Classics 126 - The Culture of Sport in Ancient Greece and Rome

We call them games. The Greeks called them agōnes, agonies. Sport in ancient Greece and Rome was serious business. A shared interest in athletic competition stitched together the Greek world. Aristocrats—and tyrants—publicized their wealth and influence by participating in games and victory celebrations. Augustus Caesar leveraged the power of the games to consolidate his power. In this class we will study the serious business of ancient Greek and Roman sport. We will address topics ranging from the history, organization and events of the ancient Olympics; mythology and sport; song and theater as venues for competition; the origin and social function of gladiatorial contests; and the ritual and religious aspects of Greek and Roman sports. We will also consider the influence of ancient athletics on the modern Olympics and the appropriation of classical sport and art by fascist regimes in the twentieth century. Our approach will foreground ancient sources. We will read literature drawn from Greek and Latin epic and lyric poetry, classical historiography, philosophy and rhetoric. We will also learn to evaluate ancient visual art and archaeological evidence, especially in our study of Olympia. Modern work by authors such as Foucault and Bourdieu as well as literature on play theory and network theory will shed light on the social and political significance of these institutions. This course assumes no previous knowledge of the ancient world. 

 

Three class hours per week. Spring semester. Visiting Lecturer Hansen.