CLLA 408
Roman Comedy Spring 2014
Division I
This is not the current course catalog

Class Details

About fifteen years after the Romans’ hard-fought victory over Hannibal and the Carthaginians in the devastating Second Punic War, Plautus presented to his Roman audience a new comedy, Poenulus (The Little Carthaginian). Surprisingly, Plautus’ little Carthaginian seems to be the hero of the play. This course will engage the vexed questions surrounding the interpretation of this play and its many Carthaginian characters through a variety of approaches. We will consider how genre, the play’s political, social, and religious contexts, and especially different aspects of performance might influence our understanding of the play. While focusing on the Poenulus, we will explore the textual and archaeological evidence for ancient dramatic performance, and we will read other plays by Plautus. Finally, we will consider the influence of Roman comedy on later comedic traditions, from commedia dell’ arte to the modern musical and the sitcom.
The Class: Format: seminar
Limit: 12
Expected: 8-10
Class#: 3869
Grading: no pass/fail option, no fifth course option
Requirements/Evaluation: evaluation will be based on class participation (including a brief dramatic performance), an article review, one paper of 8-10 pages, a midterm and a final exam
Extra Info: may not be taken on a pass/fail basis; not available for the Gaudino option
Prerequisites: CLLA 302 or permission of the instructor
Enrollment Preferences: if the course is oversubscribed, preference will be given to majors and potential majors in Classics and Comparative Literature
Distributions: Division I

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