PS234
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Freedom and Empire: The Drama of Ancient Politics
Course Subject Code
PS
Course Number
234
Course Title
Freedom and Empire: The
Course Long Title
Freedom and Empire: The Drama of Ancient Politics
Status
Active
Division
Social Sciences
Department
Unit(s)
1
Schedule Type
Block Seminar
Instruction Mode
Traditional
Grade Modes
Letter Grades, S/CR/NC, Audit
Course Description
Examines ancient politics, from the struggle for freedom to the temptations of empire, insofar as it is vividly portrayed in Shakespeare and the classical literature of Greece and Rome: the greatness, challenges and defects of the ancient republic; the nature of political and military ambition; and the causes and character of empire. Focus/possible works: Shakespeare's Roman plays; the Socratic Xenophon's novel on the rise and rule of Cyrus the Great; Tacitus on Roman emperors. The course may also draw upon Machiavelli on Rome.