B1644 - Greek Literary Culture with Exerciser of Anthropology (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student knows the main literary, historical and socio-anthropological aspects of Greek culture and is able to read and interpret texts of Greek literature from a historical and anthropological perspective.

Course contents

1) General introduction to the Historical Anthropology of Ancient Greece: methodological assumptions, history of the discipline and epistemological issues.

2) Anthropological reading of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter: following the development of the story, various social practices and formations will be analysed (the ethics of gift-giving, conviviality, hospitality, kingship, orality and aurality, etc.) and the sacred actions that characterised the Eleusinian Mysteries will be examined.

Readings/Bibliography

In addition to the notes and materials provided in lectures, it will be required:

1) for an introduction to the anthropology of ancient Greece, the reading of the chapters on Tylor, Frazer, Bachofen, Morgan, Robertson-Smith, Boas, Durkheim, Lévy-Bruhl, Van Gennep, Mauss, Malinowski and Lévi-Strauss in U. Fabietti, Storia dell’antropologia, Bologna 2001 and of L. Gernet, Antropologia della Grecia antica, Milano 1983 (ed. or. Paris 1968);

2) the reading of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter (see F. Càssola, Inni omerici, Milano 1975) and some of the passages collected in P. Scarpi, Le religioni dei misteri, I, Eleusi, dionisismo, orfismo, Milano 2002;

3) for an introduction to the archaic epic and the Homeric question, the reading of F. Càssola, Inni omerici, Milano 1975, IX-LXVI and of G. Cerri, Introduzione, in W. Schadewaldt, G. Cerri, A. Gostoli, Omero. Iliade, Milan 1996, 63-97;

4) for the Eleusinian Mysteries, the reading of G.E. Mylonas, Eleusis and the Eleusinian Mysteries, Princeton 1961, 224-285

5) the reading of L. Gernet, Antropologia della Grecia antica, Milano 1983 (fr. ed. Paris 1968)

Useful for understanding the figures of Gernet, Meyerson, Mauss, Vernant and Harrison is R. Di Donato, Per una antropologia storica del mondo antico, Florence 1990; for the Homeric question see also F. Codino, Introduzione a Omero, Torino 1965, 23-47, I. Morris, The use and abuse of Homer, «ClAnt» V/1 (1986) 81-138, G. Nagy, The Best of the Achaeans: Concepts of the Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry, Baltimore-London 1979, R. Di Donato, Esperienza di Omero, Pisa 1999, A. Ercolani, Omero: introduzione a allo studio dell’epica grecaica arcaica, Rome 2006 and L. Sbardella, Cucitori di canti: studi sulla tradizione epico-rapsodica greca e i suoi itinerari nel VI secolo a.C., Rome 2012, 5-63. On the Eleusinian Mysteries, it is useful to read M.P. Nilsson, Greek Folk Religion, New York 1940, 42-64; G. E. Mylonas, Eleusis and the Eleusinian Mysteries, Princeton 1961, W. Burkert, La religione greca, Milano 2003, 512-519, W. Burkert, Homo necans. Antropologia del sacrificio cruento nella Grecia antica. 

Further bibliography will be indicated during the course.

Teaching methods

The lessons will be mainly frontal, in particular as to the introduction to the historical and theoretical assumptions of the Anthropology of the ancient Greece. The commented reading of the Homeric text will be more seminar-like.

The materials indicated in the course of the lectures will be made accessible and downloadable on the web (Virtuale). 

The course participates in the University's teaching experimentation project.

Assessment methods

The examination will consist of an interview in which, on the one hand, the ability to translate and comment on the Homeric Hymn to Demeter and the passages covered in the lecture in a historical-anthropological manner will be ascertained and, on the other hand, knowledge of the theoretical assumptions of the Anthropology of Ancient Greece and the history of the discipline will be tested.

The maximum marks require precise and complete answers: the evaluation for excellent theoretical knowledge and ability to translate and comment texts will be 30L; very good 30-29; very good 28-27; good 26-25; fair 24-22; more than sufficient 21-20; sufficient 19-18.

 

Students with DSA or disabilities are recommended to contact the responsible University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it/per-studenti): any adjustments must be submitted, at least 15 days in advance, to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness also in relation to the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

Texts and photocopis, IOL, Power point

Office hours

See the website of Stefano Caciagli