Daily Activities (Click week to see activities | Expand All | Collapse All)

Nota Bene: assignments are due on the date listed; e.g. the reading for Friday 1/25 will be discussed on Friday 1/25.

Week 1: 1/23-1/25

 

W 1/23: — Dies Mercurii a.d. X Kal. Feb.

Exordium: Introduction to the Course and Roman Comedy

Lege in grege: Prologue(s) to Miles Gloriosus (quick read through Miles 1-13).

 

F 1/25 — Dies Veneris a.d. VIII Kal. Feb.

Percusio (Review): A Brief Introduction to the Language of Plautus (hereafter known as BITLOP). At this point, it is most important to have a general sense of the types if differences between Classical and Plautine Latin. The commentary and the worksheets will help you with the forms in the early stages of the semester.

Lege Latine: Miles Gloriosus lines 1-12

Scribe (these asignments will usually be collected): Worksheet on Plautine Language and Miles 1-12

Lege Anglice: Plautus' shortest (and in many ways most typical) play, Curculio ("Weevil").

1. “Why Translate This Way” (Richlin pp. 2-3)
2. Plautus, Curculio (Richlin pp. 65-96)
   • Be sure to read pp. 61-64, on the significance of the names of the characters
   • Recommended that you read pp. 55-61: a general introduction to the play.
   • Nota Bene: Richlin indicates the meter of each section of the play on the right of the page (e.g. in line 1 we see “iambic senarii”). It is not important that you know what these meters are at this point, but do note when Richlin indicates a change of meter, as meter was an important device in structuring the play.

Questions to Ponder

• Humor in Plautus: What techniques does Plautus use to generate laughs?
• Translation: Translation is something that we do all the time in Latin classes, but we may not pay as much attention to the different styles and goals of translation as we should. What do you think of Richlin’s style of translation? Lawrence Venuti has described the two primary modes of translation as “Domestication”, in which the differences between the world of the text and that of the audience are minimized, and “Foreignization”, in which that gap left evident or even reinforced. What approach has Richlin taken? What are the advantages and disadvantages of such a strategy?
• Metatheater, or when characters in a play comment on the production (often by reference to the audience, playwright, acting or actors, theater, etc., is a important part of Plautine stagecraft. Can you detect any examples of this in Curculio?
• Stock Characters: Take a look at the "Stock Characters in Roman Comedy" Handout. Which characters in Curculio map onto which stock characters? Is there any overlap or slippage in the characters between stock roles?

Resources

• Video of "Fugue for Tinhorns" (Guys & Dolls)
• Video of "Hey Jude" (Beatles)

 

Week 2: 1/28-2/1

 

M 1/28 — Dies Lunae a.d. V Kal. Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 12-45

Scribe: Worksheet

 

W 1/30 — Dies Mercurii a.d. III Kal. Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 46-78

Scribe: Worksheet

Lege Anglice: Beacham, R.C. 1991. “An Audience in Search of a Theatre” in The Roman Theatre and its Audience: pp. 1-22

 

F 2/1 — Dies Veneris a.d. XVI Kal. Martis

Lege Latine: Miles 79-101

Quiz on Miles 1-78

 

 

Week 3: 2/4-2/8

 

M 2/4 — Dies Lunae prid. Non. Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 102-146

 

W 2/6 — Dies Mercurii a.d. VIII Id. Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 156-184

Lege Anglice: Marshall, C.W. 2006. “The Experience of Roman Comedy: Performance Spaces” in The Stagecraft and Performance of Roman Comedy: 31-48

 

F 2/8 — Dies Veneris a.d. VI Id. Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 185-199

Quiz




Week 4: 2/11-2/15

 

M 2/11 — Dies Lunae a.d. III Id. Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 200-244

Lege Anglice: Marshall, C.W. 2006. “The Experience of Roman Comedy: Set, Costume, Stage Properties” in The Stagecraft and Performance of Roman Comedy: 49-72.

 

W 2/13 — Dies Mercurii Ides Feb.

Lege Latine: Miles 245-271

Lege Anglice: Marshall, C.W. 2006. “The Experience of Roman Comedy: Set, Costume, Stage Properties” in The Stagecraft and Performance of Roman Comedy: 49-72.

 

F 2/15 — Dies Veneris Ides Martis

Lege Latine: Miles 272-296

Quiz

 

 

Week 5: 2/18-2/22

 

M 2/18 — a.d. XIII Kal. Martis

Lege Anglice: Miles 297-344

 

W 2/20 — Dies Mercurii a.d. XI Kal. Martis

Lege Anglice: Miles 345-367

Lege Anglice: Marshall, C.W. 2006. “Stage Action: Focus, Pace” in The Stagecraft and Performance of Roman Comedy: 159-184

 

 

F 2/22 — Dies Veneris a.d. IX Kal. Martis

EXAMEN PRIMUM

 

 

 

Week 6: 2/25-2/29

 

M 2/25 — Dies Lunae a.d. VI Kal. Martis

TBA

 

W 2/27 — Dies Mercurii a.d. IV Kal. Martis

TBA

 

 

F 2/29 — Dies Veneris pridie Kal. Martis

TBA




Week 7: 3/3-3/7

 

M 3/3 — Dies Lunae a.d. V Non. Martis

TBA

 

 

W 3/5 — Dies Mercurii a.d. III Non. Martis

TBA

 

 

F 3/7 — Dies Veneris Nones Martis

TBA

 

 

Week 8: 3/17-3/21

 

M 3/17 — Dies Lunae a.d. XVI Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

W 3/19 — Dies Mercurii a.d. XIV Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

F 3/21 — Dies Veneris a.d. XII Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

Week 9: 3/24-3/28

 

M 3/24 — Dies Lunae a.d. IX Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

W 3/26 — Dies Mercurii a.d. VII Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

F 3/28 — Dies Veneris a.d. V Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

 

Week 10: 3/31-4/4

 

M 3/31 — Dies Lunae pridie Kal. Aprilis

TBA

 

 

W 4/2 — Dies Mercurii a.d. IV Non. Aprilis

TBA

 

 

 

F 4/4 — Dies Veneris pridie Non. Aprilis

TBA

 

 

 

Week 11: 4/7-4/11

M 4/7 — Dies Lunae a.d. VII Id. Aprilis

TBA

 

W 4/9 — Dies Mercurii a.d. V Id. Aprilis

TBA

 

 

F 4/11 — Dies Veneris a.d. III Id. Aprilis

TBA

 

 

Week 12: 4/14-4/18

 

M 4/14 — Dies Lunae a.d. XVIII Kal. Maii

TBA

 

W 4/16 — Dies Mercurii a.d. XVI Kal. Maii

TBA

 

F 4/18 — Dies Venerisa.d. XIV Kal. Maii

TBA

 

 

Week 13: 4/21-4/25

 

M 4/21 — Dies Lunaea.d. XI Kal. Maii

TBA

 

 

 

W 4/23 — Dies Mercurii a.d. IX Kal. Maii

TBA

 

 

F 4/25 — Dies Veneris a.d. VII Kal. Maii

TBA

 

 

 

 

Week 14: 4/28-5/2

 

M 4/28 — Dies Lunae a.d. IV Kal. Maii

TBA

 

W 4/30 — Dies Mercurii pridie Kal. Maii

TBA

 

F 5/2 — Dies Veneris a.d. VI Non. Maii

TBA