107-439 Sex, Gender & Society in Greece and Rome

Admission to the postgraduate diploma or fourth year honours in classics and archaeology

This subject examines sex and gender in the classical world. It introduces students to methods of interpreting the evidence from the ancient world in order to say anything definite about the 'real' lives of women in Greece and Rome. It also explores how ancient men expressed their ideology about femininity and masculinity through their literature; whether sexuality is a natural phenomenon, or is culturally determined; how ancient homosexuality differs from modern lesbian and gay culture; and how ancient assumptions about gender roles in the family differ from modern assumptions. Students will engage with primary texts in translation and will explore modern theoretical approaches, including social history, feminisms, and queer theory. Students should complete the subject with an understanding of the complex approaches to a 'history of women' and a 'history of sexuality' in an ancient context.

Class participation, on-line participation, a 3000 word seminar paper and two 1000 word essays.

A subject reader will be available.

• Fantham, Foley, Kampen, Pomeroy & Shapiro (eds), Women in the Classical World: Image and Text. Oxford University Press.
• R Blondell et al (eds) Euripedes, Women on the Edge: Four Plays. Routledge, 1999.
• P Bing & R Cohen (eds), Games of Venus: An Anthology of Greek and Roman Erotic Verse from Sappho to Ovid.. Routledge, 1991.