CLAS 2035 - The Glory of Athens and the Shadow of Sparta

This course explores the history of Greek civilisation from the late Archaic age down to the end of the fifth century BC (ca. 750-404 BC). This was one of the key periods in Western history, an era that witnessed a truly extraordinary burst of creative activity in areas such as political theory, philosophical thought, drama, literature, sculpture and architecture. This course will consider the conditions that made that movement possible, and establish the proper historical context in which to consider the achievements of the ancient Greeks. Although mainly focussing on the city of Athens (on the evolution of that polis into 'the' city of Classical period), we must also consider the history of her great counterpart in this period - Sparta. We shall see how the fierce rivalry that developed between the democratic city of culture and an oligarchic military commune came to define an age.