Classical Civilisation

Course summary

Classical Civilisation involves studying the ancient civilisations of the Greeks and Romans, and we approach their world via their literary and material culture. We therefore combine a wide variety of disciplines; literature, history, philosophy, art history, archaeology. The course will develop your critical thinking, as you will need to assimilate information from these different areas, in order to create a secure understanding of these cultures which seem at times strange and alien (in their use of slaves and views on women, for example) and at times familiar (in their theatre, hero-worship, love-affairs and politics). In fact, such familiarity stems from the fact that Greek and Roman culture has profoundly influenced our own, so this subject allows you to explore why we in the modern world have so often imitated the Classical past. Many of our students develop a genuine passion for Classical Civilisation and go on to study it at university, where it is a well-regarded Humanities discipline.