Fall 2007

LAT 323 • Cicero and Caesar

Course Description

The aim of the course is to study works by the two greatest prose stylists in the late Roman Republic, Cicero's speech in defense of Archias and Caesar's narrative of two battles he fought in 48 B.C. Each approaches his subject matter in very different language, Cicero's being full and rhetorical, Caesar's as plain as could possibly be. Beyond this, Cicero's speech offers his defense of the importance of literature in life. Caesar's narrative in Civil Wars III deals with two engagements, in one of which he was all but defeated, mainly by his own rashness and in the other of which he won the decisive victory over his principal rival, Pompey the Great. Prescribed Books Cicero, Pro Archia poeta oratio, edited by Steven M. Certutti (Bolchazy-Carducci) Caesar, Civil Wars III. edited by E. Kennedy (Bristol Classical Press) Grading: there will be two one-hour quizes during the semester (20% each), and one two-hour final (40%). The remaining 20% will be determined by classroom participation.

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