Module manager: Dr Bev Back
Email: B.Back@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
| CLAS3120 | Traversing Time: The Voyage of Argo |
This module is approved as a discovery module
The story of Jason and the Argonauts’ quest to retrieve the Golden Fleece has endured in myth for millennia. Originating from the pen of the Ancient Greeks, the story was later transformed and manipulated by a host of Roman writers, who considered the Argo to be the first ship in existence. After orientation in the Greek versions, we’ll focus on two Roman ones: Flavian poet Valerius Flaccus’ epic poem Argonautica, and Seneca’s famous tragedy Medea (both studied in English). We’ll also consider why later science fiction writers saw the Argo as emblematic of the hubristic technological advances made by the human race. Those interested in ancient myth and literature, as well as modern film, technology and the relationship between ancient and modern, should enjoy this module. Please note this is an optional module and runs subject to enrolments. If a low number of students choose this module, then the module may not run and you may be asked to choose another module.
Students taking this module will be able to understand and critique some prominent and contested concepts and creations of human culture in ancient Rome and, to an extent, in more modern history. Issues of power, gender, race, identity, ethics, morals, representation, and freedom are contested in these works, and study of them opens the doors to new ways of thinking about not only a prominent ancient Greek myth, but also its retelling through the Roman lens, and as a result, aspects of Roman life, but their literary and artistic culture, and society. It aims to equip students to be able to engage with them in detail through close readings of the set texts in translation, as well as to situate the works in their literary, socio-political, and historical contexts. Students will learn how to compare the texts with one another and to literary predecessors, as well as being introduced to other selected works which utilise aspects of the storyline, characters, or imagery shown in set material. The course will also introduce and prepare students to identify and evaluate secondary scholarship and literary critical approaches, especially e.g. narratology, considerations of genre, intertextuality, and reception theory.
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes relevant to the subject:
1- Identify, select and analyse appropriate sources.
2- Differentiate between selected texts, their predecessors and other ancient sources.
3- Explain the effects of later versions of the myth on the earlier material through an understanding of reception theory, exploring various interpretations of the set material.
4- Use close reading techniques to produce useful critical appreciations of passages from the set texts in commentary form.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
5- Critically analyse a range of primary sources and secondary scholarship;
6- Engage appropriately with a curated reading list;
7- Communicate effectively using reasoned, nuanced, and well-supported arguments in a variety of formats.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 14 | 1 | 14 |
| Seminar | 6 | 1 | 6 |
| Private study hours | 180 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Students will have the opportunity to receive formative feedback during module contact hours, both at lectures via in-class exercises and group discussion, and especially in seminar classes via feedback on contributions to class activities and formative presentations linked with the module coursework. Several seminars will support preparatory work for the coursework, for discussion with the seminar tutor and the group. These will give students a chance to explore what the module assessment requires, to practice and receive feedback on work which should improve their ability to complete the module assessments, and to gain a good sense of their progress on the module and on their preparatory work for the coursework well in advance of when it is due. Further opportunities are as follows:
- in-lecture ‘minute papers’, assessing impact of said lecture;
- post-it notes in-session for instant, anonymous feedback;
- via a mid-term informal questionnaire, where students can self-assess their progress and performance halfway through the course;
- through the detailed, formal module questionnaire at the close of the module.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Wiki Entry | 50 |
| Coursework | Literary Commentary | 50 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Coursework 1: Wiki Entry - Alternative Resit Format: Essay Title to be provided
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 25/04/2025
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team