : Zachary Stanton, Brandon Stienke
Tuesday April 28
Pyrrhic Victory : Charles Swearingen, Alexandria Thomas
Platonic Love: Victoria Thompson, Alicia Turman
Thursday April 30
Elysian Fields/Elysian/Elysium : Daniel Walker, Caleb Ward
satyr, satyriasis, satyromaniac : John T. White, Megan Wilcox
The kindly centaur Chiron holds baby Achilles, his student. Chiron’s
job was to teach Achilles the art of medicine, and how to be a good man.
This centaur has human legs instead of horse legs, to show that he is more
civilized than other centaurs. In the Iliad, Achilles had the spear that
Chiron had given to Peleus, Achilles’ father. (Iliad 4.219; 11.832;
16.143; 19.390)
Return to Main Page: CLST 1003.
Recent Comments