First and foremost in my series of ancient Greek and Roman literature classes, the most important goal is for young students, who genuinely love mythology, to read not a modern book about mythology (as they most often do) but an ancient Greek or Roman work containing the original myths.

In this multi-day course in particular, we are going to approach the poem of the Aeneid by keeping the following three observations constantly in our mind:
(i) For the ancient Romans the epic poem Aeneid is a literary work of their glorious past, exalting their own selves and explaining how their great destiny (i.e. to create the Roman Empire) was predetermined by the gods Mars and Venus. 
(ii) It is an epic poem that includes the tales of their own hero Aeneas who belonged to the so-called heroic age of humanity . As most ancient heroes he was a source of inspiration, hope and strength, in order to solve problems and defeat fears, fight dangers and overcome obstacles. Life never comes wiithout them, neither then nor now! 
(iii) It is, also, an epic poem that entails the stories of a hero vis-a-vis gods, monsters, and other heroes, forming a part of the ancient Roman mythology. 

Therefore, in this class students will understand that the magic of myths lies not only in the stories themselves, fascinating as they are, but in the logic behind them and in their deeper meaning. Myths will be appreciated as a system of beliefs and a way of thinking about the world, as it was created by the ancient Romans. The goal for the students is to learn how Romans were structuring their myths and some of the narrative patterns that they were employing to tell meaningful stories about their gods, in this case about the heroic deeds of Aeneas, a pivotal figure in the foundation of the city of Rome. 

They will learn variations of certain myths of Aeneas and their purpose. And together we will try to interpret and explain them, compare them with other myths, and trace their origins. 

We will put particular emphasis on the role of the gods and goddess and the many roles they fulfill in the epic tale of Aeneas. After all, for the ancient Romans this was the most crucial part. We should better "listen" to them if we want to understand their point of view.

We will discuss together how were these stories played out in the social and artistic life of the ancient Romans. What did the Aeneid mean to men and women of the ancient Roman society? 

I have a BA in Classical History and Archaeology, an MA in ancient Greek and Roman Archaeology and History of Art and an MA in the History and Philosophy of Religions, and I am a PhD Candidate of Religion, specialized in ancient Greek and Roman religions.

Homework Offered
The students are asked to read in advance the assigned chapters for each day of the course. If this is not possible for students before every single day of the course, or if students prefer to read some of the rhapsodies before each class , they will still be able to follow the entire course. If they decide to do all the readings, this will help them considerably in terms of class participation, they will absorb the material easier and at the end they will have the pleasure of having read the entire epic poem.
2 - 4 hours per week outside of class
Assessments Offered
I do not believe that a letter grade is meaningful for a 8-week course on the Iliad. However, as I often do with my one-time classes, which are always small classes, I communication with the parents and the children directly, providing my personal comments, private feedback and an informal assessment.
Grades Offered