Spring 2025
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Profs. Stephanie Ann Frampton and Eric DriscollMW 1-2:3066-160
HASS-HExplores the fascinating history, culture, and society of the ancient and medieval worlds and the different methodologies scholars use to interpret them. Wrestles with big questions about the diversity of life and thought in pre-modern societies, the best ways to study the distant past, and the nature (and limitations) of knowledge about long-ago eras. Considers a wide range of scholarly subjects such as the rise and fall of the Roman empire, the triumph of Christianity and Islam, barbarian invasions and holy wars, courts and castles, philosophy and religion, and the diversity of art, literature, and politics. Ponders different types of evidence, reads across a variety of disciplines, and develops skills to identify continuities and changes in ancient and medieval societies.
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Prof. Eric DriscollTTh 2:30-4HASS-HHistorical topography of ancient Athens. Investigates the relationship between urban architecture and political, social, and cultural history of Athens in the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Surveys and analyzes archeological and literary evidence, including the sanctuary of Athena on the Acropolis, the Agora, Greek houses, the histories of Herodotus and Thucydides, plays of Sophocles and Aristophanes, and the panhellenic sanctuaries of Delphi and Olympia.
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This course investigates the fascinating world of the medieval emperor Charles “the Great” or Charlemagne (768-814), the first post-Roman ruler to unite Europe. It asks how Charlemagne and his dynasty, the “Carolingians” (714-888), expanded the kingdom of the Franks and forged a vast empire out of the peoples and territories of the West: not only through conquest and military might, but also through Christianity and the Church, government and law, education and culture, writing and literature, art and architecture, and a reorganization of the economy and society. We will consider the enduring contributions of Charlemagne and his dynasty to the formation of Europe as well as the shortcomings, turmoil, and failures of their empire.
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Prof. Anne McCantsTTh 3-4:30In this course we bring into conversation two subjects which are closely related, but rarely taught together: economic history and the history of economic thought. Ideas and material realities have always developed and changed together, and to properly understand the history of one, it’s vital to understand the context of the other. We draw upon cases from the ancient world to the twentieth century, surveying along the way the history of economics as it developed both intellectually and in conjunction with actual economies. We introduce students to some of the most powerful and influential economic thinkers, from Xenophon and Huan K’uan through Adam Smith and Karl Marx, to Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo. We also explore the evolution of key economic concepts – the state and the market, natural resources, and crises – by situating them in historical context and perspective. Through analysis and discussion of some of the most important texts in the history of economics we trace the development of ideas, norms, and ways of thinking that continue to shape decision-making in both daily life and in global policy.
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Surveys the nature, history, and distinctive features of Japanese literature and cultural history from the beginnings through the threshold of modernity. Examines various genres of poetry, historiography and mythological lore, prose tales and fiction, diaries, essays, Noh and puppet plays, short stories and novels; and helps students appreciate the texts’ relevance in the historical and cultural context in which authors wrote them, in the broader context of literary traditions from around the world, and for the humanistic and aesthetic powers, which makes them poignant to us today. Showcases how authors increasingly enjoyed adapting, redoing, and satirizing earlier models, while constantly developing new expressive forms suited to the urgent needs of their time. Includes an eco-literature lab, a creative writing lab, and a history-writing lab for collaborative experimentation.
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Translation and discussion of key passages of the Old English Beowulf and Judith, whose sole surviving copies were bound together over a thousand years ago. Other topics to be shaped by student interest but may include: hypermeter and theories of Old English meter more generally; Old English prose composition; the dating and religious perspective of Beowulf; and, depending on availability, workshopping the ongoing development of a chamber opera of Judith, sung in both modern and Old English. Prerequisite: one semester of Old English.
Fall 2024
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Studies foundational works from East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam) with a focus on their cultural context and contemporary relevance and asks how “Literature” looks different when conceived through some of the world’s oldest literatures beyond the West. Explores philosophical texts, history writing, poetry, stories and diaries, tales, and novels. Hones skills of reading, writing, and speaking with a sense of cultural sensitivity, historical depth, and comparative contemplation.
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Prof. Eric DriscollLecture: MW 12-1 Recitation: F 1-2 or 2-3HASS-H, CI-HHistory of Ancient Greece from the Bronze Age to the death of Alexander. Major social, economic, political, and religious
trends. Homer, heroism, and the Greek identity; the hoplite revolution and the rise of the city-state; Herodotus, Persia, and the (re)birth of history; Empire, Thucydidean rationalism, and the Peloponnesian War; Aristotle, Macedonia, and Hellenism. Emphasis on use of primary sources in translation.
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Investigates the dynamic history of Europe and the wider world between the late Roman empire and voyages of discovery. Examines the rise of Christianity, the decline of the Roman empire, the barbarian invasions, the meteoric rise of Islam, the formation of the Carolingian, Byzantine, and Islamic empires, the Vikings and Mongols, castles, knights, and crusades, religious thinkers, reformers, and heretics, changes in art, architecture, and literature, the Black Death, the Italian Renaissance and the voyages of discovery.
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Explores how an Oxford professor of medieval philology and literature wrote the most influential work of fantasy, The Lord of the Rings. Investigates how Tolkien’s scholarship on Old and Middle English, fascination with inventing languages, experiences during the First World War, and Catholic faith shaped the creation of his fantasy world often (mistakenly) called Middle Earth. Also considers the extent to which film adaptations do justice to the complexity of Tolkien’s life, stories, characters, and ideas.
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Examines the first dynasty to 1750. Traces the rise of the world’s first centralized bureaucratic state, the development of the world’s oldest living written culture, and the formation of the pre-modern world’s largest single commercial market. Studies women and men as they founded dynasties, engaged in philosophy, challenged orthodoxies, and invented technologies used around the globe. Explores China’s past to understand the country’s present, and reflects on what its stories mean for the global world.
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This course offers a panoramic overview of classical Chinese literature—the world’s oldest continuous literary tradition still alive. As we read texts from a breath-taking span of three thousand years we will learn how to appreciate the interventions writers made in their own time and cultural context, while also grasping their significance, comparatively, in the broader context of literary traditions from around the world. While focusing on first-hand encounters with original works in English translation (we will examine poetry, philosophy, history, rhapsodies, drama, short stories and several great classical novels), we will ask questions such as: what distinctive role did writing and literature come to play in Chinese society over the course of China’s many dynasties? How did the genres Chinese authors developed shape the content of their works and help articulate their desires, fears, hopes, creative fancies, and their ideas about life and death, virtue and violence, love, belief and knowledge, and the human condition? What does classical Chinese literature have to offer to readers and writers in today’s global world? As we read across three millennia, we will have the unique privilege to witness in fast-forward motion, like in a historical laboratory, how Chinese authors increasingly adapted, satirized, rewrote or resisted earlier literary themes and models as their literary tradition grew older and ever more diverse. All texts are in translation. No language skills are required.
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hƿæt ƿe gardena in geardagum þeodcyninga þrym gefrunon hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon… Those are the first words of the Old English epic Beowulf, and in this class you will learn to read them. Besides being the language of Rohan in the novels of Tolkien, Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon) is a language of long, cold, and lonely winters; of haunting beauty found in unexpected places; and of unshakable resolve in the face of insurmountable odds. It is, in short, the perfect language for MIT students.
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Introduces rudiments of ancient Greek – the language of Plato, Sophocles, Thucydides, and Euclid, and the basis for that of the New Testament – to students with little or no prior knowledge of the subject. Aimed at laying a foundation to begin reading ancient and/or medieval texts. Greek I and Greek II may be combined (after completion of both) to count as a single HASS-H.
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Introduces rudiments of ancient Greek – the language of Plato, Sophocles, Thucydides, and Euclid, and the basis for that of the New Testament – to students with little or no prior knowledge of the subject. Aimed at laying a foundation to begin reading ancient and/or medieval texts. Greek I and Greek II may be combined (after completion of both) to count as a single HASS-H.
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Introduction to reading Latin literature in the original language. Provides a bridge between the study of Latin grammar and the reading of Latin authors. Improves knowledge of the language through careful examination of literary texts, focusing on prose and poetry in alternate years. Builds proficiency in reading Latin and develops appreciation for basic features of style and genre. Building on 21L.613, 21L.614 develops the ability to read and analyze Latin literary texts, focusing on prose and poetry in alternate years. Increases fluency in reading comprehension and recognition of stylistic, generic, and grammatical features. Texts vary from term to term. May be repeated once for credit if content differs. 21L.613 and 21L.614, or two terms of 21L.614, may be combined by petition (after completion of both) to count as a single HASS-H.
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Introduction to reading Latin literature in the original language. Provides a bridge between the study of Latin grammar and the reading of Latin authors. Improves knowledge of the language through careful examination of literary texts, focusing on prose and poetry in alternate years. Builds proficiency in reading Latin and develops appreciation for basic features of style and genre. Building on 21L.613, 21L.614 develops the ability to read and analyze Latin literary texts, focusing on prose and poetry in alternate years. Increases fluency in reading comprehension and recognition of stylistic, generic, and grammatical features. Texts vary from term to term. May be repeated once for credit if content differs. 21L.613 and 21L.614, or two terms of 21L.614, may be combined by petition (after completion of both) to count as a single HASS-H.
