Reading selections for Lucretius, On the Nature of the Universe (De rerum natura) listed by Book and Line Numbers. Other translations of the title include  On the Nature of Things or The Way Things Are. These are all the same book.

Book 1 

1–43; 50–61; 62–101; 102–116, 146–48; 149– 73; 215–29, 232–36; 250–64; 265–84, 295–97; 298–321; 329–45; 358–69, 400–09; 419–28, 430–32, 485–88, 498–502, 528–30; 565–76; 921–50; 958–59, 963–83; 1021–37. 

Book 2 

1– 33; 37–42, 44–61; 95–99, 114–22, 142–52, 157–59, 161–64; 216–24, 251–68, 289–93; 308–10, 312–32; 333–35, 338–70; 523–27, 532–40; 646–60; 991–1009, 1013–19, 1021–22; 1023–47; 1052–65, 1074–76; 1090–1104; 1150–52, 1157–74. 

Book 3 

1–30; 37–64; 94–97, 136–44, 152–60; 323–49, 830–42; 894–903, 912–30; 931–65; 978–1023.

Book 4 

1058–64, 1089–110l 1120–22, 1129–40, 1144–59, 1177–79; 1278–1287. 

Book 5

1–2, 6–27, 37–51; 64–77; 195– 234; 235–46; 432–48; 925–34, 937–47, 953–61, 966–72; 1011–23; 1028–29, 1041–45, 1050– 51, 1056–61; 1161–68, 1183–89, 1194–1203; 1392–1404, 1412–35; 1448–1457.

Book 6 

58– 78; 1090–97, 1138–44, 1256–58, 1267–86.

Here are some items to supplement your reading and our discussion of Agamemnon.

Didaskalia is one of the best online resources for studying ancient theatre from a contemporary perspective. Go to the study area, especially the Introduction to Greek Stagecraft.

Oresteia entry on Wikipedia. This will put the Agamemnon in the context of the trilogy.

House of Atreus also on Wikipedia. This will give you much of the backstory on the family curse.

Judgment of Paris on Wikipedia. This is another aspect of the backstory on the Trojan War.

The Browning Version is available through Perseus. Read masterVictorian poet Robert Browning's heavily criticized version. 

Oresteia by Xenakis reviewed in the music section of New York Times.You can find excerpts of the recording if you search iTunes and YouTube. Look for the "Kassandra" section for baritone & percussion. Xenakis uses the Aeschylean text.

Introduction to Greek Meter is a very helpful paper by William Annis on the prosody of Ancient Greek. (Link opens to a PDF file)

Welcome & welcome back! Our reading list with editions and schedules for both sections are here. Just click the link for your section:

Section 1 (Tuesday mornings): Download BM1_Syllabus_F10_s1

Section 2 (Wednesday evenings): Download BM1_Syllabus_F10_s2

Fall Classes with Peter Arcese:

Shakespeare & the Revenge Play
Why So Much Blood, Guts & Gore?

What kind of a person would write such bloody plays & why?

• Was Shakespeare pandering to the insatiable Elizabethan appetite for blood? 
• Was Shakespeare inciting racism for profit? 
• Or was Shakespeare trying to show us a better way to live?

We can learn more about Shakespeare from reading his plays than by reading his biographies. By saturating his audience with visions of violence, he prompted them (and us) to imagine paths to peace and justice. Reading the following three plays, we can discover Shakespeare as a humanitarian who used the conventions of bloody entertainment to overcome the basic human desire for vengeance and the destructive distortions of prejudice.

Titus Andronicus (1593/94): a tragedy of human depravity

The Merchant of Venice (1596/1600): a sinister comedy of cold reason

The Tempest (1610/23): a romance of cruelty & compassion

Five sessions, Tuesdays 2-4pm: 9/21, 10/12, 10/26, 11/16, 12/7

Location: NYC Bar Association, 42 West 44th St (b/t 5th & 6th Aves)

$145 for the series, $35 per individual session

Course Selections

All 5 sessions $145.00 Session 1 - 9/21 $35.00 Session 2 - 10/12 $35.00 Session 3 - 10/26 $35.00 Session 4 - 11/16 $35.00 Session 5 - 12/7 $35.00