Classical Civilisation
The aim of our group is to explore the many aspects of ancient Greek and Roman culture – topics such as History of the Roman Republic, Classical Athens, literature from Greece and Rome, Greek thought, Roman religion, Greek architecture, etc. There is no shortage of topics! We usually spend a period of some months on one topic, say on the Greek side, and then move to a Roman topic, then back to the Greeks again. We have recently studied the conflict between Rome and Carthage, and are now about to have a close look at the first book of Plato's Republic.
No knowledge of Greek or Latin is expected. Texts used are nearly always available in English translations, and quite cheaply. Copies of the more out-of-the-way texts (such as inscriptions) will be provided by the group leader. There is also a small Greek language reading sub-group, and one for Latin too, if anyone fancies getting back to basics! These are for people who have done the languages in the (sometimes distant) past and are keen on refreshing their knowledge.
The group itself is still small enough to meet in the home of one of our members, and we normally met about once a month, on a Thursday morning.
If anyone is interested in joining the group, and/or learning Classical Greek language, and/or in reading some Latin together, please let me know.
Gordon Gallacher
Page updated August 2023