High School Literature 1: The Ancient World

Classical Track

$549.00 for LIVE

$249.00 for Self-Paced

This course is an introduction to the beginnings of Western literature in Ancient Greece and Rome. It includes an engaging survey of mythology, the great epics of Homer, and Greek drama. We dabble in the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle, and wrap up with Roman works by Virgil and Plutarch. Two related works from other eras are part of the curriculum also.

This class meets on Tuesdays at 12 pm, Eastern Standard Time.

Note: Space is limited. Be sure to enroll early to secure your spot.

  • STUDENT EXPECTATIONS

    • Attend a one-hour, weekly, live course session

    • Complete each week’s assigned reading

    • Take a short, online, comprehension quiz

    • Answer a weekly, online, discussion question each week

    • Submit two literary analysis papers and one creative project.

  • • Students have access to recorded lectures from their course and can choose which books to read and in what order.

    • Students will have access to weekly reading pacing guides and auto-grade quizzes.

    • This class does not include live class sessions or teacher support.

    • All recordings will be available from September 2 through the end of the following August.

  • There are many options for acquiring these books. You can order them from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or another online retailer. If you want to save money, you can check them out of the library. For most, you can get e-book versions or access them online and read them on your computer screen.

    Please note any particular edition or translation, as those are the ones you need; if no specifics are included, any version will work.

    Mythology, by Edith Hamilton

    The Iliad, by Homer (Samuel Butler translation)

    The Odyssey, by Homer (Samuel Butler translation)

    Greek Drama, by Bantam Classics or the 4 plays within it (all are available online and in e-book form):

    • Agamemnon, by Aeschylus

    • Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles

    • Medea, by Euripides

    • Antigone, by Sophocles

    Aesop’s Fables (There are several options here. I’m asking students to read a large number of these fables, which are all very short. There are several inexpensive print compilations you can get, but they are also all available online. Note: if you own a compilation and it doesn’t contain some of the assigned fables, look them up online.)

    Till We Have Faces, by C.S. Lewis

    The Dialogues of Plato (We are reading the following three dialogues, so if you get a collection, be sure it contains these; all are available online.)

    • Apology

    • Crito

    • Euthyphro

    The Republic, by Plato

    Poetics, by Aristotle (any English translation will work)

    The Aeneid, by Virgil (Mandelbaum translation)

    Plutarch’s Life of Caesar (I don’t recommend purchasing the entire collection of Plutarch’s Lives since we will only be reading one short section. In the syllabus, I provide links to online versions.)

    Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare