BA/BS in Classical and Ancient Studies

Classical Studies introduces the languages, writings, history and physical remains of Greek and Roman society, together with the wider Mediterranean world across roughly a thousand years from the eighth century BCE. Students may study ancient Greek and Latin alongside religion, politics, philosophy, art and the ancient past, though knowing the ancient languages is not necessary to take part. Literary forms such as epic, drama, rhetoric and historiography are studied together with political ideals like democracy and free speech and early principles of philosophy and science. Learning goals include reading Greek and Roman texts critically in the original languages and in translation, placing them in literary, philosophical and historical contexts, and developing well-reasoned arguments from primary and secondary evidence. The program belongs to the Department of Classics and Italian, offers a major and a minor, and is the path for students entering in fall 2024 or later.