World History, Arts, and Literature Humanities Cluster: The Classical World through the Renaissance
This course will begin with an investigation of the history, art and literature of Ancient Greece, and will be set at the Getty Villa in Malibu and the Getty Research Center and Museum in Los Angeles. We will acquire a thorough understanding of the major currents of Greek thought by approaching the development of the Greek mind through various cultural productions of the ancient Greek world. Readings will include scenes from Homer's Illiad and Odyssey, excerpts from Plato's Republic and various works by Aristotle, and Oedipus Rex. We will study ancient Greek politics and history contemporaneously with the literature to develop a holistic understanding of cultural context for the literature. Greek sculpture, pottery, and architectural concepts will further enhance our absorption of the Greek mode of thought (weeks one through six.)
In weeks seven through twelve, we will shift our focus to the Roman world. We will notice the absorption of Greek culture into the Roman world, but also note what is borrowed by Rome from Italian and Celtic sources. We will survey Roman history from the glory days of the Republic through the fall of the empire. We will read Roman literature including excerpts from the Aeneid, Tacitus, Livy and Marcus Aurelius. We will also read Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, evaluating the text for its authenticity to the Roman world it depicts. Along the way, we will absorb Roman sculpture, architecture, legal code, and even house furnishings and architecture, utilizing the Getty's fantastic collections. Students will emerge with an understanding of the basic schools of Roman thought, modes of government, and its artistic and mathematical innovations (weeks seven through twelve.)
IN the last two weeks of the course, students will be immersed in the Medieval culture that emerged from the wreckage of the Western Empire. We will examine the rise of Feudal warrior culture through excerpts from Beowulf, and get a sense of the vibrancy and breadth of Medieval culture through selected stories from the Canterbury Tales. We will supplement our readings with a study of Ecclesiastical Art at the Getty and a rare look at Illuminated Manuscripts at the Huntington Library in San Marino.
14 weeks. $780.00. Enrollment will be capped at fifteen students.