The Classics

The Harvard University Department of the Classics has been at the forefront of graduate education in classics for well over a century. It offers a variety of approaches, emphasizing a wide range of knowledge and skills rather than a narrow early specialization. Traditionally, the PhD in Classical Philology has been the degree taken by most doctoral candidates, but the department also offers degrees in Ancient History, Classical Archaeology, Classical Philosophy, Medieval Latin, Byzantine Greek, and Modern Greek. All candidates admitted to the PhD programs are expected to enter with competence in the pertinent languages, ancient and modern, on which they will build in the course of their graduate study.

Ideally, the doctoral program is conceived as lasting six years, divided into three segments. The first two years, defined as “academic residence” for administrative purposes, are largely devoted to seminars, to lecture/reading courses, and to independent reading in preparation for the general examinations. While all these formats are designed to broaden experience of the languages and literature needed for the degree, the seminars form the core of the department’s program of graduate education. Summers are often spent in reading to prepare for examinations.

In the third year, students prepare for their special examinations in three chosen categories, and begin to gain experience of teaching, which the department regards as an essential part of graduate preparation.

In the last two years, they continue to teach, but otherwise work towards the completion of the degree, especially the writing of the dissertation.

Though the department views the training of future university teachers as a major part of its mandate, its primary concern is to foster as thorough an expertise as possible in those classical, medieval, and modern fields which are centered on Greek and Latin language and literature. For this reason, the department emphasizes the acquisition not only of knowledge, but also of skills—in teaching, in analysis, in research—which will enable its graduates to find careers both within and outside the traditional fields. Great emphasis is laid in the process of graduate admission on the adaptability of students to a flexible job market, and the department assists the career development of its students by placement advice and other practical assistance with the application process.

In working towards a degree in Classical Philology, students may come to emphasize one language over the other and may explore interests in philology, archaeology, history and prehistory, linguistics, philosophy, religion, law, literary criticism, mythography, or the medieval world both western and eastern. The department also offers specialized training in such disciplines as papyrology, epigraphy, palaeography, and numismatics. The resources of other Harvard departments are open to those interested in other ancient languages and scripts, the history of science, and the relations of the Greeks and the Romans with other ancient cultures.

Progress to the doctorate is supported by the outstanding collections of the Widener Library in every aspect of the ancient world, with the pertinent texts and journals located conveniently beside study desks in the stacks. The department also maintains the Herbert Weir Smyth Classical Library, with 9,000 volumes and comfortable working tables. Classical art is housed in the Harvard Art Museums, which also have an extensive collection of books on ancient art. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has famous classical collections, and graduate students may be admitted to its library with special permission. Harvard’s Houghton Library holds papyri, manuscripts, and rare books pertaining to the classical field. Palaeographical works and manuscript facsimiles are kept in Smyth and in Widener D; the Parry Collection of oral epic is in Widener C, and epigraphical records and other aids are kept nearby in the Smyth Classical Library. The departmental space in Boylston Hall, and the Smyth library, both contain computer equipment for the use of the graduate students; this equipment provides access to the TLG, PHI, DCB, and other standard research tools.

There are regular occasions for graduate students and members of the department to meet informally outside the classroom; in addition, there are frequent colloquia, and opportunities for discussion of graduate and faculty work. The Seminar on Ancient Greece and Rome in Harvard’s Humanities Center sponsors roundtable discussion groups for faculty and graduate students. There are many public lectures sponsored by the department each year, including several James Loeb Classical Lectures given by distinguished scholars invited from outside the University. In alternate years the Carl Newell Jackson Lectures bring an eminent scholar to deliver four lectures which are subsequently published as a book; occasionally the Lectures are replaced by a Colloquium.

Funding for the duration of graduate study is normally provided by outright fellowship grants in the first two years, by a dissertation completion fellowship in the final year, and by a combination of tuition grants and teaching fellowships in the intervening years. In addition, GSAS offers a variety of fellowships for assistance at various stages, and also limited grants for summer language study, travel, and other projects. The Charles Eliot Norton Fellowship provides funding for a year or a summer at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. The Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, under the administration of the Trustees for Harvard University, offers some junior fellowships in the late classical, early Christian, and Byzantine fields.

The following Graduate School scholarships and fellowships are reserved in whole or in part for graduate students of the classics: George Henry Chase, Arthur Deloraine Corey, Charles Haven Goodwin, William Watson Goodwin, Albert and Anna Howard, Francis Jones, the Loeb Classical Library Foundation, Joseph Benjamin Moors, Charles Eliot Norton, William King Richardson, Fred N. Robinson, Paul Shorey, and Teschemacher Memorial. For the Bowdoin and other prizes, students in residence should consult the pamphlet “Prizes Open to Students of Harvard College and in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.”

Candidates who have successfully completed their general examinations (see below) are normally assigned teaching fellowships in undergraduate courses, which include elementary language courses, sophomore and junior tutorials, literature surveys, and courses taught in translation.

The department’s graduate program is chiefly designed to prepare students for the degree of doctor of philosophy (PhD); the department will not admit applicants for the degree of master of arts (AM) only. However, any student who has completed with honors two years of full-time study (16 applicable half-courses) will qualify for the degree of AM in the appropriate area as a level of attainment, which the department will normally recommend upon application by the student. No examinations beyond those required in the courses are required. Prerequisites are the same as for the PhD.

Doctor of Philosophy in Classical Philology

Prerequisites — Competence in both Greek and Latin sufficient to allow the student to take courses numbered above 100 upon entering graduate school.

Academic Residence — Minimum of two years of full-time study (a combination of 16 half-courses, 301s or units of TIME). Students are not normally permitted to take more than two courses numbered 301 before sitting for their general examinations.

Program of Study — Such as to foster expertise in:
(1) The methodology covered in the Proseminar (required).

(2) Greek and Latin languages and literatures, to be tested in the general examinations (see below).

(3) Intensive exegesis (textual, critical). To this end, before the PhD is conferred, candidates must pass four seminars having the designation “Classical Philology” (two in Greek topics, two in Latin).

(4) Prose composition, both Greek and Latin. This requirement is normally met by passing Greek K and Latin K, or the equivalent of the final examination in these courses, which may be set, if requested, as exemption examinations in late September or in January. This requirement must be met before the special examinations are taken (see below).

(5) Historical linguistics. To this end, candidates must pass Greek 134 and Latin 134 or the equivalent work, before taking the special examinations (see below).

(6) Ancient history and classical archaeology. In these areas candidates must pass three courses, subject to the following provisions:

(a) If two courses are taken in ancient history, the third must be in classical archaeology, and vice versa.

(b) At least one of the three courses must be on a Greek topic, and one other on a Roman topic.

(c) At least one of the three courses must be a graduate seminar.

(d) Two of the three courses must be passed
before the special examinations.

(e) A course on an ancient author in which work of an historical nature is submitted to fulfill the course requirements will be permitted to count towards the ancient history requirement.

(7) Other fields (Medieval Latin, Byzantine Greek, Modern Greek, Classical Philosophy, epigraphy, numismatics, palaeography, papyrology; other relevant fields with permission of the graduate committee). Candidates must pass one half-course in any one of these areas, or a second half-course either in Greek or Roman history or in classical archaeology. This requirement must be met before the PhD is conferred.

Modern Languages — The demonstration of a reading knowledge of French or Italian and of German, to be tested by the department (with the aid of dictionaries). This requirement must be fulfilled before the special examinations are taken. Tests are normally administered in September, February, and May.

General Examinations — All students will, normally by April of the second year, take general examinations comprising four parts, namely:

(1) Two written examinations of three hours each in the translation of Greek and Latin authors; each examination will consist of six passages (half prose and half verse) of which two will be at sight (i.e., not from the list given below).

(2) An oral examination of one-and-one half hours, divided into two parts, on the history of Greek and Latin literature respectively. This examination will include, but will not be confined to, the material contained in the reading list. The examining committee will consist of one faculty member chiefly responsible for Greek literature; one chiefly responsible for Latin literature; and an additional one to moderate the proceedings and to intervene at his or her discretion.

These examinations may only be repeated once in the event of failure. If a student fails only one part of the examination, then he or she need only repeat that part.

Before taking these examinations, the candidate must have read, as a minimum, the following reading list in the original languages.

The Reading List:

Greek Literature:

Aeschines: Against Ctesiphon 159-end

Aeschylus: Oresteia, Persae

Apollonius Rhodius: I 1153-1357, III 1-166, 609-824

Demosthenes: Olynthiacs 1, On the Crown 199-end, Philippics 1

Dio Chrysostom: Euboicus

Epigrams: (numbered as in Page, Epigrammata Graeca, except where otherwise specified):

Antipater Sidonius: XI, XXXVI-XL
Asclepiades: I, VI, XI, XX-XXII, XXXIXXXIII
Callimachus: II-V, VIII, XI, XIV-XV, XXIX-XXX, XXXIV, XXXVIII, XLIII, XLV, LI-LIII, LVI, LIX, LXVII
Dioscorides: XVII, XXII
Hedylus: XI
Meleager: VI, IX, XIII, XXIX-XXXVI, XL-LVI, CIII
Philodemus: XXIII
Posidippus IX, XXIV, Lithika I-XX Austin-Bastianini
Theocritus: XIII-XV

Euripides: Bacchae, Hippolytus, Medea

Gorgias: Helen

Herodotus: I 1-130, III 1-16, 30-87, VIII 18-99

Hesiod: Theogony, Works and Days

Homer: Iliad, Odyssey, Hymns 2 and 5

Isocrates: Panegyricus 26-50, Helen

Longus: Daphnis and Chloe 1, 4

[Longinus]: De sublimitate 1-16

Lucian: Dream, Assembly of the Gods

Lyric Poetry: selections as in D. Campbell, Greek Lyric Poetry

Lysias: 1, 7, 12

Menander: Samia

Pindar: Olympians 1, 2, 7, 14; Pythians 1, 4, 8, 10; Nemeans 6, 7, 8, 10; Isthmians 7, 8

Plato: Apology, Gorgias, Republic I, VI 496a11-VII 518d7, Symposium

Plutarch: Demosthenes-Cicero, including synkrisis

Polybius: VI 2-10, XXXVIII 22, XXXIX 1-6

Sophocles: Antigone, Oedipus at Colonus, Oedipus Tyrannus

Theocritus: 1, 2, 7, 11, 13

Thucydides: I 1-23, 31-44, 66-88,118-146, II 34-65, III 35-85, V 26, 84-116, VI 8-23, VII 84-87, VIII 1

Xenophon: Agesilaos

Latin Literature:

Apuleius: Metamorphoses I, IV 28 - VI 24

Augustus: Res Gestae

Caesar: Bellum Gallicum I, Bellum Civile III

Catullus: all

Cicero: In Catilinam 1-4; Pro Archia; Pro

Caelio; Philippics 1, 7, 14; Somnium Scipionis; De Officiis I 1-60; Brutus; letters, as in D. R. Shackleton Bailey’s Select Letters

Ennius: all fragments

Horace: Odes, Epodes, Satires I, Epistles I, II 1

Juvenal: 1-5, 10

Livy: I, VI, XXI, XXXIII

Lucan: I

Lucretius: I, III, IV 1058-1287, V 772-1457, VI 1138-1286

Martial: I

Ovid: Amores I, Fasti IV, Heroides I, VII, Metamorphoses I, VIII, X, XV 745-879, Tristia I

Persius: 1

Petronius: Satyrica 26.7-78.8

Plautus: Amphitruo, Menaechmi

Pliny: Epistulae I 1, 20, II 1, III 5, 6, 16, 19, 21, IV 14, V 8, VI 16, 20, VII 24, 33, VIII 8, IX 33, 36, X 61, 62, 96, 97

Propertius: I, II 1, 8, 10, 12, 13B, 15, 26A, 34, III 1-5, IV 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11

Quintilian: X 1

Sallust: Catiline

Seneca: Medea, Epistulae Morales 7, 12, 47, 51, 56, 86, 88, 114, 122

Seneca (Rhetor): Controversiae I 2, Suasoriae VI

Statius: Siluae I 1, II 2, 7, IV 6, Thebaid IX

Suetonius: Tiberius

Tacitus: Agricola, Dialogus, Histories I, Annals I, IV, XIV

Terence: Eunuchus, Adelphoe

Tibullus: I, II

Virgil: Eclogues, Georgics, Aeneid

Students taking General Examinations before April 2012 may make any substitutions of works by the same author, provided that the substituted material is roughly of the same length and parallel in genre. With the approval of the graduate committee, students may also substitute a work or works of one of more authors for a work of another, or a work of an author not on the list for an author on the list, with the same proviso. One month before the written examination (by June 1 for a fall examination), students will deliver their reading list, whether the original or a modified version, to the director of graduate studies. This will be used as the basis for the written translation examinations.

Students taking General Examinations in or after April 2012 must petition the graduate committee to make substitutions of items on the reading list in two categories: a) substitutions of a work by the same author, provided that the substituted material is roughly of the same length and parallel in genre, and b) a work of one author on the list for a work of another, or a work of an author not on the list for an author on the list, provided that the substituted material is roughly of the same length and parallel in genre. Petitions should be submitted to the graduate committee in advance of the regular advising meeting at the beginning of the semester, no later than the beginning of the term in which the student will sit the General Examinations (normally the spring term of the second year). Petitions will be discussed with the student at this advising meeting and the approved list will be used as the basis for the written translation examinations.

Special Examinations

By the end of the third, or, at the latest, the fourth graduate year, the candidate must take a two-hour oral examination in two special authors, one Greek and one Latin, and one special field. The candidate will be expected to know the historical background and manuscript tradition of these authors. The special field should be selected from fields such as the following: a period of Greek or Roman history, philosophy, religion, mythology, archaeology, topography, epigraphy, palaeography, papyrology, grammar or linguistics, metrics, history of classical studies, Medieval Latin literature, patristics, Byzantine studies, or the special problems of a literary genre (e.g., epic, historiography). The choice of authors and field should be submitted for approval by the graduate committee at the time of the general examinations or within a month following them. Preparation for this examination will be by independent study, with regular supervision by a faculty member for each part of the examination (Class. Phil. 302). These examinations may be repeated only once in the event of failure.

Dissertation Regulations

(1) At the end of the special examinations, or at the latest within one month thereafter, the candidate should specify the area in which the dissertation is to be written and the name of the dissertation director. This person shall be a member of the Harvard faculty.

(2) The candidate, after consultation with the director, and within two months of the special examinations, will then invite two other faculty members to serve as readers. In exceptional cases, and with the prior approval of the graduate committee, one of these two members may be drawn from another department, another university, or an equivalent institution.

(3) Before the end of the semester following the special examinations, the candidate shall meet with the director and the two readers for approval of the prospectus of the dissertation. The prospectus can take many forms, and its scope is various. The purpose is to ensure that the candidate has done enough work to determine that (a) the project is manageable, is of suitable scope, and has not been done before in the same way, and (b) the candidate has the knowledge and skills to make an original contribution on the topic. The prospectus should include an account of the issue to be investigated, an outline of the approach to be taken, an annotated bibliography, and a timetable for completion. The recommended length is 20-25 pages. The director shall promptly, by means of the appropriate form (available in the department office), notify the graduate committee of the approved title and the name of the members of the dissertation committee.

(4) The director shall, by May 15th of each year, submit the appropriate form (available in the department office) notifying the graduate committee of the student’s progress towards completion of the dissertation.

(5) Not later than the end of the sixth graduate year (except by permission of the graduate committee), the candidate must present a dissertation, written in an acceptable English style, as evidence of independent research. The final copy should conform to the requirements described in the GSAS publication, The Form of the PhD Dissertation.

(6) When the candidate and the committee deem that the dissertation is ready to be examined, the candidate shall present three unbound copies of the entire dissertation not later than one week before the degree application due date specified on the Degree Calendar in the GSAS handbook for that year. All students are strongly encouraged to undergo a dissertation defense, as detailed in "New Dissertation Regulations for Students Entering the Program from September 2010", but only those entering the program from September 2010 are required to do so. Students should refer to the appropriate section below for the remaining steps of the dissertation process.

New Dissertation Regulations for Students Entering the Program from September 2010:

(7) The members of the committee shall have not less than two weeks after the submission date in which to read the dissertation, after which they shall confer, either in person or by other means, and shall decide, by majority vote, whether the dissertation defense should proceed. If the decision is positive, the committee members shall also agree on the changes and revisions need for the dissertation to be approved. If, in the view of the committee members, substantial work remains to be done on the dissertation, the defense will be postponed to a later date. The director shall communicate the results of the committee discussion to the candidate.

(8) If the committee decides that the defense can proceed, the candidate shall normally have up to four weeks in which to make such changes and revisions as may have been specified by the committee and to submit a revised draft of the dissertation. The committee members shall have at least one week to review this revised draft before the defense takes place.

(9)The defense shall consist of a full and frank discussion of the dissertation, including plans for eventual publication of the results in article or monograph form. External members of the committee shall normally be physically present at the defense, but may be present via conference call, Skype or video-conferencing. Following the discussion, the members of the committee shall decide, by majority vote, whether to approve the dissertation, and, if the result is positive, shall sign the dissertation approval form.

(10) The dissertation as approved shall be accompanied by two copies of a summary of not over 1,200 words, which the director will promptly forward to the Editor of Harvard Studies in Classical Philology for publication.

Sample timeline for the procedures set out in steps 7-10: March 15th: candidate presents three copies of entire dissertation; April 1st: committee confers, decides if the defense can proceed; April 28th: candidate submits revised draft of dissertation; May 5th: thesis defense; May 8th; approved dissertation goes for binding; May 14t: bound dissertation submitted to Registrar [Note: the dates given are for a degree awarded in May. Please see the Degree Calendar for specific dates.]

Doctor of Philosophy in Classical Archaeology

The field of Classical Archaeology is understood to cover Aegean, Greek, Etruscan, and Roman art and archaeology. Faculty will also arrange work on a cross-departmental basis in related fields such as Egyptian, Near Eastern, Anatolian, Punic, Byzantine, and other areas of European art and archaeology.

Prerequisites

Entering students are expected to have competence in both Greek and Latin sufficient to take courses numbered above 100 in one of these languages (the “major language”), and above the beginning level of the other (the “minor language”). In exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the director of graduate studies, substitution of another ancient language in the place of the minor language may be arranged. Some preparation in German and either French or Italian should be undertaken before admission to the program.

Academic Residence

As for the PhD in Classical Philology.

Program of Study

Such as to foster knowledge of the archaeology and monuments of the classical world in their historical and social context.

(1) Proseminar: Taken in the first year. Pass/Fail.
(2) Classical Archaeology: four seminars, of which at least one shall be on a Greek topic and another on a Roman topic. One of the four may be in a related field.
(3) Languages and Literatures: three halfcourses at or above the 100 level, of which at least one shall be in the “major language” and another in the “minor language,” and one of which shall be a seminar.
(4) Ancient History: three half-courses, of which at least one shall be in Greek and another in Roman history. One of the three shall be a seminar.
(5) Other Fields: three half-courses, of which one must be in non-classical art history, and the other two are to be chosen from fields such as anthropology, art history, epigraphy, numismatics, palaeography, and papyrology, or a related field at the discretion of the director of graduate studies.

Modern Languages

As for the PhD in Classical Philology.

General Examinations

All students will, normally by May of the second graduate year, take general examinations comprising three parts:

(1) A written three-hour examination on the “major language,” consisting of six passages for translation (three prose, three verse) from the works prescribed in the reading list for that language.

(2) A three-hour written slide-examination testing knowledge of major sites, monuments, and works of art in the Greco-Roman world from the Bronze Age to the Late Roman period (a reading list indicating the relevant material is available from the director of graduate studies).

(3) A one-and-one-half hour oral examination testing general knowledge of major sites, monuments, and works of art of the Greco-Roman world from the Bronze Age to the Late Roman period. This examination will include, but will not be confined to, the material contained in the reading list of relevant material, and may include original objects. The examining committee will consist of at least three faculty members, one of whom will be appointed to moderate the proceedings and to intervene at his or her discretion.

These examinations may be repeated only once in the event of failure. If a student fails only one part of the examination, then he or she need only repeat that part.

Reading List

The Major Language Translation Examination (see under General Examinations) will be based on the following list. Students are also urged to read widely in translation from authors and works not included in the list.

Greek Literature:

Aeschylus: Agamemnon

Aristophanes: Frogs

Aristotle: Poetics

Demosthenes: Philippics 1

Epigrams (numbered as in Page, Epigrammata Graeca): Callimachus II-V, VIII, XI, XIV-XV, XXIX-XXX, XXXIV, XXXVIII, XLIII, XLV, LI-LIII, LVI, LIX, LXVII, Posidippus IX, XXIV

Euripides: Bacchae

Herodotus: 1

Hesiod: Theogony

Homer: Iliad 1, 18, 22, 24; Odyssey 1, 7, 9, 19

Inscriptions: R. Meiggs and D. Lewis, A Selection of Greek Historical Inscriptions #23 (Themistocles Decree), 93 (epigram for a Lycian dynast), J. H. Oliver, Greek Constitutions #2 (rescript on tomb-violation)

Lyric Poetry: selections from Sappho, Alcaeus, Archilochus, and Simonides, as in D. Campbell, Greek Lyric Poetry

Lysias: 1

Pausanias: 1, 5

Philostratus the Younger: Imagines

Plato: Symposium

Sophocles: Oedipus Tyrannus

Theocritus: 1, 7

Thucydides: 1; 6.72-105; 7.1-17, 21-24, 36-87

Latin Literature:

Augustus: Res Gestae

Catullus: 63, 64, 66

Cicero: letters, as in D. R. Shackleton Bailey’s Select Letters; Fourth Verrine Oration

Horace: Satires I

Juvenal: 3 Lex de imperio Vespasiani, as in M. Crawford’s Roman Statutes

Livy: 1, 6

Martial: 1, 14

Ovid: Metamorphoses 10

Petronius: Satyrica 26.7-78

Pliny the Elder: Natural History 34-35

Pliny the Younger: Epistulae 1.1, 3, 15; 2.1, 6, 17; 3.5, 6, 16, 19, 21; 4.28, 30; 5.6, 11; 6.16, 20; 7.24; 8.8; 9.7, 33, 36; 10.61, 62, 70, 71, 90, 91, 96, 97 Propertius 1

Scriptores Historiae Augustae: Life of Hadrian

Seneca: Epistulae Morales 7, 12, 47, 51, 56, 86, 88

Statius: Silvae 1.1, 3; 2.2; 4.6

Suetonius: Life of Nero

Tacitus: Annals 14

Virgil: Aeneid 4, 6, 8

Vitruvius: De Architectura 1

Students may make any substitutions of works by the same author, provided that the substituted material is roughly of the same length and parallel in genre. With the approval of the director of graduate studies, students may also substitute a work or works of one or more authors for a work of another, or a work of an author not on the list for that of an author on the list, provided that the substituted material is roughly of the same length and parallel in genre. One month before the written examinations, students will deliver their reading list, whether the original or a modified version, to the director of graduate studies. This will be used as the basis for the written translation examinations.

Special Examinations

All students will, normally at the end of the third graduate year, take a two-hour oral examination in three topics, of which at least one should be Greek and one Roman. The choice of topics should be submitted for approval by the graduate committee at the time of the general examinations, or within a month following them. Preparation for this examination will be by independent study, with regular supervision by a faculty member for each part of the examination. These examinations may be repeated only once in the event of failure.

Travel

After passing the special examinations, students are expected to spend one year either in academic programs at the American School of Classical Studies in Athens or at the American Academy in Rome, or at other institutions abroad which house materials relevant to their major area of research. In addition, students are strongly encouraged to acquire fieldwork experience.

Dissertation

The regulations governing the dissertation are the same as for the PhD in Classical Philology.

Doctor of Philosophy in Classical Philosophy

The purpose of the program in Classical Philosophy is to provide the student with the basic training in both philosophy and classical philology necessary for work in this field. Students who wish their primary grounding to be in the classics should apply to the program in Classical Philosophy in this department; students who wish their primary grounding to be in philosophy should apply to the parallel program in the Department of Philosophy.

Prerequisites

Competence in Greek and Latin sufficient to allow the student to take courses numbered above 100 in Greek and above the beginning level in Latin upon entering graduate school.

Academic Residence

As for the PhD in Classical Philology.

Program of Study

Such as to foster expertise in:

(1) The methodology covered in the Proseminar.

(2) Greek and Latin literature and philosophy; to be tested in the general examinations (see below).

(3) Intensive exegesis. By the end of the second year, the candidate must take two halfcourses designated “primarily for graduates” and given by the faculty of the department. In addition, the candidate must, by the end of the second year, have taken courses requiring substantial papers, or have submitted independently written papers, in each of the following areas: Plato, Aristotle, and either Pre-Socratic or Hellenistic Philosophy.

(4) Prose composition. This requirement is met by passing Greek K (or the equivalent) and Latin H before taking the special examinations.

(5) Modern philosophy. Before taking the special examinations, the candidate must complete, with a grade of B or better, the following courses in the Department of Philosophy:

(a) one course in Formal Logic.

(b) one course in Ethics, Political Philosophy, or Aesthetics.

Modern Languages

As for the PhD in Classical Philology.

General Examinations

All students will, normally by the end of their second year, take general examinations comprising four parts, namely: (a) two written examinations of three hours each in the translation of Greek and Latin authors; each examination will consist of six passages, including both prose and verse, of which two will be at sight; and (b) an oral examination of one-and-one-half hours, of which half will be on the history of either Greek or Latin literature, and half on Greek and Roman philosophy. These examinations may be repeated only once in case of failure. If a student fails only one part of the examination, then he or she need only repeat that part.

The Reading List:

Greek Literature:

Aeschylus: Oresteia, Prometheus

Aristophanes: Acharnians, Birds, Clouds, Frogs

Aristotle: Categories 1-5; Physics I, II; Metaphysics A, L; Nicomachean Ethics I-III.5; Poetics

Callimachus: Aitia fr. 1-2, 67-75, 110, Hymns 2

Demosthenes: Olynthiacs 1, On the Crown 199-end, Philippics 1

Diogenes Laertius: X 1-83, 117-154

Euripides: Bacchae, Hippolytus, Medea

Gorgias: Helen

Herodotus: I 1-130, III 1-87

Hesiod: Theogony

Homer: Iliad, Odyssey, Hymns 2 and 5

Isocrates: Panegyricus

Lyric Poetry: selections as in D. Campbell, Greek Lyric Poetry

Lysias: 1, 7, 12

Menander: Samia

Parmenides: all B fragments

Pindar: Olympians 1, 2; Pythians 1, 8, 10

Plato: Apology, Euthyphro, Gorgias, Phaedo, Republic I, II 357A-369B, IV 427D-445E, V 473B-480A, VI 502C-VII 521B, Parmenides 126A-135C

Plotinus: Enneads I 6

Plutarch: De Stoicorum Repugnantiis

Sextus Empiricus: Pyrrh. Hyp. I

Sophocles: Ajax, Antigone, Oedipus Tyrannus

Theocritus: 1, 2, 7, 11, 13

Thucydides: I, II 34-65, III 35-85, V 26, 84-116, VI 8-23, VII 84-87, VIII 1

Xenophon: Memorabilia

Latin Literature:

Apuleius: De Deo Socratis

Augustinus: De Magistro

Caesar: Bellum Gallicum I, Bellum Civile III

Catullus: all

Cicero: In Catilinam 1-4; Pro Caelio; Philippics 1; Academica; De Finibus; De Oratore I; Brutus; letters, as in D. R. Shackleton Bailey’s Selected Letters

Ennius: all fragments

Horace: Odes, Epodes, Satires I, Epistles I, II 2

Juvenal: 1, 3, 4, 6, 10

Livy: I, XXI, XXXIII

Lucretius: I, II 1-293, III, IV 1058-1287, V, VI 1138-1286

Martial: I

Ovid: Amores I, Heroides 1, 4, Metamorphoses I, VII, VIII, Tristia I

Persius: 1

Plautus: Amphitruo, Pseudolus, Rudens

Pliny: Epistulate I 1, 20, II 1, III 5, 7, 16, 19, 21, IV 14, V 8, VI 16, 20, VII 17, 27, 33, X 96, 97

Propertius: I, II 1, 8, 10, 12, 13B, 15, 26A, 34, III 1-5, IV 3, 7, 8, 9, 11

Quintilian: X 1

Sallust: Catiline

Seneca: Medea, Epistulae Morales 7, 12, 47, 51, 56, 76, 86, 88, 108, 114, 120-122, 124, De Constantia Sapientis, De Vita Beata

Suetonius: Tiberius

Tacitus: Agricola, Dialogus, Histories I, Annals I-II 26, IV 1-12, 32-67, VI 18-30, 50-51, XI 23-38, XII 58-XIII 25, XIV 1-65, XV 38-65, XVI 18-35

Terence: Heauton Timorumenos, Adelphoe

Virgil: Eclogues, Georgics, Aeneid

Students may make substitutions of authors or works under the same conditions as students taking the degree in Classical Philology.

Special Examinations

By the end of the third or, at the latest, the fourth graduate year the candidate must take a two-hour oral examination in two special authors, one Greek and one Latin, and one special field, which will in this case be a period or area of ancient philosophy. The candidate will be expected to know the historical background and manuscript tradition of the chosen authors. The choice of authors and field should be submitted for approval at the time of the general examinations or as soon thereafter as possible. These examinations may be repeated only once in the event of failure.

Dissertation

The regulations governing the dissertation are the same as for the PhD in Classical Philology.

Classics continued...