Anthropology/Religion 225
Classical and Medieval Studies 225

Gods, Heroes, Magic, and Mysteries:
Religion in Ancient Greece

How This Electronic Syllabus Works

Course Objectives

• Religion in Minoan and Mycenaean Culture
  (the bronze age on Crete and in the Aegean basin:
  ca. 2700-1100 B.C.E.)
• Religion in the "Heroic Age" as reflected in Homer and Hesiod
  (the bronze age on the mainland of Greece:
  ca. 1100-750 B.C.E.)
• Religion in the Classical Age of skepticism and rationality
  (the "Golden age" of Athens, 6th-4th c. B.C.E.)
• Religion in the Hellenistic and Greco-Roman periods

  (the period of westward movement of foreign or "diaspora" religions into the Greco-Roman world,
  2nd c. B.C.E.-2nd c. C.E.)

From a historical perspective, the primary objectives of this course are

1. to become familiar with central religious beliefs and concepts of each of the periods outlined above and how they relate to the social, political and economic conditionss of their times;

2. to learn what sources are available to us for the study of religion in ancient Greece;

3. to learn how to utilize these sources critically, that is, how to recognize what kinds of conclusions the evidence will support. The sources available to us include archaeological, iconic (pictorial) and literary evidence. Literary sources (such as Homer's Iliad or Euripides' play, The Bacchae) may be studied as evidence either for religious ideas of the time in which they were written, or for the time which the literary sources themselves describe;

4. to learn how to draw analogies between religious ideas of our own culture and those of foreign ones (in this case, those of Ancient Minoans, Myceneans, and Greeks) while recognizing how our own values and beliefs tend to color our reading of the evidence and learning how to resist this tendency.

From an anthropological perspective, the primary objectives of this course are:

1. to serve as an introduction to the way in which anthropologists attempt to understand cultures very different from our own;

2. to understand different religions as attempts to "say something" about the relationships between human beings and their gods;

3. to learn how to analyze religious symbols, institutions, beliefs, and practices in their wider socio-cultural context. These include myth, sacrifice, conversion, death rituals, healing rituals, rites of passage, trance and possession, and beliefs about the soul and life after death;

4. to appreciate the power of other religions as well as the beauty of the art and literature they inspire.

Using Perseus to Achieve These Objectives

• Perseus editions of ancient Greek literature

  locate texts instantly and follow links to biographical information on the authors in the Perseus Encyclopedia

• Perseus English-Greek Word Search

  Locate passages in classical texts that speak about particular objects (for example, for a research paper on "altars") by searching for the term ("altar") in the English definitions of Greek words in the Greek lexicon (LSJ = Liddell & Scott Greek-English Lexicon), then look up all passages containing those Greek terms.

• Perseus Lookup Tool (an interative index to the entire Perseus database)

  Search for terms (like "winged snakes") not only in the English translations of Greek texts, but also in (English language) descriptions of vases, sculptures and other primary sources in Perseus.

A much fuller version of Perseus is available on the Bates College network, including more resources from museums than you will find on the via the WWW. This is because the license fees paid by institutional users of Perseus cover permissions for use of museum holdings, permission which the free access to the WWW version does not cover. Similarly, the Atlas and the language tools on the networked version at Bates College operate differently and have features not found on the the WWW version.

Information on the networked version of Perseus at Bates College will be provided at the Orientation Sessions for this course.

Required Books

1. Apuleius, The Golden Ass (R. Graves, ed.)
2. Euripides, The Bakkhai (R. Bagg, ed.) or Perseus On Line ed.
3. Zaidman and Pantel, Religion in the Ancient Greek City
4. Hesiod, Theogony (N.O. Brown, ed.) or Perseus On Line ed.
5. Homer, The Iliad (R. Lattimore, ed.) or Perseus On Line ed.

   To be read in its entirety for general orientation during the first weeks of the semester by those less familiar with ancient history and classical culture; in addition, selections are to be read as listed in the Calendar of Readings for the course. As you read, keep a list of passages in the Iliad referring to caves (for the Cave Paper)

6. Gods, Heroes, Magic and Mysteries: Religion in Ancient Greece (Course Packet)

Reserve Readings

1. Homer, The Odyssey (see the Perseus On Line edition)
2. Rice & Stambaugh, Sources for the Study of Greek Religion
3. Wace, A.J.B. & Stubbings, F.H., A Companion to Homer

1. Introduction and Orientation to the Lands of the Aegean: Their History and Culture

Sept 6 (T)	Perseus Orientation in Ladd Library Computer Classroom at 7:00 p.m.
Sept 7 (W)	Perseus Orientation in Ladd Library Computer Classroom at 4:15 and 7:00 p.m.

2. Method and Theory in the Interdisciplinary Study of Ancient Greek Religion

3. The Aegean in the Bronze Age: Minoan and Cycladic Culture and Religion

4. Cosmogonic Myths

5. Gods and Mortals in Homer

6. Patterns of Religion in the Polis: Civil Relilgion & The Panathenaic Festival & Procession

7. The Cult of Orpheus. Alternative Religion: Ideas About Immortality and the Soul

Oct 13 (Th)

Plato, Republic, 10,614-end (The Myth of Er) and in Course Packet The Derveni Papyrus (handout) Orphic Inscriptions (handout) Rice & Stambaugh, pp. 39-42, 161-164, 229-31 Study Questions: See Set IX

Oct 18 (T)

Cave Paper Due in class. Audio Performance of the Bacchae (required)

8. Trance and Possession in the Worship of Dionysos

Oct 27 (Th)

Euripides, The Bakkhai. See also the Perseus On Line edition. Study Questions: See Set XI

9. The Other Side of Apollo: Oracles, Shamans and Wonder-Workers

Nov 3 (Th)

Bolton, Aristeas of Proconnesus (Course Packet 1) Levi-Strauss, "The Sorcerer and his Magic," in Structural Anthropology, pp. 161-180 (Course Packet 8) Study Questions: See Set XIII

Nov 8 (T)

Philostratus, The Life of Apolonius of Tyana (Course Packet 12) Study Questions: See Set XIV

10. Panhellenic Cults: The Cult of Asclepius: Dreams and Ritual Therapy in Ancient Greece

11. Panhellenic Cults: The Eleusinian Mysteries

12. Conversion and Salvation

Paper 1. Minoan Religion Paper, due Tuesday, Sept 27 (20% of course grade)..

A short paper (2-3 pp.), in the nature of an overview or synthesis and written in the form of a short encyclopedia article, on the subject: "Minoan Religion." This paper is not one that offers a thesis based on analysis, comparison or application of particular anthropological theory. It should, rather, identify the major characteristics of Minoan religion, set it in context in what is known or reasonably sure about Minoan history and culture. It should be informed by the Geertz's concepts of religion, culture and world view defined in his "Religion as a Cultural System" read at the beginning of the term.

Paper 2. The Cave Paper, due Tuesday, Oct 10 (20% of course grade)..

When you look at the Perseus On Line Encyclopedia, or observe what special terms in Greek literary texts have been indexed in Perseus, you will notice that caves have been overlooked. Yet it will be obvious to you by the second week of the semester that caves played a very important role in Greek religion. Our class is going to carry out a coordinated class research project on the the significance of caves in ancient Minoan and Greek religion. Students will work individually, conducting research on Perseus and in traditional sources (Library resources; class textbooks and readings), on a topic related to caves in Minoan and Greek religion.

Paper 2 Requirements. This paper will be 5-6 pages in length and will examine in depth -- in light of the theoretical ideas and anthropological approaches discussed in class -- some passage or passages from a primary source in which a cave or cave symbolism plays an important role. Each paper will incorporate comparison with images of caves in Hesiod and Homer, including The Odyssey, Book 11 (Odysseus in the underworld) available in the Perseus On Line edition, or Rice & Stambaugh, pp. 221-245. Students are advised to discuss their choice of topic and central text(s) with one of the professors.

Return to: Required Books List | Calendar Week 1

Paper 3. On a topic of your choice, due Thursday, Dec. 1 (20% of course grade)

A research paper of about 5 pp. on a topic of individual choice related to ancient Greek religion. As a research paper, this paper will use a variety of appropriate sources, including Perseus, Library resources and class textbooks and readings. It will also demonstrate methodological sophistication, applying one or more of the anthropological approaches introduced in this course. Students are advised to discuss their choice of topic and methodology with one of the professors.

Class Attendance and Participation (20% of course grade).

Includes class discussion, contribution to the work of your project group, participation in the e-mail discussion list. Regular and valuable contribution to class discussion and group work will raise a student's grade. Poor attendance and participation will lower it.

Please note these matters of common courtesy in class students are expected to refrain from wandering in and out of the classroom for personal reasons during class sessions, and to turn off their cell phones before the start of class. Cell phones are not allowed in the classroom during exams.

Final Exam - Monday, December 12, 10:30 a.m. (20% of course grade)

The final exam will include short answer questions (identifications of names, concepts and terms) as well as essay writing on more general topics, one of which will be circulated in advance to facilkitate advance preparation. Special arrangements will be made for students with diagnosed learning disabilities who need extra time for exams and quizzes.

Expectations for Paper Writing

For papers 2 and 3, it is essential that you work up an original analysis of some literary text, ritual, artwork, or archaeological site in light of one of the theoretical approaches we have discussed in class. Summaries, recapitulations, or descriptions of the ancient texts or rituals do not constitute analysis. Use a theoretical approach to "get beneath the surface" of the text or ritual and offer some interpretation of their meaning that would not have been available to you without the use of the theoretical approach.

Your papers should include the following elements:

• an introduction
• a brief description of the text or other subject (for example, a ritual, an art work, or a building or site) that you chose for analysis
• a clear and explicit statement of the method or theoretical perspective you plan to adopt in which you state why that method is appropriate to the subject and define clearly the important terms and concepts you use
• a conclusion in which you summarize both your findings and how the method adopted has led to insight about the meaning of the subject that you chose

About analysis. The most important part of your paper is the actual analysis itself, in which you apply the theory to the text (or other subject of analysis) in order to offer an interpretation of what it means. This is what we do in class day by day throughout the semester, so the approaches taken in class should provide you with models. For example, you could analyze Achilles' claim that Athena prevented him from attacking Agamemnon using Evans-Pritchard's discussion of causality or analyze one of the miraculous cures attributed to Apollonius or Asclepius using Levi-Strauss' insights into religious healing.

Responses may be sent by e-mail to:

Loring M. Danforth

   OR